Marina Almagor, 76: Dog lover, world traveler and doting grandma

Marina Almagor, 76, of Kfar Saba, was murdered by Hamas terrorists while visiting Netiv Ha’asara on October 7.

Marina was visiting her longtime boyfriend, Yoel Berger, in the moshav along the border with Gaza when terrorists invaded the community, killing 20 people in the town. Yoel was shot four times and seriously wounded but managed to survive. His daughter-in-law and son-in-law were both murdered that day in separate locations.

Marina was buried on October 18 in Kfar Saba. She is survived by her children, Yair, Dana and Yael, and eight grandchildren.

Her oldest grandson, Idan, an IDF soldier, was seriously wounded on October 7 while battling Hamas but recovered and attended her funeral in a cast.

A native of Zagreb in what was then Yugoslavia, Marina moved to Israel as a baby with her family just when the State of Israel was established.

A retired nurse, she used to work in a well-baby clinic, and was described by the Health Ministry as “a well-informed and involved woman. She loved to read books, learn and travel.”

Just two weeks before she was killed, Marina and Yoel took part in a trip with a group of other friends to Albania.

A devoted dog lover, Marina had owned many canines over the years, and was currently accompanied by a dog named Toy, who was with her on October 7 and survived.

A family friend, Hadas Ragolsky, wrote on Facebook that her parents were close friends with Marina and Yoel, and were with them on their recent Albania trip.

“On weekends they would go on jeep tours, at other times they would plow the world together — they had shared meals, moments of laughter and a shared fate,” she wrote. “Marina was part of the lives of Yoel’s children and grandchildren, as well as her own.”

Marina’s friend Atara Amir-Lazarovitch wrote on Facebook that they met when she was the nurse who came over for a well-baby visit after the birth of her firstborn several decades ago.

“Since then we met up again and again,” she recalled, noting that their children were also in the same kindergarten, and in later years they both attended classes at the Avshalom Institute in Tel Aviv. “Every week we traveled together to lectures and so many happy experiences we shared in those 30 years — travels across Israel, speeches, social gatherings — especially the traditional Independence Day celebration at you guys in Netiv Ha’asara.”

Amir-Lazarovitch wrote that she mourns the loss of “your smiling character,” and described her as a “loving, present and embracing grandmother.”

Marina’s daughter, Dana, wrote on Facebook: “My beloved mother, you are a true hero! You will always be in my heart and my thoughts, and I will take care of Toy as if he were my own dog! I love you always.”

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