From the hospital to the Chuppah: Cancer nurse and patient’s grandson marry

Albert Cohen, hospitalized with cancer, urged his grandson to take his nurse on a date; “The rest is history,” the new bride says.

By Adina Katz, World Israel News

A newlywed Israeli couple credit their unconventional love story to the groom’s grandfather, who sensed a romantic spark between the pair in the most unlikely of places – an oncology ward.

In 2020, Albert Cohen was hospitalized at Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital in Jerusalem. His grandson, Bezalel Kendel, came to visit over the weekend and spent several hours with him.

During the visit, Cohen noticed that his nurse, Aliza Eliyahu, had caught the eye of his grandson. The feeling was mutual; Eliyahu told Ynet that as soon as her future husband stepped into the room, “I said to myself, wow, what a handsome man.”

Cohen decided to make the first move on behalf of his grandson, asking Eliyahu if she was married. When she answered “not yet,” he winked at Kendel and urged him to ask her on a date.

“The rest is history,” Eliyahu said.

The pair exchanged numbers in the hallway outside of Cohen’s room, and Kendel took Eliyahu to a winery within a few days of their introduction.

“I already knew this was it, that he was the one,” Eliyahu told Ynet. “I’d been set up by by friends and gone on dates before, but none of the guys were compatible with me.

“I had a feeling I’d meet my soulmate at work, and that’s exactly what happened.”

Within 18 months of their fateful meeting at the hospital, Eliyahu and Kendel married. They now live in the Jerusalem suburb of Givat Ze’ev.

Sadly, Cohen was not present at the wedding; he passed away about two months after the couple met. However, the proud grandfather did live long enough to see the pair enter a serious relationship.

“Seeing your grandfather in the cancer ward isn’t easy,” Kendel said. “But in the end, I got Aliza. Love came to me in the most unexpected place.”

CancerHadassah HospitalHadassah Medical CenterIsraeli medical care