The Amazing Story of Dvir Musai

Dvir Musai is a friend I met in 2016 when I was part of a 2-year Hadassah Fellowship. We were a group of #lucky16 women from around the country becoming more engaged in Hadassah as leaders. (By the way there's a new Fellowship for women 45 and under, you can find more information and apply here.)As part of our fellowship, we traveled to Poland for a "March of the Living" program visiting Auschwitz and Krakow, the place where Kristallnacht happened. We came to Israel to learn more about the creation of the state post WWII and met so many interesting people. One of them was Dvir.

Dvir is a poised young man who sits holding his cane. He shares his nightmare story in a well-practiced tone that draws the listener in while knowing that he is re-telling a story he's told many times. He starts out by saying, "Hadassah women, I loved you before I ever met you." On June 11, 2002, at age 13, he was on a field trip from school and along with his friends he was misbehaving. They were invited to go back to the bus and wait for the rest of the kids there. As they made their way through the field, Dvir stepped on a land mine planted by terrorists. He describes the smell of the air, the sound of buzzing in his ears, and the incredible pain as his body is destroyed. He was rushed to Hadassah hospital and they saved his life. He lived in the hospital for many months and to this day has had more than 40 surgeries.

Dvir describes how he spent birthdays and holidays in the hospital and how the doctors, nurses, and medical clowns became his family. He shares how the "ladies of Hadassah" supported him through our donations. It took him many years to be ok with any Arab doctors or nurses in the hospital.

His is a chilling story that had a particular effect on me as June 11, 2002 is the day my daughter Elizabeth was born. So, a day that gave me great joy, brought destruction and chaos on Dvir and his family. A couple of years ago, my Rabbi and mentor, and a child survivor of the Holocaust, Rabbi Joseph Polak, sent me an article. It turns out it was about my dear friend Dvir. There was an opportunity for him to have a special surgery to relieve some pain in his feet. The problem was that the surgery was created by Nazis experimenting on Jewish victims and it was performed only by an Arab doctor at Hadassah hospital. Read this article for more details, it's incredible: click here.

I came back to Israel in 2017 with Mike and the girls and arranged a visit for them at Hadassah hospital so they could hear Dvir's story (and also to meet BG- Barbara Goldstein and see the Chagall stained glass windows). On 4 different Hadassah/Momentum trips, I've heard his story again and again. Each time, I'd approach him at the end and ask if he remembered me, take a photo, and give him a hug. On my recent trip in November, Dvir and his wife were at the Hadassah convention in Jerusalem. We had more time to chat and catch up. Turns out they were traveling to Florida in a couple of weeks for another surgery. Dvir needed some help with arrangements in Florida and I was able to connect him a close friend, Dean Myerow who lives close by in Fort Lauderdale. Dean and his Rabbi from the local Chabad, helped Dvir's family in numerous ways during their visit, and I'm so grateful to them. 

Last week Mike and I met up with Dvir and his family at the Malcha Mall in Jerusalem- what a treat to meet his kids.