A Holocaust Survivors Story of Parnasa From the Frierdiker Rebbe

The following story was told over by Rabbi Chaim Dalfin as he heard it from the late Lubavitcher Chosid, Reb Laibel Zisman in 2011.

A Lower East Side yid needed parnasa. He was encouraged to see the Rebbe Raayatz and ask for a brocha. He didn’t get to it and the Rebbe passed on. He heard on the radio that on Sunday will be the funeral and decided to go.

He wanted to approach the coffin and ask forgiveness, and also ask for a blessing that he earn a livelihood. As he pushed himself towards the coffin, he hears someone announce, nor di vos zenen geven in vasser megen unriren dem aron, only those that immersed in the Mikva today may touch the coffin.

He shouts out, ich bin nisht geven in vasser, ich bin geven in fire, and lifts his arm showing his number on his arm. He touches the coffin.

He proceeded to the Ohel and waited for everyone to leave to go over to the newly formed grave and again asked the Rebbe for a blessing for parnasa. He leaves the cemetery and it’s getting late. No one is around. He doesn’t know how he’ll get from Queens to the Lower East Side.

Lo and behold, a car passes, stops and someone asks him what he needs. He tells him he needs to get home and doesn’t know how. The person, a yid, says come in and I’ll take you!

On the way home, he tells the driver his saga and why he came to the Ohel. The person hands him his card and says call me at 10 tomorrow morning. He does so and the driver gave him a job that he had for over 50 years, bringing him his parnasa!