Declared Dead After an Accident: Then His Wife Spoke

The screech of brakes was the last sound Shmulik Chen heard before he lost consciousness. He has no memory of the crash itself, when a semi trailer truck ran over his pickup and completely crushed it. But that moment, when he nearly lost his life, changed everything.

“You’re Not Leaving Me Alone”

That morning, Shmulik, 52, was driving home from a work trip to Tel Aviv, heading back to Kfar Adumim near Jerusalem. Due to memory loss, he cannot explain exactly what happened, but he likely missed his turn and found himself near the Ashdod Interchange.

“I pulled over to turn around,” he recalls. “A semi-trailer behind me drove up onto my pickup at an angle and then came off. The entire car was crushed. The only part left intact was the driver’s area. They found me bent over, my head between my legs.”

He was pulled from the wreck unconscious and in critical condition. “I had a severe head injury. I was clinically dead. They were already speaking to my parents about organ donation.”

At that point, his wife had not yet been told.

Her father called her calmly and asked her to drop off the children and wait for him to take her to the hospital. On the way, she heard a report on the radio about a critically injured man in a serious accident.

“She asked her father, ‘It’s Shmulik, right?’”

When she arrived at the hospital, four hours after the crash, Shmulik was still clinically dead. The family was called in to say goodbye.

“They told me that my wife came in, grabbed me by the shoulders, and shouted, ‘You’re not leaving me alone.’”

For a brief moment, he opened his eyes, then closed them again.

The family, stunned, begged her to shout once more.

“She shouted again. This time, I opened my eyes and started speaking as if nothing had happened.”

Even the medical team could hardly believe it. A police officer who had been at the scene later visited him in the hospital.

“He looked at me and said, ‘They pulled you out of the car like a dead cat.’”

Shmulik with his son before the accent

A Life Turned Upside Down

Before the crash, Shmulik ran a successful construction business with employees and subcontractors. It had been his focus for 15 years.

In an instant, everything changed.

He spent five months in the hospital and in rehabilitation, followed by five more years of intensive day rehab, relearning basic skills. He was forced to shut down his business, sell an apartment, and use up his savings. The family entered a difficult financial period.

The physical and emotional challenges were overwhelming. He suffered from severe headaches and could not tolerate noise. Even small sounds would cause intense pressure and stress.

“I would come home, hear the kids making noise, and lose control,” he shares honestly. “My wife would sometimes take the children out when I got home. I’m not an angry person, but the pain was unbearable.”

Shmulik volunteering in Ukraine

Moments of Kindness Along the Way

Even during those difficult years, there were moments that felt like small miracles.

At one point, Shmulik needed 3,000 shekels, a large amount for him at the time. Unexpectedly, he received a letter saying he was entitled to that exact sum. When he went to clarify, he was told that a contractor had charged the local council less than expected and asked that the difference be given to him.

Shortly after, that same contractor offered him a job suited to his condition, driving workers to and from job sites. It gave him both purpose and financial relief.

Another turning point came when doctors prepared him for brain surgery due to swelling. Just before the procedure, a final test revealed something surprising.

“There’s no need to operate,” the doctor said. “He has natural drainage.”

Because of the way his injury had altered the structure of his head, the pressure was being relieved naturally. He avoided surgery entirely.

“After everything I went through,” he says, “I didn’t need a single operation.”

Searching for Answers

During his long recovery, Shmulik would spend hours sitting on the hills near his home, looking at the sky and searching for meaning.

A local rabbi once approached him and asked what he was doing.

“I told him, ‘I’m looking for answers.’”

The rabbi invited him to join a daily Torah class.

“If you want answers,” he said, “come learn with me.”

Shmulik did not grow up religious, but he decided to try. The learning brought him calm and clarity. Slowly, it reshaped his outlook on life.

“I realized I’m not alone,” he says. “The world is much deeper than I thought.”

Today, he and his wife live a religious lifestyle, along with most of their children.

“I feel like I have a direct connection with Hashem,” he says. “I see Him in everything.”

Giving Back and Finding Purpose

His journey also led him to explore alternative medicine, which helped ease his pain. He later began volunteering, treating cancer patients to help relieve their suffering.

“I discovered something powerful,” he says. “When you give, you receive much more.”

That realization changed everything.

He began working in an educational institution, eventually becoming a logistics manager for a large network with multiple campuses. At the same time, his volunteer work expanded. He joined missions to Africa, helped rescue Israelis from Ukraine, and assisted in disaster relief efforts.

Recently, he was chosen to light a torch representing action and mutual responsibility in his community’s Independence Day ceremony.

Shmulik volunteering in South Africa

A New Understanding of Family

Before the accident, Shmulik believed that financial stability was the foundation of everything.

“I thought money held a family together,” he admits. “I focused on earning and did not invest enough in my family.”

After the crash, his perspective changed completely.

“Hashem showed me that you may not have money, but you have your family.”

The transformation took time, but today, he says, “My wife and I are truly close. Family is at the center of my life.”

"Do not let fear control your life"

What Truly Matters

Looking back, Shmulik does not wish to undo what happened.

“Yes, I’m grateful,” he says. “The peace I have today is far greater than anything I had before.”

His biggest lesson?

“Do not let fear control your life. If something matters, do it.”