Tribute to Rabbi Osher Ehrenreich Z”L<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dina Steinberg<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In his role as principal of Bais Yaakov of Boro Park for 66 years, Rabbi Osher Lemmel Ehrenreich raised generations of children who are devoted to Torah and yiras Shamayim<\/em>, and made an everlasting impact on thousands of alumnae. The menahel was a model of patience, empathy, and compassion, teaching that Torah can only be given over when we connect with our students and they feel our love for them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n R\u2019 Osher was born in Czechoslovakia in 1928. After moving to America as a child, he learned in Torah Vodaas under the leadership of Rav Shraga Feivel Mendlowitz, and then in Bais Medrash Elyon, which was led by Rav Reuven Grozovsky. R\u2019 Osher served as assistant principal in Yeshiva of Brighton before joining Bais Yaakov while in its infancy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the levayah<\/em>, Rabbi Nosson Sherman repeated a conversation in which he asked Rabbi Ehrenreich for the secret to his success. \u201cI know what I do well,\u201d R\u2019 Osher replied, \u201cand I know my limitations. I hire people to do what I cannot do well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Rabbi Sherman said, \u201cHe was not afraid to hire superior people, and to trust them. He had no ego; all he cared about was the success of Bais Yaakov, its students and its staff.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n R\u2019 Osher was a brilliant person, and hundreds of parents, principals and administrators asked him for advice when making decisions. Still, he was humble and seemed easily approachable to everyone. The menahel was understanding and kind; students felt comfortable coming into his office to talk at any time. Nothing was beneath him; Rabbi Ehrenreich had no problem conducting a conversation with an eight-year-old.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He had an open school policy, accepting the children no one else would take. Bais Yaakov\u2019s student body spanned the whole spectrum: from rebbishe<\/em> einiklach<\/em> to Russian immigrants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Respected by both students and staff, the principal made sure things ran smoothly, the students were doing well, and anyone who needed tutoring or other support was taken care of.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe was a very dedicated, hands-on principal who was involved with every student,\u201d says Chani, who learned in Bais Yaakov decades ago. \u201cHe used to talk to all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n A well-known principal described her experience as a first-year teacher in Bais Yaakov as \u201ca failure, a flop.\u201d At the end of the year, she met with Rabbi Ehrenreich, her boss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI know you won\u2019t take me back next year,\u201d she said shamefacedly. \u201cThis year was not a success.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOf course you are coming back!\u201d was his response. \u201cYou are coming back and you are going to be successful!\u201d The woman became a master teacher and eventually took a position as a school principal. Years later, a teacher in her school had a challenging year and wanted to give up. The principal shared her own journey and the way R\u2019 Osher\u2019s belief in her put her on the path to success. She ended by saying, \u201cOf course you\u2019re coming back!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Rebbetzin Tabak, who has been teaching in Bais Yaakov for many years, says she felt lucky to work with Rabbi Ehrenreich. \u201cHe empowered the teachers. He trusted us, he supported us. Rabbi Ehrenreich knew how to put anyone at ease,\u201d she continued. \u201cA girl was at the office, mortified because it had just been discovered that she had nits. The menahel spoke with her, saying, \u2018I remember when I had lice,\u2019 so that the girl would feel comfortable.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was rare for a student to be expelled from Bais Yaakov, but in a recent situation where a girl had to leave, Rabbi Ehrenreich did not ask her to go until she was accepted to another school that would be a better fit for her. Additionally, the menahel paid for her tuition so that she would be able to attend the new school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Rabbi Ehrenreich would say, \u201cIf we punish a student who doesn\u2019t understand what she did wrong or doesn\u2019t see the consequence as fair, we are not doing our jobs. In such a case, the child will feel angry and resentful.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fraidy, a former student, fondly remembers the lunch her class had with Rabbi Ehrenreich as a second grader.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe came into his office and ate lunch with him. He sat with us and then took a picture with each of us and sent them to our mothers. It was the biggest treat.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Rebbetzin Pilchick, who spent over six decades teaching under the guidance of Rabbi Ehrenreich, reminisces. \u201cWe were one big family. Rabbi Ehrenreich cared about the teachers; he attended our simchos<\/em> and was always there for us during hard times. He was so pleasant to work with; he was so understanding and kind.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Rabbi Ehrenreich had the ability to see things from any person\u2019s perspective. If a student, parent and teacher were at odds, he was able to understand and validate each of their viewpoints. He was an excellent listener, a quality to which he attributed his success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cA young student once walked into Rabbi Ehrenreich\u2019s office,\u201d recalls Rebbetzin Pilchick. \u201cThe secretary asked if she could help but the girl insisted it was a matter for the principal to deal with. It turned out that there was a bug in the child\u2019s classroom, and moments later, the menahel was seen traipsing down the hallway with the student, going to get rid of the problem.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cA student once developed anxiety,\u201d shared Rabbi Menachem Frank at the levayah<\/em>, \u201cand she couldn\u2019t go into stairwells. To Rabbi Ehrenreich, the solution was simple. \u2018Move her grade to the first floor,\u2019 he said. It was all about the students, all about how we can make them comfortable and happy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo one was upset at him; he had no enemies. Sixty-six years of chinuch<\/em> and no one had a bone to pick with him!\u201d says another Bais Yaakov teacher. \u201cHe was a master at making people happy and avoiding conflict.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Rabbi Ehrenreich was also a tremendous talmid chacham<\/em>. He learned from a wide variety of sefarim<\/em>, from chassidish <\/em>to mussar<\/em>; he appreciated every person and accepted whatever they had to offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The menahel\u2019s warmth and concern for each talmidah<\/em> will be sorely missed in the halls of his beloved Bais Yaakov.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yehi zichro baruch.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Tribute to Rabbi Osher Ehrenreich Z”L Dina Steinberg In his role as principal of Bais Yaakov of Boro Park for 66 years, Rabbi Osher Lemmel Ehrenreich raised generations of children who are devoted to Torah and yiras Shamayim, and made an everlasting impact on thousands of alumnae. The menahel was a model of patience, empathy, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1612,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[20],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1609"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1609"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1609\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1612"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1609"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1609"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1609"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}