Verbelov (Werbelov) Shmerel (Schmerel) Yakovlevich (28 March 1915, Valdemarpils) — barber.
Shmerel Verbelov was the son of Yakov Verbelov (1880, Valdemarpils – 1940, Valdemarpils) and Bella Verbelova (née Goldshtik) (1882, Valdemarpils – 1915, Kryvyi Rih). In 1927, he completed six years of primary school in Valdemarpils. Between 1929 and 1933, he worked as a barber in Rautenberg’s barbershop in Ventspils. In 1933, he moved to Riga and until 1941 was employed at Roke’s barbershop.
In 1941, Shmerel Verbelov was evacuated to the Yaroslavl Region, where he worked in a disabled persons’ cooperative. From 1941 to 1942, he worked as a labourer on the Taimaz collective farm in Namangan Region. In 1942, he was conscripted into the labour army and worked until 1945 at the Ordzhonikidze Metal Structures Factory in Chelyabinsk.
In 1945, he returned to Riga. From 1945 to 1966, he worked as a barber at the Barbers’ Trade Office.
Shmerel Verbelov was married to Anna Verbelova (née Maler) (b. 1918, Riga). They had three daughters: Fania Verbelova (b. 1945, Riga), Bella Verbelova (b. 1947, Riga), and Karmella Verbelova (b. 1959, Riga).
Several members of his family perished in the Holocaust, including his brother and sisters: Gesel Verbelov (1905–1941, Valdemarpils), Tsilya Ulman (née Verbelova) (1910–1941, Ventspils), and Gusta Gunav (née Verbelova) (1912–1941, Liepāja); his stepmother Mira Verbelova (née Royak) (1891, Kryvyi Rih – 1941, Valdemarpils); and his half-brothers: Mozus (b. 1924), Abram (b. 1926), Khenokh (b. 1928), Khaim-Meer (b. 1930), and Efroim (b. 1932), all murdered in 1941 in Valdemarpils.
His sister, Khaya Chenstokhovskaya (née Verbelova) (b. 1912, Valdemarpils), left Riga in 1956 as the spouse of a Polish national and was living and working in Israel in the 1960s.
In 1966, Shmerel Verbelov received permission to emigrate to Israel.
Anna Verbelova (née Maler) (b. 1918, Riga) — wife
Fania Verbelova (b. 1945, Riga) — daughter
Bella Verbelova (b. 1947, Riga) — daughter
Karmella Verbelova (b. 1959, Riga) — daughter
Yakov Verbelov (1880–1940) — father
Bella Verbelova (née Goldshtik) (1882–1915) — mother
Mira Verbelova (née Royak) (1891–1941) — stepmother
Gesel Verbelov (1905–1941) — brother
Tsilya Ulman (née Verbelova) (1910–1941) — sister
Gusta Gunav (née Verbelova) (1912–1941) — sister
Khaya Chenstokhovskaya (née Verbelova) (b. 1912) — sister
Mozus Verbelov (1924–1941) — half-brother
Abram Verbelov (1926–1941) — half-brother
Khenokh Verbelov (1928–1941) — half-brother
Khaim-Meer Verbelov (1930–1941) — half-brother
Efroim Verbelov (1932–1941) — half-brother