Sandra Samuel
Encyclopedia
Sandra Samuel is an India
n nanny
who saved the life of two-year-old Moshe Holtzberg during the November 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks. The government of Israel is considering granting Samuel the title Righteous among the Nations
.
Samuel saved Moshe when Nariman House
was attacked during the November 2008 Mumbai attacks. Both of Moshe's parents were killed in the attack. Samuel is currently helping to care for the boy in Israel
and working for Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg
and his wife, Rivka, since 2003. The Holtzbergs were the Israel
-born directors of the house run by the global Orthodox Jewish
Chabad
movement. Samuel had been the nanny caring for the Holtzbergs' son Moshe since his birth. Samuel stated that she called them "my rabbi" and "my Rivki." When she started working there in 2003, it was expected to be a temporary job but she stated that she was so captivated by their generous, courageous spirits that she stayed on. When Moshe was born, she took the role of nanny.
In June 2008, her husband, John, a Keralite who worked as a mechanic, died suddenly in his sleep of an undiagnosed illness. She has two sons, Martin and Jackson, who were aged 18 and 25 at the time of the attack. She is a Christian. Samuel's family was originally from Goa
but she lived most of her life in Mumbai.
and that he would be relocated to Israel
where he has family. However, the movement insisted that Samuel be allowed to come with him, because, as a Chabad spokeperson stated: "At this point she's the only one the boy is responding to." Although Samuel had no passport
or papers, Moshe's grand uncle, Rabbi Yitzchak Dovid Grossman
, helped arrange for her to get a visa
to come to Israel with Holtzberg to help him start his new life. The Israeli government under Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni granted Samuel a special visa offering immigration status. They left India for Israel shortly after attending Moshe's parents' funeral.
On December 4, 2008, Samuel gave an interview with CNN
in which she said she sees no heroism in her actions and that she wishes she could have been able to help more people, especially Moshe's parents. She also stated that she still has nightmares about the attacks. Currently, Samuel is living in Israel where she remains the caregiver for Moshe, who she says is learning to play again although he likes to have her close by. Samuel told an interviewer, "They said it is important I am here [in Israel]. Me, I just take care of the baby." When asked about her plans for the future, Samuel said she would stay in Israel for as long as Moshe needs her. She stated that "No one knows how much Moshe saw, or how much he knows. His back is bruised where terrorists hit him. Now I want to see that this baby who has been given in my care, he grows big, brave like his [dad]." Samuel says she wants to be with Moshe until he "grows big" and that "By God's grace I hope I am there to see it. That's it. All my blessings to my Moshe baby."
Samuel later revealed that she was not supposed to be at the Chabad house that evening because she usually visited one of her sons on Wednesday evenings. She stated that "God kept me there because God already knew what would happen."
In a subsequent interview, Samuel stated that Moshe Holtzberg is happy again, and that he "is like a normal kid, just enjoying himself. He has gotten used to other people surrounding him. He loves it here. He is in very good condition, just like normal. He is having his breakfast, lunch and snacks and he sleeps very well now." She added that he no longer cries out for his parents: "He is not even asking for them now because he is too happy. He loves it here. He has swings, a garden, a see-saw."
Samuel and Holtzberg initially stayed with Rabbi Grossman after arriving in Israel. However, they later moved to Afula
to live with his maternal grandparents.
In early December 2008, fifth-graders at Solomon Schecter Day School in Jericho, New York
wrote individual letters to Samuel to thank her for saving Holtzberg's life. The students cited Samuel's heroism based on the Jewish tradition that “one who saves one person saves an entire nation.”
, the highest Israeli award that may be presented to non-Jews. Sandra Samuel would be the first Indian to receive this award. This was articulated in these words by the Globe News Service of the Jewish People: "The ministry is considering granting her the title of "righteous gentile," Army Radio reported, allowing her to remain in Israel for an extended period of time." The Chabad movement later wrote that the Holtzbergs' "were blessed with such a selfless, brave and heroic caretaker" and that "Sandra is the proof that when people show their evil, others will show their beauty and greatness."
Foundation, at a special session, unanimously voted to grant Sandra Samuel the Esfira Maiman Women Rescuers Medal in recognition of her bravery. The foundation stated that "Sandra has taught us two lessons of cardinal importance. The first one is that human solidarity is agnostic to race and religion. The second lesson, not less important, is that rescuers are still very much relevant nowadays, as they were more than six decades ago."
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n nanny
Nanny
A nanny, childminder or child care provider, is an individual who provides care for one or more children in a family as a service...
who saved the life of two-year-old Moshe Holtzberg during the November 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks. The government of Israel is considering granting Samuel the title Righteous among the Nations
Righteous Among the Nations
Righteous among the Nations of the world's nations"), also translated as Righteous Gentiles is an honorific used by the State of Israel to describe non-Jews who risked their lives during the Holocaust to save Jews from extermination by the Nazis....
.
Samuel saved Moshe when Nariman House
Nariman House
The Nariman House , renamed as Chabad House , is a five-story landmark in the Colaba area in southern Mumbai, India. The building was home to a Chabad house, a Jewish outreach center run by Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg, and they have owned the Building since around 2006. The center had an...
was attacked during the November 2008 Mumbai attacks. Both of Moshe's parents were killed in the attack. Samuel is currently helping to care for the boy in Israel
Background
Samuel had been living in the Mumbai Chabad HouseNariman House
The Nariman House , renamed as Chabad House , is a five-story landmark in the Colaba area in southern Mumbai, India. The building was home to a Chabad house, a Jewish outreach center run by Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg, and they have owned the Building since around 2006. The center had an...
and working for Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg
Gavriel Holtzberg
Gavriel Noach Holtzberg was an Orthodox rabbi and the Chabad emissary to Mumbai, India, where he and his wife Rivka ran the Mumbai Chabad House. He was also a religious leader and community builder for the local Jewish Indian community, and led the Friday-night Shabbat services at the Knesset...
and his wife, Rivka, since 2003. The Holtzbergs were the Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
-born directors of the house run by the global Orthodox Jewish
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
Chabad
Chabad
Chabad or Chabad-Lubavitch is a major branch of Hasidic Judaism.Chabad may also refer to:*Chabad-Strashelye, a defunct branch of the Chabad school of Hasidic Judaism*Chabad-Kapust or Kapust, a defunct branch of the Chabad school of Hasidic Judaism...
movement. Samuel had been the nanny caring for the Holtzbergs' son Moshe since his birth. Samuel stated that she called them "my rabbi" and "my Rivki." When she started working there in 2003, it was expected to be a temporary job but she stated that she was so captivated by their generous, courageous spirits that she stayed on. When Moshe was born, she took the role of nanny.
In June 2008, her husband, John, a Keralite who worked as a mechanic, died suddenly in his sleep of an undiagnosed illness. She has two sons, Martin and Jackson, who were aged 18 and 25 at the time of the attack. She is a Christian. Samuel's family was originally from Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
but she lived most of her life in Mumbai.
Attack on the Nariman House
On November 26, 2008, as the Mumbai attacks began, a group of attackers entered the Chabad house and began shooting at everyone inside. Samuel heard gunshots and locked herself in a laundry room as she heard Rivka screaming. Later, she heard Moshe calling out her name and crying. After emerging from the room and running upstairs, she found Gavriel and Rivka motionless and covered in blood with Moshe crying beside them, his pants drenched in blood. With the attackers still inside, Samuel said she grabbed Moshe and ran from the building. Later, when Indian commandos stormed the house, it was confirmed that Gavriel and Rivka were among the 173 people killed in the attacks, and that Moshe was now an orphan.After the attack
The Chabad movement's leaders decided Moshe should not stay in IndiaIndia
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and that he would be relocated to Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
where he has family. However, the movement insisted that Samuel be allowed to come with him, because, as a Chabad spokeperson stated: "At this point she's the only one the boy is responding to." Although Samuel had no passport
Passport
A passport is a document, issued by a national government, which certifies, for the purpose of international travel, the identity and nationality of its holder. The elements of identity are name, date of birth, sex, and place of birth....
or papers, Moshe's grand uncle, Rabbi Yitzchak Dovid Grossman
Yitzchak Dovid Grossman
Not to be confused with his distant cousin Rabbi Dovid GrossmanYitzchak Dovid Grossman is the Chief Rabbi of Migdal Ha'Emek, founder and president of Migdal Ohr, and member of the Chief Rabbinate Council.-Early life:Grossman is a sixth generation Jerusalemite, born in 1946...
, helped arrange for her to get a visa
Visa (document)
A visa is a document showing that a person is authorized to enter the territory for which it was issued, subject to permission of an immigration official at the time of actual entry. The authorization may be a document, but more commonly it is a stamp endorsed in the applicant's passport...
to come to Israel with Holtzberg to help him start his new life. The Israeli government under Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni granted Samuel a special visa offering immigration status. They left India for Israel shortly after attending Moshe's parents' funeral.
On December 4, 2008, Samuel gave an interview with CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
in which she said she sees no heroism in her actions and that she wishes she could have been able to help more people, especially Moshe's parents. She also stated that she still has nightmares about the attacks. Currently, Samuel is living in Israel where she remains the caregiver for Moshe, who she says is learning to play again although he likes to have her close by. Samuel told an interviewer, "They said it is important I am here [in Israel]. Me, I just take care of the baby." When asked about her plans for the future, Samuel said she would stay in Israel for as long as Moshe needs her. She stated that "No one knows how much Moshe saw, or how much he knows. His back is bruised where terrorists hit him. Now I want to see that this baby who has been given in my care, he grows big, brave like his [dad]." Samuel says she wants to be with Moshe until he "grows big" and that "By God's grace I hope I am there to see it. That's it. All my blessings to my Moshe baby."
Samuel later revealed that she was not supposed to be at the Chabad house that evening because she usually visited one of her sons on Wednesday evenings. She stated that "God kept me there because God already knew what would happen."
In a subsequent interview, Samuel stated that Moshe Holtzberg is happy again, and that he "is like a normal kid, just enjoying himself. He has gotten used to other people surrounding him. He loves it here. He is in very good condition, just like normal. He is having his breakfast, lunch and snacks and he sleeps very well now." She added that he no longer cries out for his parents: "He is not even asking for them now because he is too happy. He loves it here. He has swings, a garden, a see-saw."
Samuel and Holtzberg initially stayed with Rabbi Grossman after arriving in Israel. However, they later moved to Afula
Afula
Afula is a city in the North District of Israel, often known as the "Capital of the Valley", referring to the Jezreel Valley. The city had a population of 40,500 at the end of 2009.-History:...
to live with his maternal grandparents.
In early December 2008, fifth-graders at Solomon Schecter Day School in Jericho, New York
Jericho, New York
Jericho is a hamlet in Nassau County, New York on the North Shore of Long Island. As of the United States 2010 Census, the CDP population was 13,567. The area is served by the Jericho Union Free School District, the boundaries of which differ somewhat from those of the hamlet...
wrote individual letters to Samuel to thank her for saving Holtzberg's life. The students cited Samuel's heroism based on the Jewish tradition that “one who saves one person saves an entire nation.”
Righteous among Nations
Israel is considering conferring on her the title Righteous among the NationsRighteous Among the Nations
Righteous among the Nations of the world's nations"), also translated as Righteous Gentiles is an honorific used by the State of Israel to describe non-Jews who risked their lives during the Holocaust to save Jews from extermination by the Nazis....
, the highest Israeli award that may be presented to non-Jews. Sandra Samuel would be the first Indian to receive this award. This was articulated in these words by the Globe News Service of the Jewish People: "The ministry is considering granting her the title of "righteous gentile," Army Radio reported, allowing her to remain in Israel for an extended period of time." The Chabad movement later wrote that the Holtzbergs' "were blessed with such a selfless, brave and heroic caretaker" and that "Sandra is the proof that when people show their evil, others will show their beauty and greatness."
Esfira Maiman Women Rescuers Medal
On November 30, 2008, the International Raoul WallenbergRaoul Wallenberg
Raoul Wallenberg was a Swedish businessman, diplomat and humanitarian. He is widely celebrated for his successful efforts to rescue thousands of Jews in Nazi-occupied Hungary from the Holocaust, during the later stages of World War II...
Foundation, at a special session, unanimously voted to grant Sandra Samuel the Esfira Maiman Women Rescuers Medal in recognition of her bravery. The foundation stated that "Sandra has taught us two lessons of cardinal importance. The first one is that human solidarity is agnostic to race and religion. The second lesson, not less important, is that rescuers are still very much relevant nowadays, as they were more than six decades ago."