The legacy of a person is often determined by the final acts of that person in his life.
Two years ago, Uri Orbach assumed the position as the Israel government minister for senior citizens affairs, an unusual task for a government minister.
Many people in Israel did not understand what that job involved.
Our family got to know, first hand whatOrbach’s job entailed, when our daughter, Meira, was assigned to work with recently widowed older women in Ashkelon, as part of her National Service, under the auspices of uri orbach,Minister for Senior citizens affairs.
We witnessed a well organized program, which facilitated clean, modern apartments for Meira and other young women to live in for the year in Askkelon, as they worked in a professional setting, with hours designated each day for home visits with each of the women whom they were assigned to help. Every step of the program was well done. My wife and I got to meet each of these widows being helped along with Meira’s professional supervisors.
In short, our many years in Israel had not prepared us for such a well efficient operation in social service.
As Meira’s service continued over the year, I dropped by Uri Orbach’s Knesset office on a number of occasions to convey personal thanks and to offer to publicize Uri for a job well done.
Uri’s associates conveyed thanks and mentioned that Uri was involved in every step of supervision over the program for older people, appropriately called HADARTA ( YOU SHALL RESPECT…THE ELDERLY, but said that Uri was too busy and not able to engage in “promotion”.
Other journalists had the same experience.
Reporters who knew his ministerial work who wanted to write nice things were finding that Uri was simply “not available”.
Now we know why.
It is not too late, however. to say that Uri Orbach brought dignity to older people in his last two years of life