Elaine Hoter is an inspirational woman who suffered a great tragedy. On what began as a normal Shabbat evening in 2006, her son, Gavriel Hoter was murdered by two terrorists at the young age of seventeen. Among all the people studying at the university over the weekend, only Gavriel and three of his other friends volunteered for kitchen duty. Although these four deaths were a great blow to the student’s families and friends, these four students saved the lives of the hundreds in the other rooms.

                  Unlike many of my friends on the trip for whom this was their first experience with the story of Gavriel, this was the second time I have heard this story. When entering the Hoter residence, I felt a pang of recognition because I saw the book memorializing Gavriel and his life. I remember that a month ago, my mom and sisters were reading this book and sobbing over this attack. When Elaine Hoter finished her story about her inspiring son, I went up to her to give her a big hug. Sooner than later, I found out that my Hebrew teacher from elementary school is Elaine’s sister in law. Since fourth grade I’ve wondered who this young boy that was shot for no particular reason was.  I immediately thought back to the time I hid myself in the corner while listening to the soothing voices of Gavriel’s family. I would just sit there and wonder how people could do such a thing. I recall being so angry at how cruel and painful the world in which we live can sometimes be.

We Ambassadors are so lucky to be able to hear the complete story firsthand from Gavriel’s mother. Out of all the people we could have heard speak about the horror of terrorism, we had the honor to hear the stories of the Hoter family. I believe that meeting this family in person was no coincidence. Everything happens for a reason, and it is our job as Ambassadors to try to change the way that certain people act towards each other and make a difference in the world.