The city of Ashdod mourns upon learning of the death of the mythical mayor, Zvi Zilker, who passed away at the age of 88 after a long battle with cancer.
The current mayor, Yehiel Lasri, paid tribute to him and said: "Zvi Zilker is a synonym for Ashdod, he led it and laid its solid foundations for generations. We loved him, we and I will miss him very personally."
Zvi Zilker left behind a wife, Hannah, three children, and grandchildren.
The flags in the Ashdod municipality building were lowered this morning (Thursday) to half-mast.
In recent years, Zilker has struggled with the cancer that has spread through his body, and after retiring from the city council has focused on writing a book about his life that was due to be published soon.
The mayor added: "Zvi was the only leader of his generation, the landscape of Ashdod's pattern, the city he loved and she loved him."
The flags were lowered to half-mast in the Ashdod municipality after the death of the mythical forest leader Zvi Zilker, Photo: Ashdod municipality
Zvi Zilker was born in 1933 in Germany and immigrated to Israel with his family in 1935.
He holds a bachelor's degree in civil engineering and a master's degree with a specialization in planning systems from the Haifa Technion.
Zilker worked for several years as an engineer in the Ministry of Housing and as an engineer for the Beit Shemesh local council, and before he was elected to the Ashdod City Council, he served as a city engineer for seven years.
In 1969 he was elected mayor and served seven terms (with a break of one term).
In 2008 he was replaced by Dr. Yechiel Lasri, and remained to serve on the City Council until 2018.
In recent years Zilker has contracted cancer and he is fighting it with all his might.
"I have a closet with medicine here. It's not the type of mild cancer and you have to get through it. You have to fight, fight back and I will fight it," he said in his last press interview with "Here South" in September this year.
The great sympathy for Zilker and his work led us in the city council, coalition and opposition in a unique step, to call the city's cultural center after Zilker while he was alive.
The Kiryat Zvi Zilker School of Music, Art Galleries, the Monart Center, the Tender for the Performing Arts, the Ashdod Museum of Art and the Yad LaBanim House operate in Kiryat Zvi Zilker.
In addition, the mayor of Ashdod also referred to the heavy mourning that fell on the city and said: "You said Zilker, you said Ashdod. I grew up next to him and learned a lot from his experience, wisdom and wisdom, especially "The author for the benefit of the city of Ashdod, which we both love. Zvi will miss me and my family and the entire city of Ashdod and all its residents. I loved him. My condolences on behalf of the city's residents for generations, to his wife Hannah for his children and grandchildren."
