Aharon Einat — Association of Jews of Vilna and vicinity in Israel

Aharon Einat (1934-2019) was born in Vilna. During the war he was in the Vilna Ghetto and, when it was liquidated, at the H.K.P. camp. He, his mother and brother were rescued when the Soviet army liberated the city in July, 1944. He moved to Lodz in Poland two years later. He went to a Hebrew school there where he learnt about Zionist values. The family made aliyah in 1950. Einat enlisted in the IDF, served in the combat engineering unit for 25 years, reaching the rank of lieutenant colonel. During the years he served in the army he also studied at the university. He and his wife were married in 1957 and had three sons: Haim and twins, Tomer and Ofer.

After he retired from the army he worked at the museum of Bet Hatefutzot for 26 years, while also leading groups abroad and preparing youth delegations for visits to Poland. In 1984, he married Etti, the mother of three. From 1993, he was active in the Association of Jews from Vilna and the Vicinity in Israel and a member of the Board of Directors. He helped organize "The March of the Living" to Vilna and other cities and also counseled groups. Fifty years after he had left Vilna, he returned for a visit and, influenced by what he saw there, he devoted his time to research about the Vilna community; in 2006 he completed his doctorate Everyday life in the Vilna Ghetto at the Hebrew University

For many years he was a member of the board of the Association of Jew from Vilna in Israel, escorted groups of the "March of Living in Ponar" and contributed greatly to the inheritance of the Litvak culture to the future generations.