Look for the Helpers

On October 7, 2023, the world was shaken by the reality of evil and by how close it can come to each of us. I do not mean merely evil people, but the reality of evil itself—the darkness the Bible warns us about and the darkness that can take hold of the human heart. Death spread across Israel as terrorists from Gaza tore through quiet communities and joyful celebrations of the last day of Sukkot.

It would have been natural to break under the weight of such evil. That day awakened fear, anger, and disillusionment, and stripped many of hope—whether hope for reconciliation or for peace in the region. Among those who were killed were also peacemakers: people who had intentionally sought to build bridges between Israelis and Palestinians.

So how do we resist giving in to despair or complete hopelessness?

A well-known quote from Mr. Rogers comes to mind: “Look for the helpers.” In full, he said, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’”

And there were helpers that fateful day. Ordinary people set out to rescue their neighbors and fellow Israelis on October 7.

In the Beauty for Ashes documentary, we learn some of the October 7 rescue stories. Zaki and David, neighbors from a moshav of Patish, witnessed the horrors of that day with their own eyes. Yet they chose not to turn away. Again and again, they drove toward danger to bring others to safety, doing what they could to save as many lives as possible.

Zaki

On the morning of October 7, Zaki woke up, as he did every Shabbat, around 5:15 or 5:30 a.m. It was also Simchat Torah, a special holiday that concludes Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles. 

He went to make coffee and, within minutes, began hearing voices and prayers. Not unusual for a holiday morning. But then, he heard screaming—one scream after another, at a terrifying rate.

Zaki looked out the window. Something was clearly different, but at that point, he could not tell what was happening. Nevertheless, he called for his wife and children, and they went together into the shul, their synagogue. But the screams did not stop.

After an hour and a half in the synagogue, with the sirens now blaring, they returned home and decided to turn on the TV. On Shabbat, they would never normally do that, but this time they needed to understand what was happening.

News had already begun spreading about a serious attack in the area. Zaki retrieved his phone, which he had put away the night before, and saw around nine or ten unread messages. Members of the community were asking people to go pick up those fleeing the Nova Festival, about five kilometers from the moshav through the fields.

Zaki did not hesitate. His wife, Daniella, told him, “Hurry, go, get them out of there.”

Zaki works for Coca-Cola, so he knew about the Nova festival through his work. His company had sent dispensers and couriers to the event days before.

As soon as he went out to his car, he saw his neighbor David. Zaki called out, “David, let’s go! You know the roads better than I do—the roads through the fields. We need to start bringing people in who ran away or are stuck at the Nova festival.”

They had no idea what they were about to see.

David

David Yaakov has lived in Patish for 30 years. On October 7, he woke up around 6:30 a.m. to the sound of alarms. It was not something he had never heard before. When the siren sounded, his family would normally move straight into the safe room in their house.

But this time, he had a strange feeling. While his family sought shelter, he went outside to look around. He could hear the sounds of drums and RPG fire. In the distance, David saw cars driving through the fields in the direction of their community. He thought they were terrorists.

But the cars contained young people who had just escaped the festival and were trying to get out of the fields. They were calling for help.

David joined Zaki in his car, and together they drove toward the festival area. What they saw there was terrifying.

The Nova Festival

At first, Zaki and David came across many of the “runners” – people escaping the Nova festival on foot. They stopped the van and called out: “We came to pick you up!”

But the young people were skeptical and did not understand what was happening. Initially, they did not want to get into the car, so the two local men had to explain who they were. Once the first group understood, they asked Zaki and David to continue farther into the fields, to bring out the people who were having more difficulty escaping.

So that’s what they did. After another mile or so into the fields, they found another large group of people trying to run.

Zaki and David brought the whole group back to their homes, where they received treatment and care. They called their parents and told them they were in a safe place.

Then Zaki and David went back.

They kept going in and out, bringing out as many people as possible. Each time they entered farther into the fields, another mile closer to the festival, until they saw bodies on the ground. 

There were festival attendees as well as terrorists who had been shot. They saw cars with people inside who had tried to escape but had been stopped by terrorists.

And still, Zaki and David kept going.

When asked whether they were afraid, David said they did not really think about it. They saw young people in profound distress, asking for help. At that moment, they did not think about themselves.

Zaki nodded in agreement. He did not know whether they were especially courageous; their mission was simply to bring as many people out as possible. And, he admitted, the adrenaline was working.

Friend or enemy?

They made approximately eight or nine trips into the area.

During one of those trips, while they were at a shelter, Zaki received a call from his son. His son told him that a couple was hiding in the wadi, a valley of the Patish Stream, and that they needed help.

Without hesitation, the two men turned onto a dirt road. When they reached the area, the scene was truly horrific. They passed abandoned police vehicles and a car with dead people inside.

Nevertheless, they continued toward the wadi, but they could not find the couple. Zaki managed to get in touch with them by phone and told them, “Listen, I’m in a big white car. I’m driving around. You’ll see us, and then you’ll know.”

But while they were searching, David saw two military vehicles in the distance, charging toward them at a terrifying speed.

At first, he worried that the vehicles belonged to terrorists. Thankfully, as they got closer, they saw that one was a police vehicle and the other belonged to the army. 

But the soldiers pointed their guns at Zaki and David.

Zaki and David raised their hands and shouted that they were there to rescue the young people. After considerable commotion, the two sides finally recognized that they were there for the same reason—to help.

Zaki and David reached the couple and brought them into their car, but they were not out of danger yet.

On the way back, they took a road where military trucks and soldiers were positioned. Zaki stopped on the side of the road as approximately 30 soldiers lay on the ground, pointing their guns at them.

At that moment, they thought it was over.

Thankfully, an officer who was beside a truck and had not taken cover was able to get a closer look at the people in the white van. He realized they were not terrorists. The officer called off the other soldiers, preventing what could have turned into another tragedy.

Finally, Zaki and David reached their home again and called the young couple’s parents.

October 7 Rescue Efforts

The terrorists had crossed the main road toward Patish. They passed by the moshav but did not enter. They continued toward the main entrance, where barricades had been placed across the road. That gave the people of Patish a chance to act.

“It was our chance to save as many as possible,” Zaki said.

Zaki and David have remained in contact with some of the families they helped. The day before the interview, Zaki had spoken with the father of one of the young people they rescued, who had sent him a video of their reunion.

Altogether, Zaki estimates that they evacuated somewhere between 85 and 100 people from the area. They did not make it all the way to the Nova Festival site itself, but every time they got closer to the festival, they found more injured people and brought them to safety.

Their whole moshav was mobilized and worked alongside them. Others went out to help just as Zaki and David did. Some have lost their loved ones on this tragic day. 

At the moshav, everyone did what they could. They made lists, contacted parents, and organized buses to take people to Be’er Sheva, the biggest city in southern Israel, further away from the Gaza envelope. From there, they could continue on to their families or get picked up.

Throughout that day and the entire following week in October, the moshav became a place of refuge. It was filled with soldiers and with people who needed help, comfort, sleep, and food. 

A Command to Save a Life

Zaki explained that this kind of response is part of the community’s DNA. For Zaki and David, the answer to whether they would do it again was simple.

“Without a doubt.”

David reiterated that it’s part of their DNA and connected his response to the Torah. There is a command not to stand by when another person’s life is in danger. Even on Shabbat, saving a life takes precedence. If someone is in trouble or at risk, you get up and help. There is just no question about it.

The experience also reinforced something for Zaki about the Jewish people. 

After the first group they rescued was brought to safety, Zaki asked them to call their families. One young man told his father, in disbelief, that they were aided by local people who were not wearing kippot, the traditional Jewish head covering. 

The young man seemed surprised by this, and Zaki wondered if the young man was taught to see religious and secular Jews as different people. But that moment, on October 7, showed him something else.

“We are the people of Israel,” Zaki said. “We help one another, in any situation.”

Light Shines in the Darkness

Zaki and David never set out to become heroes of an October 7 rescue mission. They simply saw people in danger and got up to help. In the darkness of that day, they became the helpers Mr. Rogers spoke about. 

But their story reminds us that the struggle between good and evil is not abstract. We see it in the choices people make, in the choice to harm or to help, to turn away or to take a stand. October 7 revealed the terrible reality of evil. But darkness does not have the final word.

The Bible tells us that “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:5). It is the hope at the heart of the Gospel. In Jesus, God entered our broken world, overcame sin and death, and promised that one day all things will be made new.

Until that day, we are called to walk in the light, to resist evil, to protect life, and to become, in whatever place God has put us, a light in the darkness.

Zaki and David did that on October 7. Their story reminds us that we can do the same.

Watch Beauty for Ashes

Hear Zaki and David tell their story and discover more stories of courage, faith, and hope emerging from the ashes of October 7.

Click to watch the Beauty for Ashes documentary for free!