An Early Yizkor for Our Community Giants

I have been a Rabbi here in the North Shore for over three decades. Many things have changed during this period. Organizations have come and gone. The dynamics of the local communal infrastructure have shifted radically. Above all, many of the stalwart giants of this community have passed away. In so many ways, our situation mirrors the predicament of the Jewish people, when Moses, the ultimate archetype of the Jewish "Hero and stalwart giant"—was taken from them just as they were about to cross over the Jordan en route to the Promised Land—right when they needed him most!

Thirty-two years ago, a North Shore Jewish community without the presence of towering giants such as Mort Ruderman, Bob Lappin, Arthur Epstein, Ira Rosenberg, David Lederman, Neil Cooper, Ralph Kaplan, and many, many more, who together with their spouses, some of whom we are so fortunate to still have amongst us, G-d willing for many more years, and their families—would have been unimaginable. Though the list is not nearly exhaustive, I mentioned the few that I did only because I was close to most of them, and without them Chabad of the North Shore could not have developed as it has BARUCH HASHEM, from one center in Swampscott into a regional powerhouse with satellite branches in Peabody, Everett, Lynn, Gloucester, and now Beverly. The newest one is in the final stages. We can barely contain our excitement on this one, and it will be announced shortly!

The Schustermans, Barons, Raichiks, and now the Barbers who moved in just days ago, are all families that will/have endeared themselves to so many in their local communities. They shine light, share wisdom, and spread joy on the daily throughout every corner of the North Shore. But we cannot rest until there is a Chabad presence serving every community on the North Shore. We won't rest until we can TRULY reach every Jew on the North Shore PERSONALLY, as they so richly deserve.

But back to my friends who are following these developments closely, albeit now from a heavenly perch. I think of them often, and when I do, a bittersweet sadness wells up within me. I miss them. Without their financial support, we couldn't have achieved any of this. However, they were not "donors" in the conventional sense. They were of course that, but much, much more. They were close personal friends, mentors, and believers in an untested vision and cause. Where initially the viable presence of Chabad on the North Shore was met with skepticism, they were the outliers. Their superpower was their consistent and unmatched perspicaciousness, leading them to consistently invest in people who they could believe in, over all other factors. The impact of someone believing in you and getting behind a vision in a real way was incalculable and became inseparable from the vision itself.

While charity per se as a fulfillment of moral responsibility is amazing, it doesn't begin to approach the magical uniqueness of their philanthropic model. Being that I heard it expressed enough times, over enough years, from each of them in their own style, I feel comfortable with the following paraphrased sentiments that barely encapsulate their thinking: "I truly value your commitment here. Your investment in my life, in this community, and in the Jewish people, while often imperfect, runs deep and true and therefore—is deeply appreciated and noted, and fully worthy of my reciprocal investment in yours." With this formula, the threshold where the goodness and kindness of "Charity" evolves into the holiness of Tsedaka—is crossed.

I know many of the successful businesspeople of our community were the recipients of that same unique empowerment in so many diverse spheres. Many of them have continued as the biological and spiritual heirs of that unique brand of generosity and shared concern, without whose continued support, among MANY other beautiful and gorgeous people—we could never be doing what we do right now.

To each of you, and you know exactly who you are— you who recognize the critical importance of what we do, TODAY, more than ever, to ensure a viable and robust Jewish "TOMORROW"—I say this: I love, admire, and respect you so deeply. You are the continuity of the prior generation, and just as Moses would never leave us alone, your parents wouldn't either, without leaving us in your hands. YOU are the bridge leading over the Jordan. AND MAKE NO MISTAKE. You are each so valued and so needed. Though you have heard it from me personally, and will hear it again, I feel compelled to express that to you, right here and now. It is before Yom Tov and these are the kind of things that need to be said TODAY.

To be continued!