The name of a young American murdered in Gush Etzion last week will be on the lips of tens of millions of Americans Monday night, as the New England Patriots are set to observe a moment of silence for Ezra Schwartz before their game against the Buffalo Bills.
Ezra, according to former MK Dov Lipman, was a huge Patriots fan. The Sharon, Massachusetts native was a student at the Ashreinu Yeshiva in Beit Shemesh.
In a letter to Robert Kraft, the owner of the Patriots and an enthusiastic supporter of Israel, Lipman wrote: “The one theme which comes out over and over again was Ezra's passion for the Patriots. One boy actually apologized to 'his soul' for telling him to stop screaming with joy as he watched games in his dorm room at 3:00 am."
“Many in Israel and around the world have been shocked that almost no media outlets covered the murder of this boy who came to Israel for a year of study and volunteering and was shot by a Palestinian terrorist while on his way to his volunteer activity,” continued Lipman.
“It would mean so much to the people of Israel, to supporters around the world, and to Ezra's family and friends if the Patriots could do something in his memory.”
In response, Kraft said that he would indeed think of a way to honor Ezra, and several hours later he informed Lipman that he would take him up on one of his suggestions – holding a moment of silence before the game.
Some 80,000 people are expected to be at the stadium Monday night, but along with them tens of millions will be watching at home. The game is set to air at 8:30 pm eastern time Monday night.