Rebbetzin Kazen’s Resolve to Spend Simchas Torah with the Rebbe

Rebbetzin Shula Kazen, of blessed memory, steadfastly stood up for Yiddishkeit behind the Iron Curtain, with her parents, with her husband Rabbi Zalman Kazen, and then as a legendary Shlucha, serving as an educator and community leader in Cleveland, Ohio, for almost 60 years.

She shared the following memories of Tishrei in New York with her daughter Mrs. Henya Laine of Crown Heights. It is an excerpt from the forthcoming book, The Queen of Cleveland, available for pre-order on HasidicArchives.com:

After escaping Communist Russia and settling in Cleveland at the instruction of the Rebbe, I felt a yearning to visit the Rebbe for Simchas Torah. When I told my husband I wanted to go to Crown Heights, he was worried we could not afford it. Our fifty-dollar stipend from HIAS barely covered our basic expenses, and if they discovered we somehow had enough money for traveling, they might suspend our stipend altogether. I responded that visiting the Rebbe was more important than anything HIAS might do, and I began looking for another source of income to fund the trip.

My neighbor, who had five children, worked most of the day. I offered to babysit her children, do housework, and do laundry. Although I was unwell, my determination to visit the Rebbe forced me to overcome my ailments. The luxury of washing machines or dryers was still beyond us, so, with the help of Esther, my eldest daughter, I washed the laundry by hand and dried it on the line outside.

We got down on our hands and knees to scrub the floors. After just a week of hard work, I had earned enough to cover the thirty-six-dollar roundtrip bus fare to New York. Children under twelve traveled for free, so I left Esther, who was already twelve, with my husband, and traveled with my five younger daughters to the Rebbe.

My sister Rosa Marosov and her family had moved to a fourth-floor apartment at 822 Eastern Parkway, a perfect location just a half block from the Rebbe’s shul. Over Sukkos, we camped on her floor, among other guests, with just a blanket beneath us and a blanket over us.

On Shemini Atzeres night, Torah scrolls were removed from the ark and the Chasidim danced in the Rebbe’s hakafos, beginning around 9:00 PM. We stayed all night, watching from the ladies’ section. The Rebbe led the singing and dancing, which continued long after he left the shul. At daybreak, we returned to Rosa’s apartment for a brief meal.

We spent the next two days in a flurry of activity, rushing back to shul at every opportunity, absorbing the sights and sounds of these holy days with the Rebbe, but sleeping and eating very little.

The next day, my girls were exhausted, so I let them sleep in. But I had scheduled a yechidus with the Rebbe for that evening, so sleep evaded me. After three nights without sleep, I had to splash cold water on my face to help me stay awake.

When my daughters and I entered the Rebbe’s room, he asked if I had rested, remarking that, for me, the holiday celebrations had been a first-time experience. “You must be tired,” he said.

“The Rebbe didn’t sleep for three nights,” I replied, “and then he meets Jews all night. How could I sleep? My body may be tired, but my soul is content.”

The Rebbe smiled and gave his blessing to our family.

Reinforced by our remarkable holiday experience, I returned to Cleveland, determined that Zalman and Esther travel to the Rebbe for Purim that year – and they did.

The next year, I again raised thirty-six dollars for the bus to New York for Simchas Torah. In later years, as our financial standing improved, we traveled to the Rebbe twice a year. We took the Greyhound bus on Thursday night, arrived in Crown Heights on Friday, and returned to Cleveland on Sunday night. We met privately with the Rebbe on these visits as well.

The Rebbe encouraged us, among all his followers, to share Yiddishkeit with all Jews. Over the years, he gave many suggestions that enabled us to be creative and proactive in our mission. I often wrote to him about our activities, and the Rebbe replied with warm, encouraging letters.

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This excerpt was published in the COLlive Magazine for Tishrei 5783. The forthcoming book The Queen of Cleveland is available for pre-order on HasidicArchives.com