Moshe Balfour Mishael's Obituary
Mishael, Moshe Balfour
We mourn the passing of our beloved husband, father and grandfather, Moshe (“Mike”) Balfour Mishael, 92, of Aventura, Florida who, following a long, full and remarkable life passed away peacefully in his sleep on the Jewish Sabbath, June 13, 2015 of complications from Alzheimer’s disease.
A native of South Tel Aviv near the biblical port of Jaffa, Mr. Mishael was one of the pioneers of the State of Israel. His mother had been born in Tiberias on the Sea of Galilee during the Ottoman Empire. His father had made aliyah from Yemen through Egypt. Moshe was fluent in Arabic, Hebrew and English. Despite being seriously injured during the Italian bombing of Tel Aviv during World War II, Moshe became active during the British Mandate period in the Zionist underground. He swam out to refugee ships docked offshore to help Jews returning to their homeland following the Holocaust. During the War of Independence, he served as director of military transportation in the Defense Ministry under (later President) Shimon Peres, and was a member of the Likud Party. Remembering those days on the occasion of Mr. Mishael’s 87th birthday, Peres wrote: “When you were the commander of the caravans to Jerusalem, in those hard days of war and difficulties, when Jerusalem was cut off, and was attacked from every direction, even then, your spirit did not fail. You did not know fear, you were a courageous commander…” Wreckage from those battles remain on the hillside above the modern highway that runs between Ben Gurion International Airport and Jerusalem. Having special meaning to Mr. Mishael was the 1967 song “Jerusalem of Gold,” that came to commemorate the flag of the Jewish People flying over the Old City for the first time in 2000 years. Moshe and Barbara met at Kibbutz Ma'ale Ha'Hamisha in 1953 during a Fourth of July Dance in Abu Ghosh. They eventually settled in Miami and Moshe went on to have a successful career in insurance, real estate and investments. They attended Temple Or Olam, and seats were reserved for Barbara and Moshe during High Holidays at their Tel Aviv synagogue. Moshe was one of four children, and was predeceased by brothers, Rafi (“Ralph”) and Amnon, his sister, Rachel Akabi, his niece, Gita Mizrahi, his nephew Aaron Kushner, in-laws Yehoshua Akabi, Rabbi Pesach Sobel, Diane Mishael and Miriam Mishael. He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Barbara Mishael, son Alan Mishael and his partner Lourdes Pons, son Sam Mishael and his wife Debi Mishael, grandchildren, Noah and Dorie, in-laws Rabbi Harold and Suzette Kushner, Suzanne Sobel, and nieces and nephews, Uri, Yakov, Avinoam, Molly, Isaac, Shira, Ilena, Robert, David, Karen, Danny, Avi and Ariel. His caregivers, Rebecca and Irene were a gift. A memorial service will be held at 6:00 p.m., on Sunday, June 14, 2015, at Beth David Memorial Gardens and Chapel, 3201 Northwest 72nd Avenue, Hollywood, Florida 33024. Shiva to follow. In lieu of flowers, it is requested that contributions be made to American Friends of Magen David Adom (www.afmda.org), or the American Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (“ASPNI”) (http://www.natureisrael.org/aspni).
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