Erez Orbach did not have to serve in the IDF due to a rare blood condition, but he insisted on volunteering anyway. He grew up in Alon Shvut, south of Jerusalem, the oldest child (of 6) of Caryn Tsadok Orbach and Uri Orbach. Caryn's mother Mimi made aliya with her parents in 1968, and for years Mimi's father Bill Bernstein was an active AACI member in Netanya. Erez, a graduate of Ohr Torah Stone's Neveh Shmuel High School Yeshiva, and an outstanding young man, was in OCS (Officer Candidate School). Earlier this year, he spoke on behalf of his peers at a ceremony honoring army volunteers. Part of his speech: "Despite my disease, I never saw myself as being different from anyone else or worthy of different treatment. I certainly never thought that I deserved to carry less of a load than others. I knew then, and I still know now, that I am like everyone else, almost, and I resolved not to give up. If the IDF doesn't want to draft me -- I will volunteer."
Erez Orbach was killed along with 3 other soldiers in a truck-ramming attack in Talpiot, Jerusalem, on January 8, 2017. He is survived by his parents, siblings, and grandparents.
