Our Rebbe

One of the disciples of Rabbi Yisrael Alter of Gur, was very wealthy and at one point lived in New Zealand due to his business dealings.

Once, in 1949, on a trip to New York to visit his daughter, he entered an elevator only to be greeted by a Jew who asked where he hailed from. He responded that he had just arrived from New Zealand.

The stranger asked him, "Is there is a mikvah (ritual bath) in New Zealand?" The wealthy man responded, "I am there for business, not a mikvah."

The stranger responded, "If a Jew finds himself somewhere, he must have a positive impact."

The elevator doors opened, both men exited and went their separate ways.

The wealthy man asked his daughter, who was waiting for him nearby, regarding the identity of the man who had rode in the elevator with him. She responded that he was Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the son-in-law of the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe, who would later himself become Rebbe.

Over forty years passed, during which time the businessman had aged significantly. He had long since left New Zealand and he was, again, visiting his daughter in New York. He decided to go to the Lubavitcher Rebbe's Sunday dollar distribution.

When he greeted the Rebbe, the Rebbe asked, "Is there a mikvah already in New Zealand?"

The elderly man was clearly amazed. The Rebbe of Gur asked him what he was so amazed about.

He responded that he was amazed by the Rebbe's memory; forty years had elapsed since their elevator rendezvous!

And the Rebbe of Gur said, he was amazed about what was on the Rebbe's mind for forty years—a mikvah in faraway New Zealand. And how bothered he was that there was none there..."

That's our Rebbe.