R’ Eliyahu Botvinnikov 67, AH

R’ Eliyahu Botvinnikov, who left Samarkand with a picture of the Rebbe in his wallet and went on to live in Crown Heights, and more recently in Seagate, NY, passed away.

By Anash.org reporter

R’ Eliyahu Botvinnikov, a longtime resident of Crown Heights, and more recently in Seagate, NY, passed away on Tuesday, 24 Teves, 5783.

He was 67 years old.

Born in the Soviet Union, he worked as a surgeon in Samarkand for years. Although not yet frum, he came from a family with a Chassidic background, and decades later he would still recall the chassidishe farbrengens the Lubavitcher Chassidim held in Samarkand. In 1994, he left Russia with his wife and children with a picture of the Rebbe in his wallet.

The family’s first stop in USA was California, where they met Rabbi Naftali Estulin, who began bringing the family closer to Yiddishkeit. They later settled in Florida near the Chabad House of Rabbi Yoseph Kahanov, before finally settling down in Crown Heights for their children’s chinuch.

Although he wasn’t able to continue working as a surgeon, he still stayed in the medical field. For a number of years, he worked in laser therapy, healing people in Queens, primarily in the Bucharian community. More recently he worked in Hamaspik and brought much joy to the many patients he worked with.

Friends and family remember him as one who was always able to find and bring out the best qualities of everybody he met. He was very connected with the Rebbe’s Torah and mivtzoim spreading it whenever he had the chance. The chinuch of his children was always his top priority.

More recently, he moved to Seagate, NY, where he lived for the last couple of years.

He is survived by his wife Mrs. Tamar Botvinnikov, and their children Mrs. Dina Kagan – Crown Heights; Mrs. Miriam Gubnitsky – Seagate, NY; Mrs. Chana Vidrin – Monsey, NY; and Dovid Botvinnikov – Crown Heights.

The Levaya will take place on Wednesday, beginning at the Blair Mazzarella Funeral Home at 723 Coney Island Ave. at 10:00 am, and passing by 770 at approximately 11:15 am.

Shiva will be held at 3705 Lyme Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11224