At twelve years old, Noa had everything. Growing up in Israel, this gentle and talented, young girl was happy and healthy. Then, one night as she tried to sleep, Noa was struck with sharp, unrelenting pain. She was rushed to the hospital and with this began a seventeen year battle with osteosarcoma, a virulent bone cancer that was destined to change her entire life. Incredibly, through the enormous challenges that she overcame- time and time again- she developed an unshakeable faith in Hashem and a strong sensitivity to others that won the heart of an American-born yeshiva student searching for his eishes chayil. Noa was convinced that her sickness was a Heaven-sent opportunity to help the lives of others, and during a five-year period of good health, she embarked on a medical career so that she could help those whose suffering she understood only too well. This story takes place in Sha’alvim, Ramat Beit Shemesh, Bayit VeGan, London, Teaneck, and Boro Park, but Noa’s great emunah inspired tens of thousands of people around the world who prayed for her. During the final year of her life, several emergency emails were sent out around the world urging everyone to daven for her recovery. You may have received one yourself, and the name “Techiya Noa Ester bas Chaya” may sound familiar even now, years later. Written by Boruch, Noa’s husband of nine years, during the months after her passing, Noa’s Strength is unique, inspiring, powerful…and true.
