Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords: Choose Life
On January 8, 2011, a week into her third term, Gabrielle Giffords was critically injured by a gunshot wound to the head in Tucson, Arizona. 13 people were injured and six others were killed in the shooting. She was forced to leave a career that she loved, spending the last three years in extensive physical therapy. Giffords still has difficulty speaking and walking, and her right arm is mostly paralyzed.
Giffords marked the 3 year-anniversary of the shooting by going skydiving. Giffords said on an interview with The Today Show, explaining her jump, “I’m alive!” Giffords may not be Jewish, but her attitude exemplifies to Torah’s mandate to “Choose life” (Deut. 30:19).
Bart Stern: Help Others
Bart Stern, a Holocaust survivor, told of the time a man in Auschwitz was robbed of his daily ration of bread. Because of the starved and emaciated state of concentration camp inmates, this was tantamount to a death sentence. So Bart – also starving – gave the man some of his own bread.
After the war, Bart moved to Los Angeles. He would stand on the street corner every morning to watch the kids on their way to Jewish day school. He said: "After the war, my greatest joy is to see happy, free Jewish children."
Bart said, "I think I survived Auschwitz for a reason, and I am going to dedicate the rest of my life to help connect young people to their Jewish heritage. For decades, and well into his 70s, this slightly built man with a thick European accent (not exactly the type you'd expect to hang out with the Southern California youth), would literally walk the streets of Los Angeles on Shabbos and shlep young people in for a Shabbos meal. On Rosh Hashanah evening, he would invite 30 people, and if there were another 15 that didn't have a place, Bart said, "Send them too."
Auschwitz didn't make him bitter. It made him better.
Dr. Rahamim Melamed-Cohen: Focus on the Positive
Dr. Rahamim Melamed-Cohen, a pioneer in special education in Israel, was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease and told he had three to five years left to live. That was 18 years ago. Today he is completely paralyzed; he can only move his eyes. Using a computer that is operated through eye movement, Rahamim has written over 12 books, creates works of art and communicates with people from all over the world. “There really is no place for self-pity,” he says. “Don't despair. Be optimistic and work on joy in your heart. No matter what you're lacking think of what's possible to do in your present situation. These are the most beautiful years of my life.”
Sherri and Seth Mandell: Transform Tragedy into Good
On May 8, 2001, Koby Mandell and a friend, Yosef Ishran, took off from school to hike in a canyon close to their home in Tekoa, a settlement in the West Bank. Koby and Yosef were found bludgeoned to death with stones, an act attributed to Palestinian terrorists. “We were determined to create something out of the tragedy of Koby’s death,” Seth Mandell said. He and Sherri, his wife, founded the Koby Mandell Foundation in their son's memory, running healing programs for families and widows that have been directly affected by terror in Israel. The Foundation sponsors Camp Koby, its flagship program, for children that have lost a parent or a sibling in an act of terror.
The Israel Defense Forces: Take Responsibility
(Photo Credit: Joe Shalmoni, Standwithus.com)
The Israel Defense Forces takes the Jewish mission to be “a light unto the nations” very seriously, offering humanitarian aid to devastated spots around the world hit with enormous disasters. From the 2010 7.0 earthquake in Haiti to the 2013 typhoon in the Philippines, the IDF is often the first to arrive on the scene, saving lives with a state-of-the-art hospital comprised of hundreds of doctors, nurses and rescue workers.
With thanks to Breindy Lazor
(10) Mary, January 30, 2014 11:34 PM
inspiration
It is always difficult to see problems as opportunities for growth; events in one's life as a chance to serve G-d better and to use the abilities that one has in the service of Hasshem. To serve others and to lend the gifts that one has been given to help others is to obey Torah and to serve the one who gave one these gifts. Thank you for these wonderful examples.
(9) Raphael, January 29, 2014 7:46 PM
Keep in mind...
that Judaism holds every human being, Jewish or not, to be infinitely precious. Notice where the Israeli doctors in the article have gone. Haiti and the Philippines aren't exactly bastions of Jewish life. Rabbi Nosson Tzvi Finkel, the "Alter of Slabodka," who lived and taught in prewar Europe and Israel, focused his ethical lectures on "gadlus ha'odom," the intrinsic greatness of every human being.
(8) Kate Martin, January 27, 2014 6:43 AM
Gratitude in a time of loss
This morning my father passes away. I have been finding ways to find solace. I found your website when I was doing some research about Judaism yesterday and have found it has offered me some rich grounding for spiritual truths in a time of loss. Thank you for these inspiring stories and it is good to remember that we are not alone Shalom Kate
Bagel Jew, May 21, 2014 3:05 AM
B"DH
May you be comforted among the other mourners of Zion and Yerushalyim.
(7) Michal, January 26, 2014 9:01 PM
It makes me feel ashamed, when I think about myself.
There are hardnesses in my life, when I compare them with others and what they do, are tiny. Neverthelesse I often feel sorry for myself, Mitlonenet...
What I read here, gives me a push, to walk forward and smile.
(6) MESA, January 26, 2014 7:10 PM
There's only one thing to say here... Mi K'Amcha Yisrae -- who is like Your nation, Israel!
(5) Anonymous, January 26, 2014 6:30 PM
Gabrielle Giffords is NOT Jewish
B"H,
Gabrielle Giffords may consider herself to be Jewish .... but she's NOT. Her father is Jewish, her mother is a non-Jew which makes her Not a Jewish according to Jewish law. The path of conversion is open to her however.
I commend her attitude and her spirited recovery, may HaShem bless her with continued healing. Refuah Sh'leimah!!
Chaya, January 26, 2014 9:04 PM
I believe this article states she is not Jewish.
I believe this article states she is not Jewish.
Anonymous, January 28, 2014 1:47 AM
Yeah.
To quote, "Giffords may not be Jewish, but her attitude exemplifies to Torah’s mandate to “Choose life” (Deut. 30:19)".
Still kind of weird to include a gentile among a top-five list of *Jewish* responses to things, though.
Anonymous, January 30, 2014 2:01 AM
Gabrielle Gifford is NOT Jewish
The article is most correct in pointing out that fact .... I intended to reply to a comment herein which stated that Ms Gifford was the first 'Jewish' congresswoman for her district & that she considered herself Jewish.
She is a brave and courageous lady, but she is Not a Jew. I wish her well in her recovery. Refuah Shelimah!!!
Lynne, January 29, 2014 12:29 PM
The article clearly states that she is not Jewish, but she still comes from Hashem and is a human being nonetheless and she has shown tremendous courage. May she be blessed with abundant health, happiness and peace from Above.
(4) Anonymous, January 26, 2014 5:54 PM
Incredible,Honorable Bravery of Special People!
As a daughter of Holocaust Suviivors....I truly understand the pain of all of these terrible tragedies..my dear father was also murdered in 1971 during a robbery attempt in his place of business...after living through the Horrors of the Holocaust and losing all of the family....it was an unimaginable continuation of horror.....yet, my brother went on to become an attorney and I became a psychologist....both in the helping professions...perhaps...to change the world...one person at a time for the good of humanity....:)with shalom.....M
Anonymous, January 26, 2014 9:06 PM
Sad and beautiful
Thank you for sharing your and your brother's story of inspiration and choosing life. Beautiful.
(3) Anonymous, January 26, 2014 4:23 PM
Why We Are Still Here As a People
These stories exemplify the strongest Jewish values. These stories show the incredible values of who we are by taking the worst tragedies in history and making good for others! B'H!
(2) Nancy, January 26, 2014 2:04 PM
Wow! Just wow! I had no idea that Gabby Giffords went sky diving. To everyone profiled in this article, I am touched and inspired beyond words.
(1) Anonymous, January 26, 2014 12:32 PM
Gabbie Giffords considers herself Jewish. See Wikipedia excerpt below.
Giffords was born in Tucson, Arizona, to Gloria Kay (née Fraser) and Spencer J. Giffords. She was raised in a mixed religious environment by her Jewish father and Christian Science-practicing mother. Her grandfather, Akiba Hornstein, was a Jewish immigrant from Lithuania who changed his name to Giffords to avoid anti-Semitism.[11] Through her father, Giffords is a second cousin of actress Gwyneth Paltrow.[12] Giffords has identified herself solely with Judaism since 2001, belonging to Congregation Chaverim, a Reform synagogue, in Tucson.[13][14] She is Arizona's first Jewish congresswoman.
Curtis Delk Rose, January 26, 2014 5:43 PM
Saying "Thank You for the above summary"
i have deeply admired the Giffords family for the wonderful way they have traveled through such a difficult time. It is an inspiration to a large number of people to try and do better themselves, whenever a time of difficulty appears.
CJ, January 27, 2014 12:25 AM
No Such Thing.....
...as "considering" oneself Jewish. One must be born of a Jewish mother or convert.
Anonymous, January 29, 2014 7:40 PM
Gabrielle Giffords is NOT Jewish!
B"H,
Gabrielle Giffords may consider herself to be Jewish .... but she's NOT. Her father is Jewish, her mother is a non-Jew which makes her Not a Jew according to Jewish law. The path of conversion is open to her however.
I commend her attitude and her spirited recovery, may Ha'Shem bless her with continued healing. Refuah Sh'leimah!!