From: Our Hadar HaSharon – Gush Tel Mond, Hadar HaSharon Regional Council, 1972
Founded as an outpost in the northeastern edge of the region - on the border with the Arab villages of Kalansuwa and Tayibe - Kfar Yavetz was named after the writer and historian Ze’ev Yavetz. Large citrus groves were planted in the area by landowners who, for the most part, did not live there. The Jewish National Fund (JNF) succeeded in redeeming land to serve as the foundation for a settlement of permanent agricultural workers to tend the orchards.
On the 4th of Nisan 5692 (1932), a group from the HaPoel HaMizrachi movement established the new village. However, the group members failed to establish roots in the settlement and later moved to another kibbutz.
Despite the strategic security importance of this borderland point, the settlers in Kfar Yavetz changed frequently over the years. Eventually, the place became home to immigrants from Transylvania and Yemen.
Some of the current residents of Kfar Yavetz are immigrants from Yemen who had lived in a village called Suda. In their homeland, they had respectful relations with their Arab neighbors. However, after the establishment of the State of Israel and the death of the King of Yemen, the desire to immigrate to Zion was awakened in their hearts. Between the Hebrew months of Adar and Av in 5709 (1949), the people of the village began selling their belongings - some little, some more - in order to raise money for the journey, particularly to afford food.
At the beginning of Elul 5709, the first group left the village, followed quickly by the rest of the families - young and old, traveling on foot or by donkey - headed to Sana’a, the city from which they would depart Yemen. The hardships of the journey are hard to describe: some fell ill with malaria, others were robbed by bandits, and many depended on the kindness of strangers to loan them money for the journey to the transit camp in Aden. Two weeks later, they flew to Israel. From the airport, they were directed to the transit camp at Ein Shemer. After six months living in tents, they were transferred to a former Arab village called Farram in the Upper Galilee. From there, in April 1954, most of the families arrived in Kfar Yavetz, where they were welcomed by their Ashkenazi comrades who had already settled in the village.
The village and its surroundings were desolate. Thorns and brambles covered the landscape. There was no public transportation, water had not yet reached the homes through pipes, and the houses were extremely small - families of 8–10 people lived in 24-square-meter apartments. Security was poor due to the surrounding hostile Arab population to the north and east. The settlers began the struggle for survival. Some found work through the employment bureau, others in the more established settlements of Ein Vered and Kfar Hess, and some worked in drainage projects, land reclamation, and similar labor. They also began growing vegetables next to their homes.
From 1955 onward, organization under the guidance of the Jewish Agency began to bear fruit. A citrus grove - on which the settlers pinned their hopes - was planted. Public buildings were constructed, avenues and groves were established. The orchard, planted in its time, was handed over to the cooperative society. Residents began expanding their homes, and the brambles were replaced by beautiful gardens. Tractors replaced manual labor and donkeys, and machines replaced carts and horses. Today, a green, charming village thrives, its homes topped with red-tiled roofs.
Kfar Yavetz embodies the ideal of ingathering of the exiles: Ashkenazim, Yemenites, and Libyans all living together in one cohesive community. The efforts have borne fruit.