When Emilee Rauschenberger’s face appeared on “NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt” Thursday night, it was the first time her father had seen it in more than a week.

The former Elgin woman was interviewed by the news anchor about life in Gaza, where she, her husband and their five children have been trapped since bombing between Hamas and Israel began Oct. 7. They live in England and were visiting her husband’s family in southern Gaza.

John Rauschenberger, who lives in Elgin, last saw his daughter when they spoke via FaceTime so to see her on the news was heartening.

But he also noted that “you can start to see how the situation is beginning to wear on her. But she’s very focused, steadfast, pragmatic and positive they are going to get out.”

In speaking with Holt, Rauschenberger said daily life there is hard. There is no water in the building where they’ve been living so they must go find it. Bread is in short supply, she said.

“Whenever it gets dark, you stay inside completely, and you hear bombing near and far, so it’s just been kind of a fight to survive,” she said.

“We saw five apartments targeted and bombed in the neighborhood we live in, and we don’t know who might be next.”

Her message to both Israel and Hamas is “there needs to be a ceasefire. This is just a humanitarian disaster,” she said. Aid must be provided to “those suffering most under this bombardment,” she said.

They are not getting a lot of news because they are not getting regular internet service, she said, but they very much want to leave the country.

John Rauschenberger, who has been trying to keep attention focused on Americans living or visiting Gaza, was told by the U.S. State Department that there are no plans to evacuate Americans. The current government position is visitors will have to leave on their own when it’s safe to travel, he said.

His daughter is staying in an apartment with 30 others, not far from the Egyptian border, Rauschenberger said. The holdup, he said, is Israel and Egypt need to reach an agreement so that people can exit through Egypt.

“They are ready to move to the border instantly as soon as they hear the border is open,” he said. “It’s very frustrating,” John said.

In a recent call, Emilee told him that food is starting to be in short supply. His granddaughter spent two hours in line one day, only to get elbowed and pushed out. When she returned to the bakery later, it had closed.

The next day, she went back. “She said, ‘Pops, I went back, and nobody pushed me out. I brought back bread.’ I told her it was a life lesson. You have to hold your ground,” he said.

Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.

Originally Published: Oct 20, 2023 at 5:05 pm