Rabbanit Rachel Neriya, the widow of Rabbi Moshe Tzvi Neriya, was buried Friday in Kfar Ha'roeh. She was laid to rest alongside her husband.

The rabbanit passed away Thursday, exactly 17 years after her husband’s death.

Her death marks “the end of an era,” said MK Michael Ben-Ari, who was one of the many who came Friday to pay their final respects. He recalled his youth in Kfar Ha'roeh, where he learned from Rabbi Neriya and sometimes ate in the Neriya family home.

“They were figures whose modesty was meaningful, who made love of the people of Israel, the land of Israel and the Torah of Israel a way of life,” he said. Their work in the field of education “is growing new sprouts everywhere,” he added.

Rabbanit Neriya’s grandson, Rabbi Yitzchak Neriya, recalled his grandmother Thursday. Speaking to Arutz Sheva, he said that Rabbanit Rachel Neriya’s work had been focused on “a matter close to her heart – the education of the next generation.”

“Grandmother followed grandfather, Rabbi Neriya of blessed memory, with unbelievable dedication,” he continued. “She went with him to Kfar Ha'roeh when the conditions of living were very uncertain. Together they sacrificed to raise the next generation and invest in education.”

Rabbanit Neriya was born in 1921 and came to Israel in 1935. She and her husband worked with other influential figures of the time to establish the first Bnei Akiva yeshivas as well as schools for youth at risk. She was an active figure in the Emunah National Religious Women's Organization and a much sought after lecturer in Ulpenas and religious colleges for women.