Morah Rochel Leah Neiman, 81, OBM

By Chani Vogel for COLlive.com

Who didn’t love Morah Neiman? Anyone who had the zchus to go to Bais Rivkah High School between 1964 and 2014 likely passed through Morah Neiman’s class. Who was this legend that was so beloved by all her students, the feisty ones and the studious ones alike?

Born in Arad, Romania in 1939, Rochel Leah Wertzberger was a 4-year-old when the war’s effects began to torment her family. Her parents, Reb Yitzchok and Chaya were Vizhnitzer Chassidim, and their home was a very warm one.

When the Germans came to her town, at one point, little Rochel Leah and her sister Miriam were taken to a sugar factory to hide. The factory was a specialty sugar factory, and they manufactured fancy style sugar. Their mother told them that if they are hungry, they can eat sugar because there was no issue with the hechsher. One night the little girls were really hungry. The factory employees had left for the night, and the little girls were safely locked into one of the interior factory rooms. They looked around for some sugar. They spotted a large sculpture, and eagerly approached it. They shrank back in horror as they realized that the sculpture was a pig. In their little minds, they decided it could not be kosher, because a chazer is not kosher.

The yiras shamayim that Morah Neiman had was legendary. She learned it from her pious parents, and shared it with all who came in contact with her. The family decided that they needed to leave to Eretz Yisroel. They boarded a ship, and came to the port of Haifa where they were turned away. The ship was allowed to dock in Cyprus, which it did. According to Morah Neiman, this was the most peaceful period of her life. They had nothing materialistically, but they were rich spiritually. A talmid chochom, Reb Yitzchok taught Torah on the island, and the family healed from the frightening experiences in Romania.

Being poor, they lived in tent-like huts. Little Rochel Leah loved watching the British soldiers doing their exercises every day. The Pesach season came, but there was nothing to clean, because the family had nothing. Being resourceful, Reb Yitzchok and his wife Chaya decided to pick up their tent, and move it to a different location, to show the children that Pesach cleaning will happen even if there was nothing much materialistically.

At long last, they came to Eretz Yisroel. The family was spared the death sentence that so many of their yiddishe brethren didn’t. Together as a unit, they settled in Haifa. One day her father let her know that there was a wonderful Bochur from America learning in Eretz Yisroel. She was then introduced to her illustrious husband Reb Yankel Neiman.

After she got married, the couple settled in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and Morah Neiman got a teaching job in Bais Yaakov, teaching 4th grade English.

Boruch Hashem, she was led to Bais Rivkah by a Rebbetzin Brudny, who helped her get the job of Navi teacher.

Her first year in Bais Rivkah was 1964. Mrs. Chaye Freyda Kahan relates, “She was a young woman when she started in Bais Rivkah. She walked into the classroom, we were 16 girls in the class, a bunch of spirited girls, and at once, we decided she would not last another day. But Morah Neiman opened her mouth, and we closed ours! What she taught you, you remembered forever and ever and ever.. She really was an incredible woman.!” (At this point, Chaye Freyda told me that she still remembers some of Yeshayahu by heart. I am not surprised.)

She was so effective with the class, that if other teachers had an issue, they would ask Morah Neiman to intervene. The girls loved her so much there was no way they would disappoint her, and instantly they would shape up! Later, Morah Neiman came to Chaye Freyda’s wedding, and called her to wish her Mazal tov when she had a baby. She could not have known that she was wishing Chaye Freyda Mazal tov, on her own first experience of a second-generation student at that point! Dvora Leah (Kahan) Gordon was Morah Neiman’s first experience with the second generation of students. Dvora Leah’s daughter Matty was Morah Neiman’s first experience with the third generation.

Morah Neiman took the whole person into account when she taught them. I myself had a story with her that personifies Morah Neiman’s greatness. Morah Neiman was very considerate. She had two sets of tests, one for the girls who spoke Yiddish, and one for those who did not. She taught us Yeshayahu, and learning ba’al peh was something that I enjoyed. Written tests were a different story. For some reason, she thought that I did not speak yiddish, and offered me the English test. I was not going to tell her that Yiddish was my first language. Needless to say, I aced her class. When it came to the final exam, she did something unique. Instead of a long drawn out test, she tested us orally. One girl at a time, got to sit with her, and talk about their year, and then she tested us. I got an Aleph, and walked out.

Afterwards, I needed to call my father as he was picking me up from school that day. I went to the office to make a call, and asked my father in perfect Yiddish when he was coming to get me. Suddenly, I felt big eyes boring into my back. Morah Neiman had heard. She called me back into her testing room, and I was petrified! After the entire year, I got caught! She asked me what that was about, and I told her that she assumed something, and I didn’t deny it. Defiantly, I asked her if she assumed it because my friends took the English test. Her response? “Thank you Chani. You taught me a very valuable lesson today. I will still give you an aleph for the class!”

In that moment, I think I learned more than I did in any other class in all my years of schooling.

It was at least ten years later that I was walking down Empire Boulevard, and saw her standing at the bus stop going to Williamsburg. I kept her company that day. We shmoozed. I always went out of my way if I saw her to say “hi.” I had one teacher who I really loved, and loved me too.

When asking her students for quotes for the article, and a book we are planning on creating for her family, Hindy (Bruchstat) Greisman relates, “I was always in awe of how she talked about her husband. Her shalom bayis made an impression on me. Her handwriting was just gorgeous. She told us she admired her husband, and his handwriting, so she taught herself to write like he did.”

When Ettie (Silver) Klein heard that Morah Neiman passed away, her response was, “She was an angel. A dugma for her students in so many ways. To this day I love the Kapitalach she taught me and remember them well. She will be a gutte better for gantz klal Yisrael. Moshiach now!”

Mica (Katzen) Soffer remembers fondly how understanding Morah Neiman was, when she could not do the memorization expected of her. This was a foundation of Morah Neiman’s class, and even back then she was progressive enough to realize that “Chanoch Leno’ar al Pi Darco” was not just a nice Pisgam.

When I decided to write the article, I called Esti Knoll, Morah Neiman’s granddaughter. She told me that Morah Neiman had a love for Lubavitch that was so strong, it was ingrained in all her children, and grandchildren. Esti felt super privileged to come to Bais Rivkah’s productions every year with her Bubby. She loved how the girls loved her Bubby. Esti marveled at this. She asked her Bubby, “You are this tiny little lady and how do you do this? What do the Bais Rivkah girls love about you?”

Esti told me that her Bubby taught them all the joy that is Chabad. She laminated a picture of the Rebbe, and gave one to each of her grandchildren. Whenever Esti had a test, she would lovingly place that picture on her desk. As she was an ‘A’ student, her classmates would beg her for that picture when they had make up tests, that Esti had already taken!

Morah Neiman had two children of her own. Raizy Perl and Hershel Neiman. Raizy became a Navi teacher just like her mother, and if imitation is not the best form of flattery, I don’t know what is!

Esti related that when she was in fourth grade, she had plenty of character, and her mother would get called from school, when Esti’s behavior was not what they liked. Raizy, Esti’s mother, would call her own mother, Morah Neiman to talk about it. Morah Neiman would wait a bit, and then call the house, and ask Esti if she had time to come over to Bubby, to help out a bit. Esti always jumped at the opportunity! “My heart would jump for joy!” She says. “Bubby’s house had nosh, but talking to Bubby amid peeling vegetables was the best feeling ever!” Bubby would listen to the concern of the day, and how Esti was feeling. She would then thank Esti for teaching her which mistakes NOT to make with her own students. Empowering Esti to feel good about herself, Esti would go home happy.

Esti recalls her Bubby’s exceptional kibbud av va’em. Reb Yitzchak Wertzberger was an alman, and Morah Neiman did not want him to spend Shabbos on his own. She would host her father in her own house, and bring an ainikel to sleep in the same room as him. She did this so that if he needed anything in the middle of the night, someone would be around to hear him. This was a treat that the ainiklach clamored over.

Every Shabbos she would go to shul. She was the “place lady.” She would lovingly help everyone find the place in the siddur, or chumash in shul. She would take along her ainiklach and teach them how to daven, and how to find the place.

Around 5 years ago, she fell and hurt her spine. Sadly, that was the end of her teaching career. She still was blessed with 5 more glorious years for her family to enjoy her full time. This terrible magefa would be her undoing. This past Shabbos, she returned her pure, beautiful neshama to Hashem.

At the Levaya, the family mourned for the fact that Morah Neiman would have had her thousands of students come to do Chesed Shel Emes, but this was not what Hashem wanted.

Shiva would have been the time that they would have learned just how many lives she impacted, but it was not meant to be. Bais Rivkah however, wants to make this up to Morah Neiman and her family. We want to give back to this paragon of Lubavitcher chinuch.

If you have any memories that you would like to share, please email alumni@bethrivkah.edu, so that we can include it in a special binder that we will make for the family.

Dear Morah Neiman,

Please, Please Beseech Hashem. Take our lines of tanach, and all the unconditional love you instilled in us, and go straight to the kisei Hakavod. Now is not the time to be shy! Tell Hashem that you embodied Ahavas Yisroel! Tell Hashem you taught us to have ahavas yisroel by example! Please do what you can to bring Moshiach NOW!

Your trouble maker student, who loved you,
Chani Vogel

Morah Neiman is survived by her husband, Reb Yankel Neiman, and children, Mrs. Raizi Perl and her son Reb Hershel Neiman, and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

To be Menachem Avel Mrs. Neiman’s daughter: Email Mrs. Perl at davidperl141@gmail.com

Baruch Dayan Ha’emes – Rochel Leah bas Yitzchok.

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A message from Bais Rivkah Alumnae International:

Morah Neiman was a beloved Mechaneches who taught Navi and Tehillim. We would like to compile our treasured memories for the family and for each other. Please share your memories, stories, and tidbits with us by emailing alumni@bethrivkah.edu

We will iyH include it in a future issue of the EmBRace magazine. (If you have not yet subscribed, sign up at bethrivkah.edu/alumni )

Please save the date Wednesday, May 6 י”ב אייר for a worldwide gathering of alumnae to hear words of inspiration from Mrs. Raya Raskin as well as an opportunity to share memories about Morah Neiman.