Rabbi Avrohom (Romi) Cohen z”l, Passes Away from Coronavirus on His Birthday

It is with great sadness that Matzav.com reports the passing of Rabbi Avrohom (Romi) Cohen z”l. He was 92 years old. In fact, today was his birthday.

A renowned mohel and author, R’ Romi passed away after contracting the coronavirus.

Born in 1929 in the city of Pressburg, Czechoslovakia, Romi grew up as a precocious child in a warm and caring family.  His parents were successful in business and well known for their charity and kindness. They often invited guests into their home and hosted local Yeshiva students who had no place else to go.

All that changed dramatically in 1942 when the Nazis invaded Czechoslovakia, determined to kill all of its Jews. Romi’s parents managed to smuggle him over the border to Hungary, which the Nazis had not yet invaded. And for a while young Romi was able to attend Puppa yeshiva, the elite Torah university at the time.

But it wasn’t long before the Nazis came to Hungary, and that’s when Romi returned to his native country, Czechoslovakia, to join the underground.  As a young partisan, he risked his life time and time again to help others. He was just sixteen years old yet he was instrumental in saving the lives of fifty six families during the Holocaust and was later awarded the Silver Star Medal of Honor in recognition of his valor. The remarkable stories of his courage, his bravery, and his heroic endeavors during those horrific war years are recounted in his book, The Youngest Partisan.

Romi‘s mother, two sisters, and two brothers perished in a concentration camp during the Holocaust but he miraculously survived.  In 1950 he left the blood-soaked soil of Eastern Europe and came to North America. He started out living in Canada but eventually moved to Brooklyn, where he met his lovely wife Malvine. Romi began to work in the construction industry and became a successful developer.  He headed a company that would build 3500 homes in the borough of Staten Island, and earn him the title of Vice President of the Home Builders Association and Director of the Chamber of Commerce in Staten Island.  His contributions to the community of Staten Island, both as a developer and as an unflagging witness to the horrors of the Holocaust, continue to this day. In recognition of his service to this community Wagner College has awarded Romi Cohn an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters.

Romi has dedicated his life to sharing his blessings with others. Thirty five years ago, he established a scholarship foundation that supports outstanding Torah scholars and their families and it is still active. His foundation is a lifeline to countless brilliant students who are today exceptional Rabbinical leaders in their communities.

As his avocation, Romi also serves as a mohel, and has performed thousands of circumcisions for which he refuses payment. He also trained over a hundred aspiring young mohels on the condition that they, too, perform their service for free. Romi Cohn is the author of “Bris Avraham Hakohen” which serves as the internationally recognized comprehensive text on ritual circumcision and he serves as the Chairman of the American Board of Ritual Circumcision.

Most recently, Romi Cohn published a fascinating new book, The Ribnitzer Rebbe, which tells the story of his mentor, Rabbi Chaim Zanvil Abramovitz. The Rebbe was a guiding force in Romi’s life.

{Matzav.com}