There has been an outpouring of sadness on the passing of Rabbi Shmuel Butman, zt”l, from state officials and gratitude for the work he accomplished for youth and by spreading good will through the members of the state legislature and state officials. His passing on July 22 at age 81 has left a gaping hole at the Capitol, which he had filled with Yiddishkeit.
Rabbi Butman would venture to Albany once a year for nearly 30 years to hand out shmura matzah to those lawmakers who wanted it. He also made a pitch for tzedakah from the floor of the Senate and Assembly after giving the prayer to open the day’s legislative session.
He was a fierce defender of the Lubavitcher Rebbe’s legacy. Even if someone didn’t think they offended the Rebbe’s reputation, if he thought the person did, you received a phone call explaining the situation from his point of view.
“Rabbi Butman was very committed to honoring the Rebbe and his vision at the annual Rebbe’s birthday celebration at the New York State Capitol each spring,” Rabbi Israel Rubin, the head shliach in the Capital District and director of the Capital District Chabad in Albany, NY, told The Jewish Press. “He did it with much dedication. His trademark tzedakah box for all to use was symbolic of him seeing the Rebbe’s broad vision of the divine in all humanity.”
Many state lawmakers and statewide elected officials have expressed their sadness at Rabbi Butman’s passing. Governor Kathy Hochul emphasized her appreciation of Rabbi Butman as the person who installed the world’s tallest Chanukah menorah. Of all the state lawmakers, Assemblyman David Weprin (D – Holliswood, Queens) probably had one of the closest relationships with Rabbi Butman. “His leadership in the Chabad-Lubavitch movement and the Lubavitch Youth Organization made him a giant in the community. He touched so many lives for the better through his outreach in New York, across the nation, and internationally,” Weprin said.
“I joined Rabbi Butman yearly for the lighting of the world’s tallest Chanukah Menorah at 5th Avenue and 59th Street. I proudly hosted Rabbi Butman in Albany for many years, where he gave moving invocations to open our session day and speak to the legacy of Rabbi Menachem Schneerson on the anniversary of his birth.
“In this time of turmoil for the Jewish community, Rabbi Shmuel Butman was a steadfast voice of strength, and I will always remember his kindness, intellect, and passion. I extend my deepest sympathies to his wife, Rochel Butman, and their many children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. May his memory be for a blessing,” Weprin concluded.
The Lubavitch headquarters at 770 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn, falls in the district of Senator Zellnor Myrie, a Democrat. “I always enjoyed visiting Rabbi Butman in the Capitol each year,” Myrie told The Jewish Press. “I’m proud to represent a very diverse community in Central Brooklyn, including a diverse Jewish community. It is a particular point of pride for me to represent the Lubavitch community in Crown Heights and its major institutions. Rabbi Butman was a significant Chabad leader who extended the Rebbe’s reach across America and the world. His legacy will be in the education, charity and good deeds he helped inspire.”
New York state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli (D – Great Neck Plaza, Nassau County) was effusive about his annual meetings with Rabbi Butman. “His legacy is a testament to how much a compassionate human being can contribute to his community of faith, his local neighborhood,” DiNapoli told The Jewish Press. “As a leader of the Chabad-Lubavitch community, his dedication, kindness, and conviction touched the lives of so many for the better.”
“Over the years, I have had the privilege of meeting with him many times about critical issues impacting New Yorkers,” DiNapoli continued. “He was always a voice of reason, someone who looked at the bigger picture. I always looked forward to his annual reception in Albany and, like many New Yorkers, I enjoyed watching him light the world’s tallest menorah each year during Chanukah. In these trying times for the Jewish people, Rabbi Butman was a guiding light. His faith, wisdom, kindness and strength guided his passionate advocacy for his community and inspired his unwavering commitment to improving the lives of all New Yorkers. Rabbi Butman’s legacy will inspire new leaders for generations to come.
“My sincere condolences to his loving wife Rochel, their many children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. My deepest sympathies to his extended family, the Chabad-Lubavitch community, the Jewish people, the residents of Crown Heights and the state of New York. May his memory be a blessing.”
Retiring Assemblywoman Helene Weinstein, a Brooklyn Democrat, wrote a pithy comment about Rabbi Butman’s passing and posted it on a social media website: “Rabbi Shmuel Butman led a life of adversity and triumph; a true shliach of the Rebbe’s vision to globalize Judaism and positivity.” She added, “I looked forward to his annual visit, honoring the Rebbe’s birthday by establishing special ‘education days,’ and giving tzedakah. Baruch Dayan Emes.”
Assemblyman Reverend Al Taylor, a Harlem Democrat, is the only clergy elected to public office. He pastors at the Infinity Mennonite Church of Harlem. Taylor enjoyed meeting Rabbi Butman, but explained that he never put a dollar in the pushka. “I found him always to be pleasant. Always willing to have a conversation. He was just an agreeable person all-around,” Rev. Taylor said. “I didn’t put any money in the [charity] box because I wasn’t sure if I should or if I shouldn’t [due to ethics laws]. That would have been a good thing to do because you knew it was going to a good place. I want to extend my condolences to his family and those that were close to him. His life and his legacy can be carried on by modeling those things that he shared with us in his charity.
In an exclusive interview this reporter had with Rabbi Butman in 2019, I focused my questions on the shmura matzah he handed out to state lawmakers. “The Rebbe always said that you should try to give matzah to as many Jews as you can. We give it to as many people as we can…You’re in a room and there are Jews and non-Jews you can’t give it [matzah] only to Jews and not to non-Jews – that’s not nice to do. So you have to give it to everyone. You have to give it to everyone with appreciation. You see that the non-Jews accept it with a lot of respect,” Rabbi Butman told The Jewish Press.
One prominent Brooklyn Senator described Rabbi Butman as being non-judgmental. “It wasn’t as though I had a very, very intimate, close relationship with him. That was one of his extraordinary character traits – you didn’t have to have an intimate close relationship with him for him to treat you with such warmth and such sensitivity and compassion as though you were his best friend. That was his nature,” Senator Simcha Felder (D – Borough Park) told The Jewish Press. “He was just an extraordinary, warm person who was full of energy. He was determined to spend his life entirely on a mission to help others do good things. If necessary, to help them, period.
“It was fascinating for me to see the variety of senators, personalities, religions and people who were not religious at all. You never heard them say anything but nice things [about him]. It’s really a loss because the Jewish community clearly needs leaders and representatives that go out in the world and project the types of personality traits that he had.”
One lawmaker from Manhattan remembered Rabbi Butman fondly. “As a Soviet-born child who survived the throes of WWII, Rabbi Butman epitomized the resilience and aspirations of first-generation Americans. He grew alongside and shaped New York’s post-war Jewish community, notably as director of the Lubavitch Youth Organization,” Assemblywoman Rebecca Seawright (D – Yorkville, Manhattan) told The Jewish Press. “He believed that wisdom, faith, and unshakable optimism could uplift our entire state. With antisemitism growing nationwide, we should honor Rabbi Butman’s outreach, activism, and pursuit of justice. New York flourished from them and will be incomplete in their absence. To his friends, family, and students, I send my heartfelt condolences. May Rabbi Butman’s memory be a blessing.”
In the end of his life, the man with such a big heart for everyone else passed away from a heart condition, his family said.
