The Life Lessons from Rabbi Avraham Korf O”BM By: Rabbi Yitzchok Minkowicz - והחי יתן אל לבו

Dear Southwest Florida Jewish community, family, friends, and the Jewish community at large all over the world. This past Monday night, we lost a giant of a human being, a grand rabbi in the state of Florida, Rabbi Corf. Rabbi Korf was a shik the Reb. He was achieving, but he was responsible for the growth of Kabad all over the state of Florida. My first interaction with him was I was a student. I was in yeshiva. They were looking for a counselor in a summer camp at Morson reached out to me. He says he wants me to come down to help him out in the camp to be a counselor in the oldest bunk. I said, "Sure, I'll come down." But I really wanted to, you know, continue studying. He says, "Guess what? In the camp at there's a yeshiva there. You can sit and study." So at the end at the end at at the end of every day at after camp, we would sit and study in the base medish. And in the evening when things quiet down, Rabbi Cor would come into Ma and then we would sit down and talk to him and talk to him in learning. And it was amazing how like we thought this kabad rabbi running you know institutions of schools and camps and outreach you know he wouldn't be really focused into into learning but we able to discuss with him Mishna talmet kabala halaka anything you want he was clear and he had tremendous insight and he was able to uh engage with us on a very very beautiful level we grew a lot from that experience so later on when I got married I wanted to go in there's no better place to go in where you have the head kabad rabbi who's into learning and I that's a passion of mine. So I called him up and he actually set up some meetings in Southwest Florida and we ended up moving here to Southwest Florida. Now we know the Reb taught us after the Rebson passed away when someone passes away the prophet Ecclesiastes King Solomon says after someone passes away it's important to learn what can you learn from him. So I'd like to share with you a few powerful lessons I learned from Bref. So the first thing is when we came on we here for many many years. um the whole south of SL we were growing and doing different programs and events etc. And one day he calls me up. Rabbi Corv calls me up and he says, "Listen, it's time for you to bring out another Corv, we're barely surviving ourselves. What do you mean bring another?" He says, "No, the Reb wants you to grow. I know logically it doesn't make sense, but sometimes you have to go above logic and just go ahead and do it." I said, "If that's the case, you know, maybe let's not only bring one, let's bring a few more." He says, "I can ask you to bring one, but if you want to do more, it's on your own." I said, "Well, I think I'm going to do it. You'll have your blessing." Said, "Sure, you have my blessing." And at that time, he brought down several more. in Port in Naples, in Cape Coral, Bonita Springs, Port Charlotte and thank God um his vision was correct. They've all been successful and southeast of Florida has grown tremendously and since then more have came down and hopefully with the inspiration of a cororf will continue to god willing bring more to the area. So one of the things corf taught me was don't ever get comfortable. You always have to expand. And sometimes if you don't see the expansion doesn't make sense, just do it because God wants us like it says in the Torah, we got to keep on expanding. We got to keep on growing. Another powerful lesson I learned for a I once went several years ago to the Rebi on Gimmel Thomas. And you know Gimmel Thomas, thousands of people come from all over the world to the oil and there's lines that take hours to to get the to get a few minutes to go into the Rebel Tillum. So I came into New York. I was there with my son and we walking towards the line and we give a look. Oh my gosh, there's a line for hours and middle of the line I see a Cororf with a sun and it was a hot day. So I turn to Ray Cororf, you're the head rabbi in Florida. Come, I'll get you in. There's ways to bring in Elder Hassid um from the side. You won't have to wait in line. I mean it's a long line. And he turned to me and he said to me, that's how he called me. When you go to the Reba, there's no shortcuts. And it taught me a lesson in life. When you're going to the Reba, when you want to do something holy, there is no shortcuts. Means you have to stand in line hours, whatever it takes, whatever the commitment is, you got to do it and you got to do it right. That was lesson number two. And the third lesson I learned for Ray Cororf, which is actually more on a personal level, I would call him about different questions, different challenges in the community, personally, whatever the issue was. And he had tremendous clarity. I would ask him questions on Jewish law. Matter of fact, when he built our mikvah, he came down and he inspected our mikvah that was kosher according to Jewish law and all areas of Shabbat, Kash, whatever the issue was or a cor was a number to call and he was on target in every single area, etc. So I was went to New York one year for the you know the you have rabbis from all over the world come there and I was walking from 77 the Eastern Parkway, the Rebi Synagogue. I was walking to Al Torah, the the place where they have all the different sessions and people would meet up. And as I'm walking, I see my corpse walking with all his peers and they're engrossed in some kind of a heavy discussion with all these, you know, uh, Elder Kabad, Elder Kabad. And I'm walking down the street and he sees me and he just he breaks away from that group and he walks towards me and I was like wondering Corp. He's you're leaving your your your peers, you're in an intense discussion. Why is he walking over to me? He walks over to me. He says, that's how he called me with an endearment. He says, what's happening with this and this subject? something that we were dealing with some kind of challenge that we had to we're working we're trying to work work work out and I tell him Corf it's all fine enjoy enjoy your peers you only come for the weekend here for the and he told me no no no that is personal enjoyment and inspiration but when I see a that we were dealing with something and there's something that has to be dealt with that becomes the priority so I learned many many lessons from a core just to recap number one is you have to always thing growth and expansion that's number Um, number two, I learned from Marie Cor is when it comes to holiness, you got to do it right. There's no cutting corners. And three, as busy as you get. Whatever you're doing, always remember the details. Always remember the individual. And don't get lost into your own um spiritual high. If there's someone out there that needs help, stop what you're doing and reach out to them. I just want to finish off by saying Corf. You've been a tremendous inspiration to myself and many not only in Florida but all over the world. We hope and pray we can continue the mission that you set out to make Florida a Jewish place like the Reb told you of America and very soon we'll all be reunited with the coming of Messiah all together in your I want to send condolences to your beautiful family that's continuing your work that you work so hard to build up and it should continue and you should be extremely successful and ultimately bring the ultimate gula hamites fash your whole family and all the Jewish people will be reunited once again with the coming of Messiah.