Alternate names
Biography
Zeev Beeri was born Wolfgang Tiefenbrunner on 9 February 1927 in Karlsruhe, Germany, the son of Kalman Beeri (then Tiefenbrunner) and Rachel, née Hillinger/Schneeweiss. He began school at the Gartenschule in Karlsruhe in 1934, but as the persecution of Jews intensified the family prepared to leave: he was issued a German child identity card in 1936 marked "stateless," and on 8 September 1936 the family disembarked at Haifa in Mandatory Palestine. The family settled in Ra'anana, where Wolfgang attended the Maged elementary school. He joined the Haganah between 1941 and 1948, trained in automotive mechanics at the Max Fein vocational school in Tel Aviv, and worked as a supernumerary police guard (noter) in the Atlit and Kiryat Shmuel immigrant camps. On 30 October 1947, in Haifa, he formally took the name Zeev Beeri — "Zeev" for Wolfgang and "Beeri," a Hebraisation of Tiefenbrunner. He served in the Haganah and then the Israel Defence Forces, in the Intelligence Corps, (including reserve duty) until 1966. On 12 August 1952 he married Tyla Estrajcher, a Holocaust survivor who had reached Israel in 1948. They settled in Ra'anana and had two children, Malka and Zachy. Zeev worked as a joiner, then studied building technology and engineering in evening classes in Tel Aviv, and from 1957 until his retirement was Deputy Chief Regional Engineer for the Ra'anana district of the state telephone company. He had a severe lung condition in later life and died in Ra'anana on 18 January 1983, aged 55. He is buried at the New Cemetery, Kfar Nachman, Ra'anana.
Occupations3
- Mechanic
- Joiner
- Telephone Engineer
Life events24
- EducationKarlsruhe, Germany
Gartenschule I (Garden School I), Class T 13 Class, Teacher: F.H. Burkart
- Issued Kinderausweis (child identity card)Karlsruhe, Germany
Issued Kinderausweis (child identity card) No. 107 in Karlsruhe — listed as stateless (Staatenlos)
- EducationRaanana, Mandatory Palestine
Maged School (formerly the Public Elementary School); Teacher: M. Maged | ביה"ס מגד (בעבר בית המספר העממי); המחנך מ. מגד
- EducationTel Aviv-Yafo, Mandatory Palestine
Department of Automotive Mechanics at Max Fein Vocational School in Tel Aviv
- NaturalisationRaanana, Mandatory Palestine
Application for Certificate of Naturalization filed (Government of Palestine, Dept. of Migration)
- EmploymentHaifa, Mandatory Palestine
Served as a Noter (guard) No. 799 in the immigrant camps in Atlit and in Kiryat Shmuel
Tiefenburner Zeev's Role: A Uniquely Complex Position The Two Camps Atlit Detention Camp was the primary facility. Established by the British in the late 1930s on Israel's Mediterranean coast about 19 kilometres south of Haifa, its purpose was to detain Jewish refugees fleeing war and persecution in Europe who attempted to immigrate illegally to Palestine. The camp held upwards of 2,400 detainees at once, surrounded by barbed wire fences and watchtowers. For Holocaust survivors, the showers, the disinfection process, the long barracks lined with cots, and the barbed wire were appalling reminders of what they had so recently experienced and survived. Kiryat Shmuel was a secondary, more humane facility. This is where the story becomes remarkable. Due to the harsh conditions in Atlit camp, many immigrants were transferred to Kiryat Shmuel Immigrant Camp in Haifa, which was also a detention camp under British jurisdiction. Crucially, it was agreed that its guards would be Jewish policemen of the Mandatory police, rather than British. The Jewish Agency was responsible for the internal management of both camps, while medical services were provided by the Hadassah organisation.
- Military ServiceIsrael
Military service in the Hagana and Israel Defence Force in the Israeli Intelligence Corps
- ResidenceRaanana, Israel
Various addresses in Raanana
12 August 1952: Hankin 42 Raanana April 1959: 13, Bar Ilan Street, Raanana 1977: Bar Ilan 52, Raanana (temporary) 1978: Golomb 28/Hayovel 12, Raanana
- EmploymentRaanana, Israel
Deputy Chief Regional Engineer for the Ra'anana District/Area, within the state-owned telephone company
Deputy Chief Regional Engineer for the Ra'anana District/Area, within the state-owned telephone company (part of the Ministry of Communications at that time, before Bezeq was established as a separate entity in 1984).
- EducationTel Aviv-Yafo, Israel
Building Technician (mid-level construction professional) , Level A, Academic year: 1961/62, Total hours: 300 hours
- EducationTel Aviv-Yafo, Israel
Studied at the School for Engineers, Tel Aviv branch, in the Construction track, Cohort 1B, Evening programme.
- EmploymentTel Aviv-Yafo, Israel
Industrial Buildings Corporation LTD
Letterhead: Industrial Buildings Corporation Ltd. (חברת "מבני תעשיה" בע"מ), 99 Hachashmonaim St., Tel Aviv, phone 38203 Date: Tel Aviv, 17.6.66 To: Mr. Ze'ev Be'eri, 13 Bar-Ilan St., Ra'anana Body (translated): Dear Ze'ev, I was sorry to receive your letter dated 1.6.66, in which you decided to terminate your work with us as of the above-mentioned date. I feel obligated to inform you that we were all pleased with your work, performed with full diligence and responsibility. At your request, I confirm that you began working with us on 1.11.65 and finished on 31.5.66. Your initial grade was B, but according to our agreed assessments, you needed to move to grade A for clerks after six additional months of trial. With regards, Y. Zichai Manager
- Medical InformationRaanana, Israel
Zeev had a severe lung condition
Zeev had a severe lung condition that made it very hard for him to breathe. It was a 'mixed' problem because his lungs had trouble both taking air in and pushing air out. This was happening because his lungs had been scarred by past chest radiotherapy, combined with long-term bronchitis and emphysema.
- DeathRaanana, Israel
Death of Zeev Beeri
Ministry of Communications District Engineer of Tel Aviv and the Center Grieve the passing of our colleague Zeev Beeri (may his memory be a blessing) And express condolences to the grieving family Minister of Communications, Director General Director of Engineering Services District Director of Tel Aviv and the Center, Acting Sub-District Director Workers' Committee and Staff
- BurialNew cemetery - Kfar Nachman, Raanana, Israel
Cemetery: New Cemetery, Kfar Nachman | Block: 2 | Plot: 3 | Row: 18 | Grave: 24
Places11
Family
Parents
Family record F0016 →
Spouses & Children
Media5
Zeev Beeri
Gartenschule I
Zeev and Kalman in Karlsruhe
Rachel and Wolfgang in Karlsruhe
Zeev and Rachel in Karlsruhe