Two more avalanche casualties laid to rest in Israel

Hundreds of people attended the funeral of Capt. Tamar Ariel, one of the four Israelis killed last week in the devastating avalanche in Nepal, who was laid to rest at Kibbutz Masuot Yitzhak on Tuesday.

Ariel, 25, made history in 2012 when she became the first religious female navigator in the Israeli Air Force. Six of her fellow aviators served as pallbearers.

At her funeral, as during her short life, those who spoke of Ariel had nothing but words of praise.

"I've been asked more than once what the secret is to raising a daughter like you," Ariel's father, Hanan, said.

"At the end of the pilots' course your commanding officer came up to me and asked, 'So, how do you make a girl like that? What's the recipe-' But there was no recipe. It was mostly Tamar, just Tamar. She always preferred not to make a big deal of herself, and certainly not her achievements.

"Tamar took care to integrate all [aspects of life], while keeping to the values and truth that were so important to her. My wife, Anat, and I didn't do anything, just helped her fulfill her potential."

Ariel's aunt Netta recalled the touching moments from the ceremony at which Ariel was awarded her pilot's wings.

"When you marched out with your comrades, our hearts swelled with pride," she said. "You lived 25 years full of life and meaning. You flew as high as possible, but you always remained ego-less. You were a pioneer, an example and a source of pride for so many religious and secular people."

A commander of the Ha'emek flight squadron, where Ariel flew, also eulogized the young navigator.

"She was an excellent officer, a combat navigator, in a long skirt. You could find her in the middle of the day with a prayer book, praying with her eyes closed. Tamar was talented and ambitious, and sought to excel at everything she did," the commander said.

"She didn't seem to want to be different. During Operation Protective Edge, despite the amount of work and the tiredness, Tamar asked to take part in all the operational sorties. She stood out in all her operations, just as she did during the pilots' course."

Nadav Shoham, 30, of Hoshaya in northern Israel, who died trying to save Ariel, was buried on Sunday.

Also buried on Tuesday was Agam Luria, 23, killed in the same avalanche that claimed Ariel, Shoham, and Michal Gili Cherkasky, 36.

Luria's funeral at Kibbutz Yifat in the Jezreel Valley, like Ariel's, drew hundreds of kibbutz members, friends, and acquaintances, including some of the Israeli trekkers who survived the Nepal disaster.

"Even when you were little, you had a huge heart," Luria's mother, Vered, said over her son's grave.

"You were a true friend, who stood out. It was always important to you that everyone be together. It's a shame you aren't here to see that everyone came together around you." Vered said.

The family requested that the media not cover Agam's funeral.

Meanwhile, Cherkasky's coffin was being flown to Israel on Wednesday and was scheduled to arrive in the evening.

Cherkasky is expected to be laid to rest on Thursday afternoon at the cemetery on Moshav Nordia in central Israel.

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