Muslim helps haredi woman with coronavirus light Passover candles
The woman, who had lit candles on every occasion for 70 years straight, was able to keep her tradition going.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFEbrahim Ayuty holding the candles he purchased for the woman.(photo credit: UNITED HATZALAH)
An elderly haredi woman under quarantine would have been unable to light candles before yom tov were it not for the help of a Muslim resident of Jaffa, United Hatzalah said in a statement.A 90-year-old haredi woman from Bnei Brak was evacuated to a coronavirus hotel in Tel Aviv after testing positive for COVID-19 just before the last day of Passover. However, just before the holiday began, the woman realized she didn't have any candles, and the hotel was fresh out.As Bnei Brak remained under lockdown, her family was unable to provie assisstance, so they contacted Hatzalah, who put out a call to local volunteers. One volunteer from Jaffa, Ebrahm Ayuty, responded, riding on his ambucycle to buy candles from a store that was still open before rushing to the hotel to bring them to the woman.The woman, who had lit candles on every occasion for 70 years straight, was able to keep her tradition going thanks to Ayuty and the humanitarian hotline set up by Hatzalah, Lev Echad and the Israel Association of Community Centers.“I am thankful that I was able to help,” Ayuty said in a statement.“I volunteer with United Hatzalah so that I can help people, no matter who they are or what they need. Normally, I respond to medical emergencies, but since the onset of the coronavirus in Israel, the lives of so many people have been turned upside down. It is a gift to be able to help people bring back a little bit of normalcy during this epidemic. Helping someone keep an age-old tradition alive is incredibly important to that person and therefore it is important to me as well.”
