Sean Nissim Carmeli was born on May 12, 1993, in South Padre Island, Texas, the son of Dalya and Alon Carmeli. The Israeli-American teenager loved sports: basketball, American football, and soccer; he liked the beach - not surprising for someone who grew up on an island in the Gulf of Mexico. When he was 16, his parents came back to Israel and Sean attended Ostrovski high school in Raanana, where the student body included other olim and returning residents.
When his parents returned to Texas, Sean and his sisters remained in Israel. After high school Sean studied in a yeshiva before being drafted. He served in the Golani brigade, a source of great pride for him. When the fighting in Gaza began in July 2014, a foot injury could have prevented him from going to the front, but he insisted on serving with his unit. On July 20 his armored personnel carrier was struck by an anti-tank weapon in Shejaiya; all 6 members of the squad were killed. An estimated 20,000 people attended his funeral, including many who feared that because his parents lived abroad no one would be there to honor Sean who was 21 at the time of his death. He is survived by his parents and sisters, Gal and Or.
