On Monday evening, a pregnant woman in her ninth month went into active labor in her home in Jerusalem. Family members urgently notified emergency services.

United Hatzalah volunteer EMTs Esther Pamensky and Estee Frumovich were patrolling in the area when they received an alert for a birth in progress on their communications devices. They responded quickly, arriving at the scene in under three minutes.

These seasoned members of United Hatzalah’s Women’s Unit, which specializes in assisting mothers during emergency births, entered the apartment to find that the mother had just given birth to a beautiful baby girl moments before their arrival.

Something seemed familiar to the EMTs about the location, but they had no time to think about why. Tending to the situation at hand, Pamensky conducted a thorough check on the newborn and cut the umbilical cord, while Frumovich conducted a comprehensive assessment of the mother. Karen Arieli, a brand-new member of the Women’s Unit who lives nearby, soon joined them. Together, the team established that both mother and baby were safe and in good health.

While waiting for the Advanced Life Support Ambulance to arrive, the newborn’s father seemed to recognize Pamensky and Frumovich. He approached them and asked if they had been at their house a year prior.

Pamensky and Frumovich immediately recalled the circumstances of their previous visit. A year prior, this couple’s previous child had been found unconscious, not breathing, and without a pulse. Pamensky and Frumovich were among the EMTs who had rushed to the scene, along with volunteer physician Dr. Shlomo Gensler. Sadly, despite their best resuscitation efforts, the child tragically succumbed to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).

Pamensky and Frumovich, both members of the United Hatzalah Psychotrauma and Crisis Response Unit, had provided family members with initial trauma treatment for dealing with this devastating loss. Pamensky accompanied the devastated couple to the hospital, while Frumovich stayed behind to provide care for the couple’s other children. Now, these same EMTs were present and assisting in the joyous occasion of welcoming the newest member of the family into the world.

“It was just so amazing to see how life goes on,” reflected Pamensky. “On some level, with everything happening today during this war, losing so many people, it meant so much to have such a happy event. It is a sign that good will come out of things even though we don’t understand it now. They lost a baby girl, and now another baby girl was born. I was privileged to be part of that circle.”