My granddaughter was hospitalized in the U.S. My husband and I traveled there to be close and assist our son and granddaughter during her hospitalization. We rented a kosher place near the hospital so we could be of help.
On Shabbos morning, I went to visit and assist. When I arrived and saw all the electronic barriers at the hospital entrance, I didn’t know what to do or how I would manage to enter without, chalilah, transgressing. I prayed to Hashem to help me and walked toward the entrance. Since Shabbos is a day off for non-Jews, there was almost no pedestrian movement at the hospital entrance. I stood at a distance, waiting for someone to arrive so that when they opened the automatic glass doors, I could immediately slip in behind them.
A few minutes passed, and a security guard entered. I quickly followed behind him and was relieved when the first door opened. But suddenly, he turned around and walked back out, leaving me stuck between the first entrance and the second set of electric doors. I prayed to Hashem, and just then, the guard returned and entered again. I breathed a sigh of relief and continued to the security checkpoint.
I asked the guard if I was required to go through the metal detector or if I could skip it. He asked me if I was Jewish and if today was my Shabbos. I answered yes, of course. The guard told me to wait a moment—he brought in a replacement for himself, then personally escorted me to the elevators, called the elevator to the 13th floor for me, and continued to accompany me past all the electric doors until he brought me to the ward where my granddaughter was hospitalized.
I thanked him from the bottom of my heart, amazed at how well he understood what is permitted and forbidden for us on Shabbos. He explained that he had previously worked in a Jewish neighborhood as a Shabbos goy and therefore immediately understood my needs!
What a relief, what a kindness from Hashem, who arranged for me this messenger! The hospital was completely empty of visitors, and if I had needed to wait for a non-Jew to call the elevator for my floor, I would have had to wait a long time—especially since the stairwell doors were also locked electronically, requiring a button press to open!
(Needless to say, we consulted a halachic authority in advance regarding every question of what was permitted and forbidden.)
ר.ג.
