Posted on 04/17/2007 7:03:09 AM PDT by meg88
Israeli professor murdered as he saved students at Vriginia Tech shootings Source: Jerusalem Post
As Jews worldwide honored on Monday the memory of those who were murdered in the Holocaust, a 75-year-old survivor sacrificed his life to save his students in Monday’s shooting at Virginia Tech college that left 32 dead and over two dozen wounded.
Professor Liviu Librescu, 76, threw himself in front of the shooter, who had attempted to enter his classroom. The Israeli mechanics and engineering lecturer was shot to death, "but all the students lived - because of him," Virginia Tech student Asael Arad - also an Israeli - told Army Radio.
Several of Librescu’s other students sent e-mails to his wife, Marlena, telling of how he blocked the gunman’s way and saved their lives, said the son, Joe.
"My father blocked the doorway with his body and asked the students to flee," Joe Librescu said in a telephone interview from his home outside of Tel Aviv. "Students started opening windows and jumping out."
Liviu Librescu, was respected in his field, his son said.
"His work was his life in a sense," said Joe. "That was a good place for him to practice his research."
The couple immigrated to Israel from Romania in 1978 and then moved to Virginia in 1986 for his sabbatical, but had stayed since then, Joe told Army Radio.
Prayers for this hero & his family. ~P~
greater love has no man... then to give up his life for his friends.
God Bless this Man!
Prof Livia has well earned his rest in eternal grace.
I can see her at the next State of the Union address getting a standing O.
Heart-wrenching. God bless this brave professor.
(Ping—not on our usual topics)
This is a guy who ought to get a presidential medal or such...in my book...he did the right thing for the right reasons. You won’t find a single professor at Berkley or UCLA who would have done something like this. And the Duke 88....they can’t even sit at the same table as this dude.
WOW.
A true American hero—who knew what he was doing and gave it all. This is a man’s man. Prayers for him and his family—may God surely bless them all with the greatest favor.
dang blurry computer screen, it’s been like this all morning :)
Amazing man.
“The world needs more people like him and less “self-esteem” addcited nitwits.”
So true. The actions of the shooter and those of Liviu Livrescu are such profound illustrations of the extremes of the human potential. It’s staggering. The unfathomable, deranged actions of the one, and the selfless manifestation of love for his young students by the other seem impossible to have arisen from the same species.
There should be some memorial to Livrescu; I’m sure the press will sufficiently memorialize the “horror” and sensational aspects of the shooter and his actions.
Our country attracted both of these non-native individuals.
Wouldn’t have mattered unless someone got a head shot on the perp, since he supposedly had a vest on.
Go F&ck yourself.
Sometimes I really hate this place.
Saved nothing? He put himself in the line of fire, so to speak (and directly), and tried to make it so others could get free. And many DID get free.
He is a hero for this. You don’t need a weapon or to actually injure someone to be a hero. Sometimes it doesn’t happen that way; sometimes it’s more passive but you still put yourself in harm’s way and saved people.
He knew he had lived a good life and his time was ending, and decided to save 20-30 young people so they could enjoy the same freedoms he did when he escaped the Nazis in WWII
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