Mrs. Hadassa Carlebach, 99, AH

Mrs. Hadassa Miriam Carlebach of New Jersey, the matriarch to a large Chabad family who was a second cousin of the Rebbe and had a close relationship with the Rebbetzin, passed away on Sunday, 24 Elul, 5786.

She was 99.

Mrs. Carlebach was born on YUd Shevat of 5687 (1927) in the Soviet Union, to Reb Zalman Schneerson and his wife, who was a first cousin of Harav Levi Yitzchak Schneerson, the Rebbe’s father.

Because her mother did not have a legal residence permit at the time, Hadassah was born outside the official system, with a doctor bribed to perform the delivery off the books. No birth certificate was ever issued.

Her father was deeply involved in the underground yeshivos established by the Frierdiker Rebbe during the years of Soviet persecution. With tremendous mesirus nefesh, he distributed funds to melamdim and moved frequently from city to city, often bringing his young daughter along as a cover.

During this time, Hadassah began her education at home, receiving instruction in Russian from a tutor and Hebrew from a melamed.

In 5695 (1935), when she was eight years old, the family left the Soviet Union under the pretext of traveling to Eretz Yisroel to visit the kivrei tzadikim. In reality, they had no intention of returning. In Tel Aviv, Hadassah was enrolled in a Talmud Torah school, where she was the only girl, marking her first experience learning alongside other children.

During this period, her father traveled to Poland to visit the Frierdiker Rebbe and later to Paris, where many Jewish refugees were fleeing Nazi restrictions. Rabbi Zalman Schneerson saw an opportunity to support the Jewish community in France and relocated his family there.

In 5696 (1936), Rabbi Zalman Schneerson became the head of the Association des Israelites Pratiquants (Kehillat Haharedim), an organization founded in 1910. He established kosher homes and Talmud Torah schools for Jewish refugees.Their apartment became a gathering place for members of the Jewish community. During the war, they also hid numerous Jewish refugees in their home, placing themselves at considerable risk.

The Rebbe stayed at their home a number of times. Among other occasions, he stayed there when he came to Paris in 5707 (1947) to visit his mother, Rebbetzin Chana.

With the outbreak of World War II, Hadassah, entering her teenage years, began assisting her father in rescue operations, helping Jewish families maintain their religious practices in the face of increasing hardships. At just 14 years old, Hadassah was responsible for taking groups of children from Vichy France to Marseille, helping to smuggle them to Switzerland or place them in safe locations.

She personally accompanied children on trains to ensure their safety. One tragic memory that stayed with her involved the loss of a home that had housed 17 children.

In her role, she spent time on a farm, learning to drive oxen and manage the tasks assigned to her. Even in the midst of the war, she ensured thatthe yomim tovim were observed, reading the Megillah on Purim and helping her father organize the baking of matzah for Pesach and the blowing of the shofar on Rosh Hashanah.

After the war, Hadassah and her family remained in France, continuing to support Jewish life and run homes for survivors in the difficult post-war years. In 5707 (1947), the family moved to Brooklyn to be near their cousin, the Rebbe. It was there that she met met Reb Elyah Chaim Carlebach, a Tomim, and the two married in 1949.

Before her wedding, Hadassah had been ill, and her father wrote to the Frierdiker Rebbe requesting a bracha for her. The Frierdiker Rebbe advised that when she came to the chuppah, her name should be announced loudly, since she was named Hadassah.

After their marriage, the young couple initially settled in Crown Heights before moving to New Jersey, where they raised their first two children.

Hadassah developed a particularly close and personal relationship with Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka. She was even once invited for dinner at the Rebbe and Rebbetzin’s home on New York Avenue.

She also became close with the Rebbetzin’s sister, who at one point told her, “Go to my sister. You really belong to her,” directing her toward Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka.

In later years, after Hadassah began driving, she would regularly visit the Rebbetzin at her home on President Street. The visits were simple and at times, the two would simply sit and speak about current events and other matters.

She also regularly visited the Rebbe’s mother, Rebbetzin Chana, and would often sit and sing niggunim together with her.

Throughout her long life, Mrs. Carlebach merited to raise a large Lubavitch family and to see her children, grandchildren and subsequent generations continue to grow in the ways of Torah, Chassidus and the Rebbe’s shlichus.

Despite her advanced age, Mrs. Carlebach remained remarkably active and just a month ago, she farbrenged with a group of bochurim from the yeshiva in Queens, sharing memories and stories with them.

She is survived by her children: Shterna Citron – Los Angeles, Sheina Carlebach – Beitar, Eretz Yisroel, California, Beila Dayan, Freida Laufer – Brooklyn, New York, and Esther Kugel – Brooklyn, New York, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

The levaya of Mrs. Hadassah Carlebach will pass by 770 on Monday, 25 Elul, at 9:00 a.m. Shiva details to be announced.

Boruch Dayan Haemes.