By COLlive reporter
Photos: Itzik Roytman
A full crowd came to the Oihel Nosson shul in Crown Heights to mark 30 days since the cold blooded shooting of a 60-year-old man some hundreds of miles away, yet very much pierced their hearts.
“The loss of this soul has deeply impoverished us and our world,” stated the orator Rabbi YY Jacobson in his eulogy of R’ Yosef Raksin, the Crown Heights resident who was shot to death in North Miami Beach, FL, last month.
Raksin’s family, friends and neighbors gathered on Monday to mark the ‘Shloshim’ since his tragic death which shocked the South Florida Jewish community, as well as his acquaintances back home in Brooklyn.
“We will forever remember Reb Yosef and not understand why such an innocent life, an honest life and a good life was just snuffed out by two murderers on a Shabbos day,” Jacobson said.
While prayers were said and the loving memories were shared, the underlying feeling among the 200 participants was the disappointment that the Miami-Dade Police has still not made an arrest in the case.
“The feeling we are getting is that they are just talking us down and hoping that the hype will just die down,” his son-in-law, Rabbi Leib Ezagui, Youth Director of the Jewish Camp of the Arts in Florida, told COLlive before the event.
“We expect the police to get their act together and pull this case together. If they really are working day and night on the case they should be more transparent and let us know what the situation is,” said Ezagui, who emceed the event.
Among the speakers were Raksin’s brother R’ Mendel Raksin, his son Lazer Raksin who made a siyum learning conclusion in memory of his father, and the Holocaust survivor and author Rabbi Nissan Mangel.
Before his children gathered to say the mourners’ Kaddish, speakers highlighted Yosef Raksin’s humble character and his dedication to Torah and Mitzvos, especially being careful with shruya on Pesach and daily Mikvah.
“We will never forget his presence, his example, the way he lived,” Rabbi Jacobson said, asking the family to create “a second tombstone” by following their father’s pious ways.
Indeed, Leib Ezagui updated the crowd that a new Torah scroll was being written in memory of Yosef Raksin. A new Mikvah will bear his name and a charity fund was set up in his memory.
Video: Itzik Roytman
The Police in Miami-Dade County and North Miami Beach in particular, will do nothing unless there are all kinds of protests outside, daily etc. They are afraid of riots like in other cities and they know that Jews will not carry on like blacks even for cold blooded murder, so we will continue to be targets. It is obvious the killers live in the neighborhood, since one was on foot and one on a bike (stolen I am sure).
Where are the Jewish Al Sharptons? or the “so called Reverend that tails after him”
We Can’t rest,
We need to get some Askonim, Balabatim and high level politicians to be involved pressing the right buttons and get some things moving, perhaps maybe the Shliach in the FL. state capital, or even get in touch with FL. Senator Marco Rubio and stay on top of this,
Moshiach Now!
fagie. im so sorry
Is there a contact number or email for the family as I haven’t been menachem ovel
why are the killers still at large? why isnt this considered a hate crime . why is it when it comes to hurting Jews there is silence?