The Baltimore community
suffered an immeasurable loss. A beloved Rebbe, Rav, and embodiment of ahavas Yisrael in human form returned to
the Yeshiva Shel Maaleh on ches Sivan.
Rabbi Peretz Avraham
Dinovitz, zt”l, master mechanech (educator) and what I call a rebbe’s
rebbe, will be sorely missed by scores of people. Having taught third grade for
30 years, and quite proud of his “job,” Rabbi Dinovitz saw the beauty in each
and every talmid. Listening at the levaya (funeral) to the stories from
some of those talmidim, now adults
spread throughout the world and spanning the Jewish spectrum, was testimony to Rabbi
Dinovitz’s love and influence. His acts of chesed
were outstanding, reflecting his core belief of being nosei b’ol im chaveiro (carrying another’s burden). Nothing was
impossible in his mind, and as such, many people identified with him as their
personal rebbe. Yes, he will be sorely missed, and we may never know the full
scope of his kindness and greatness. But in truth, that was typical of his
humble demeanor and the very person that he was.
I was zochah (privileged) to live around the
corner from Rabbi Dinovitz, as well as have my two sons, now ages 25 and 27, call
him their Rebbe and learn under his tutelage at Yeshivas Chofetz Chaim
Talmudical Academy.
I also had
the privilege of seeing him daily as I too taught in the same Yeshiva. Many a
morning began with his trademark smile and wishes for a good day. (Oh, how he
kibbitzed with Mrs. Karlip and Mrs. Brager, and, of course, Rabbi Brull!) My
husband received those same greetings upon meeting him in shul, or just around
the neighborhood. In truth, this was how he greeted everyone! As was said at
the levaya, he didn’t see the
exterior of a person; he saw the heart.
Besever panim yafos (a
pleasant demeanor) was his countenance, and kol
Yisrael areivin zeh lazeh (all of Israel are responsible for one another) was
his modus operandi for living. Rabbi Dinovitz bequeathed this mesorah to his children, along with his eishis chayil, esteemed preschool morah, Morah CV.
But my
relationship with the Dinovitzes goes back further than my TA days. When I
first came to Baltimore as a young preschooler, shortly after the sudden death
of my father, my family moved to an apartment complex right around the block
from the Dinovitz home. Known as the Parkington Apartments, it was the hub for kollel
couples in the 1970s. Many chashuve
people in our community started their lives in this simple neighborhood and
davened at Ohel Yaakov, just up the block.
Ohel Yaakov
was started by Rabbi Dinovitz’s father, Rabbi Binyomin Dinovitz, zt”l. The senior Rabbi Dinovitz was a
pioneer in bringing Yiddishkeit to the neighborhood and was an adamant
protector of Judaism and Torah in an era when many were not.
Rebbetzin
Gittel Dinovitz, tichyeh, a warm and
ebullient person, supported her husband and was the consummate rebbetzin in
welcoming people and caring for them. It was in this home that Reb Peretz was
raised, and he perpetuated these values in his own home and with anyone with whom
he came into contact. The senior Dinovitzes sincerely welcomed my widowed
mother, along with me and my brother, as naturally as they would with their own
children. The Rebbetzin always called me “mamaleh,” urging me to sit next to
her in shul, and just laughed when she saw my very active younger brother climb
and jump all around, never chastising his energy.
Sitting in
the shul once again at the levaya, I
couldn’t help but recall those early painful days of my move to Baltimore, which
were buffered by the kindness of the Dinovitz family. I experienced that Torah yet
again as a parent myself, with Morah CV as our children’s morah and Rabbi Dinovitz as our sons’ rebbe. The circle of life and
giving continued when I was able to teach one of their grandchildren, who was
indeed named after Reb Binyomin, closing the circle in a most poetic and noble
way.
May the
memory and legacy of Rabbi Peretz Avraham Dinovitz, zt”l, be a blessing and a lesson for us all as he continues his
holy work on a different plane as a meilitz
yosher for his family and klal Yisrael.
Yehi zichro
baruch.
