In the summer of 2022, when it seemed like the world had entered a post-COVID period, Rafael Gutiérrez was in a coma, battling the disease and fighting for his life.
After sending his children to a summer camp where safety protocols weren’t in place, the local father of five contracted COVID. He experienced shortness of breath and was intubated three days later. He then fell into a coma.
“The doctors called my wife every day to say that I was failing and to get ready for my departure,” Gutiérrez, who lives in Thousand Oaks, said. “There was not even a 1% chance of survival.”
Gutiérrez, 48, was in a coma for 40 days, followed by 67 days in the ICU. During his time in the ICU, he changed his Hebrew name from David Rafael to Haim David Rafael, as is the custom when a Jewish person is sick. His family, friends and members of the community prayed and took on more mitzvot to bring about Gutiérrez’s speedy recovery.
“Many people from diverse groups prayed for me, like Chabad Hasidim all around the world and yeshiva students from Los Angeles, New York and New Jersey,” he said. “A secular Persian Jewish doctor in Los Robles was key to my survival, and two Persian Orthodox Jewish doctors literally saved me. People gave charity and said Tehillim. The community gave lots of love to my family, and multiple Chabad rabbis got involved.”
In the end, the medical treatments came out to millions of dollars. Gutiérrez believes that God performed an open miracle and saved him.
In the end, the medical treatments came out to millions of dollars. Gutiérrez believes that God performed an open miracle and saved him.
“Despite all the treatments the doctors and nurses gave me, we realized the hand of Hashem, which was beyond science, saved me, and the doctors stated that emphatically,” he said.
Today, Gutiérrez is still on the road to recovery, with only 56% lung function. But he is thankful to be alive. He wrote a book about his experience, “Voiceless: A Story of an Unquestionable Miracle When Science Despaired. A Catharsis Post Pandemic,” which was published last September. It details how everyone’s good deeds and love contributed to his miraculous healing. This is his second book; his first one, “Never Judge a Book by Its Cover: Practical Lessons I Learned From the Disabled” is about how he was a caregiver for a young man with autism and Down syndrome when he first moved to the United States.
On a day-to-day basis, Gutiérrez, a former executive for Spanish television networks in Latin America, works in finance and runs Issachar Dov Outreach, a nonprofit that provides free career counseling and temporary aid to Jews who immigrate to the U.S. from Latin America, Israel and Europe.
Looking back at his experience, Gutiérrez has learned to appreciate when life is going well for him. Being sick put everything into perspective. “It was a call to action to avoid taking bodily functions, people and things for granted,” he said. He also feels a tremendous amount of gratitude that the community did good deeds in his honor, and that he is still alive and able to carry out his mission in life. “One more good deed is worth more than we can imagine,” he said. “I have a huge desire to help others and enrich their lives. I increased the amount of prayers and studying I do. Being able to see the real truth about this world humbles you.”
Now, he has words of wisdom for other Jews, no matter what their situation:
“Speak to Hashem every moment you can,” he said, “and especially speak with gratitude.”
