The Anglo community of Raanana and surrounding towns was shocked and deeply saddened by the news that Stuart Elgrod had lost his hard-fought battle for life.

Two years ago he underwent a liver transplant in Colombia and his many friends followed the vicissitudes of his life since then with an admiration bordering on disbelief.

His wife of twenty-four years, Natalie, was at his side throughout the ordeals he experienced, always optimistic that he would pull through. And indeed it was thanks to her absolute devotion that he escaped the jaws of death many times.

Jack Shuldenfrei, a lifelong friend, spoke of Stuart at his funeral in a very moving tribute.

"There was Stuart the husband, father and grandfather, Stuart the stamp collector, Stuart the lawyer, Stuart the translator, Stuart the dubiously effective wicket-keeper, Stuart the gung-ho hockey player, Stuart the raconteur, Stuart the Thespian, and for so many of us, and most importantly of all, Stuart the friend…

"It would be remiss of me, to let Stuart go to his final resting place without a mention of his dignity and fortitude throughout the last years. A body wracked with the pain of broken and brittle bones, a skin bruised beyond belief with the prick of a thousand needles, tubes going into him, tubes coming out of him, internal organs that refused to co-operate, being shuttled from hospital to hospital, nursing home to nursing home and even country to country. And never once, not once, did I hear him complain about his ill fortune. He grimaced and smiled through it all and always had a bon mot for his visitors."

About a year ago Stuart began to write down some of the extraordinary experiences he had had as a top London defense lawyer before making aliyah in the late seventies. As Jack said in his eulogy, "He had the dubious honor of representing some of the meanest criminals in the East End."

He sent me his manuscript so I could comment on his style and content with a view to finding the best place to publish them. We wondered at the time if some of his stories could appear in Esra Magazine.

I've selected two which I think give an idea of his writing talent and some of the amazing things he did in his life – a life which ended so cruelly at the end of April.

Yes, April is the cruelest month, as the poet said, the month we parted forever from Stuart. May his memory be for a blessing.