Deborah Genauer was born and raised in the US. She became a psychologist and came to Israel in 1953. She worked at the Hospital for Handicapped Children in Katamon. She lived with her uncle Zvi in Kiryat Moshe.
Zvi came to Israel in 1952 with his wife Zippora and their five children. He studied at the Mir Yeshiva. On April 19, 1953 (the eve of Independence Day) a group of Arabs infiltrated into West Jerusalem, entered the Genauer home and shot both Zvi and Deborah.
