Arie Hefetz, 28: Financial advisor and coach ‘was super optimistic’
Murdered by Hamas terrorists while fleeing the Supernova music festival on October 7
Arie (Arik) Hefetz, 28, from Ramle, was murdered by Hamas terrorists while fleeing the Supernova music festival on October 7.
He left the rave via car, and was driving when terrorists opened fire on the vehicle, wounding him in the leg. He later sought refuge in a roadside bomb shelter near Kibbutz Alumim, where he was murdered along with seven others, including Laurie Vardi, Barak Davidi and Sun Yakobov.
He was buried in Ramle on October 11. He is survived by his parents, Genya and Klimenty, and his two brothers, Shimon and Gai.
Born and raised in Ramle, Arie was the middle of his two brothers, attending schools in the city. His original name was Arik, but at a young age he decided it was not dignified enough, and changed it to Arie, according to a state eulogy.
Arie had an entrepreneurial spirit from a very young age, his loved ones said, even starting to work at a supermarket at age 11 to save up money and become financially independent — pursuing his dream of becoming a millionaire.
After completing a financial advisor’s course, he worked advising and coaching others with their money, and on social media was active in sharing financial advice online. He also had taken courses in NLP and theta-healing and considered himself spiritually connected, with a desire to pass that onto others. On his leg he tattooed the word “Creator,” which was later engraved on his headstone.
In 2021, Arie was interviewed for a Ynet article about young adults who had returned to living with their parents during COVID: “It’s an emotional experience to suddenly come back. I lived in Tel Aviv for a year and I came home to Mom,” he said. “There aren’t any pubs or nightlife, so at least I have Mom’s food.”
He was very close to his nephews, Itamar and Ofri, and dreamed of one day becoming a father himself, his loved ones said. He was also very devoted to his dog, Mika, and took her with him almost everywhere, including trips overseas. Before settling in Tel Aviv in the months just before he was killed, Arie spent a long stretch overseas, visiting India, Mexico, the Caribbean and Europe.
Marking 30 days since he was killed, his sister-in-law, Rinat, wrote on Facebook that Arie was “a beloved boy, smiling and sweet who became a beloved man, always doing things for others, with hands of gold and a pure heart.”
Rinat wrote that she is always thinking “of your constant smile and the good energy you would bring with you everywhere and in every situation… I would always wait for you to arrive at any event or family meal, to bring with you good vibes, interesting conversations and 200% attention and pure fun for my kids. Now there is an empty hole that nobody can fill at every family gathering… we’ll never be the same family again.”
In a memorial video produced by the Ramle municipality, Arie’s mother, Genya, described how he surprised her by coming home early from India: “He called me and said, ‘Mom, what are you doing, I’m in India, planning on coming back in two weeks’ and then he suddenly rang the doorbell.”
“The joy he had when he saw me and the joy I had to see him — that’s what I think about all the time,” she said. “He was a guy who loved life… he was a happy guy, he was super optimistic, he wanted kids and a family.”
