Weekly Story: The Look of a Tzaddik Is Eternal

by Rabbi Sholom DovBer Avtzon

It was heartwarming to receive an email from someone in Eretz Yisroel saying how last week’s story gave her a new perspective on Torah and Mitzvos, especially when it may seem difficult. Hearing that one’s writing inspires others, gives the author the stamina to continue. So thank you and as always your feedback is most welcome.

This week, I am posting another incident that happened to me, which encouraged me to continue in my work.

This past Friday I received a call from my sister who is on Shlichus in Fresno, California. She was in Nevada for a Bar Mitzvah and met someone that remembered me from over forty years ago. That gentleman wanted to know if I remembered him.

He was one of the thousand young adults and children that left Iran during and after the revolution there of 1979, and was in New York for around a year.

We reminisced about the time we were together, I as his counselor and advocate and he as a twelve year old boy all on his own.

In the course of our conversation, I asked him about the Yechidus that I arranged for him and a few others boys to have with the Rebbe. He told me that Rabbi Yossi Raichik a”h brought them in and the Rebbe asked Rabbi Raichik if these are the children of Teheran.

When Rabbi Raichik replied yes, he said “Rebbe, I am from Shiraz.” The Rebbe then asked a few more questions and the Yechidus concluded.

He would stand on the Bima when the Rebbe said Maftir, enamored and inspired. He was so thankful to the Rebbe for saving him that on Purim he and his friend Moshe, asked me to show them the Rebbe’s house, as they brought Shalach Manos to the house.

He then left New York to live with relatives in Los Angeles and life continued.

Some ten years later he heard from his friends that Rabbi Raichik who came from Los Angeles was in town and was looking for him.

He was happy to meet him, as Rabbi Raichik was one of the individuals who traveled to Iran before the revolution began and offered to take around twenty boys to America. He would teach them so that they can return to their hometowns and become the Rabbis and educators. Then once the revolution broke out hundreds of families beseeched Rabbi Raichik to accept their children, and the Rebbe instructed Rabbi JJ Hecht to obtain student visas for all of them.

Upon meeting Rabbi Raichik he asked him why he was looking specifically for him as there were numerous Iranian boys and girls that he brought out, who were living in California.

Rabbi Raichik replied, “The Rebbe instructed me to find out how you are doing.”

We are speaking of an individual whose path intersected with the Rebbe for a short period of time, and then he thought he had moved on.

However, the Rebbe was still concerned about his well-being.

I then related to him the story that I posted two years ago that the Rebbe instructed Malka to tell one of her students that he did not have mesiras nefesh to take him out of Iran so that he would do something that he would never have contemplated doing in Iran.

Being words of the Rebbe, although the Rebbe did not address it to him, he saw how they can be applicable to him anyways.

Towards the end of our enjoyable conversation he noted that he is getting for the first time flashbacks of the time he was in the Rebbe’s courtyard. The look of a tzaddik is eternal.

This week’s post is l’zechus Tzion ben Sarah for a complete and speedy refuah shleima

Rabbi Avtzon is the author of numerous books on the Rebbeim and their chassidim. He can be contacted at avtzonbooks@gmail.com