By COLlive reporter
Following his funeral in Jerusalem on Tuesday, major philanthropist Sami Rohr was eulogized at a Yarchei Kallah event in Kfar Chabad – from a personal perspective.
“Everyone speaks about his charities, but every time I met him he would ask if I have a Torah’le to say,” recalled Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky, a close family friend who sits on the board of Rohr’s foundation.
“Reb Shmuel learned a chapter of Rambam every day, the Alter Rebbe’s Tanya and would constantly quote from Hayom Yom,” Kotlarsky said about the book of daily Chassidic sayings published by the Rebbe.
Speaking about the wealthy investor of Miami, the Vice Chairman of Merkos L’inyonei Chinuch stated that Rohr “loved the Rebbe, (yet) for years he did not want to visit the Rebbe.”
After being told that preparation is required before visiting the Rebbe, “he gave a shiur in Chumash for a full year which was attended by 80 people every Tuesday. After that accomplishment, he felt worthy, saying – ‘I have with what’ to come to the Rebbe.”
Rabbi Kotlarsky, who was in Florida at the time of the 86 year-old’s passing and met him a few days earlier, described Rohr as a warm Jew who made “no calculations” when contributing to worthy causes.
“He would read all the reports from Shluchim and leave me voicemails (as late as) 2 or 3 AM,” said Kotlarsky, who with Rohr’s help operates the Rohr Jewish Learning Institute, Jnet, MyShliach, Cteens and other organizations.
The Rohr family has returned to the U.S. and will be sitting Shivah at 10205 Collins Avenue, Apt 802 in Bal Harbour, FL 33154.
Daily Shachris prayers 8:00am (Sunday Shachris 9:00am), Mincha at 7:30pm followed by Maariv. Shiva concludes Monday. The family requests no visits after 9:00pm.
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a heilige Yid
I attended those Chumash shiurim for that year and Sami Rohr was a very well informed and interesting teacher. I didn’t know that those classes were in preparation for his visit to our Rebbe, makes it so much more meaningful for me.
His neighbor for 22 years in the building where he lived.