Purim Farbrengen Westfield NJ #4- First public Menorah, S. Francisco, 1975, Rabbi Drizin - RC Dalfin

sorry no no no that wine all of it all of it you're not a re yet anyway so this is the story two months ago three months ago I was in Florida it's called Hallendale Beach near Hollywood and I met there a rabbi who was the original Rabbi in the Bay Area for kabad in the SE 6 70s Rabbi Kim drizen K drizen and I asked him he was the first one to put up a public manura at Union Square in San Francisco Union Square for those that don't know is like Times Square Manhattan okay I mean I I I was there the buildings were all around it's it's Majestic it's it's really really you got the right spot you know anyway so I I want na tell not to miss the story na where are you na if he left behind my okay you'll have to you'll have to give it to him you give it over to anyway anyway so he told me like this this is the story of the manura the story of the first kabad manura in the world was Union Square 1974 5 that was the first time kabad put up a public manur on on public property oh how did Rabbi drizen manage to get in 1975 the the the community to allow him to do that well let me tell you a little bit about San Francisco jewelry San Francisco mindset maybe someone's there from San Francisco but what I know of it is the following San Francisco people Jews included are very [Music] Liberal Liberal people let me finish please you're welcome to argue we have two lawyers here Misha and what is KH uh whether they agree or disagree I don't know but I don't care they'll argue anyway anyway San Francisco Jews are very liberal San Francisco people are very liberal mind your Jews everyone's Liberal Liberal means in a way everything goes but everything goes everything goes if it makes sense it makes sense to them to to them so without going into details everyone knows hay ashberry 1969 the march to the to the water we won't go there right now we have uh younger people here and just put your imaginations to it and um it was a free-for-all we had you know up in New York in New York count up there we had what's it called Woodstock Woodstock and in San Francisco had ha ashberry so San Francisco tolerates all kinds of isms guess what one of those isms is Judaism thank you very much Judaism what kind of Judaism does it tolerate someone here it tolerates a Judaism that when a slick Rabbi aabad Rabbi who knows what he's doing comes and says listen you know everyone else is allowed to have their Temple and their Sho and their organization why can't I kabad represent kabad have it they said you're right you can so what would you like Rabbi I would like to put up a not in Union Square and they say to him you got our permission just like that just like that I'm tell you what he told me no questions no problems you want to put up he puts up the guess what guess what kind of crowd he gets anyone a thousand people wow 1975 I was there I wasn't there in 75 I was there in ' 85 when I was a marine so so and it was still a remnant of you know loaded loaded again Jews Gentiles all kinds you know Asians all kinds of people okay the next day was he surprised he was surprised did he have a thousand Donuts at that time your name is Bob I foret at that time kabad didn't get give out yet Donuts at monora lightings actually maybe they gave out Donuts but you know it was low key they come to the Mitzvah you know what I'm saying anyway so so the next day the reformed Rabbi Rabbi Asher and when you mention the San Francisco in the Bay Area for that matter Rabbi Asher everyone stood up Rabbi Asher Temple Emanuel on the hill near Fairmont hotel with president's visit o wow this is this is this is this is Grace big big stuff Rabbi Asher comes to the to the Federation he says my dear friends what right did you have to give kab to put up the manora on public property a violation of church and state of church and state church and state okay they when Rasha spoke in San Francisco They listened how did they listen they called Rabbi drizen this new Young kabad Rabbi and they say Rabbi drizen listen it was a wonderful event and we really would like it again because it's really beautiful for our city but would you would you agree to have it elsewhere and we're going to give you a magnificent Place lots of greenery San Francisco you know you have those Gardens over there in the Gary Boulevard and and with trees and and see look overlooking the ocean the hey would you agree to go there and they tell him why and he says of course what every kab RAB would say give me a few days to think about it what does he do during those few days lot a phone calls he makes a phone call to the rebi or he writes to the rebi his boss after all why is it San Francisco because uh because of San Frisco he's there because he's there cuz the re wants someone to bring yish kite Torah to San franisco of that of that of that sort of that kind so he writes to the rebba letter and the rebba answers him which means follow the advice of experts who are your friends local local one local friends who are experts on this issue he spins his head he was the only hnik in San Francisco at the time in 1975 there was an orthodox isra but you know his kind re is telling him look for experts who who are friends of yours you know that means like black and I we're friends we're friends from from childhood teenhood you know what I'm saying we know each other you know what I'm saying there are things we don't have to spell out we know each other he didn't have anyone like that and the rebbit tells him what should you do ask those people guess what happens that week Elijah the prophet appears in the form of two there was a the first of the rebi to the West Coast was Rabbi schm DAV raichik we knew him very special Jew ri's ri's grandfather right as the grandfather of the one that you know from Florida that's right and we knew him he you know was older than us but we grew up with with with him anyway you know we're a little older you understand you know the grandkids they're all over right but you know black and I already considered senior senior rabbis in kabad that's the way it is right we all know we get a little older right AET here AET there speak for yourself okay anyway so the bottom line is he comes with another who happens to be a relative of ours a Jew sat nine years in Siberia for fighting Stalin and communism and KGB his name was rendel futas he's a legend in kabad circles and they came together to raise money for the Yesa in Israel fora for actually Russian Jews or Ukrainian Jews whatever Jews from that part of the world and they would come once a once a year and they wouldn't they would stay usually one day because they didn't have many people to go to in LA Los Angeles had many people who appreciated that those these type of people and they would support him and give you know give donations but in San Francisco it was a very secular I could I could now is not the time but can tell you you know how secular these people were as far as traditional Judaism they didn't understand it they didn't relate to it you know they came over in the 1840s in the Gold Rush okay the Levi strauss's and the Goldman you know great Jewish people but I'm related to Levi Strauss my name is Levi I think you said a little high you need a little more but anyway anyway listen to this so bottom line is they pop they show up the same week that the rebi Tells drizen to ask them wow he says I'm a look so he goes to Reed fotas very smart man and he says this is the issue what do you advise so he asks him two questions listen to the questions one is he says do you think in this new place where they the Federation wants to place the manura will you have as much success and jisen didn't know this place the rabbi didn't know this place says I don't know it's hard to imagine cuz Union Square is Time Square but you you know I don't know you know we have a year to plan and the second question FAS asked him was can you trust them now I forgot to mention it's very important when they told drizen RAB drizen to go to the other place they told them if the next year you don't have the success that you had this year you can come back to Union Square and we will never say another word so Rabbi futas asks Rabbi drizen can you trust them and and Rabbi drizen said one thing about San Francisco people and Jews is their were word is a word inish is a the word is a word they might be liberal and very far from traditional Judaism but if they give you their word you can go to the bank with it okay he ends the story de risen I remember we were about to both leave sh and I say to him cuz what's the next question what happened what happened anden says and when he was before he answered me he turned red I'm telling you he turned red and I saw it's 50 years later 1976 or so 756 to 2023 when I saw him right almost 50 years whatever and it's like honest heart can't stomach it and he says to me with a scream he says I had 50 people 50 people compared to a thousand people and I can see it all over his face how he's turning inside and wait not over yet almost the word's not a word okay that's the next part and then I asked him what happened the year after he says they let me come back and ever since and this is true it's on record the manora has stood in Union Square without anyone including Rabbi Asher being able to open his mouth and if you think about it you know I know there's been the Jersey stories and other places stories with church state if any place should have had a church and state issue it should have been San Francisco you know and it didn't I oh I forgot a punch line you forgot I forg one more the punch line you the punch no no no one said him listen to this I'll tell you wait not the punch line good said to him and you have to understand this guy fascast this FAS fought Stalin and I Know It And Ley knows it so if he fought Stalin he's scared of San Francisco jewelry this a Small Change I'm telling you this is a small change for him and all of a sudden he tells drizen to listen to the Federation and try going there it's so antithetical you know look look at black how he's making you know it's like wow that's really strange it's not like him and he gave him a par he was very good with Parables we call mush he said you know the gamorra T talks about one ax scoring another ax he says say drizen when the ax scores another ax what is the ax need to do to give a good zense no he needs to go back it goes back and then it runs forward and gives a good a good bang a good a good Gore sometimes you got to go back and when you go back the result will be you will make it fly in the future Adam Fida it will it will take off that's what futas told trisen in in I forgot to mention it's very important and that's what takes what I took personally and any everyone can take it any way they want is sometimes Reon what yard yard I don't know so sometimes sometimes in life this is the message sometimes in life you want you want to you want to really go forward you want to come out with a bang and you say to yourself I'll be a loser if I don't you know go forward who am I what am I made of this is what I gave my career for sometimes you have sometimes sometimes you have to remember that that the discipline and the control of holding yourself back will result in a a tremendous tremendous outcome that's much more positive than what you would have done