On January 22, 2024, Galit Vizel’s world changed in a single moment. She was resting at home when she heard the dreaded knock on the door that no family ever wants to hear. IDF representatives came to deliver heartbreaking news: Her husband Elkanah was among 19 soldiers killed in Gaza when Hamas fired an RPG at the building they were in, causing it to collapse. At just 35, Elkanah left behind a wife, four children, his parents, and seven siblings, including a twin.
Before his death, Elkanah had written a letter to his family, “just in case.” In it, he urged them not to mourn with despair, but to strengthen one another, stay optimistic, and choose life. His letter soon spread across the nation, which was trying to come to terms with the loss of so many soldiers in one incident. Even Prime Minister Netanyahu read it aloud publicly. The very night Galit received the news, she wrote a hesped that echoed the words Elkanah had written, even though she hadn’t yet seen his letter.
Galit described how her entire body shook when she opened the door. She had every right to fall apart. But in that moment of raw grief, she paused and asked herself: What would it help? What would it give me? To my children? To am Yisrael? She realized she had a choice: not about what happened, but how she would respond. At that moment, she made a decision to be purposeful. She understood that she had to take care of herself so she could take care of her children.
That night, she sat on the couch, breathing, grounding herself, and writing a hesped for Elkanah. The next morning, she woke her children gently, just as she always did. She gave them chocolate milk. Then, with calm strength, she told them the truth: Their father had given his life for am Yisrael. Yes, it was sad, and yes, it hurt, but it was a tremendous z’chus. And they would be okay.
Galit’s decision wasn’t accidental or automatic. It was both deliberate and courageous. She didn’t collapse. She chose to live, even before reading Elkanah’s final letter. As a movement therapist, Galit understands the importance of caring for the soul, especially in times of trauma. She believes Hashem gave her a gift that night: the ability to act with clarity and strength. Her focus was not on herself but on safeguarding her children’s emotional world. She had to comfort, plan, and lead. While she had forfeited the “privilege” of being the pitied widow, her choice was far more empowering and ultimately life-affirming.
Galit’s strength didn’t start with Elkanah’s death. Her story began decades earlier when she lost her own father at the age of 3½. Raised by their mother, Galit and her five siblings grew up in a home filled with warmth and emotional security. They weren’t treated like victims, and they never saw themselves that way. She draws on that same strength now as she raises her own children.
Galit’s early experience of loss taught her a core truth about life: The world is not something we can always rely on to live with happiness and ease. Pain and unpredictability exist. She learned to release the illusion of control and instead focused on how she would respond.
“If I’m an orphan, that doesn’t automatically make me someone to be pitied,” she said. “If I’m a widow, that doesn’t mean I have to live in despair.” She came to understand the critical distinction between what happens on the outside and what we choose on the inside. It was a lesson that ultimately prepared her for what was to come.
Elkanah had been wounded during Operation Protective Edge in 2014 and was exempt from serving in this war. But when the war broke out on October 7, he longed to return to serve. Still, he didn’t ask Galit directly. He wanted the initiative to come from her. And it did.
Galit told him, “You should go.” It was a painful decision, but it wasn’t impulsive. She believes that in times of crisis, every Jew must contribute everything he can. Even though it’s difficult and she misses Elkanah so much, Galit has no regrets. She appreciates the z’chus to be so strongly connected to all of am Yisrael through their sacrifice. “We are a family of am Yisrael,” she says.
With extraordinary strength, Galit got married for a second time the week before Pesach. During the chupah, she spoke to Elkanah aloud and said that she was following the path he had paved for her. Every moment, she is choosing life, happiness, and strength.
Just four days later, in the middle of her sheva brachos, Galit spoke at a Zoom event for women to help prepare emotionally for Pesach. Her message centered on the concept of internal freedom: the power to make life-altering decisions. She spoke not from theory but from lived experience.
Galit believes that people are tested during moments of crisis. How do they react? The question is not if they will be changed, but how. No one remains the same. We either fall apart or we grow. Galit made a promise to herself and Elkanah that she would grow. Where she had once been quiet and hesitant, she stepped forward. She thought about the woman she wanted to be and became that woman. She would use her voice to uplift others. Standing close to death gave her new clarity about the value of life, every minute of it.
Hashem gives each person challenges. And yes, we’re allowed to cry, complain, and feel the pain. But if we want to live with simchah and emotional health, we must also choose: What kind of people do we want to become? That choice doesn’t always feel easy. It can feel like going against gravity. But when we choose purpose, Hashem sends us strength.
Galit Vizel’s story is a portrait of emunah and strength. She chose to protect her soul, comfort her children, and rise – not only for herself, but for am Yisrael. We hope that Hashem brings comfort to those who are suffering and that nobody else has to experience what Galit went through. May Galit and her new husband be blessed with a long, happy life, and may she continue to inspire women and families across am Yisrael to respond to life not only with strength but with purpose.
Please continue to daven for the recovery of the wounded, the release of the remaining hostages, and the success and safe return of all chayalim and security personnel.
Suzie Steinberg, (nee Schapiro), CSW, is a native of Kew Gardens Hills and resident of Ramat Beit Shemesh who publishes articles regularly in various newspapers and magazines about life in general, and about life in Israel in particular. Her recently published children’s book titled Hashem is Always With Me can be purchased in local Judaica stores as well as online. Suzie can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and would love to hear from you.
