Peres eulogizes industrialist, philanthropist Dov Lautman

Peres also noted Lautman's extraordinary contribution to peace between Israel and her neighbors by establishing factory plants in Egypt and Jordan.

By GREER FAY CASHMAN
Dov Lautman 370 (photo credit: Asaf Kliger)
Dov Lautman 370
(photo credit: Asaf Kliger)
President Shimon Peres eulogized industrialist, philanthropist and national activist Dov Lautman at his funeral on Sunday afternoon, painting a picture of a tireless pioneer who always marched ahead of the camp.
“All your life you dreamed, you fought, you built, you volunteered and you contributed,” Peres said. “You didn’t rest and you didn’t flinch. You didn’t seek power, but you always sought new peaks in service to your people. You enabled many to advance; you enthused many and you harmed no one. You didn’t waste time on trivia, but you were excited by great potential and you never gave in to despair. You never tired of waving the banner of hope.”
The president spoke of Lautman not only as a senior member of the board of directors or executive board of directors at many companies, institutions and organizations, but also as a close friend, who was known to nearly all as Dovik.
Among the many positions that Lautman held at one time or another was that of chairman of the Peres Center for Peace, of which he was one of the founders.
“We will miss your rare, exemplary character,” Peres said, describing Lautman as “a true envoy for all that is beautiful in Israel.”
Peres said that Lautman’s entire being was inseparable from the upbuilding of Israel, the country in which he was born, the country he loved and in which he was rooted.
He spoke of how Lautman had made the Galilee flourish, and of how he had established a factory plant in Karmiel, thereby providing jobs for thousands of people. He also paid tribute to an unprecedented cooperative effort that Lautman had led between the Histadrut and the government to overcome rising inflation and to set out on the path to economic growth.
Peres noted Lautman’s contribution to peace between Israel and her neighbors – establishing factory plants in Egypt and Jordan, thus helping to forge allies for Israel.
In recent years, Peres said, Lautman had dedicated his life to education, stubbornly determined to ensure that every child in Israel would be educated.
Lautman led a busy social and cause-committed lifestyle for over a decade after being diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease), which in the course of time deprived him of all independent mobility.
He only stopped after his hospitalization two weeks prior to his death.
Referring to Lautman’s illness, Peres praised him for having battled bravely against the cruel and unjust sentence dealt out to him by fate.
“You did not surrender until your last breath,” he said. “Your life was devoted to your people and your country, even at times of great personal distress.”
Hundreds of people from all over Israel attended Lautman’s funeral at Tel Aviv’s Kiryat Shaul Cemetery. His passing was front page news in the Israeli press, with extensive coverage in every major daily newspaper. It was also reported in radio and television news bulletins.