Shamira Imber

Shamira Imber was born in 1943 in Jerusalem

Imber was born in Jerusalem to Esther and Yehiel Imber, a poet and linguist, and grew up in Tel Aviv. She was named after her grandfather Shmaryahu Imber, brother of the poet Naftali Herz Imber, who wrote the words of the poem behind Hatikvah.

She began her army service in Nahal and was later moved to the Ordnance Corps because her father was ill. After her release in 1964 she moved to Berkeley, California, where she studied drama and English linguistics.

Back in Israel, she appeared in the musical Hair in 1970 and in fringe theater. She studied history and philosophy, took a radio course, and began announcing at Kol Israel.

At Kol Israel she hosted the music show Ktsat Aheret and other programs, and later read the news. She retired in 2005, then co-hosted a daily show on Radio Jerusalem until 2009 and began a weekly show on Galei Tzahal in 2015. For several years she co-hosted the torch lighting ceremony on Mount Herzl.

She was married to Dr. Shai Gadish, and they had 2 daughters. Ill with cancer, she died in 2022 after choosing palliative sedation. In 2023 Kiryat Ono announced a street would be named after her.