A Tribute to Zayde Popack

By: Meryl Butler 
Whiting, NJ

I have heard all my life that a journey begins with a thousand steps.  I do believe that is true, but there are many steps that are taken even before we begin journeying.  Someone has to light the flame to light the way for the journey, and that tells the tale of Zayde Popack.

I did not know Rabbi Popack well but I had the privilege of speaking with him on a few occasions.  But there was one occasion that we spoke for a concentrated time, it was on New Hampshire Avenue the first home of Chabad of Toms River. It was Mendal’s bris and Rabbi Popack was getting some fresh air and I came outside to go to my car for something, we began a very lengthy conversation about Judaism and G-d and my journey.  He was so encouraging, and told me it was an honor to know me since my journey was and still is a very profound experience returning to Judaism.   I remember him saying to me Miriam don’t look back, go forward and let no one discourage you, keep your eyes on G-d and you will be fine, he also thanked me for being such a good friend to Chabad.  It was a warm day and I remember feeling uplifted by his countenance and his intensity about what he was saying to me. He was sincere.

I began my journey back to Judaism through Chabad of Toms River and who do you think ultimately was responsible for my finding Chabad of Toms River?  It was Zayde Popack, who made the way for Chanie his granddaughter and Rabbi Gourarie to begin their lofty mission of bringing Judaism to every Jew that walks through Chabad house.   I was just about the first Jew they came in contact with and remarkable things have happened in eight years for me.  I have become a better person, a better Jew and I am on the way to a more observant life that is what Zayde Popack put into motion.  Imagine this man gave the tools for all this to take place knowing that this mission was ordained by G-d and to follow the very teaching of the great Rebbe.  What a faithful man Rabbi Popack was.

Because of him I worship in a most beautiful Chabad House now also located in Toms River, it is my house it is the place I call out to G-d in, it is the place that I see love for every Jew. It is the place where I see Rabbi Popack’s great grand children enjoying life and growing to becoming great people doing great things in Judaism. It is a place of peace for me, learning for me, a haven in which I can be the best person possible. 

My gratitude and gratefulness can never rival the good that this man brought to just one corner of his life in this world and his mission. He made it possible for this Jew to return to the most magnificent religion which has the greatest understanding of our great G-d. I would have missed all this if not for him.  And recently I now at 65 had a Bat Mitzvah in my beautiful Chabad House, it was remarkable and so meaningful and all sorts of wonders and miracles happened at the Bat Mitzvah, men wrapped tiffilin that had not done so in at least 15 years and men who never wrapped tiffilin did.  Rabbi Popack I know you are singing songs with our forefathers and for sure you are at the right hand of G-d.  Many thanks to Chabad and the Popack family and the Feldman’s because he produced children that carry his mission and legacy and are marching forward to accomplish what their father did.

Memories

By: Zepporah-Mushka Berger
Durham, NC

My knowing Zaidy Popack made me feel special. He had the greatest sense of humor. I remember one time he gave me a ride, and I opened the back seat door of his car. He asked me to sit in the front seat. When I asked him if he had a mehitza, he pointed to piece of cardboard between his seat and mine. I loved that!

I would see him on the street and he always greeted me warmly. I always asked his advice on certain things and usually took it. I am really going to miss him.

The news of his passing gave me such a sense of loss that I haven't felt since my beloved Aunt Ruby passed away in 2005.

I share with the family this great loss and may he been at ease now in Gan Eden.

Zaidy at 70 Years Young!

Zaidy Popack & Chabad Jewish Center of Toms River, NJ

From the weekly email addressed to the Chabad Jewish Community of Toms River, NJ
By: Rabbi Moshe Gourarie

"Why are there no Jews in Jail?" I asked him, "Nu," he said curiously. I responded, "Cause they eat Lox"! A smile lit up his face. This was the last joke we shared just a few days before his passing.

As Chanie's maternal grandfather we weren't biologically related, nevertheless in more ways than one, he was my Zeidy.

Ever since Chanie and I married in 2001, he treated me like one of his own many grandchildren KA"H.

He was the patriarch of a great and large family, the head of a very large business, spent countless hours a day learning Torah, and yet always found time for each and every one of his children and grandchildren. Always inquiring, advising, caring and helping.

He would tell us that he was once asked, what does he attribute his success? He would answer, 95 percent good luck (G-d’s blessings), and 5 percent his personal expertise. He would then add, “If I had the choice, I would trade in the 5 percent of expertise, for 5 more percent of good luck.”

He had a great sense of humor, always telling jokes and enjoying a new one which he hadn't heard. (He once shared the secret to a good marriage, "she [my wife] always laughs at my jokes, even the ones she heard ten times,"). He always infused every situation, as grim as they sometimes seemed, with his good and happy spirit.

Before we established Chabad in Toms River, he was the one we could go to for advice and support. (He counseled me as he looked over my employment contract, "A contract is not worth any more than the person who signs it"). Over the last seven years, he continued his unending support for our activities.

In honor of his ninetieth birthday, his children gave him the very special gift of commissioning the writing of a Torah in his, and Bubby's, honor. Of all places, he chose to have the Torah installed in the Chabad House of Toms River.

We held the event at the former Jewish Center of Toms River (at the time Temple Beth Shalom), which we had hoped to purchase as the Chabad Center. When he saw the "For sale" sign, he asked me to write down the number so he can call the realtor and give an offer.

He remained very involved in the negotiations for the next few months, using all of his experience to try and pull a deal together. When we found the current location, he and his family contributed very generously and significantly. We would not have been able to purchase this property without their help. He did this because he was a firm believer in our mission of bringing Jews closer to G-d and to Judaism.

In our last conversation, I had told him about certain individuals who had recently begun to observe Shabbos, and he beamed with pride.

The Torah was completed with great pomp and fanfare here in Toms River, giving many their first opportunity to partake in such a unique celebration. It united the community with this wonderful and momentous occasion. (See photo gallery).

Shortly after we moved, he made the trip from Brooklyn.  He wanted to see the property personally and up close and he was very pleased.

At a Bris ceremony, we say, “may this small one [grow up and] become big…”  He said of our Chabad House, “May this big one become [too] small…”

Whenever we would meet, he would ask about the Minyan, activities and the community members. Some members he had met would lovingly refer to him as "reb Zeidy."

This was his Nachas. This was my Zeidy.

The new bookcase in our Shul has been dedicated in his memory, as "Reb Zeidy's Library." We will be expanding this library of Jewish learning and reading books. You can join in by clicking here. An inscription will be placed in the book and the family will be notified of each addition.

Released Time pays tribute to Reb Shmuel Isaac Popack OBM

Rabbi Shazak Zirkind, Director of the Released Time Division of NCFJE, has announced that the Released Time classes which will be held on Wednesday, June 6, 2012, will be dedicated to the sainted memory of Rabbi Shmuel Isaac Ben Avrohom Popack HaLevi, OBM.

The Torah and prayers of a thousand Public School children who attend the Wednesday afternoon classes from 2:00-3:00pm in Shuls and Jewish Centers throughout Metro New York during the week that the Popack Family rose up from Shiva will be dedicated L’zecher nishmaso.

Rabbi Shmuel Isaac Popack was one of the early instructors and organizers of Released Time Program during its infancy in the 1940’s and he worked closely with Rabbi Jacob J. Hecht OBM, on the Lag B’omer Parades and other children programs and rallies.
His legacy of leadership and askanus over many decades has served as a beacon of light in the American Diaspora.

The Trustees of the NCFJE and the Administration of the Released Time Program extend their sincere condolences to the Members of the Popack family.

הקמת המצבה

Laying Down Roots (JEM Interview)

Reb Shmuel Isaac Popack recalls events after the Previous Rebbe’s arrival in America. Click here.
(The link will redirect you to Chabad.org to view the clip.)

Celebrating 90 Years

By: Reuvena Leah Grodnitzky. May 3, 2009
Reprinted from Chabad.org

With the dedication of a new Torah scroll, Jewish residents of a onetime New Jersey agricultural settlement brought life back to the empty community center they hope to soon use as their synagogue.

The April 26 ceremony at the former Jewish Community Center in Toms River brought together men, woman and children of all ages to celebrate the completion of a Torah on behalf of the township’s Chabad-Lubavitch center. Commissioned by the extended Popack families in honor of their parents, Rabbi Shmuel Isaac and Miriam Popack of New York, the Torah’s completion was timed to coincide with Shmuel Isaac Popack’s 90th birthday.

“It is a great joy for us, and for the community at large, to take part in the monumental event of completing and welcoming the Torah,” said Rabbi Moshe Gourarie, co-director of the Chabad Jewish Center, whose wife, Chanie Gourarie, is Popack’s granddaughter.

Gourarie noted that ceremony’s historic location has stood empty since last year, when Temple Beth Shalom left town to merge with another congregation. He’s hoping to acquire the space, which was founded almost a century ago as the Jewish Farmers Association and later renamed as the Jewish Community Center.

Founded in 2004, the Chabad House hosts weekly Shabbat services, children’s programs, adult-education classes and holiday celebrations.

Longtime residents remembered Toms River’s first Jewish community, which began in the 1920s after the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society encouraged Jewish families to relocate from New York City. The new residents had been employed as factory workers, but established themselves as chicken farmers in Ocean County in New Jersey’s midsection. At the time, the location was the leading producer of eggs in the United States.

“Chicken farming didn’t require expensive equipment, and the eggs demanded premium prices, because refrigeration didn’t exist then,” said Janice Gelzer, who has lived most of her 74 years in Toms River.

Gelzer’s uncle, Phillip Smith, was the first of her family to settle in Toms River in 1921, and the rest of her family soon followed. Smith participated in the construction of the very building where this week’s party was held.

“Everything of Jewish life in Toms River was centered there,” said Gelzer.

At the ceremony, which was complete with dancing, speeches and a celebratory meal, participants were invited to fill in the holy scroll’s last Hebrew letters with the assistance of Rabbi Moshe Klein, a Brooklyn-based ritual scribe. Gelzer’s twin grandsons were the first to be called.

“The Torah is the focal point of every synagogue,” said Gourarie. “This is a rare and unique event that unites our entire community, and connects us with generations bygone, all the way back to Mount Sinai.”

  

ל"ג בעומר תש"ל

In this picture from Lag B'omer 5730 (1970), on the bottom left, one can see Reb Shmuel Isaac Popack, OBM, holding the American flag, as was his custom at the Lag B'omer parades

בפרסום ראשון שנלכדה מתוך שקופיות שצולמו בשנת תש"ל. בתמונה נראה בצד שמאל למטה, הרב שמואל אייזיק פופאק ע"ה שהיה נוהג להחזיק את דגל ארה"ב בכל 'פאראד' שנערך בל"ג בעומר ב-770

ברוך דיין האמת: הרב שמואל אייזיק הלוי פאפאק ע"ה

בליל שבת קודש, ערב חג השבועות, הלך לעולמו הנגיד החסידי הרה"ת ר' שמואל אייזיק הלוי פאפאק ע"ה, מנכבדי וחשובי תושבי שכונת קראון הייטס ● השאיר אחריו דור ישרים יבורך, בנים ובנות, חתנים חשובים תלמידי חכמים ושלוחי הרבי ● היה בעל צדקה גדול וקיבל כל אדם בסבר פנים יפות, כשהוא מותיר אחריו מורשת של צדקה ומעשים טובים ● היה מאלו שזכו להתגייס לבניית והרחבת שכונת קראון הייטס במצוותו של הרבי, בשנים עברו ● מסע ההלוויה עבר על יד בית חיינו בבוקרו של אסרו חג ● ת.נ.צ.ב.ה.