RAMAPO, N.Y. (WCBS 880) – The town of Ramapo has bestowed its top honor on a man who fought off the attacker at a Hanukkah celebration last weekend.
Joseph Gluck, a 32-year-old, lifelong resident of the town, threw a table at the attacker and lured him outside the rabbi’s home, where the party was taking place Saturday night.
Ramapo officials call him a hero and awarded him the Ramapo Freedom Award. Gluck was gracious and humble as he received it.
“I’m not usually a courageous guy. I’m not a brave man. I try to be behind the light wherever I go,” he said. “At that minute, at that moment, God pushed me to go inside, and that’s what I did.”
Ramapo Supervisor Michael Specht says Gluck helped save a young victim as well.
"He lured the stabber out of the home," Specht said. "He set himself up as a target to deter him from attacking other people in the room."
Gluck also remembered the attacker’s license plate number, which led to his arrest in Manhattan several hours later.
Congresswoman Nita Lowey says Gluck is a lifesaver.
“As the assailant entered Rabbi Rottenberg’s home, Joseph confronted him and physically interfered in his ability to hurt more people,” she said.
The most seriously injured of the victims, 71-year-old Joseph Neumann, suffered a fractured skull and his family says he might have permanent brain damage if he regains consciousness.
The alleged attacker, Grafton Thomas, faces attempted murder charges as well as federal hate crime charges. His family says he has a history of mental illness.