In a podcast interview, Reb Shleime Zarchi shares his journey of growing up at the Rebbe’s feet, the guidance he received as a mashpia in 770, and the formative moments that shaped his influence on thousands of talmidim.

Reb Shleime opens by describing his family background. His father learned in clandestine yeshivos and secretly supported the Rebbe’s father, Harav Levi Yitzchak, during his exile by sending food packages – a dedication he kept hidden for decades. His mother came from a family of chasidim who were moser nefesh.

Arriving in America at age four, Reb Shleime witnessed firsthand the early growth of the community. “Even as a child, I felt the intensity of the Rebbe’s devotion to every individual,” he recalls. He paints a picture of a community “poor but rich in spirit” and recalls the Rebbe’s ‘radical’ directive that children focus solely on Torah with no secular studies until at least age nine.

Reb Shleime shares vivid memories of 770, including the intimacy of the “Small Zal” and the experience of standing for hours during farbrengens. He shared how the Rebbe once called him out during a gathering for being too “ashamed” to speak or identify himself.

A centerpiece of the interview is his account of Shemini Atzeres 5738, when he stood just feet away as the Rebbe suffered a massive heart attack during the Hakafos.

Reb Shleime recalled how the Rebbetzin maintained a lifelong habit of checking in on him after he had swallowed a nail as a child in a German DP camp. “The Rebbetzin always knew how to make each person feel valued,” he notes.

He reflected on his decades as a mashpia, emphasizing that Chassidus is not merely intellectual but about “getting into the head and heart,” and how those who never personally saw the Rebbe can maintain a connection.

The podcast episode is part of Among Chassidim: a Podcast by Derher. Hosted by Rabbi Yossi Kamman, director of A Chassidisher Derher, the podcast captures the vibrancy and vitality of dor hashvi’i through immersive, heartfelt discussions on meaningful topics, presented in raw, unedited conversations.

To view all the episodes, visit here.

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