Here Lived
This apartment belonged in recent years to Gal Goren. Gal was born and raised on the kibbutz, the son of Avner z”l and Maya z”l, and brother to Assif, Bar, and Dekel. He was educated in the kibbutz school system, at the regional schools, and in the Hashomer Hatzair youth movement. In high school, he worked in the kibbutz kitchen and dining hall. He went on to complete a post-high school year of community service with the Bnei Hamoshavim youth movement in the Ma’ale Yosef regional council, and later served in a Nahal group of HaNoar HaOved VeHaLomed (The Working and Studying Youth). Around the time of October 7 and in the months that followed, he was stationed in Eilat, where he mentored young people and encouraged meaningful military service among youth.
October 7th
On October 7, Gal was not in his apartment, which saved him from the massacre. The apartment itself was broken into and looted. His older brother Assif was also not on the kibbutz that day. His brother Bar and younger sister Dekel were in their apartments, locked in their safe rooms for 11 hours, and survived the massacre. Gal’s father, Avner, was wounded, taken hostage from the family home, murdered on the way to Gaza, and buried at the end of October in Nir Oz. Gal’s mother, Maya, was severely wounded by gunfire, abducted from the Kibbutz children’s house, and murdered.
What Happened Since
Maya was held in captivity until the end of July 2024, when her body was recovered in a military operation and brought home for burial alongside her husband Avner. In the year that followed, Gal continued his military service and worked with displaced residents, gradually becoming more involved in the campaign that advocated the release of the hostages. After his discharge in June 2024, he deepened that involvement and remains actively engaged today. In November 2024, he began studying social work at a college in the Jezreel Valley.
