Rabbi Yosef Menachem Mendel Tenenbaum: Principal of United Lubavitcher Yeshiva

ten was my principal in Thea Ocean Parkway I started off at the Yeshiva in betan and he was the principal there too most of my elementary school and high school in Sia was at Ocean Parkway UL United laaba Ra tenan was a very very very special person at the time as a boy and a young teenager I didn't really realize what type of person we had as our principal you know his job was to enforce the the rules of the Yeshiva to keep everything going to deal with the rebies and I did have a CER connection with him I remember my parents wanted me to go to high school most of many of my friends didn't go to high school they just they studied the Jewish studies G all day I didn't want to really go so he called me in 10 said to me he said listen I'm not telling you to go but since your parents want you to go you have a mitz of K respecting your parents and therefore you're ready you're going and if you're going you have to do your best not just do it halfway you know half baked you have to really do it very well because as I started went I was you know playing around in the sense of not taking my studies seriously when he called me in to tell me this I changed my attitude and I excelled in certain areas in high school and I see today how those help me in many ways to disseminate Torah and whether it be the speaking public speaking writing you English grammar setence structure and different things so I'm thankful to Rabbi tenam to put his foot down and tell me you're going you have a Mitzvah to listen and not only that you have to be an a student I don't know if I was an a student but you know I took my my studies more seriously from that time on himself was also born into born in Poland he was a Survivor together with the other laicha students raich Weinberg ra karski and and the list goes on they were in Shanghai they were first they were in the Yesa in in in in in uh in waro then they survived and they were in Shanghai and then they came to America he came to Canada and then later in 1945 I believe he was appointed as a by to open up the in Philadelphia and then later in 48 49 he came over I believe to New York the RAB gari orag brought him to be the principal of theab Yesa in bford and Dean he was a quiet man he didn't you know he wasn't loud and it was always interesting to think of him as the principal you know usually principal is more dominant and uh outspoken but he he was he was not that way but when he had to put his foot down he put his foot down I remember once we would go to play ball at a nearby park on Ocean Parkway during recess and we got we got caught up in the game we came late and he consumed us with he he penalized us and he he gave us um I forget if we had to study something I forget what it was and we said rabam you know come on give us a break he said I'm sorry say Yesa your time you have to be back you have to be back he chose to extend your time very nice but for that you have to you have to do chuva you have to make it up so when he had to put his foot down he put his foot down I remember in Bas medish when I was about 17 you know I was just getting into re you know learning and learning my own with my Kusa with my study partner and learning more deeply and in an analytical way and this who looked forward to learning with a strong student so both of us can really Excel and climb the ladder and really know the material with the commentaries very well and all of that and he um he told me I want you to learn with this and this student so I the student was from another country and he was much weaker he didn't I said up ten about I'm fine finally at a point where I could you know learn and and grow myself and you want me to learn with him it's going to have to be his teacher not it won't be a partnership will be a he said you'll gain more from learning with him than learning with the stronger student and I listened and he was right because in having to prepare better to kind of teach the weaker student it really made me learn better so these were things that I personally experienced with him his his commitment was was was tremendous later as I got older I found out that he was a big OEM he would D he would D shabas for many many hours many hours and he thought and I found out that he knew a lot ofus and then when my Khan I would see him at times talking to him this I said oh this rababa must be a a masc he must be a masc a real deep uh deep understander ofus and I remember I went over to the once and I said what does he after RAB ten passed on I asked him what does he say about RAB ten he said to me he was a very very fine person a very very good person he didn't tell me more but I could see that the twinkle in his eyes RAB tenam was someone who R really appreciated so this was also a very very special thing to hear that RAB KH who was the master of and everything else should have speak so positively and highly and with praise for rabi tenabo he helped RAB Weinberg with the sh the lessons in t family told me that either wed Tuesday Wednesday Thursday night before Rabbi Weinberg would teach Tanya Mo shabas on on wbd he would review to re tenam when they would be on the phone you couldn't talk to talk to him you know he he was completely connected to to to make it clear to R Weinberg and believe me Weinberg also also was AAL but nevertheless ten was a sounding board and obviously Ro weberg looked at him in as far as knowledge ofus and Tanya in a way that would be valuable to for him for his preparation for these M shaba Saturday night Tan on the radio which the is so wanted and loed and and and pushed so the tound left over a beautiful family grandchildren children grandchildren and the Legacy continues the Yeshiva continues it's flourishing Nowa Parkway and we we look forward to learning from a person like RAB who followed literally in doing all of the things that he did both in his childhood and his teenhood and as a Survivor he came I believe from a kutser home and then I became a laaber through learning in may he bring and help his family CL and all the importance and understanding of following