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NEWS
R' Menachem Steinmetz z"l
By S. Bruchi

R' Menachem Steinmetz zt"l passed away at the age of 70 and was laid to rest in Bnei Brak on Monday night of the week of Parshas Lech Lecho.

R' Menachem Steinmetz was born on 11 Cheshvan 5695 (1935) to R' Moshe in the town of Bedertzin, Hungary and studied at Yeshivas Smetana. After surviving the Holocaust he managed to reach Eretz Hakodesh in 5710 (1950) with Aliyat Hano'ar.

Upon arrival he began studying at Yeshivas Chevron in Jerusalem under HaRav Meir Chodosh. When his father came to Eretz Hakodesh they settled in Tzfat, where he helped his father build a home.

Menachem married Rivkoh Englander. Throughout his lifetime he worked as an electrician, at first for the City of Bnei Brak and later as a self-employed worker. He built the electrical system at numerous botei knesses and yeshivas, and was often summoned to perform emergency home electrical repairs shortly before Shabbos, never refusing a call no matter how pressed for time.

His work was always secondary to his Torah learning. Every evening he would attend shiurim, which he never missed and made the center of his day.

He always maintained his father's customs carefully and avoided worldly pleasures, treating every crumb of bread as a precious gift from Heaven.

During the past decade his wife suffered from poor health and he cared for her devotedly. When he had to travel abroad with her for medical treatments he went to his sons' roshei yeshiva saying, "Please see to my sons' Torah study." All of his sons and sons-in-law are lomdei Torah as he always aspired.

Two months after losing his wife he fell off a ladder in his home, lost consciousness and was taken to Sheba Hospital. His sons and relatives sat at his bedside learning maseches Shabbos aloud. On Monday morning his heart stopped beating after his family members said Seder Vidui. He was revived and they continued their learning, completed the maseches that evening and washed their hands for a seudas mitzvoh. Then his soul parted for the world that is all "Shabbos umenuchoh."

Numerous Bnei Brak residents arrived later that night to participate in the levayoh. Eulogies were delivered by HaRav Yaakov Weiss, the rov of Neveh Achiezer, HaRav Mordechai Sompolansky, a rosh yeshiva of yeshivas Ohr Elchonon, HaRav Elimelech Biderman, who delivered the shiur the deceased attended at Beis Knesses Satmar, his eldest son Rav Nachman and Rav Sholom Klein of Jerusalem.

At the cemetery he was eulogized by his son Rav Moshe and Rav Naftoli Neuman. He was laid to rest in the Bnei Brak Cemetery in a plot he purchased just one week earlier.

R' Menachem Steinmetz z"l is survived by his sons Rav Nachman, Rav Moshe, Rav Yaakov, a daughter married to Rav Eliezer Frankel and grandchildren following in the spiritual path he bequeathed to them during his lifetime.

 

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