Rabbi Yoel Gold told a few stories in his video presentation, ‘Illumination’, that remind and inspire us to follow in Hashem’s ways and be a light unto the nations. The first story in the video was about the Mensch of Malden Mills.
In December 1995, a boiler exploded in the largest textile factory in the country, the Malden Mills. The entire factory was burned to the ground in a fire so large, that it took an entire week to put out.
At the most festive time of the year for thousands of Mr. Aaron Feuerstein’s largely Christian workforce, they faced the stress of unemployment, the anxiety over providing for their families, and the uncertainty of what lay ahead. Mr. Feuerstein ztl, the CEO of the company, a third-generation owner, was about to collect half a billion dollars in insurance for the overnight destruction of his factory. He was faced with a decision: either pocket the money and retire, or rebuild the company overseas, saving money on labor, and then pocketing most of the insurance money. Both were great and reasonable options. At 70 years-old, it was commonly assumed he would retire.
The next day, Mr. Feuerstein called a press conference to publicly declare his plans. It was televised and many important political figures attended along with the factory employees. Mr. Feuerstein stood up and announced that he would rebuild the factory where it originally stood.
Everyone waited in shock, and he continued with an even more stunning proclamation. “All our employees will be paid their full salaries while the factory is rebuilt.” The entire place erupted in applause filled with intense emotion.
Mr. Feuerstein paid tens of millions of dollars in employees’ salaries during this uncertain time. It was covered on the national news. When he was interviewed and asked why he did such an inspiring act of kindness, he quoted Pirke Avot in Hebrew, “Bimkom she’en anashim, hishtadel lehiyot ish—In a place where there’s no humanity, strive to be a human being.”
Mr. Feuerstein was a man of Torah who treated his workers as human beings, not a pair of hands. He did plenty for his employees, as well as the Orthodox community in Boston. Sadly, he passed away after Rabbi Yoel Gold’s interview, but he will be remembered for many years as an anav and a man of integrity and chessed.
Reprinted from an email of Jack E. Rahmey based on the Torah teachings of Rabbi Amram Sananes.
