"So What if There's a War and I'm on Reserve Duty? That's No Reason to Give Up Donating a Kidney"

In the past month, David Barzilai from Sderot has had quite an impressive track record: he served in the reserves for ten days, returned to his senior position at the aerospace industry for a few days to "clear his desk," continued to donate a kidney, and is now recovering alongside his family, who were evacuated from Sderot to a hotel in Jerusalem.

If this seems like an impossible race, David insists he never thought of postponing the kidney donation. "I waited for this day for so long, I couldn't bear to wait any longer," he explains.

A Path of Donation

"It all started about two years ago," shares David, "a good friend of mine told me he started dialysis treatments. He didn't hint at anything, but since I had been following kidney donation stories through the 'Gift of Life' organization for years, with a constant desire to donate, I saw the opportunity. During that conversation, I informed him: 'I will undergo the process for you.'"

And so it was. David began the tests, the results were excellent, and he progressed. However, towards the end of the tests and evaluations, doctors asked him to lose five kilograms and raised concerns about his diabetic family background, wishing to ensure he wasn't taking any risks. Therefore, they asked him to repeat some tests. "Amid all these delays, my friend informed me that another donor had approached him, wondering if he should wait for me or not. I immediately told him if he had another kidney, to go ahead with the surgery and not wait for me. He got the kidney about two years ago, and blessed be Hashem, the surgery was a great success, and he is healthy and well."

But the story didn't end there. Exactly a year later, David received a call from the hospital's coordinator nurse asking, "What's happening with your tests? Do you want to proceed with them?" and reminded him that they would soon expire, meaning if he decided to donate, he would have to start the process anew. "Again, I felt a strong desire to donate," he recalls. "I told the nurse that this time I didn't have a specific person to donate to, but I wanted to proceed to completion, during which they would match me with a recipient."

This time, the process was relatively short since most tests were already done. When David reached the last stretch, towards the end of summer, he met a coworker at the aerospace industry and told him he would soon undergo kidney donation surgery. "The coworker was very interested and asked if I knew who I would donate to," David recalls. "I replied that I didn't have a specific person in mind but thought maybe I would donate to someone within my work or residential circles in Sderot. His reaction was surprising: 'What is your blood type?' he asked. I replied, and our conversation ended. About half an hour later, he called me again, this time with a coworker who needed a donation. It turned out he worked in the building opposite mine, but I didn't know him until then. He was very ill and needed a transplant, but since we had different blood types, we contacted the 'Gift of Life' organization, led by Rabbi Heber, of blessed memory. They suggested a cross-matching surgery, meaning I would donate to another person whose donor would donate to my coworker. Two more months passed until the 'Gift of Life' arranged the cross-match, paving the path for donation at last."

A Donation Amidst War

However, nothing prepared David for the donation surgery to be scheduled during such a tense period, in the midst of a war on the home front.

"We live in Sderot," he notes, "but on Simchat Torah, by divine grace, we were not in town. We were guests at friends and family in Ramla. Already on the holiday, we heard sirens and realized the situation. By noon, I was called to reserve duty in the Home Front Command in Sha'ar HaNegev surrounding the Gaza strip. I arrived in my Shabbat clothes and remained so for two days because I couldn't enter Sderot to get other clothes. For ten days, I was in the war room, engaged in intensive work. We handled evacuations, managed lists of missing and injured people, and were essentially the link between the council and the residents. Afterwards, we were also responsible for arranging the many funerals, making it nonstop work."

And where was your family in the meantime?

"I am blessed with five children – two older daughters and younger sons. My wife and the kids initially stayed in Ramla, then were hosted elsewhere for a week, and finally moved to a hotel in Jerusalem with all Sderot residents. I stayed on reserve duty for the first ten days of the war."

And amid all this, you still planned to donate a kidney? Didn't you think it would be better to postpone a bit?

"Such a thought never crossed my mind. I went through so many tests to get to the donation, and since it was a cross-match surgery, I was clear I wouldn't disappoint two patients waiting. Beyond that, especially because of the horrific and unimaginable massacre, I felt a great privilege to be someone saving lives and redeeming people from terrible suffering. I was completely resolute; no thoughts of regret crossed my mind."

However, the recipient wasn't so sure about his fate. "The one who received my kidney in the cross-match surgery is a 28-year-old who has been ill since age 16, continuously on steroids. There were several occasions where he was supposed to receive a kidney, but the surgery was canceled at the last minute, and when the war broke out now, he had no doubt the same would happen again. He also heard I'm a Sderot resident and couldn't believe that in these days, I would leave my family and come to donate. When we met at the hospital, it was so emotional, truly the pinnacle of the donation experience. I felt so complete with myself, realizing I got to be a messenger to save a coworker's life and also give my kidney to a young man with his whole life ahead of him. What more could I ask for?"

And how did your wife cope during your reserve duty and surgery while being evacuated from home herself?

"My wife supported me all the way. She is a midwife and constantly feels the value of life. Of course, it required a lot of sacrifice from her, but it was clear to her we would do this, just as it was clear to me. A few hours after the surgery, while I was still a bit groggy, I sat with my wife, and then the doctor came to inform us the kidney was accepted by the recipient and functioning well. We were extremely emotional. For us, it was the peak of our aspirations – to relieve a patient's suffering and help them live better. Two days later, the second surgery was performed where my coworker received a kidney, and it also succeeded, thank Hashem. It is an indescribable feeling, and although the recovery isn't easy, there's not a day I don't feel joy and privilege."

These days, David is recuperating from the surgery at the Ramada Hotel in Jerusalem. "Of course, I would have preferred to recover at home originally," he says, "but the conditions here are excellent. It is also an opportunity to thank the Sderot municipality for providing not only a hotel for the city's residents but also activities for all frameworks since the second week of the war. As a member of the Sderot Reut Core, I try to support my friends remotely who work around the clock in Sderot to provide answers to the populations remaining in the city and to support the municipal system. We thank Deputy Mayor Elad Kalimi for his ongoing help and support."

He says he feels a bit embarrassed when people in the hotel stop him or his children and ask if he is the kidney donor. "People treat it as something grand, and I tell them: 'Look around, see all our brave soldiers and the people sacrificing themselves these days for the state's residents. I merely seized my opportunity to thank Hashem for what I have, to do good, and to donate."