A man of vision and action.
A man of faith, full of love.
Ofir was the second of five children of Esther and Gideon, may his memory be blessed. He fell in love with Vered, and together they built a home in Kfar Aza. There they birthed and raised four children: Aviv, Nitzan - may his memory be blessed - Idan and Ori. Their home was full of love and light, a hub for friends and family. A home erupting with song, a home that insisted on hearing every voice in it.
Ofir was a great dreamer, and a man of action. He always said, “I see everything twice: Once in a dream, and for the second time when it happens.” He began his career in the business world, was CEO of the Kibbutz Industry Association, chairman of the Joe Alon Center, chairman of Holit, chairman of the Kibbutz Movement Investment Fund, and chairman of Mashtela, the kibbutz movement startup fund. He also served as chairman of Habonim Dror, and worked to strengthen ties with the Jews of the diaspora, taking a special interest in the smallest of Jewish communities around the world.
After initiating the anemone flower festival ‘Red South’, Ofir discovered the wonders of public outreach and joined the regional council, after which he served as head of Sha’ar Hanegev Regional Council. His vision was to turn Sha’ar Hanegev into the best place in the universe. On the seventh of October he went out with the first response squad to fight the terrorists who infiltrated the kibbutz. Near his house he fired at terrorists, was shot and died immediately. In his passing he left behind a huge rupture, an empty space, but his spark has not gone out. In his fifty years of life, Ofir built us dreams and plans for another fifty years of work at least: he taught us to love humanity, to be optimistic, to rise up.