{"id":755,"date":"2025-07-09T10:25:10","date_gmt":"2025-07-09T07:25:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gilbanks.co.il\/home-page\/"},"modified":"2025-08-27T09:51:35","modified_gmt":"2025-08-27T06:51:35","slug":"home-page","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/gilbanks.co.il\/en\/","title":{"rendered":"Home page"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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The Life Story of Gil Banks<\/h4>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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SEEK\nDISCOMFORT<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\u201cI will conquer peaks and run to the ends of the earth, yet in the end, I will always return home.
in life, or beyond.\u201d<\/h4>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Gil never sought the easy road. He rose to greatness in the face of hardship. When adversity struck – Gil radiated strength. A warrior of excellence, a champion of the IDF\u2019s marksmanship competition, and above all, an unwavering brother-in-arms who was always there for his team. <\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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This book offers a deeply personal and moving glimpse into the life of Gil Banks – through my own eyes. It is a story of friendship, courage, and inspiration, and above all, a testament to the man Gil was – and to the lessons each of us can carry from his life. <\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Gil Banks, son of Sheli and Steven<\/strong>, and beloved brother to Gabi, Lior, and Tali,<\/strong> was a great soul within a young body. Born in Scotland, he immigrated with his family to Israel in 2009 \u2014 a child filled with curiosity, courage, and sensitivity. To Gil, the world was possibility itself: a challenge to embrace, and a dream waiting to be made real. <\/p>

In the ranks of the IDF\u2019s elite Duvdevan Unit, Gil endured trials that only the few and the bravest could withstand. He was not born a warrior – he forged himself into one, through an unwavering choice each day to rise, persevere, and never yield. Even in the midst of battle, his heart remained open – to his comrades, to the fleeting moments of life, and to the humanity of those before him. His legacy is one of courage, resilience, and an enduring spirit that continues to inspire. <\/p>

Even before his release from the army, Gil was already dreaming, planning, and building<\/strong>. He feared nothing, sought no permission, and dared to carve his own path. With eyes that sparkled and a smile that never faded, he touched the hearts of all who crossed his way<\/strong>. In him shone true warmth, unwavering friendship, and a humility beyond measure. <\/p>

Today, we continue to tell his story, for the story of Gil will never end<\/strong>. It has simply become an inspiration, a way of life, and a compass for us all. <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Highlights from the Book<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\tIntroduction<\/span>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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In the race of life, we charge forward – an endless sprint, always accelerating, never stopping. Yet sometimes, within the run itself, the heart whispers to pause for a moment. To look around. To understand what truly matters. And each time, I return to the same conclusion: true friends and family are the most precious treasures of all.
This book is my pause. My chance to stop and remember, to reflect, to feel, and to give thanks. To return to everything I experienced by your side, Gil, over the past six years.
\u201cI will conquer peaks, I will run to the ends of the earth, but in the end, I will always return home. In life, or beyond.\u201d
Dearest Gil, if only I could say thank you one more time. Thank you for the values you taught me. Thank you for the challenges you helped me overcome. Thank you for being a true friend – in the highs and in the lows. Thank you for the moments of euphoria and the rolling laughter we shared.
It is said that when someone passes on, their values and passions are carried within those closest to them. I dearly hope that is true, for you had so many. Gil, you were – and will always be – the greatest friend and the finest soul I have ever known. I continue to learn from you every single day. Thank you.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\tContinuing the path and moving on to the \u2018dream unit\u2019<\/span>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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After about half a year of basic training and advanced training, we reached the next stage: unit training. Three weeks in the Judean Desert, before beginning the specialized course. This stage was considered one of the toughest – a kind of basic training all over again, only many times harder.
During unit training, among other things, we slept in reconnaissance tents, woke up each morning to bone-chilling cold, had zero time for ourselves, and spent every hour of the day in missions, drills, crawls, and relentless exercises without pause. I arrived at this stage straight from the medics\u2019 course, just moments before it began. Of course, no one was going to escape this \u2018fun.\u2019
If we thought regular basic training was going to be tough, unit training was a thousand times harder! In truth, each day we walked with our heads down, counting the minutes. Every drill felt like an eternity, and naturally, they took away our watches so that time itself would feel frozen. Only one of us was allowed a watch – and of course, it was Gil. He was chosen to be the team\u2019s timekeeper. His job was to shout out to the entire team how much time remained to complete each mission… <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\u201cOne more minute…\u201d \u201cThirty more seconds…\u201d \u201cFive more seconds…\u201d \u201cTime!\u201d
When Gil shouted \u201cTime,\u201d we had to drop everything the moment the mission ended and return to stand in formation. Naturally, every time we failed to meet the deadline, we were punished collectively – and so, when Gil forgot to call out the times, we were furious with him.
After a few punishments and disciplinary actions, Gil became a flawless timekeeper, reporting every passing minute of the day. The task left such a mark on him that for months after unit training, Gil would shout out times in his sleep in the middle of the night. We always laughed about it – though sometimes it was maddening to be jolted awake at 3 a.m. by someone shouting, \u201cTwenty seconds left!\u201d
In any case, the period of unit training was among the hardest of our lives. Everything that could go wrong, did – adding more and more difficulty to the ordeal. Naturally, it was the peak of winter, and every day we were drenched by heavy rains that soaked us to the bone. And just when one of us managed to dry off a little in the biting cold, someone up above made sure to send another downpour, adding yet more chill and wetness to the experience.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
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Although we had become very close friends during our service, I still did not realize how deeply our lives would become intertwined. As his discharge approached, Gil began regularly bringing a laptop to base and immersing himself in the world of e-commerce. He had always dreamed of starting an online business, and he often spoke about how, before the army, he sold underwear on eBay and made quite a bit of money from it.
At that time, all of us talked about getting rich quickly and what each of us would do after the army. Gil, however, remained true to his dream. At every spare moment, he studied e-commerce, and his determination gave us all a sense of motivation. That\u2019s how it is – the closer you get to the end of service, the more your mind drifts outward, thinking about the life waiting on the other side.
I remember entire nights when we waited before an operation, staring at Gil\u2019s screen together. We searched for products that could easily be improved, or those with high demand but little supply (which meant people were likely not finding what they were looking for, and the market had space for new sellers). I was a young man, thirsty to build something of my own. I always saw myself as someone who would one day open his own business. <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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I stuck to Gil, and together we began exploring and learning about the subject.
Thus, in the final months of our service, every spare moment between training and operations was spent together – learning, sharing ideas, and imagining the day after. Each of us dreamed of launching a \u2018private label\u2019 on Amazon. In practice, this meant developing a product with your own branding, shipping it to Amazon\u2019s warehouses in the United States, and selling it through their platform – with Amazon handling the traffic, logistics, and returns. It sounded simple, but it was anything but. <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

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It was not easy for me to write this book. To reveal my most intimate moments and my greatest failures. But I felt I owed it to everyone – to all those who supported us during that time, to all who believed in us, and above all, to Gil himself. I wrote this book so that Gil\u2019s story would continue to live, even when memories begin to fade.
Though it is I who tell the story, countless conversations after the accident revealed how deeply Gil touched everyone. Each in their own way, with their own story. Through his journey, Gil gave me the motivation to embark on my own. At that time, we had even planned to meet in Argentina. But after Gil was killed, I canceled South America. I changed direction and set out to travel across Europe, and from there to the Far East.
I found much silence. Much time to think about our story. One day, in a remote country in Asia, the idea suddenly struck me: to write this book. And from then on, in every free hour, I would go to a caf\u00e9 and write – pouring onto the page everything I had experienced with Gil. It simply helped me cope. <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tIn time, I came to understand that I had to turn this into a book. This book may tell only 10% of my journey with Gil – but even that 10%, I believe, can bring inspiration and motivation to anyone who reads it.
Thank you, Gil. You were a true friend. You taught me, and everyone around you, some of life\u2019s greatest lessons. I am proud to have had the privilege of knowing you. I promise that your values will remain with me, with your family, and with all your friends – for life.
Thank you, Gil Banks. \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t
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