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By Beis Moshiach Magazine

Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky a’h, was born on Rosh Chodesh Sivan 5709/1949 to his parents, R’ Tzvi Yosef (Hershel) and Mrs. Golda Kotlarsky. His father was a talmid of Tomchei Tmimim in Poland who was saved during the war via Shanghai and then went to Montreal, where a small group of survivors from Europe, he among them, started a branch of Tomchei Tmimim, under the instruction and guidance of the Rebbe Rayatz.

Years later, his parents moved to Crown Heights. Young Moshe began his schooling in Crown Heights and later learned in the yeshiva in Montreal until he married. He married Rivka, the daughter of Rabbi and Mrs. Shneur Zalman and Shula Kazen of Cleveland, on 23 Kislev 5731.

Friends offered to make sheva brachos for them on Thursday night in Montreal, allowing them to return to New York Friday morning to spend Shabbos Chanuka in Beis Chayeinu and have sheva brachos during the Rebbe’s farbrengen. The chassan wrote to the Rebbe asking whether to accept the offer. “We would like to come back here for Shabbos, to make sheva brachos during the Rebbe’s farbrengen.” He wrote that snow was predicted but not to the extent that flights would be grounded.

The Rebbe circled the last line, from the words “We would like,” and wrote, “Then, why bother and on Nittel etc. and one ends on a positive note.” That Friday was December 25 which meant the night before was Nittel.

When he got this clear answer, the chassan and kalla remained in New York and had a different sheva brachos Thursday night. The next day they found out that Montreal had been hit by a major snowstorm which shut down the airport which would have made it impossible for the couple to return to New York to the Rebbe’s farbrengen.

That Shabbos, after the Rebbe finished saying the maamar, he turned to the father of the chassan who stood in his usual place behind the Rebbe and motioned with his hand, “Nu, sheva brachos …”

UTTER DEVOTION

The Kotlarskys settled in Crown Heights and built a beautiful home that was open to guests to an extreme. Every Shabbos, dozens of people were at their Shabbos and Yom Tov table. Thousands of bachurim and guests ate at their home over the decades. All enjoyed the abundance and the special treatment by the hosts.

Journalist Yossi Elituv said, “To me, an eleven-year-old, what I remember forever is his standing erev Yom Kippur and serving hundreds of people who were there for the seuda mafsekes, with the outstanding hospitality that he displayed on Shabbos and chagim. I always wondered how he could smile to all those who were down and out and find the right word for a young boy from France, while simultaneously being able to find the way to the hearts of major tycoons, mekusharim and mashpiim who ate at his table. And it was done with simplicity; nothing was hard for him.”

The Kotlarskys raised their nine children in the spirit of shlichus and devotion to the Rebbe. Although he and his wife were set on going on shlichus, the Rebbe appointed him to work at Merkos L’Inyonei Chinuch, to help with the constant flow of activity. He became responsible for founding and bolstering the work of the shluchim, starting mosdos and Chabad Houses, obtaining funding to open new places of shlichus, and carrying out various assignments that the Rebbe gave him.

An extraordinary episode which occurred when he first started working for Merkos is one R’ Kotlarsky later recounted. He was involved in making shidduchim and he was successful. However, at some point, a number of shidduchim he was involved in didn’t work out, which was surprising to him since he had been successful previously, and he decided to stop.

Years later, he found out what happened. One of his relatives had yechidus with the Rebbe and the Rebbe asked him what he planned on doing for a shidduch for one of his descendants who was of age. The person said to the Rebbe that he was going to ask R’ Kotlarsky, who worked in shidduchim, to get involved.

Hearing this, the Rebbe said in surprise, “Is it possible for R’ Moshe to also be involved in shidduchim?”

R’ Kotlarsky figured out that the time his relative was in yechidus was precisely the time that he had stopped being successful in shidduchim.

CARING FOR EVERY SHLIACH

The work at Merkos was difficult and demanding. Rabbi Chodakov was the head of Merkos and he constantly pushed R’ Kotlarsky to expand the work while not compromising on the clear work rules about anything done in the name of Chabad.

An example of the difficulties of those early days was something he himself related years later. A million dollar donation was offered to Merkos by one of the major American Jewish charities to expand the work of Lubavitch. R’ Moshe, who was just starting out, was thrilled by the promised sum and he reported to R’ Chodakov.

Those who ran the fund asked him to prepare a detailed contract between Merkos and the fund. While preparing the documents, the board of the charity made it clear that for donations of this size they wanted to receive a detailed report of the bank accounts of the organization receiving the donation as well as a detailed report of the bank accounts of the president of the organization, to ascertain that everything was done legally. In addition, they wanted to meet with the president of the organization to draw an impression of his trustworthiness and integrity.

R’ Kotlarsky did not for one moment consider acceding to these requests. He stopped the negotiations with the board of the charity and reported to R’ Chodakov about the donation that was canceled.

A short while later he was called for yechidus. The Rebbe asked him to come in before the time designated for those who had appointments for yechidus. At this yechidus, the Rebbe spoke smilingly and with great closeness and encouraged him to continue his work. The Rebbe said to him then, “We must not forget that there needs to be plowing and planting and all the 39 Melachos before we get a million dollars.”

His work, the work of heaven, was indeed sown with many hardships but he used all his abilities and talents to help shluchim in their work. Over the years, he forged pathways to the hearts of financial giants and turned them into key donors in the development of shlichus around the world.

Thanks to his impressive oratory and his vision, he personally raised hundreds of millions of dollars over the years for projects of Jewish education, helping the needy and building community centers around the world. R’ Kotlarsky’s influence wasn’t limited to his official roles. He was a personal friend and mentor to thousands around the world. He was known for his readiness to help anyone who needed help at all hours of the day and night, and he provided financial aid or medical assistance to many people.

Already in the first years of his work he began traveling to distant Jewish communities for the purpose of planning the establishment of new Chabad centers. His efforts breathed new life into Jewish infrastructure around the world including the former Soviet Union, the Far East and the Caribbean islands.

R’ Kotlarsky was a father figure to many shluchim, his home was in Brooklyn but he lived mainly on planes. Nothing was too small but neither was anything too big; big dreams were realized, thanks to him.

He always presented them in the best light to the Rebbe and asked the Rebbe for his bracha for them. For example, after one of his trips at the end of Cheshvan 5751, he wrote a detailed report about his trip and the shluchim he met. He mentioned shluchim who send their children to distant schools from whom he never heard a complaint about this sacrifice. He said they did this with simcha. He asked that the shluchim see outstanding success in the chinuch of their children and that they merit that their children go on shlichus. The Rebbe’s response was, “May it be with very, very great success.”

These visits to shluchim, especially those who lived far away, breathed hope and encouragement into them to continue their work. He was such a welcome guest as he farbrenged with them, saw what they lacked, and encouraged them to proudly continue the Rebbe’s work.

Rabbi Chaim Binyamini, shliach in Petrópolis, Brazil wrote “Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky came here for a brief visit… and saw the yeshiva,” in Iyar 5745. “He davened Mincha in the Beis Medrash and it provided him and us excitement and inspiration. He expressed his amazement about the conduct of the talmidim and we received encouragement from the fact that by divine providence someone came to us from Merkos to… encourage us to continue our work.

“If only everyone who comes to Brazil on any shlichus connected with the Rebbe, would come here and would farbreng or at least inspire us, we who are in the middle of the forest, etc.”

Thousands of Jews have no idea that they owe their spiritual lives to R’ Moshe, for example, Jewish refugees from Ukraine, students from London and bar mitzva boys from Sderot or Australia, and thousands of graduate students who learn Torah every day in special kollelim.

Throughout the years, he was privileged to have a special relationship with the Rebbe thanks to his work, whether at farbrengens or when dollars were given out. The Rebbe would give him extra dollars and say, “For all the shluchim,” or “Success for all the trips.”

R’ Kotlarsky raised many points of light of Lubavitch in the world with great ingenuity and mesirus nefesh as he went from one terminal to another and jumped between countries and only occasionally seeing his wife and children. There is no place on the globe where he didn’t light the torch, followed by the shluchim and centers that he helped, amassing thousands of mekuravim and baalei teshuva.

He had the rare ability to stay in the background of the system that he built out of nothing and yet, to give each shliach his place and ability to express his hidden talents. There is no continent that he didn’t visit and no city in the world that he didn’t know. In each place, he knew how to plant the right people. He operated under the constant guidance of the meshaleiach, with diplomatic skill and rare ingenuity, but with utter bittul to the Rebbe.

R’ Kotlarsky was the overseer and director of the Kinus events for Shluchim and Shluchos every year. His distinctive voice set the tone from the first moment and throughout the days and nights. In his speeches, some of which were quite fiery, he breathed into them a spirit of encouragement and energy to continue their work proudly and with hiskashrus and bittul to the meshaleiach.

Many may have thought that his main work was in the limelight, but the truth is that his involvement with the shluchim throughout the year was grinding and often demanded tremendous patience to resolve problems and, when necessary, to bridge between them. Many shluchim can tell you how R’ Kotlarsky would schlep to come visit them, sometimes for days and even weeks, in order to bridge differences and resolve conflicts so that everyone would know their area of responsibility.

Even in recent years, every shliach, no matter how young, who had a problem with another shliach in the area, knew that when he turned to R’ Moshe the latter would drop everything and help him.

HIS LAST OUNCE OF STRENGTH

In recent years, he stood at the helm of a number of institutions that he founded and developed such as Chabad on Campus, an organization that operates on over 230 college campuses around the world and JLI, which provides Jewish curricula for adults. He also founded Merkos 302 which provides planning and infrastructure for Chabad centers and produced special programs that were launched in thousands of places like CTeen, Chabad Young Professionals, Chabad on Call, etc.

“Our two organizations in Eretz Yisrael were especially dear to his heart: CTeen, a branch of the global organization that he grew, developed and worked tirelessly for in the last decade, and Chabad on Campus Israel,” said Rabbi Moshe Shilat, founder and director of these organizations. “He showed gratitude and helped us tremendously in our work, and was a great admirer of them.

“There was hardly a time that I went to Crown Heights and we didn’t meet. He was always energized, always with a good word about shlichus.

“This past 11 Nissan I visited him at home for the last time and I cried when I left. I realized it was the last time I would be visiting him. It was hard for him to talk but he showed me on his phone how he wrote an email to one of the big donors in which he asked him to help us with four new buildings on the campuses which will be built in the next two years, something I had asked him a month before when I didn’t yet know what his condition was. On that occasion, he showed me a picture in which he is standing next to the Rebbe who is giving him a big package of matzos and the Rebbe’s hands and his hands are holding the matzos as they are literally eye to eye. ‘This gives me the strength,’ he told me.”

WE NEED TO BRING MOSHIACH

Over the years, he suffered from health problems but he kept going. During the past years, he contended with a harsh disease but even from his hospital bed, he pushed forward vital programming and helped shluchim. His unceasing work touched the lives of tens of thousands of Jews.

In one of the last months of his life, as he battled his illness, he said, “I’ve already stopped operating according to medical dictates. Every moment that G-d gives me is dedicated to the good of the shluchim. My time is not my own. The mission I received from the Rebbe, I will return when I say to the Rebbe, ‘I did all that I could according to your instructions, to fix the world and bring the Geula.’”

He passed away on 27 Iyar, surrounded by his family, shortly before his seventy-fifth birthday.

“Rabbi Kotlarsky left many spiritual orphans, who don’t even know it,” wrote journalist Sivan Rahav Meir. “Most of the people whose lives he influenced don’t even know who he is because whoever was influenced by any Chabad House in the world over the past decades, owes him personal thanks.”

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‘TONIGHT IS OUR REBBE’S BIRTHDAY’

Over the years, R’ Kotlarsky worked hard to establish Chabad Houses in the Far East. One of the families who was a primary supporter at the start of this work, was the Kashani family. Of Iranian origin, they are very wealthy and because of their business dealings in the Far East, they were one of the first to finance and support Chabad’s work in Thailand.

[Interestingly, the Rebbe didn’t use the phrase “Far East.” The times that R’ Kotlarsky passed by the Rebbe for dollars with Mr. Kashani, the Rebbe said, “G-d should help you have great success, especially in the East which is not close.”]

When the older brother, Yitzchok became engaged, the wedding was on Monday night, 11 Nissan 5748. When the family asked R’ Kotlarsky to come to the simcha, he said it was a special day for him because it was the Rebbe’s birthday and although it didn’t look as though there would be a farbrengen (since it was a month and a half after the passing of Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka), he thought there would be a special sicha and he couldn’t possibly miss it. He said he would come later on but wouldn’t be there for the chuppa.

The night of 11 Nissan some ziknei Anash went to bless the Rebbe on behalf of the Chassidim. The Rebbe responded with brief words of blessing and after Maariv, the Rebbe began saying a sicha. After the sicha, the Rebbe gave out dollars for tzedaka.

R’ Kotlarsky was one of the first to receive a dollar and he left immediately for Long Island, to the wedding. When he arrived at the hall, it was ten o’clock. When he asked the first person he met when the chuppa was, he was surprised to find out that “the chuppa didn’t happen yet because they are waiting for a rabbi from Brooklyn.”

The rabbi who officiated at the chuppa, who was a member of the kehilla, began the chuppa by saying, “I don’t know how you merited such a great zechus that you received a letter of blessing for mazal tov from the most important Jewish leader in the entire world, the Lubavitcher Rebbe.” He then called upon R’ Kotlarsky to read the letter. The crowd of 800 people responded with great applause.

After he recited the brachos under the chuppa, he wanted to return to Crown Heights since it was late, but the chassan begged him to say for the rest of the wedding, at least until after the dancing. At midnight, R’ Kotlarsky noticed that the guests were all pouring champagne in special glasses, the hall was darkened and the crowd was asked to sit. The band began to play, “Happy Birthday” as a fiery glow illuminated a huge cake that was brought into the hall on a special table. On the cake were 88 colored candles and written on it was, “Happy Birthday to the Lubavitcher Rebbe.”

The excited chassan took the microphone and explained that “This evening is the birthday of our Rebbe.” Then everyone said l’chaim in honor of the Rebbe.

R’ Kotlarsky, who was so moved by this sight, was asked to say a few words. He said that the Rebbe greatly encouraged anyone who wanted to give him a birthday present to do so in the form of a spiritual gift. Therefore, he suggested that the men commit to start putting on tefillin every weekday and the women commit to lighting Shabbos candles, in honor of the Rebbe.

When he returned to Crown Heights, he sat down to write a detailed report about the kiddush shem Lubavitch etc. Then he went to the Rebbe’s house to give it in.

Before Shacharis on Tuesday, 11 Nissan, at 9:30, the personal aide, Rabbi Sholom Gansbourg, was seen looking for R’ Kotlarsky. When he saw him he said, “I have something for you,” and gave him the Rebbe’s response to the report.

On the line where he had written that “in the middle of the meal, to my surprise they brought out a birthday cake with candles and everyone stood up and said it was the Rebbe’s birthday, the Rebbe circled the words “with candles” and made an arrow to a note that he wrote, “A general note about this, there are those who say that in some of them there is a concern about [animal] fats…” Under where R’ Kotlarsky had signed his name, the Rebbe wrote, “So may you always relate good news all the days and with an increase.”

This note was written by the Rebbe on 11 Nissan, even before Shacharis.

THE REBBE ASKED TO SEE THE BUTTONS

It was after the Six Day War when the Rebbe launched a new offensive of mivtzaim, especially Mivtza Tefillin. Anash and the Tmimim worked to develop this mivtza, with the Rebbe encouraging these activities.

In the winter of 5728, Hatomim Moshe Kotlarsky and his friend, Menachem Mendel Lipskar (today shliach in South Africa) were walking on the street in Montreal. It was during elections for the prime minister of Canada and political activists gave out flyers and buttons that encouraged people to vote for a certain candidate.

The bachurim thought about how to use what they saw for Mivtza Tefillin. They decided to produce something similar for the Rebbe’s campaign.

They found the phone number of a company that manufactured these materials and ordered 50 ‘button’ pins. The man on the phone said he didn’t accept orders for less than 200.

“Fine, make us 200 pieces, but for the price of 50…”

As they spoke, they came up with the new slogan, “I put on tefillin; do you?” and they dictated it to the man on the phone. When they went to pick up the buttons, they saw that the man, who had no idea what the word meant, had misspelled “tefillin.” They told him to fix it and rewrite it, this time adding some words, “I B”H put on tefillin today; did you?”

He and the other talmidim in the yeshiva in Montreal went to the Rebbe for Yud Shevat of that year and the entire story about the buttons for Mivtza Tefillin fell by the wayside.

On Sunday, he was called to R’ Chodakov’s room and R’ Chodakov asked him, “Did you make the chotchka for Mivtza Tefillin?” Although R’ Kotlarsky tried avoiding answering and said it was nothing, R’ Chodakov feigned anger and asked, “In which Tomchei Tmimim did they teach you to hide things from the Rebbe?”

The conversation kept going back and forth with R’ Kotlarsky trying to minimize what he did and explain that they did something minor and didn’t think it was something significant, but R’ Chodakov insisted, “It makes no difference what you think and don’t think. Did you send the Rebbe what you did?”

That’s when he realized that there was more to the story and that the information about the buttons he had made with his friend had somehow reached the Rebbe which is why R’ Chodakov said what he said.

It was two o’clock on Sunday afternoon and R’ Chodakov said he should return to the office at 3:10, before the Rebbe would go in for Mincha, and he wanted to have a button so he could give it to the Rebbe that same day.

Completely out of sorts, R’ Kotlarsky spoke to the Rosh Yeshiva, Rabbi Isaac Schwei, to consult with him about what he should do. R’ Isaac was an admired and beloved rosh yeshiva who was a listening ear for them at any time.

After considering the matter and clarifying all the details, R’ Isaac suggested that it wasn’t fitting to write an apology to the Rebbe or an explanation regarding the request conveyed by R’ Chodakov. The right thing would be to write a letter and include the button. The letter should say that enclosed is a button that some tmimim had made in order to strengthen Mivtza Tefillin in Montreal and they were asking the Rebbe whether to make more of them and if yes, should any change be made in the wording or look.

R’ Kotlarsky wrote the letter and ended it by saying that he hoped that this would give nachas ruach to the Rebbe. He gave the letter and buttons to R’ Chodakov before Mincha. Right after Mincha, R’ Chodakov went to the Rebbe and a short while later, he came out with a big smile. He held the answer that the Rebbe wrote: Regarding the question, ‘Should I make more of them” – the Rebbe crossed off the word so that it read, “Make more of them.” He also underlined these words to emphasize that he wanted many more of these buttons.

Regarding the question about any changes, the Rebbe changed the word “whether” to “no” and made a line through some words so that it ended up reading “no change.” The Rebbe added, “Especially as they are already used to such things, just mention an address where they can get information.”

On the last line where it said he hoped it would give the Rebbe nachas, the Rebbe changed it so it read “caused” rather than “will cause” and the entire phrase read, “It caused great nachas ruach to C”K Admor shlita very much, I will mention it at the tziyun.”

After this answer, stickers were made that were added to all the buttons with contact information. A special booklet was printed with the brachos and Shema and information about the mitzva of tefillin.

***

Beis Moshiach magazine can be obtained in stores around Crown Heights. To purchase a subscription, please go to: bmoshiach.org

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