We heard the ambulances. We heard there was a terrorist attack. Then we heard it was at our Shul down the road.
We got a phone call from Chaya Levine asking my husband to please look at the Shul next door to see if Rav Kalman was there. My husband had davened Neitz with him just a short time ago. Rav Kalman gave him a hearty “Yashar Koach” for his Duchening, and went back to learn.
My husband came home to get Binyomin Dovid ready for the school bus. You see Tuesday morning is Abba day – Binyomin Dovid looks forward to Tuesday morning all week – maybe because Abba puts ketchup on the cheese sandwich – or puts more pretzels in the bag than Ima does, or more salt on the salad. Or maybe because he so loves his Abba and their special morning together. And because Tuesday is their special day, my husband Davens at the Neitz Minyon next to our house, instead of his regular Minyon in Kehillas Bnei Torah. My husband might have gone to his regular Minyon anyway. Since he was often the only Kohen, on Tuesdays he would pop in for Chazaras Hashatz just to Duchen for them. The carnage occurred during Chazaras Hashatz.
But Hashem had other plans for my husband. A few months ago a member of the Shul, a Kohen, became an Avel – a mourner – and he asked my husband if he could be the regular Ba’al Tefila. This Tuesday my husband did not go back to Duchen, because he knew there would be a Kohen in his Minyon. So after Neitz at Ha’Gra, he came home from Shul.
But Kalman – where was Kalman? My husband went back to Ha’Gra to look for him. But he had left. Kalman had gone to Rav Rubin’s Shul to ask the Rav a question. And Kalman did not come home.
We heard names – we heard rumors – we didn’t want to believe they were true.
Rav Moshe Twersky – the kind Talmid Chacham who always made time for those who came to him for guidance and Halachic advice, and then taught and learned until late at night. He was the one to whom my husband would turn with questions that came up in the Minyon. It was Rav Moshe who said at his son’s Aufruf that this Minyon was like Mishpacha. We had lost a family member.
R’ Aryeh Kupinski. R’Aryeh? No – not R’ Aryeh? Haven’t they suffered enough? When his daughter Chaya died suddenly in her sleep he was Mekabel the Din with pure deep faith – and went on to be Mechazek others. R’ Aryeh – always running to help others; always a smile on his face- despite constant challenges. R’ Aryeh was the one who yelled, “You run, I’ll fight!” using a chair against a gun and a hatchet to buy time so that others could flee.
The ultimate Chesed.
The names to daven. Shmuel Yerucham ben Baila. Chaim Yechiel ben Malka. Eitan ben Sarah. Yitzchak ben Chaya. All still in need of tremendous Rachmei Shamayim.
Please continue to storm the gates of Rachamim on their behalf.
Avraham Shmuel ben Sheina Then the rumors turned to agonizing truth- Avraham Shmuel ben Aharon hy”d. Mr Goldberg. That nice warm smiley gentleman who loved Torah and Torah scholars, and every single Jew. Who learned every morning and only then went to work. My husband would set up a Shtender for Mr. Goldberg and he in turn would lay out a Siddur for Rav Twersky. That was the kind of Minyon it was. It can’t be. But it was.