Hillel Eisenberg and Yaakov Shwekey shares the inspiring story of Walter Kairy, Yom Tov ben Yaakov A”H.
When Walter grew up he did not have a lot of exposure to religion. As a teenager he went one day to pick up some friends who were learning at Lakewood, New Jersey. He passed by a class that was being given by a white bearded man. He was giving a fiery lecture in Yiddish.
Though he did not understand a word, Water stood there, transfixed. When the class ended, he asked his friends who was this man. They said he was none other than Reb Aharon Kotler. Right then and there, Walter made a promise to himself, even if he may never learn Torah like this, he wanted to be a part of this fire, this passion. He decided he would never work on Shabbat again.
Years later Walter got married, built a home, and grew in his Judaism. He opened a clothing store in Brownsville, and everything was going well until the night of July 13th, 1977. There was a devastating citywide blackout that devastated Brooklyn. Riots broke out, security systems were down and stores were looted. Walter watched as his entire business collapsed in one night.
Courageously, he borrowed the money and rebuilt his business. His business was finally going well again, when Hashem sent him the ultimate test. That year, December 24th, the biggest shopping day of the year, fell out on Saturday. Walter went to Reb Moshe Feinstein and asked for a heter—permission to keep the store open just this once as it would be such a loss of money. Reb Moshe Feinstein said he would give him a blessing if he kept it closed. Walter told him he chose Shabbat.
After he said that, the Rabbi said that in merit of his choice Hashem will bless him with one hundred times what he thinks he will lose from that day.
Friday, December 23rd the store was packed, wall to wall with customers. As Shabbat was getting closer Walter knew he had to close the store. No one was leaving the store, and by kicking them out he would lose so many customers. But he knew he could not betray Shabbat. He stood on the table and shouted, “Fire!” Everyone fled out of the store, and Walter locked up and hurried home for Shabbat. Motzei Shabbat, he reopened for a few hours, and the total earnings matched last year’s.
Still, he did not see the Rabbi’s blessing come true. A few weeks later he got a call from his landlord who owned a couple of stores on his block. After the riots most of these stores were still empty. She offered to sell him the entire building for $120,000. He would pay $20,000 up front and $20,000 annually for five more years. Walter borrowed the money, repaired and renovated the stores. Within a year his building was worth $3 million dollars. The $26,000 he was worried about sacrificing he got back and much much more.
The merit of Shabbat protected and paid him back. We should never be afraid of growing because although it may seem like a sacrifice, in hindsight, we will see how much better we become, and we may be responsible for literally changing the course of history.
Reprinted from the Parashat Vayakhel-Pekudei 5786 email of Jack E. Rahmey based on the Torah teachings of Rabbi Amram Sananes.
