During the Yom Kippur War, Shunya Pecht served in the IDF as a radio operator. This experience shaped his life and legacy, and Yad Sarah’s Life Stories Project helped him preserve it.

At Yad Sarah’s Shoham branch, volunteer Liat Heller Fecht leads the Life Stories Project and held several meetings with Shunya to hear about his upbringing, his service in the IDF, and his adult life. Liat wrote these stories up into a complete book that preserves his memories and unique life experience for future generations.

Shunya received his completed book in March 2025 and sadly passed away a few months later.

During the shiva, loved ones passed his book around. Family members, friends, and even strangers connected with Shunya’s memories, uniting through the power of storytelling.

After hearing of Shunya’s passing, President Isaac Herzog, who served alongside Shunya in the IDF, requested a copy of the life stories book and invited Shunya’s family to his residence to honor Shunya’s life and share his story.

Yad Sarah’s Life Stories Project, which began in 1998, records and preserves personal histories for aging individuals, terminally ill patients, and survivors of the Holocaust. Through close collaboration, trained volunteers work with participants to document and publish their life stories. The program has worked with hundreds of individuals – including Holocaust survivors – across Israel to create and preserve these distinctive first-person accounts in video and written formats. Life Stories books are cherished by individuals and families and hold unique historical value.

Yad Sarah honors participants’ legacies, reinforcing the collective memory of the people of Israel and creating lasting testimonials for future generations.

May Shunya’s memory be a blessing.