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Our nation was built on love and sacrifice in, through and by HaShem.
This includes many sacrifices for US and for our neighbors in trouble.
Let us continue to remember the ones out there in the field.
They need our love and prayer. Let us also remember the testimony of the tens of thousands who gave their lives or their health for us and our friends.
Sometimes such a large ‘number’ seems to be too abstract - it numbs the mind and overwhelms.
Yes, we pray for all the families who have suffered losses during America’s and the Free World’s recent efforts to save the oppressed and to curb evil.
Still, even these efforts are in a much clearer light, when we look closer at the testimony of one family who endures such hardship:
On Shabbat Korach, we had the great honor and privilege to greet as visitors the wonderful parents of humble true hero 2nd Lt. Emily J.T. Perez, USA, one of the best graduates, athletes and successful women of all times with USMA at West Point.
Emily, also lovingly called ‘Em’ was born 1983 to the Perez family on a cold winter day in Heidelberg, Germany. She went to a Bible believing German speaking Kindergarten, then to schools of the US community, and was identified very early as a highly gifted one.
HaShem saved Emily very early in life when she was about four years of age and the L-rd put her into ministry very early as well, helping with her Church’s Children’s Ministry, the choir and other hands-on activities in the Body of Yeshua.
As a little girl, Emily helped others to come to the L-rd and walk closer with Him by ministering in word and deed on a 24/7 basis. Even as a four year old, Emily remembered complete Easter Speeches, which she shared on other occasions as well.
Walking closely with Yeshua, she became very successful in school and joined the Model UN when in 8th grade (jumping three years ahead), and visiting Den Haag (The Hague, NL) among other places as a delegate.
Despite subsequent moves and transfers of her military family, she excelled greatly, including athletically in field and track, where she even made it to the European finals.
She played the Clarinet in the renown Heidelberg Band as well.
After transferring back to the US in 1998, she applied her ministry gifts in Church by tutoring fellow pupils, starting a Bible based AIDS ministry and by propagating the Biblical ideals of purity and abstinence from sex before marriage.
The Bible based AIDS ministry effort was acknowledged by a citation from the U.S. Red Cross.
Emily graduated from Oxon High School near Ft. Washington, MD.
She then had the opportunity to bring in herself with, and further the development of the gifts HaShem had given her by going optionally either to Harvard or to another top civilian ‘Ivy League’ institution that featured our nation’s leading Sociology and Environmental Science Programs.
Em sought the L-rd about this intensely and was shown that she was to walk a different ‘Ivy League’ way: In addition to the other offers, she also received immediate nominations by two pertaining members of congress to attend the highly prestigious USMA at West Point in 2001, with the class of 2005, where she started and stayed, maintaining highest academic and athletic standards, growing in ministry with the Gospel Choir, the Christian Officers Club, and simultaneously excelling as a leader.
With the Army athletic team she was an outstanding performer, ready to give it all, every time.
Emily was promoted to, and very successfully made it through the various cadet sergeant ranks, beginning with the ‘Beast Sgt.’ position until she became the first female minority Command Sergeant Major of the Corps of Cadets at USMA. This position put her in charge of discipline of about 4,000 cadets.
For this great historic success and for several other reasons some international observers consider Emily to be one of the most gifted and successful women of our time.
Emily graduated from West Point in 2005 among the top 10 percent and was commissioned as 2nd Lieutenant in the United States Army.
She then was assigned to the Medical Service Corps, a rare first assignment.
Emily aced the training and was joyfully congratulated and welcomed by the Army’s Commanding General of the MSC together with her fellow new MSC comrades.
Her assignment was to the 4th Infantry Division, with which she deployed to Iraq.
Em then served there, helping with nation building ‘hands-on’.
She cared for the wounded, civilian and military alike and worked as PR officer. Emily also lead convoys, very many of them, which is one of the most dangerous duties, since murderous terrorist infiltrators from Iran and other rogue places were attempting to murder as many Iraqis, foreign helpers and U.S. Service members as they possibly could at that time.
Em saw several sad scenes of murderous ambushes and helped the wounded, the hurting and their families.
In the various functions she held, she was doing very well and soon could add to her focus of learning the additional focus of setting new standards of excellent performance and team spirit.
The soldiers of her unit loved her much and often requested from command specifically for her to lead them on tough assignments.
If she could, Em said ‘Yes’ to these requests, even though she was entitled to rest.
Why ?
Emily knew that she ‘has true victory in YESHUA, every day’.
She rejoiced in the fact that she could share Yeshua's great gifts of love with so many.
People who met her speak about how she was a resiliently shining light of HaShem’s love in word and deed. Her leadership performance and her courage were outstanding. That lovingly winning smile as well as her powerful and joyful presence were constant. Without fail Emily found time to listen, and in personal matters even had the right word from the Bible when someone approached her for help, advice or comfort.
Everyone around her knew from her walk with HaShem the good news, the gospel: Yeshua is the life, the way and the truth which people need, and: The Bible is HaShem’s word, the daily bread and life source for everyone, specifically the seeking, the needy and the suffering.
In addition to professionally helping the locals with the fast process of building their new Iraqi nation of peace, Em continued her faith-ministry in many different other ways: She prayed, let His light shine in Bible fellowship and also founded the FOB New Life Gospel Choir at her base.
Then, on September 12, 2006, in the early moonlit morning hours, when running yet another convoy, Emily was most cowardly murdered by terrorists using an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) that was detonated near her Humvee.
Her driver and a translator who both loved her dearly were severely wounded.
It is said that Emily went home to the L-rd in an instant and ‘in full praise’. She is home with Hashem; Still, thousands dearly miss her daily and still are in mourning.
Today, the living letter of her life inspires many others, specifically girls, including many other ‘Emilys’ to follow Yeshua and trust Him completely.
Emily’s parents have started a g-dly 501(c)(3) organization to be a channel of HaShem’s love and to let the light of the Living Letter which the L-rd wrote in Emily’s life shine forth (2. Cor. 3):
The Emily J.T. Perez Foundation.
This is one of the best truly Bible based and powerful outreaches with focus on the spiritual growth and empowerment of young girls.
Please check out Emily’s site, spread the word and donate generously.
The girls are spiritually ‘adopted’ and accompanied by the foundation during their last school years and are challenged to grow in Yeshua by summer camps, rewards and scholarship programs. This way they learn to seek HaShem early in life about what His will and plan for each one’s life is. They learn and put to action G-d’s Word and His values His way.
As Emily underlined: it’s all about glorifying the L-rd in deed and word.
“Start where you are, use what you’ve got and do what you can, for you can do all things through Yeshua Moshiach, who strengthens you.” (Emily; see Phil. 4:13)
One day, when discussing General Douglas McArthur’s famous words: ‘Duty, Honor, Country’ at West Point, Em suggested, that in our times there is need to add one more word, right at the front and in premier position: G-D, DUTY, HONOR, COUNTRY.
As HaShem promised in His Word, He has accomplished to perfection all that He had planned for Emily: Well done thou good and faithful servant (Phil.1:9; Mt.25:21).
Now Emily is part of the great cloud of witnesses of believers of all times whose living letters surround us and encourage our faith in the Holy Spirit, who guides us into all truth (see Hebr 12:1).
And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them.” (Joh. 17:22).
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