A TZUR YISROEL The Kilimnicks left Little Rock for Rochester, New York, in 1977. “Leaving Little Rock was the hardest thing I ever did,” reflects the rabbi. “Our lives were completely connected to Agudath Achim; but we were blessed there with four kids and my oldest ones needed to go to a Jewish day school. That is the only reason we moved away.” In Rochester, Rabbi Kilimnick became the rav of Congregation Beth Sholom. He still is at that post and his son, Avi, is the shul’s associate rabbi. Through the years, Rabbi Kilimnick has held prominent positions in the RCA, the OU, UJC, and Israel Bonds. He also presided over a very active NCSY chapter of the Har Sinai Region. As for their future plans, Rabbi Kilimnick and Nechie expect to make Aliyah when he retires in 2017. In addition to Avi, two of the Kilimnick children live in the States: Yosef in Rochester, and Shifron in Teaneck, NJ. Their only daughter, Tzipporah, and their son, Dovid, live in Jerusalem. Even though forty-five years have passed, the Kilimnicks still have very close ties to the Little Rock community and to their former NCSYers. “It was extraordinary how everything just came together, with the help of the Ribono Shel Olam,” relates the rabbi. “There are moments in a person’s life when they are tremendously happy, even though they have the weight of enormous responsibilities on their shoulders. The chemistry in Little Rock was just right. It was a magical and miraculous time in my life.” R ______________________ Rebecca Feldbaum is the author of two books, If There’s Anything I Can Do (Feldheim, 2003) and What Should I Say, What Can I Do? (Simon & Schuster, 2009). She is an upbeat, popular speaker who draws upon her personal experiences to teach women’s groups how to help families who are going through a medical crisis or who have suffered a loss. Visit her website at www.rebeccafeldbaum.com.
NCSYER
LO O K S B AC K In his always exuberant style, Rabbi Kilimnick called himself “The Little Rocka Rebbe.” But to us, his devoted NCSYers, he was just “Rabbi.” No other title was needed and to this day, that is what we call him. When Rabbi and Nechie moved to Little Rock, you could feel the generated excitement in the air. While we adored this vibrant and fun-loving young couple, they also received an enormous amount of respect from our parents. Anyone in the youth group had an open invitation to the Kilimnicks’ warm and welcoming home on Shabbos, and we used it freely. We were awed by this couple who so willingly gave up every minute for us. When we attended NCSY Shabbtonim and National events, we were so proud to be in the ever-popular Rabbi Kilimnick’s chapter. His singing with his guitar, his humorous antics, and his upbeat personality made us feel we were the luckiest NCSYers on the planet! When one of his songs was accepted on a JEP album, we were all bursting with pride. In retrospect, it must have been tremendously hard for Rabbi and Nechie to come to a community where they were the only young, frum couple in the community, far away from their family and friends. Yet, we never heard them complain. On the contrary, we only heard them singing our praises − from our NCSY achievements to any change, small or significant, we made in our Jewish lifestyles. Throughout the years, the Kilimnicks still play an important part in our lives. A friend related to me that when she went through a serious illness, she woke up from surgery and found Rabbi and Nechie by her side. When I lost my first husband, their words of encouragement helped me get through shiva and the very difficult months that followed. And I’ll never forget how the Kilimnicks drove through the night to attend my second marriage. In fact, whenever possible, they attend the simchas of their former NCSYers. My closest friend (my BFF from NCSY) just told me how excited she was that Rabbi was in Israel for her oldest son’s wedding. All of us who became frum because of the Kilimnick’s influence know that “Thank you” is not nearly enough. We will always feel enormous gratitude for all they did for us. Yet, they never took any credit for their kiruv. Instead, they credit our parents who made enormous sacrifices so we could attend NCSY events, or to further our Jewish education by allowing us to leave Arkansas. Yet I suspect that, deep-down, they are aware that their labors have borne fruit that is genuine and enduring. You can see it on their faces. The nachas is clearly etched on their features as they join us at our children’s milestone simchas. And sharing those moments with them is a joy in itself. ----- BECCA (BRAM) FELDBAUM Becca is a member of the Ben Zakkai Honor Society and was Southern Regional president when Southern Region won the Region of the Year Award at the 1975 National Convention.
Summer 2015 | Reunion Magazine
|| 13