Ofer Ron, 70: Gentle kibbutznik who enjoyed cooking for his community
Murdered by Hamas in his home in Kibbutz Kissufim on October 7
Ofer Ron, 70, was murdered by Hamas terrorists in his home in Kibbutz Kissufim on October 7.
The 70-year-old was in his home when Hamas terrorists stormed Kissufim along with other Israeli communities near the Gaza border on October 7.
Before losing contact with him over the phone, Ron’s sister told him to enter the safe room and lock the entrance to his house, but terrorists managed to break in nonetheless, taking him into his living room where they shot him twice.
“Today should have been my cousin Ofer Ron’s birthday. But 82 days ago, on October 7, he was taken from us by an unspeakable act of Hamas terror, at his home in a Kibbutz near the Gaza border,” wrote Israeli diplomat Idit Shamir on LinkedIn.
She noted that Ron was one of the first babies born in Kibbutz Kissufim, which was founded as a community in 1951.
“Just a day before, on October 6, our family gathered for a reunion. Your absence, Ofer, leaves a void. We deeply miss you, cousin,” she continued.
A bachelor with no children, Ron enjoyed cooking for other members of the community after the kibbutz dining hall closed. Due to his visual impairment caused by retinal degeneration, he specialized in dishes that require minimal hand-eye coordination, taking great pride in his signature meatballs cooked in a special sauce.
Ron, who had a deep love for Israeli music, was memorialized by over 70 musicians at his funeral in Rishon Lezion on October 23 at the initiative of his sister, Tali Ron-Weinroch, and her friends, who put out an open call for artists to come and perform in his honor.
עופר רון, חבר קיבוץ כיסופים, בן 70, נרצח בביתו בשבת השחורה. הוא היה רווק, ללא ילדים. כששמעו חבריה של אחותו, טלי רון-וינרוך, על מותו של עופר – הם התחברו לאהבתו למוזיקה ישראלית וקראו ברשת למוזיקאים להגיע לנגן בלווייה בראשון לציון. באופן מדהים, הגיעו יותר מ- 70 נגנים, זמרות וזמרים> pic.twitter.com/PiHar0m0f9
— Raz Shechnik (@RazShechnik) October 23, 2023
From diverse backgrounds ranging from the Balkan-style Pam-Pah Orchestra to the Israel Philharmonic, the musicians came together to perform well-known Israeli ballads such as “The Wheat Grows Again” and “Because Man is the Tree of the Field.”
