Isaac Nadoff could return to Pittsburgh from Israel and be a paramedic: ‘Naah’
'For me, it’s a moral obligation to stay'
Isaac Nadoff won’t leave Israel. The sometime Squirrel Hill resident could return to Pittsburgh, but he won’t.
“I can’t leave,” he told the Chronicle. “For me, it’s a moral obligation to stay.”
Nadoff, 30, is a paramedic in Pittsburgh. In Israel, he’s a combat medic.
On Oct. 7, Nadoff was in the Jewish state celebrating Sukkot. Years earlier, he served in the IDF. After Hamas’ attack, Nadoff wanted back in. Three weeks elapsed before he was permitted to resume duties. After his unit “worked through the bureaucracy,” he said, Nadoff returned to former tasks.
Since rejoining the IDF he’s provided first and secondary care.
The former is “initial care under fire,” he said. “If someone gets shot, and there’s a firefight, I’m the first one there rendering care.”
Administering secondary care requires assisting a doctor and staffing the medical clinic. “If a mass casualty event happens, we roll to that, or if there’s a bad car accident in the area, we’ll roll to that,” he said.
Nadoff spoke by phone from a base near the Egyptian border.
“It’s been a long nine months,” he said.
Nadoff separated the span into segments: There’s the initial time waiting to get cleared for service; the three months of reserves, including 50 days inside Gaza; the three months he returned to Pittsburgh; and the two months he’s been back in Israel.
“Right now, I’m on temporary assignments to other units, filling up my time, plugging holes that I see are needed,” he said.
Nadoff is slated to resume work with his primary unit in October. He could have gone back to Pittsburgh until then. Instead, Nadoff elected to stay in Israel.
Flights are expensive, but also “there are units that need help,” he said. “I have the expertise, and the army is severely lacking paramedics and medics. I can stay and help out.”
Back in Pittsburgh Nadoff had been a paramedic for about five years and an EMT since 2012.
Those duties and that life are 6,000 miles away, but friends and colleagues bridge the distance, he said.
“There’s been a lot of texts and calls,” he continued. “One of my fondest memories is that over the first few months, Rabbi Genack sent me a few video messages on WhatsApp.”
Encouragement from Shaare Torah Congregation’s spiritual guide was meaningful, as were words received after a harrowing spell, he explained.
A video interview of Nadoff, and his reasons for continuing to serve, went viral last month.
“After that, I got a lot of death threats — some more credible than others — and a lot of hate stuff,” he said.
Squirrel Hill residents heard about the messages and offered support.
Nadoff appreciated the kindness.
“It really helps ground you,” he said, “and [allows you to] not only focus on all the hate you’re getting.”
Apart from the positive texts, community members have sent financial assistance.
“Pittsburgh has been able to pay for two great barbecues, which were great evenings we had on our base,” he said. Those nights enabled Nadoff and others to “just kick back and relax, and forget about the pressure for 5-10 minutes or an hour, whatever it is.”
Nadoff said that as each day passes, his realization grows.
“Life is going on in America and across the world, which it should, but the war is still very much real here,” he said. “There are so many people here — I’m not just talking about myself — there are so many people here, Americans, that gave up their lives and they’re here serving.”
He understands he elected his path but hopes others recognize their choices as well.
“A lot of people, either consciously or subconsciously, are losing track or not paying as much attention or forgetting that this is still going on — and it’s still going on,” he said.
Nine months into a war, the daily grind is both frenetic and immutable. Since Hamas’ invasion, Nadoff has changed his locale, his responsibilities, but not his identity, he said.
On the back of his helmet is a Terrible Towel patch. The black and yellow symbol invites countless questions — mostly, “Why is it there?”
“Because I’m from Pittsburgh,” he said. “Go Steelers.” PJC
Adam Reinherz can be reached at areinherz@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.
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