{"id":2251,"date":"2022-09-08T13:37:58","date_gmt":"2022-09-08T17:37:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/?p=2251"},"modified":"2022-09-08T13:37:58","modified_gmt":"2022-09-08T17:37:58","slug":"a-morah-for-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/a-morah-for-life\/","title":{"rendered":"A Morah for Life"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A Tribute to Mrs. Shulamis Rozsansky A\u201dH<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Elisheva Braun<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

From a teacher in one of Lakewood\u2019s first girls\u2019 schools to founder and menaheles <\/em>of Tiferes Bais Yaakov, the sensitive and gentle Mrs. Shulamis Rozsansky was a beloved role model for thousands of girls and adults alike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She was a dedicated morah<\/em> at Ahavas Torah (pre-cursor to Bnos Yaakov) for many years. Then, she and her husband, Rabbi Yitzchak Asher Rozsansky z\u201dl<\/em>, a well-known talmid chacham<\/em>, yerei Shamayim<\/em>, ba\u2019al middos<\/em>, and askan <\/em>who passed away in 2019, saw a need for a girls\u2019 elementary school, and they accepted upon themselves the monumental task of filling it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the levayah<\/em>, Rav Ahron Zuckerman said, \u201cMrs. Rozsansky was moser nefesh<\/em> to create a school on the old standards of kedushah<\/em>\u2014tznius<\/em> like it should be, chinuch<\/em> like it should be. She never gave in to the ways of today, and we see the fruits of her labor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The students clearly felt Mrs. Rozsansky\u2019s love and pride. Mrs. Rozsansky had every student\u2019s Tehillim name, and she davened<\/em> for them all. Always hands-on, she connected with students both outside and inside the classroom, teaching a special subject in each class. Each girl was called to Mrs. Rozsansky\u2019s office on her birthday and given a gift.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEverything came with warmth and love,\u201d one mother remembers. \u201cAs a parent, I felt I could call her about anything in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When she had to tell a student off, the girl knew Mrs. Rozsansky loved her; she knew that she was being corrected because she had made a mistake. Mrs. Rozsansky never pushed or pressured the girls; she wanted every student to excel on her own level and do what was best for her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is well-known that Tiferes Bais Yaakov students enter high school with stores of knowledge on the tips of their tongues. \u201cEverything was taught in song so we could remember it. Mrs. Rozsansky wanted us to know everything,\u201d one student relates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It wasn\u2019t just the students who loved their legendary principal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At Tiferes Bais Yaakov, \u201cthe typical PTA has a water bottle and a Danish prepared for each teacher,\u201d one longtime employee relates. \u201cIn Tiferes, there were homemade chocolate chip cookies, lovingly baked by Mrs. Rozsansky. Before Rosh Hashanah, each teacher received a honey cake. In fact, Mrs. Rozsansky, knowing she would be out this year, baked the cakes in the summer. Letters, platters, gifts\u2026the thank-yous didn\u2019t end; there was no end to her hakaras hatov<\/em>. When I booked Tiferes Bais Yaakov\u2019s hall for a simchah<\/em>, I got a call from the person in charge: \u2018We\u2019re not taking money for the hall. Mrs. Rozsansky says we owe you too much.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs a secretary in the TBY office, I worked closely with Mrs. Rozsansky for the last five years,\u201d says Sori*. \u201cAs soon as I joined, I felt like I had become part of a warm family. My simchos <\/em>were hers, and it was clear that her happiness for me was genuine. Mrs. Rozsansky was always one of the first people I called after I had a baby, and I know my coworkers called her when they had news to share, too. She bought us gifts not because she had to but because she wanted to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEach year, I put together a video production for graduation. And each year, Mrs. Rozsansky would call me right after it played to tell me that the video ran smoothly and that everyone loved it. I waited for that call every year; it felt so good to know how much she cared.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBefore Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, she would ask the secretaries for mechilah<\/em>.\u2018It gets so busy in the office; I don\u2019t always give every secretary what she needs,\u2019 she\u2019d explain. We would always laugh and tell her there was no reason to ask forgiveness. It was the greatest privilege to work with such an extraordinary woman.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another secretary adds, \u201cI never called Mrs. Rozsansky my boss, I called her the principal. Mrs. Rozsansky\u2019s persona was a warm, loving presence, not a boss.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her caring extended to those outside the school as well. Yocheved* shares, \u201cWhen my oldest daughter applied for elementary school, Mrs. Rozsansky met with me and explained that there was simply no room in the classes for another girl. I was moved by how deeply and obviously it pained Mrs. Rozsansky to tell me that she couldn\u2019t accept my daughter.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At home<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Rozsansky home was open to everyone at all hours of the night and day. Their small three-bedroom yeshivah apartment was the center of all the action,\u201d Rav Shmuel Blech said in his hesped<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Blimi*, Mrs. Rozsansky\u2019s niece, often spent Shabbos at her aunt\u2019s house. \u201cThe house was so much fun,\u201d she remembers. \u201cShe never told me what to do unless I asked for her advice. She was always interested in me, asking what was happening in my life. When she was in the hospital, she wanted to hear all about my boys\u2019 rebbei\u2019m<\/em> and our upcoming simchah<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBesides being a favorite aunt, Mrs. Rozsansky was also my principal,\u201d she adds. \u201cShe wasn\u2019t the stern, scary type of principal; she was so loving.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How did Mrs. Rozsansky care for her family, run a school, and still have time to give every person what they needed?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy mother was always working on herself, becoming greater and more tuned in to others. She was the real thing,\u201d a daughter shares. \u201cShe got up in the morning and just did and did until late at night. She never stopped working, giving, doing, but it didn\u2019t seem like hard work. It was a joy for her to give to others. There was no \u2018I,\u2019 only \u2018you.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cShe was always there, with gifts, a smile, a phone call. She never stopped giving. There were times when I saw her sleeping with her head on the table, exhausted from a day without pause.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2026and in the hospital<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even in the hospital, she didn\u2019t stop. At the levayah<\/em>, Rav Blech related, \u201cMy young granddaughter sent a letter to the Rebbetzin. From her hospital bed, Mrs. Rozsansky wrote back to little Rochella.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While hospitalized, \u201cmy aunt was always dressed and working, making calls and giving to others,\u201d Blimi relates. \u201cHer doctors wanted to know who the patient was. After the petirah<\/em>, I was given her bag. Inside was a mazel tov card for a secretary who had a baby. Each line was handwritten in a different colored ink. There was a present for the secretary in the Rozsansky home, waiting to be delivered with the letter.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

May Mrs. Rozsansky, who loved and cared for all Yidden, be a melitzas yosher<\/em> for us all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

*Name has been changed<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Tribute to Mrs. Shulamis Rozsansky A\u201dH Elisheva Braun From a teacher in one of Lakewood\u2019s first girls\u2019 schools to founder and menaheles of Tiferes Bais Yaakov, the sensitive and gentle Mrs. Shulamis Rozsansky was a beloved role model for thousands of girls and adults alike. She was a dedicated morah at Ahavas Torah (pre-cursor […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2253,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","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":"","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\/2251"}],"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=2251"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2251\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2254,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2251\/revisions\/2254"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2253"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2251"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2251"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevoiceoflakewood.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2251"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}