Our beloved Kes (Jewish rabbi/priest) Yemanu Tamiat died on Friday June 7, 2019 at age 97  in Lod, Israel.

Kes Yemanu was the religious leader of the village of Aba Antionius in Gondar, Ethiopia, one of the prettiest small Jewish villages in the foothills of the Simien Mountains.   Kes Yemanu was a staunch Zionist who led the efforts to go to Israel from the late 1970s from the Gondar region.  He was imprisoned by the Marxist military regime for his unrelenting push to fulfill the dream of 2,000 years.  One of Kes Yemanu’s most well-known activities prior to the community’s aliyah, was that he walked days, from village to village, writing down names – so that every Ethiopian Jew would be noted.   He came to Israel in 1987 after helping his village and many families to make aliyah under the most difficult and dangerous conditions.   In Israel, he was a respected religious leader providing guidance to the community and counseling families.

May his memory be for a blessing. Photos by Joan Roth taken in Israel at synagogue in Lod and at the first Sigd (special Ethiopian festival) celebrated in Jerusalem!    Last photo is Kes Yemanu and FEJ Director Susan Pollack, taken by Mulualem Tamiat at home in Lod in February 2018.