Mary Ann Velasquez, 32, killed in Israel on February 28, 2026, by an Iranian missile.______________Hospital volunteers Hadassah Goldberg and Dr. Lawrence Levin in Jerusalem.
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Consider three stories that took place in Israel this year:
The first story is about Mary Anne Velasquez de Vera, 32, from the Philippines, married two years and expecting her first child. Like thousands of others from the Philippines, India and Sri Lanka, she was working among the elderly and disabled in Israel. These caregivers are loved by their host families.
Sirens wailed on February 28, but rather than rushing to shelter, Mary stayed with her patient to bring her to safety. Mary was struck by shrapnel from an Iranian missile. She and her unborn child died en route to the hospital, the first fatality in Israel in this war. The elderly woman she was helping was dug out of the rubble of a collapsed building and survived.
The second story took place in the lobby of one of the enormous hospitals in Jerusalem. My wife Hadassah volunteers there every week, playing flute along with her piano accompanist. She has seen everyone there, from day laborers and tourists to prominent professors and chief rabbis; Christians, Jews, Muslims; infants and elderly; native-born citizens and new immigrants from many nations; the strong and the barely living.
Recently, a young expectant mother in a wheelchair paused between the lobby chairs so she could hear the music. She was in the early stages of contractions and was stressed. Attending her was her young husband. He was in uniform and wore a rifle over his shoulder. He had to return to his base and was saying goodbye, while comforting her. Disappointingly, he would not be there for the birth.
And finally, it is common in Israel to celebrate a birthday with dinner at a restaurant. We did so recently as well. Among a hundred diners there were about twenty people celebrating birthdays. The average age of the guests was 18 to 25. The music was Israeli and loud. Between the courses, men danced in circles in the aisles, arms stretched across each other’s shoulders. Women danced hand in hand in their own circles. Strangers were warm and friendly to each other. There was joy and celebration of life, as there should be.
My wife and I were both moved by the joyous scene in the midst of war. These Jewish young people love their nation deeply–and know that in a few days or weeks they could be at the frontlines or in a tunnel in Gaza or Lebanon. Their lives could be snuffed out in an instant.
Israel is a land of real people living real lives. That continues undeterred, even while the enemy threatens at the gates. Israel will endure. It is Israel’s miracle, as promised by God Himself: “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they will not wash you away; when you walk through the fire, you will not be singed, and no flame will burn you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior” (Isai. 43:2-3).