Tefillin
Tallis and Teffilin
Poland
Joshua K. brought this tallis and these tefillin for the 2017 Moriah School Heritage Fair. Before the Holocaust,
Joshua’s maternal great grandfather Mordechai Schleider, lived with his family in Poland. Joshua’s great grandfather used this tallis and these tefillin daily. When war broke out in
Europe, Joshua’s great grandfather and his family were forced to leave and hide in a different place. Wherever Joshua’s maternal great grandfather Mordechai Schleider went, he kept the tallis and tefillin with him.These were the only belongings that survived the Holocaust with him. Mordechai Schleider died in 1976. Today, the K. and K. families do not use them because these items are too fragile, but the families keep it to remember the kind of person Joshua’s great grandfather was.
The K. and K. families cherish this object.
Tallis
Austria
Ally S brought this tallis for the 2017 Moriah School Heritage Fair. Ally S great-great-great grandfather Chaim lived in Vienna, Austria, and he
purchased this tallis in 1910. When he died in 1918, Ally S great-great grandfather Yisroel Zev found the tallis and took it with him when he left Vienna to go to America. After he died, the tallis was passed on to Ally’s great grandfather Phil, who kept it safely in his home. Ally’s great grandfather Phil died a few years ago,
and Ally’s great uncle Billy found the tallis. Now Ally's grandfather Jay has the tallis and sometimes wears it
while davening.
The S family cherishes this object.
Tefillin
United States
James F brought this tefillin for the 2017 Moriah School Heritage Fair. In Judaism men over 13 years of age wear tefillin every day, except Shabbat, while davening morning prayers to
Hashem. Tefillin is considered one of the holiest objects to Jews.
James F’s maternal great grandfather Alex Gross bought these tefillin in 1935 on the Lower East Side, Manhattan. He passed away in 2010. Goldie Gross is Alex’s wife and James’s maternal great
grandmother. Goldie kept the tefillin ununtil 2014 when she gave it
to James’s older brother, Joseph. James’s great grandmother wanted
to give the tefillin to James’s mother's oldest son because she was the
oldest grandchild of Alex. These tefillin are very simple. They have a
lot of sentimental value to James because he just got his tefillin made
in Israel with his grandparents. James visited his great grandmother.
The object also shows James how much his great grandparents love
him.
The Davies and F families cherish this object.
Teffilin Bag
Poland
Adam R brought this tefillin bag for the 2017 Moriah School Heritage Fair. This tefillin bag once belonged to Adam R’s maternal great-great grandfather Zyshe Elimelech Klein. Zyshe received
the bag from his parents at his Bar Mitzvah in 1905 while living in
Warsaw, Poland. In 1926, Zyshe moved with his wife Elka, and his three
daughters to Brussels, Belgium to start a business. During the Holocaust
he was taken to Mechelen, a concentration camp in Belgium. In May of 1944 Zyshe was deported on transport number 25 to Auschwitz with his
wife, Elka and 16 year old son, Israel. During his time as a prisoner at
Auschwitz, Zyshe was killed. He was 52 years old and died in the gas
chambers. During the war, Paula, one of Zyshe’s daughters, risked her
life and went back to the family apartment in Brussels and retrieved this tefillin bag, a set-of Shabbat candlesticks and a century-old challah cover. Paula brought it along with her when she and her family immigrated to
America in 1950. The tefillin bag was found among possessions that
included the tefillin of her late husband, Adam’s great-grandfather. The
possessions were left behind after Paula’s death, and found by
Adam’s grandmother, Paula’s daughter, Evelyn R.
The R & R families cherish this object.
Teffilin
Russia
Simon K. brought these tefillin for the 2017 Moriah School Heritage Fair. This pair of tefillin originated in the city of Lubavitch, Russia in 1910. Simon’s paternal great grandfather, Harry Schwam, got these tefillin by paying a sofer to write it for him under the supervision of the original Lubavitch Rebbe. This pair of tefillin is
significant to Simon's family because it connects the K. family to the Lubavitch. Simon’s paternal great
grandfather escaped Russia at a very young age, and this object is the only known thing he has taken with him. Occasionally, Simon’s dad will wear these tefillin.
The K. family cherishes this object.
Pair of Teffilin
United States
Adam C brought these tefillin for the 2017 Moriah School Heritage Fair. Adam C’s object is a pair of tefillin from Bensonhurst, a neighborhood in Brooklyn, NY. The tefillin belonged to Adam C’s paternal grandfather whom Adam C’s named after. He got his tefillin for his Bar Mitzvah in 1942. It is important to Adam C’s family as it belonged to Adam C’s paternal grandfather who died in March 1993. The family kept it because it was one of the few objects that C family still has. When Adam C’s grandfather passed away, his aunt took his tefillin as a memory of her grandfather. After Adam
C was born in 2005, his aunt decided to bring the tefillin to a sofer
to have it checked and refurbished. She then gave it to Adam C as a gift since Adam is named after his grandfather.The tefillin has not been used since his grandfather passed away. Adam is looking forward to using them for his Bar Mitzvah. Adam never met his grandfather, and this is the only way he can connect with him. It is so cool to Adam that his grandfather wore the tefillin last, and he will wear it for his Bar Mitzvah. It is like he will be there with him. T
The C family cherishes this object.
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