In memoriam: Ido Cohen KR-09

KR-09

In memoriam: Ido Cohen, 43, passed away on Dec. 22, after a long and brave battle against a rare form of cancer. Ido, with a Ph.D in Biology and a Kellogg-Recanati EMBA, ironically spent some of his recent years as the CEO of a startup that was researching cancer.

Ido was a total "people's person." He had the rare gift of being able to bring people together without needing personal recognition for his perpetual voluntary activities. With his love of the outdoors and sports, he organized endless outdoor activities, including jeep trips, camping trips, boat trips and far more, as well as participating in many community activities. By doing so, he managed to unify and connect with an ever-increasing group of people, leading many to do and achieve what they would not have done without his presence. Ido was the leader of many Kellogg-Recanati class and alumni events, built in conjunction with the core team of alumni who worked closely with him and will miss him so much.

Ido, who led so many people and was a true role model of willpower, determination, faith of the human spirit and exceptional optimism, was forced to fight the nastiest and rarest kind of cancer during his final years. He won his personal wars against the disease via treatments and surgery many times, totally defying the statistics, and humbly continuing to help others whilst he suffered quietly. Consistent with his legendary spirit, Ido published a detailed daily blog of his highs and lows and everything in between. He taught us over time that the highs are recalibrated to the simplest of happy events, captured in his children's smiles. The blog was followed by thousands of friends and cancer sufferers around the world, many of whom derived every drop of inspiration and hope from Ido in their personal fight.

In recent years during his courageous fight for life, Ido led his friends through scuba-diving safaris in distant tropical islands, 4X4 tracks across the country, family picnics and great gatherings at the finest bars in Tel Aviv. Never complaining, he always had that spark of adventure in his eyes.

Ido built and managed the "Aid for the North" program that sent an estimated $700,000 of goods to help residents of the north of Israel during the Second Lebanon War. He also created the Kellogg Connect event tradition, connecting Kellogg alumni from around the world with the first event held last year in Eilat, Israel. It was attended by 100 people. The Kellogg-Recanati Alumni Club intends to continue to organize Kellogg Connect events in future years, and in Ido's honor.

Ido was married to Ayelet and left three daughters, Roni (13), Gal (11) and Shira (7). All share his great passion for life and the desire to explore and discover every possible thing on our planet.

On behalf of our class KR-09, the Kellogg-Recanati community, and the entire Kellogg alumni community, we would like to send our deepest condolences and thoughts to Ido's family.

Ido's family and friends encourage those of you who are interested in sharing their memories of Ido to visit the Facebook group "In Memory of Ido Cohen" at facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_123817297685412&ap=1.