A farbrengen at Chabad of S. Monica marked the 15th yahrzeit of legendary rov and shliach Rabbi Avrohom Levitansky a”h, with guest speaker Rabbi Yosef Shusterman.
By Anash.org reporter
A farbrengen at Chabad of S. Monica marked the 15th yahrzeit of legendary Rabbi Avrohom Levitansky a”h, who served as the shliach to S. Monica and a rov and mentor for anash on the West Coast, and around the globe, for decades.
The farbrengen began with the recital of the 12 pesukim by children, a fitting tribute to Rabbi Levitansky, who began his shlichus by bringing children in California to Released Time, and who was dedicated to making sure Yiddishe children receive a Yiddishe chinuch.
Emceeing the event was Rabbi Eli Moshe Levitansky, and Tehillim was recited by Rabbi Yochonon Baitelman. A siyum was made by Rabbi Isaac Levitansky, director of Chabad of S. Monica.
Rabbi Yechiel Shlomo Levitansky, shliach to Sumy, Ukraine, who is currently stationed in Warsaw, Poland, flew in for the yahrzeit, and related some of his experiences during the war to the enthralled crowd. He said that when the war was raging, and he needed to escape Ukraine, it was the lessons he learned from his father that kept him strong.
The guest speaker was Rabbi Yosef Shusterman, shliach to Beverly Hills and rov of anash in California. Rabbi Shusterman, who grew up near Rabbi Levitansky in Chicago, and was a close friend and colleague of his during their mutual years in California, related memories of the legendary Rabbi Levitansky, whose influence is still strongly felt 15 years after his passing.
A special video presentation about Rabbi Levitasky was then shown, with a large portion of it dedicated to an amazing story that Rabbi Levitansky experienced with the Rebbe.
The official program was followed by a chassidishe farbrengen, which continued until the early morning hours.
During the program, a story of Rabbi Levitansky was shared that had a profound effect on the listeners:
Each day, when Rabbi Levitansky would start his day at Chabad, he would begin what he described as “covering the banks” – finding out how much money he needed to cover his deficits in each of his bank accounts, and figure out a way to cover the minimum amount needed.
One day, despite his efforts, he remained approximately thirty-five thousand dollars short, and the money was needed by the end of the day…
When his secretary saw that he looked dejected, she inquired as to the reason. When she heard that he did not know how he will come up with $35,000, she turned to him in surprise. “Didn’t you always teach us that we need to have emunah, and when we do, the money can even come flying through the window?” she asked.
As she concluded her words, a Yid walked into the Chabad House. He approached Rabbi Levitansky, and asked him how he was doing. “The truth is, I am in desperate need of thirty five thousand dollars,” was the response he got.
“I knew I shouldn’t have come here,” the Yid said with a smile. He pulled out his checkbook, and wrote a check for the exact amount needed.
The speaker noted that this was just one of many of such stories with Rabbi Levitansky…
Click here to view the video presentation played by the event.
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