Rabbi Osher Lemel Ehrenreich z”l

It is with great sadness that Matzav.com reports the passing of Rabbi Osher (Oscar) Lemel Ehrenreich z”l. He was 93 years old.

Rabbi Ehrenreich, the principal of all principals, to whom menahalim always looked for advice and help, served as the principal of Bais Yaakov of Boro Park for 66 years.

For decades, the school has been looked at by countless people as the flagship institution for chinuch habanos thanks to Rabbi Ehrenreich, who molded a mosad with a strong educational program that is purposefully inclusive. Thanks to Rabbi Ehrenreich, attention was paid in a discreet way to children with special needs or with emotional problems or those who came from broken homes or social and other difficulties. Rabbi Ehrenreich created an environment in which students grew emotionally and educationally.

Bais Yaakov of Boro Park is the oldest and largest girls school in Brooklyn, and thanks to Rabbi Ehrenreich, it provided future mothers of Klal Yisroel with the most excellent program of chinuch in both Hebrew and English studies, coupled with emphasis on middos, caring and so many other qualities that a bas Yisroel should possess.

Rabbi Ehrenreich, who served as principal since 1955, was born in Brezna, Czechoslovakia, in 1928 and immigrated as a child in 1934. He joined Yeshiva Torah Vodaas, studying there as a youngster and continuing on to high school, absorbed his foundations of chinuch as a talmid of Yeshiva Torah Vodaas and then Bais Medrash Elyon under the guidance of Rav Reuven Grozovsky and Rav Gedalya Schorr. Even as a bochur, they saw in him the unique blend of integrity and seichel hayoshor that would endear him to generations of students and teachers alike.

Rabbi Ehrenreich ultimately became a principal at Yeshiva of Brighton, and was later cajoled by Rabbi Moshe Sherer to assume the role of principal of Bais Yaakov of Boro Park.

Rabbi Ehrenreich had to be resolute and even strict – as any principal must be at times – yet his overriding love for every talmidah was always evident. Virtually every day, students from decades before introduced themselves to Rabbi Ehrenreich, only to be interrupted with a flawless recitation of their maiden name, which class they were in, where they sat, and other tidbits from their elementary school days.

Teachers who were privileged to teach in Bais Yaakov tell of the constant learning experience that came with working under Rabbi Ehrenreich’s tutelage. Even accomplished teachers remember that working under Rabbi Ehrenreich made them better mechanchos.

There was no clear tradition for Bais Yaakov schools to follow in the early years and Rabbi Ehrenreich was one of the first bnei Torah to present questions pertaining to chinuch habanos to the gedolim of that time. He constantly sought the advice of Rav Aharon Kotler and implemented his da’as Torah by establishing standard practices for chinuch habanos, which are emulated in Bais Yaakov schools the world over.

For decades, shailos pertaining to what should or should not be taught, what language should be used, and other important questions were addressed to Rabbi Ehrenreich. In his soft-spoken yet confident way, he managed to leave all his questioners enlightened and proud to be part of the chinuch world.

Today, with his petirah, we have lost one of the great mechanchim of our time, who leaves behind a legacy of dedication and devotion to chinuch b’derech Yisroel saba. 

The levayah will be held tomorrow morning at 11:30 a.m. at Bais Yaakov of Boro Park, located at 1371 46th Street in Boro Park, Brooklyn.

Yehi zichro boruch.

{Matzav.com}