Israeli Soldier’s Head Injury Turned Out to be a Blessing

by Asharon Baltazar – COLlive Magazine

Rabbi Menachem Kutner, director of the Chabad Terror Victims Project, relates to Sichat Hashavuah:

“The recent opening of a new rehabilitation department at Hadassah Mount Scopus Medical Center was prompted by a surge in wounded soldiers. Previously, doctors directed these soldiers to the Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer.

“However, the influx of casualties from the war overwhelmed Sheba and necessitated the establishment of an additional rehabilitation facility. After a few months of construction, the new department opened in Hadassah.

“I began visiting the soldiers staying at the new department as soon as it opened. I went from room to room, exchanging words of inspiration with patients until I met Oz Yaakov. His head wrapped in clean bandages, Oz lay in bed as his parents, Tzuriel and Ranit, sat around him. Oz, a resident of Jerusalem, husband, and father, was wounded in Gaza after suffering shrapnel injuries to his head.

“We started chatting and Oz’s parents shared with me that they attribute their son’s birth to a blessing they received from the Lubavitcher Rebbe. Naturally, I was eager to hear the story.”

“Seven years into our marriage, we still struggled with infertility,” said Tzuriel. “When treatment at the hands of the leading specialist at the Hadassah Ein-Kerem Medical Center failed, I decided to request a blessing from the Rebbe.”

“I dialed the Rebbe’s secretariat repeatedly, but the phone remained busy. I spent the night trying to get in touch, calling the number again and again, and only after many hours, did I manage to get a hold of a secretary. I told him about the treatments we were going through and asked for the Rebbe’s blessing that the procedure should succeed.

“The secretary requested our names along with those of our mothers, saying he’ll relay the information to the Rebbe.

“We persisted with the treatments. At a certain point, our specialist recommended consulting another doctor at the Bikur Holim Medical Center. He had an innovative treatment that might be of benefit to us.

“But there was one problem. Our insurance didn’t cover this innovative treatment, and the cost was prohibitively expensive. We wouldn’t be able to afford it.”

“I told my parents about it,” Ranit continued. “My late father, Rabbi Asher Litov (Sharabi), Rabbi of Even Shmuel, said that he would agree to finance the treatment on condition that the Lubavitcher Rebbe gives his blessing. We were surprised that my father conditioned his help with a blessing from the Rebbe, but that was his wish.”

“I turned to one of my Chabad friends,” Tzuriel said, “and asked for his help contacting the Rebbe. I dictated every possible detail about our situation, and he wrote it all down and faxed it to the Rebbe’s secretariat. Half an hour later, my friend called me, his voice trembling with excitement, surprised at how quickly he had received an answer.

“The Rebbe’s response spanned three paragraphs. The first paragraph urged us to begin the innovative treatment, while the second assured us he’d mention our names at the Ohel. In the final paragraph, he bestowed his blessing upon us.

“The treatment proved successful, and in 1990, we welcomed our first daughter, Nesya, into the world. We immediately sent a letter to the Rebbe informing him of our daughter’s birth.”

“Someone told us the Rebbe customarily sends a congratulatory letter for the birth of a child. We expected a response soon, but as weeks and months passed, no letter from the Rebbe showed up.”

“In the following months, Nesya developed a severe condition in her leg. After attempting to treat the problem using non-invasive methods, the doctors decided that the only option was surgery. On the day of the operation, amidst our anxiety, I suddenly found a letter from the United States in our mailbox.

“The return address was 770 Eastern Parkway – a letter from the Rebbe. I opened the envelope and found it dated to the birth of my daughter. Somehow, the letter was “delayed” for nine months, lost in transit, before arriving on the day of the surgery. The Rebbe’s blessing calmed us down, and thank G-d, the surgery proceeded smoothly. Today, Nesya is a mother of five children.”

Ranit concluded, “About two years after our firstborn, in 1992, we had twins, a boy and a girl. We called our son Oz and our daughter Hadar.

“Thankfully, G-d’s blessings didn’t stop, and we merited to have six more children. May He grant us the joy of seeing all of them flourish.”

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“To my surprise,” related Rabbi Kutner, “Oz told me that he is grateful to G-d for the shrapnel. In the hours following the injury, x-rays discovered a malignant tumor metastasizing inside him. Doctors immediately placed him on an operating table and removed the growth. Now, he is on the path to recovery. The doctors told Oz that detecting the tumor this early saved his life, and if it wasn’t for the injury in Gaza, he might’ve discovered it too late.”

“My injury in Gaza was the best outcome I never would’ve expected” is a peculiar statement to hear from a reservist recovering in a rehabilitation department with a head full of bandages. But for Oz, it was the truth.