Dror Kaplun, 68: Grandfather who had just begun to enjoy retirement
Murdered by Hamas terrorists in Kibbutz Be’eri on October 7, his death confirmed on December 7
Dror Kaplun, 68, was murdered by Hamas terrorists in Kibbutz Be’eri on October 7.
His wife, Marcelle Frailich Kaplun, was also murdered in the kibbutz that day. Dror was originally thought to have been taken captive, as his remains were not initially found, and his phone was traced to Gaza.
In the hours after the attack, Kaplun’s children saw a Hamas video showing Marcelle and Dror in their pajamas, seemingly unhurt, with bare feet and hands bound, being shoved along a Be’eri street by terrorists. But the following day another video surfaced, showing the two lying on a sidewalk with several others, not moving.
In December, the kibbutz announced that archaeologists from the Israel Antiquities Authority succeeded in matching his DNA to bones uncovered by the fence of Kibbutz Be’eri.
Dror was buried on December 10 in Kibbutz Mishmarot. He is survived by his three children, Maayan, Noam and Moran, five grandchildren, Yuval, Ofir, Nir, Alon and Klil, and his brother Yehuda.
The son of Holocaust survivors, Dror was born in Kibbutz Ruhama, where he and his brother grew up in the era of communal child quarters, collecting stamps, playing chess and competing in volleyball.
Dror served in the Paratrooper’s Brigade during his military service and later became a platoon commander in Golani. After his service, he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics at the Ruppin Academic College and worked in Ruhama in the orchard and later in its toothbrush factory.
He went on to help the kibbutz transform from a collective to a privatized settlement, a process he continued as a communal manager at several other kibbutzes in the area undergoing the same transformation, according to a Be’eri eulogy.
In 1980 he wed Rosemary, a British volunteer whom he met on the kibbutz, and they had three children before divorcing in 2003. He was introduced to Marcelle not long after by Ayelet Goddard, who was also murdered on October 7, and the new couple settled in Be’eri.
Dror managed to enjoy a year of retirement before he was killed, devoting his time to reading books, working out, cooking healthy meals and spending time with his beloved grandchildren.
Marcelle’s daughter, Mor Strikovski wrote on Facebook that Dror was “such a unique man, so kind, so generous, truthful and honest from all his heart and soul.”
She noted that while he “came to us in the middle of our lives, it seemed and felt like you had always been there. We were privileged to have you, you became like a father and a grandfather and it was so not taken for granted.”
Mor said Dror was always a source of “good advice and endless attention. With your kindness, the calm that so characterized you, you were my mother’s entire world, a gift, you fit like a glove and you were so happy together… at least you and Mom are together.”
His daughter Noam wrote to “thank you for life; as you would say, it’s the biggest gift there is. I’ll always remember the French toast you’d make us Saturday morning, the hiking trips around the kibbutz. When I bring up all these memories, I feel a deep sadness because of the sense of loss and missing out for me and for your grandchildren.”
