Boruch Dayan Hoemes: Gedalia Greenzayd, 25, OBM
This morning, a tragic accident claimed the life of 25-year-old Gedalia Greenzayd, a special Tomim who friends and acquaintances described as a quiet Bochur with a large following. He organized ‘unofficial’ Shiurim in Inyonei Geulah U’Moshiach, and learned diligently with many ‘new’ Bochurim. He merited to an amazing spiritual journey which brought him to Chabad – twice.
Gedalia was born and raised in Vinnitza, a city in central Ukraine, and was his parents’ only child. At a young age he was enrolled in the Jewish day school that was founded by Rabbi Leibel Surkis, a Skverer Chosid from New Square, NY, who was sent to VInnitza by the Skverer Rebbe after the fall of Communism. The school was later directed by Chabad Shliach to the city, Rabbi Shaul Horowitz, after he took over the reins of leadership of the Jewish community from Rabbi Surkis in 2003
Vinnitza is relatively small city, but boasts a large Jewish population, and is only a few kilometers away from Mezhibuzh, the town of the Baal Shem Tov. It is the only Ukrainian city of its size to have five Shuls that continually operate. Gedalia’s father, Reb Avrohom Greenzayd, is the Rosh Hakahal of the local Jewish community.
Rabbi Eliezer Tzvi (Laizer) Rabinovitz, the Rosh Yeshiva of the Lubavitcher Yeshiva in Zhitomir, Ukraine, spoke with CrownHeights.info and shared some insight into Gedalia’s amazing journey and how he became a Tomim.
“In Ukraine children often flee their homes and their parents in order to attend Jewish schools. In Gedalia’s case, it was the only time that the parents have called me up and came together with their son to bring him to Yeshiva,” said Rabbi Rabinovitz.
For generations, the Greenzayds have been Shomer Torah u’Mitzvos, but were not affiliated with any one branch of Yiddishkeit.
Gedalia joined the Lubavitch Yeshiva in Zhitomir eight years ago, after graduating high school at the age of 17. There he studied for two years, before obtaining a visa to come to the United States to learn.
In the U.S., he studied in a non-Lubavitch Yeshiva in Monsey for a while. While there, he happened to meet Rabbi Sholom Ber Rabinovitz, who today is a Shliach in Bad Hamburg, Germany, and is the son of Gedalia’s former Rosh Yeshiva Rabbi Leizer Rabinovitz. Rabbi Sholom Ber was studying in Kvutzah at the time, and visited Gedalia’a Yeshiva while traveling to give Tanya Shiurim in several Yeshivos in the region.
One week, while Rabbi Rabinovitz was giving his Tanya Shiur at the Yeshiva, Gedalia confided in him that he wished to return to study in a Lubavitcher environment. Together with his father, Rabbi Rabinovitz arranged that Gedalia be enrolled in Tomchei Temimim in Kfar Chabad, Israel, where he studied for half a year. He then returned to Ukraine, where he continued learning in Zhitomir and took a job as a substitute teacher in the Yeshiva.
He then returned to the U.S. once again, and continued his journey of spiritual growth, ending up in Yeshiva Tiferes Bachurim of Morristown, New Jersey for two years. “He was a quiet Bochur who had a large following,” said Rabbi Baruch Hecht, adding that “He held ‘unofficial’ Shiurim in Inyonei Geulah u’Moshiach when Seder ended after 9:30pm, and even studied with other Bochurim who asked for his help on his own time.”
During a visit to the U.S., Rabbi Rabinovitz met Gedalia in New York, who excitedly told him that he was beginning to learn Smicha at the Morristown Yeshiva’s Smicha program.
Gedalia was visiting Crown Heights for Shabbos in order to attend the Ufruf and Kiddush prior to the wedding of his closest friend. They were on their way to Shul together Sunday morning when he was struck by a sanitation truck and instantly killed.
Ukraine Shliach Rabbi Mendel Lichtenstein came to the family’s side, giving them much needed support, and is helping liaise between the U.S. and Ukraine.
The administration of the Yeshiva in Morristown told CrownHeights.info that the entire Yeshiva will be attending the Levaya tomorrow in Crown Heights.
The Leavaya will take place Monday in front of 770 [time to be announced]. From there the body will be flown back to Ukraine for burial.
Boruch Dayan Hoemes
Simchah Fastow
BD”E. Gedalia ate in our sukkah and learned with our son. He was a very kind man. Does anyone have his parents’ address or email address? May Gedalia’s neshama have a big aliya and shturm shamayim to bring Moshiach now!
Eliezer
Please announce the time as soon as you can please.
A lot of bocurim from Monsey wish to attend
Stunned
Doesn’t make sense.
elchonon
gedalia was the sweetest bochur around I got to know him when he ran my esrogim store in williamsburg a real mentch. i also knew him from the yeshiva in morristown he was a real masmid. Im broken hearted. Gedalia will be missed by everyone who knew him. BDE
one of his chavrusas
I had the zchus to learn with him this year for a few hours, he was a tzaadik who pushed himself to learn and serve hashem like a lion!! I will always be inspired by you my holy brother Gedalia! we will meet again imyh when moshiach comes bmheira veyomainu amen!
Loving Bochur
B”H
What Rabbi Hecht said does not do justice to the character, hasmada, emisdigekite, loving-care, and overall Goodness of Gedalia, may his memory be a Blessing for us all… It’s extremely hard to digest.
Gedalia could always be found in his makom kavua in the Zal, straight in plain view of the main glass entrance doors for all to see, and who was available to all those who saw him at any given time! Don’t get me wrong, Gedalia never ceased; he would learn straight through the day and into the night! He was usually in Zal before anyone else, and more often than not left long after everyone else was gone. It’s hard for me to imagine how he developed the muscles to sit in one place for such an extended period of time. You could always find a pile of sefarim Gedalia was using that day by his side, usually more than one open at a time… During Gemara Seder he was perched with his Gemara, in the afternoons he had his shulchan aruch, during the nights he was learning sichas and Maamarim ( usually teaching the newer, less experienced students, drawing from his wellsprings, which ran deeper than I think any of us can know), on occasion if you caught him at just the right moment you might even be lucky enough to join him in learning Zohar Matok Midvash… And I Davka use the word learning, because it was clear upon Gedalia’s explanations that he understood the material to the extent that he could bring it down and explain it even to a simpleton like myself… Why am I telling you all of this!? Because I want you to understand what a humble person Gedalia truly was. Even though his plate was more than full with learning bkvius everyday; anytime, and I literally mean anytime a Bachur was in need of a friend, or a helping hand, or even just a momentary break from the tedium of learning constantly all day every day, Gedalia was available without fail. It’s amazing he finished his Seder everyday ( and he did! ), when you consider how many people were “interrupting”, though that’s obviously not how he viewed it. Gedalia would patiently close his Sefer ( always keeping one hand inside to hold his place ), and listen attentively with a genuine smile ( which was quite rare among the “more learned” students). He always had a kind and insightful word which he was never too proud to share. Even though Gedalia was more studious and learned than most of the Bachurim, he never set himself any higher than the most challenged among us. In fact, quite the opposite. I can still hear Gedalia’s unique and contagious laugh as we would sit together, whether it was just the two of us, or a whole group farbrenging. Gedalia made everyone feel as all individuals crave to feel: important, loved, and accepted. We will thoroughly miss you Gedalia, I still can’t believe he’s really gone from us physically, though I know his spirit lives on in all those that have had the privilege to know him. I know he’s basking above in the Holy Shechina, and that whatever job he had on this earth must have been an extremely special and important one for HaShem to bring down such a Neshama of his caliber into this world… We can’t understand why HaShem does what He does, but we know it’s for the good, even when it hurts. So all I have to say is; Thank you G-D, Thank you for the privilege of knowing Gedalia, thank you for allowing me to spend even the short amount of time that I did with him, because I am forever changed for the better because of it! I know that one day soon we will see you again my dear friend, and then we will truly be able to dance with joy in our hearts at the rebuilding of our Holy Temple, may it take place immediately, because the absence of your appearance is a very difficult burden to bear
What I’ve written above is not even a drop in the bucket attesting to who Gedalia is, and I even feel wrong putting it down as such, because I’m afraid I am not doing his memory proper justice. I therefore implore all of you who knew Gedalia to write down here a memory, a thought, or a feeling that we can all benefit from, and Gedalia will forever be alive in our hearts and our minds
A close friend and roommate
I’m not even sure where to start as all the good that gedalia did for everyone not just me we incredible, he always had a smile on his face and was always happy to go do a favor for another or just to help anyone out in general regardless for what even if he was busy learning at the time he would still take a quick break and help you out and he even though he was so good at learning he never though he was any better than anyone else he was just trying to be the best he could be, gedalia you will be missed for ever! Boruch Dayan emes!
An Acquaintance, A. Kranz
ברוך דיין האמת. My condolences to Gedalia’s family. I was acquainted with Gedalia in Oh Somayach, in Monsey. He was a wonderful בחור. Very intelligent and knowledgeable. He was also friendly and willing to help out where assistance was needed.
please find out where we can send money to help with the levaya
one of the articles mentioned that they need help paying for the cost off the levaya – please post the info where it can be sent to help the family.