Eli Beer

EMT ELI BEER re-imagined first response and the power of community in an emergency and saved 40,000 lives this year alone. He tells us how.

Eli Beer was born in Israel, where he witnessed his first terror attack at the age of seven. This traumatic experience, coupled with his desire to help save people, encouraged him to become a volunteer medic. Beer has been involved in emergency medical first response in Israel since 1988. With 25 years of life-saving experience, he has responded to some of the worst civil, wartime and terror-related incidents. He currently serves as Founder and President of United Hatzalah; lecturer to health organizations worldwide on the importance of receiving medical care within the first few minutes of an incident through a network of volunteers; has expertise in creating cohesive and integrated responses to mass casualty incidents as well as terrorist attacks; is a pioneer in the field of GPS-based technology for medical response; recipient of awards, including the 2010 Social Entrepreneur for Israel received by the Schwab Foundation, the 2011 Presidential Award for Volunteerism in Israel received by President Shimon Peres, and the 2012 Young Global Leader award. Married with 5 children and when not saving lives or guiding United Hatzalah, he manages the family real estate company, Beer Realty.