He Gave 770 to Many People, He Lived and Breathed Life as A Chassid

Hundreds of friends and Anash congregated on a WhatsApp group for two years to break up the Tehillim for Rabbi Yosef Itkin OBM each day. As the family completes Shiva, the following message was sent by the family to this group.

Dearest Friends,

It’s been a full two years of the Tehillim being finished each day. Day by day you filled this chat with your heartfelt powerful words of tehillim. You stood at our side while our father fought this difficult battle, we truly knew that it was your words of tehillim that gave him koach.

Through the last two year’s my father contended the nisayan Hashem gave him with with bitachon and simcha. A family mantra is “Mir Darf Zain B’Simcha” we need to be happy. Today as we get up from shiva we know this too.

I wanted to take a moment to talk about our dear father. Some knew him as the farbrengener in shul, teacher in school, or as someone to ask Kashrus questions too, or maybe you are just a friend of on his 11 children or grandchildren.

We truly Thank You for being on this group.

Our father was foremost a dedicated mekusher chassid to our Rebbe; he lived and breathed the Rebbes haoros and like the Rebbe had true Ahavas Yisrael for another person.

He had the special ability to really connect to anothers person neshoma. He understood people, their struggles, the nuances of each situation and as the Rebbe said to my grandfather, “Ask Itkin – Itkin ken
Tu a Taevah, Tzu a Yid.” Do a favor for another Yid. He noticed when someone was in pain, and took he approached people to offer a loan, help them work through a problem and lift up their spirits.

He gave 770 to many people, he lived and breathed life as a chassid. Our Shabbos table was full of wonderful guests who all felt like family and my father shared beautiful chassideshe maises and encouraged our guests to share a Torah thought.

To bring my fathers life’s message to you perhaps you would consider one of the following hachlatos.

1. Adding a chassidishe maseh (story) to your Shabbos table
2. Going out of your way to ‘Tu a Taevh’ do a favor for another person
3. Der Rebbe Hut Gheisin Frelichin Zain- to be Besimcha, to dance to a nigun and be grateful to Hashem brachos.

My dear father Yosef Yitzchok ben Meir will live on in every one of these moments.

Thank You for surrounding my family with such love during this time.
As we got up from shiva today we are all determined to continue to live with my father.
In the days ahead we will share initiatives that our family will begin in his memory.
Every memory and story shared brings us comfort. Please email stories to cszi@gmail.com tzivi@jewishmansfield.com

With much Appreciation,
The Itkin Family