A friend of mine who knew R’ Chaim Halpern Zatzal helped him raise money for Novardok in the USA. He told R’ Chaim that he was a Baal Teshuva. R’ Chaim told him not to look at himself as a Baal Teshuva; instead, he should see himself as a Ben Torah, who happens to be a Baal Teshuva, but mainly he identifies himself as a Ben Torah. Novardok was quite sensitive to a person’s dignity, despite all their Pratim.
In fact, R’ Wainkrantz Zatzal once told someone to take a job in a place that they will respect him, and not a place where he’d be looked down upon. He was always building people up, including his Talmidim, and the staff in his Yeshiva.
He told me that the build-up you get can make the difference between success and failure. R’ Chaim was also very street-wise, and he knew the mentality of different kinds of people very well. This can have a lot to do with the Vaadim in Novardok, where people opened up, and the Vaad members could become like professional psychologists.
R’ Chaim gave several speeches when he was collecting, and his main theme was always how lucky we are to be from the holy Jewish nation. He was super warm & humble, despite his strong personality, and people loved him. He took a strong interest in people, and remembered their pecklach even after a long time. He really cared.
The Alter of Novardok Zatzal was once alone in an empty room with his daughter, with no food, no heat, no light, etc. The Alter told her that the whole world and all the money in the world isn’t as good as this empty room. It is known that Novardokers could light up with true Simcha after hearing the most tragic and depressive news. This takes years of Shaar HaBitachon.
R’ Gershon Zatzal was in the USA even when he was a: ָז ֵקן elderly person who couldn’t walk. He brought along his Gabba’im to collect for his Yeshiva in France. He was lying on the couch of the: ַבּ ַﬠל ַא ְכ ַס ְנ ָיא host, when a man gave a check to his Gabba'im. R’ Gershon did a Prat, and he yelled out: “How much was the check?” This is an example of how Novardokers cured their fears of people. Of course, you need a Rebbe to guide you for “Pratim”; i.e., which ones are for you.
