Uncovering the forgotten legacy of Mrs. Jennie Miller Faggen, the most prolific Torah philanthropist of the interwar era
Photos: Rabbi Dovid Kamenetsky, Philadelphia Yeshiva Archives, YIVO, Temple University Archives, Kedem Auctions, DMS Yeshiva Archives, Jewish Exponent, Philadelphia Enquirer, Mir Yeshiva Archives, NYC Municipal Archives, LIbrary of Congress, Sotheby’s, Gratz College, Kevarim.com, Yoeli Hirsch, Shmuel Bitansky
One serene summer morning, a stranger entered the prestigious Ponevezh Yeshiva in Bnei Brak. He walked through the building determinedly until he found a wall of dedication plaques. Then he stopped, and began to scrutinize each one. The students looked at him curiously before returning to their learning.
Finally the man turned around. “Where can I find Rabbi Kahaneman?” he asked in an American-accented Hebrew.
A nearby student, sensing the urgency in the stranger’s voice, escorted him to the office of Rav Avraham Kahaneman. As his son, Rav Eliezer Kahaneman, would later recount, this was no ordinary encounter. The man had come from Philadelphia with a question that would lead them both on a remarkable journey through time.
Create a free account to keep reading.
