As the search for survivors continues at the site of the Surfside disaster, relatives of those missing endure an agonizing wait. As hour after hour ticks by, despair hangs heavily over the rubble of the building, with its shattered stones a reflection of shattered hearts.
Chaim Rosenberg, 52, a businessman and philanthropist from Brooklyn, purchased a condo in Champlain Towers only last month after enduring an extremely difficult year, during which he lost his wife to cancer and both of his parents to the coronavirus, Chabad.org reported.
Chaim has been working in recent months on a tzadaka project in memory of his wife, the launching of Mercaz Shalom, a mental rehabilitation center for young adults, on the campus of Maaynaei Hayeshua Hospital in Bnei Brak.
Rosenberg, who previously rented smaller apartments in Miami, bought the larger one in Champlain so he could host his children and their families. At the time of the collapse, his daughter Malki, and her husband, Benny Weisz, of Lakewood, N.J. were visiting for Shabbos.
All three are now missing.
Rosenberg returned from a trip to New York for the baby-naming ceremony of his second grandchild and rushed back to Miami only hours before the disaster to greet his daughter and son-in-law, who also arrived in Surfside the night of the collapse.
Malki, 27, married Benny, 32, five years ago. Benny is one of two children of Dyuri and Tina Weisz of Vienna, Austria. Dyuri passed away several years ago. Benny learned at Chevron Yeshivah in Jerusalem and then studied computer science at Kings College in London.
After getting married, Benny and Malki settled in Lakewood where Benny learns in kollel and works in finance and Malki works as an auditor at the Farmingdale, N.J. branch of the Roth & Co accounting firm.
Before Rosenberg’s wife died last summer of a brain tumor, he spent three years taking care of her, a close friend said.
“He put his life on hold,” said Maurice Wachsmann, a friend of Rosenberg’s for more than 30 years.
Months after her death came more heartache. His father died of COVID-19 in January, and weeks later his mother died of the same.
“It was extremely difficult,” Wachsmann said. “He did everything for his parents. Family first, before everything.”
Please continue to say Tehillim for those missing:
- Chaim ben Sara
- Malka bas Sara Rochel
- Yisroel Tzvi Yosef ben Toiba
- Tzvi Doniel ben Yehudis
- Ita bat Miriam
- Brad Cohen
- Gary Cohen
- Moshe Ben Toba
- Moshe Ben Shoshana
- Arie Leib Ben Ita
- Ilan Ben Kalman
- Leib Ben Shoshana
- Sarah bat Ida
- Naftulem bat Yafa (Nancy Kress Levin)
- Jay ben Naftulem (Jay Kleinman)
- Deborah bat Chaia (Deborah Berezdivin)
- Yehuda Arie ben Feiga Rivka
- Nicole bat Andrea
- Esther bat Linda
- Lein ben Ilana
- Leibl ben Feigue Rivka
- Ruth bat Sarah
- Devorah bat Clara
- Myriam and Arnie Notkin
- Miriam bat Sara
- Yaakov Reuvein Hacohen Ben Devorah
- Mikael ben Hans
- Gabriela bat Sara
- Linda bas Clara (Linda March)
- Ilan ben Ronit (Ilan Naybryf)
- Chaya Gila bas Yehudis
- Lois Marcus
- Estelle Hedaya
- Chaya Gila bas Yehudis
- Esther bat Leah linda
- Ana Guara
- Marcus Guara
- Lucia Guara
- Emma Guara
- Andreas Levine
(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem & AP)
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One Response
There are a LOT of duplicates on this list, and a few of them have already been found.
Esther bat linda is the same as Esther bat Leah Linda, and is probably the same as Estelle Hedaya.
Chaya Gila bas Yehudis is there twice, and is the same as Linda March.
Ilan ben Ronit, I imagine, is the same as Ilan ben Kalman.
is Miriam bas Sara the same as Miriam Notkin a line above that?
is Deborah bat Clara the same as Deborah bat Chaia?
Leibel ben faiga Rivka is the same as Yehuda Aryeh ben Faiga Rivkah
Yaakov Reuven hakohen ben Devorah is one of the 2 Cohen brothers (Gary or Brad, not sure)
The people that have been found unfortunately deceased so far are:
Michael Altman – is he the same as Mikhael ben Hans?
Leon and Ruth Olkiewicz – they are probably somewhere on this list too.
Probably about 13 or 14 names from this list can be removed.