I received my life as a birthday gift
One day before his birthday, Paul suffered a cardiac arrest – MDA teams, including a high school teacher and his two students, saved his life
When Paul Friedland woke up in the morning, a day before his 88th birthday, he never imagined how the day would end. About a month ago, Paul called MDA's 101 emergency dispatch center, reporting that he was not feeling well. Within minutes, MDA immediate response EMTs, Orit Goldfinger Mendel, Dafna Bar-On Ophir, and Michal Segev, arrived at his home and began medical examinations. Suddenly, Paul suffered a cardiac arrest, collapsed, and had no pulse or breathing. Orit, Dafna, and Michal immediately started performing CPR.
Moments later, an MDA ambulance arrived, led by EMT Amir Masry, a high school teacher in Taibe, who was on shift with two of his students – Aya Jaber and Mahmoud Masarwa, both MDA youth volunteers. Upon arrival, they quickly connected a defibrillator to Paul’s chest, continued performing chest compressions, and after administering a single shock, Paul's heart started beating again.
But the story didn’t end there—when Paul was placed in the ambulance for transport to the hospital, his heart stopped once more. The first response and ambulance team immediately resumed intensive CPR, and after two additional shocks, his heart started beating again. Paul regained consciousness and was transported to the hospital by a Mobile Intensive Care Unit (MICU) team, including driver Raz Levy and MDA paramedic Aviv Solomon.
A month after the incident, standing on his own two feet, Paul and his wife Sara met with the dedicated paramedics, first responders, and medics who fought for his life and saved him.
Paul Friedland, whose life was saved, shared:
"I am deeply grateful to all of you. When I think about it – it's a miracle. It felt like a continuous scene from a movie—the entire resuscitation process. I got my life back as a birthday gift. You made this happen. I have already used this new time I was given to hug my children and grandchildren and tell them how much I love them. Usually, in situations like these, there is no second chance—it just doesn’t happen. But I was given one. It happened to me. Thank you so much."
Orit Goldfinger Mendel, an MDA first responder who was the first to arrive at the scene, recounted:
"When we arrived, Paul was still conscious, but during our treatment, he collapsed, and we immediately began CPR. The ambulan ce arrived quickly and brought the defibrillator, which is a critical device that saved Paul's life. We connected him to the defib, he received one shock and regained consciousness. Later, as he was taken into the ambulance, he suffered another cardiac arrest. Fortunately, since the defibrillator was still connected, he received two more shocks and fully regained consciousness. Seeing him here, smiling and laughing, is incredibly moving. We’re so glad we were available to respond to the call and help him."
Amir Masry, an MDA EMT who arrived with his students, MDA youth volunteers, shared:
"The moment we parked the ambulance, one of the EMTs ran outside and shouted to me that it was a resuscitation. We rushed in with the defibrillator and worked together to perform CPR, which ultimately brought Paul back to life. Seeing him like this now is amazing, and it was incredibly meaningful to save a life together with my two students. This is such an important lesson."
