Zev (Wolf) Halevi Berman was born in 1906 in Philadelphia. His father's name was Shmuel.
Billy, as he was known in his youth, attended Mishkan Yisroel in Philadelphia and excelled in baseball, basketball, and swimming. He attended a high school associated with the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS) where his public speaking skills made him a folk hero after he led the debate team in a close victory over a rival school.
In 1928, he received rabbinic ordination at RIETS and was offered a position at a synagogue in Teaneck, New Jersey, but turned it down to study at the Hebron Yeshiva.
Bernard Revel, president of RIETS, and later first president of Yeshiva University, remembered Berman as: “A proud American and an understanding son of his people, with a deep knowledge of the Torah, a charming personality, and an eloquent speaker. In his short life he made many sacrifices for the Torah, and it was given to him to make the supreme sacrifice al Kiddush Hashem."
In Hebron, he earned the esteem of his colleagues. Heads of the yeshiva considered him a role model commenting, “we need more students like him from America.”
On August 24, 1929 he was killed by Arabs in the deadly Hebron riots. He was buried there.
*** The information on this page is part of the 'Yizkor' commemoration project by the Ministry of Defense / the 'La'ad' website by the National Insurance Institute, in memory of the fallen. We strive for accuracy and apologize for any errors. For corrections or comments, please contact us here: https://aaciremembers.org/contact-us/ ***
