Avraham Munder, 79: Doting grandfather and amateur singer

Avraham Munder, 79, was kidnapped from his home in Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, along with his wife, daughter and grandson.

His son, Roee Munder, was murdered in the attack.

Avraham’s wife, Ruti, his daughter Keren and grandson Ohad were freed from captivity in late November. Upon their release, they found out that Avraham had been kidnapped and not murdered, as they had feared, after they had seen him forced to kneel on the ground while they were driven away.

In late August 2024, Avraham’s body was recovered by IDF troops from a tunnel in Khan Younis, and returned to Israel, along with those of Alex Dancyg, Yagev Buchshtav, Chaim Peri, Yoram Metzger and Nadav Popplewell.

Until his body was recovered, his family had held out hope that he was still alive. His family was later informed that he had likely been killed in March 2024, shot dead by his captors.

Avraham was buried on August 21, 2024, in Kibbutz Nir Oz in a joint ceremony alongside the reburial of his son, Roee, who had initially been laid to rest in Kibbutz Metzer in October 2023, without any of his immediate family present. Avraham is survived by his wife, Ruti, daughter, Keren and siblings Arye and Shoshi.

Born and raised in Givatayim, he came to the kibbutz as part of a pioneer youth group to establish and develop the community. There he met Ruti, and they remained together in the home they loved for close to six decades. A kibbutz eulogy said that Avraham had worked at the Nirlat factory and was “known for his warm nature and deep love of singing… we will forever remember Avraham for his clear voice, warm smile, and boundless love for his family and kibbutz.”

At his funeral, Avraham’s sister, Shoshi Ben Ezra, said she couldn’t understand how her “sensitive and kind-hearted brother, a man of labor and peace, whose love for his kibbutz and his country flowed was in his blood, spent the last months of his life in a tunnel with the feelings of abandonment and betrayal.”

His daughter, Keren, said that “Roee and I were just two siblings, but Mom and Dad hosted and took care of dozens of young people from Israel and abroad with a wide heart and openness — immigrants, adoptees, volunteers, new families, everyone fell in love with you, with your kindness, your sociability.”

“You were a modest and direct dad, pedantic and organized, never leaving any task for tomorrow, hardworking, alarmingly precise,” she wrote. “A dad who knew so much, English and French and even math. A dad who played ball and marbles with me, who brought me a stamp album… with the warmest embrace, the highest sensitivity, the best listener, acceptance, unconditional love.”

Her son, Ohad, “turned you into the happiest grandfather, he got to receive huge doses of love from you, you would enjoy just watching him sleep,” added Keren. “And you enjoyed every smart or funny sentence out of his mouth, taking pride in him and showing him off.” She wanted, she said, to remember not his health troubles and the horrible circumstances of his death, “but all our moments together, watching soccer games, rehearsals for choir, hearing your beautiful voice among all the others, reading us stories.”

Speaking at his funeral, his wife, Ruti, thanked him for the 62 years that they shared, “58 of which we lived together, a full life, together in harmony despite our differences.”

“We did everything together, we raised children, we traveled around Israel and the world, we watched soccer games and Maccabi Tel Aviv basketball games and all that we did with love and respect… You were a hardworking and exacting man of labor. You loved to sing, you would take part in ceremonies and holiday gatherings and sometimes sing in different groups. You loved the songs of Nat King Cole and Arik Einstein and many others. You were so sensitive and there were songs that even moved you to tears.”

Ruti said Avraham “was a loving husband to me and a loving father to Keren and Roee. You were a war family man to the whole extended family. You accepted me as I am, you made me feel loved and appreciated. We’ve been missing you already for so long.”

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