He wanted to go to the most important building in camp: the beis medrash
Rav Dovid Cohen shlita, a preeminent posek, rav of Brooklyn’s Congregation Gvul Yaabetz, and author of dozens of seforim, is the long-serving mara d’asra of Camp Munk. Each summer for the last 66 years, the rav has left sweltering Brooklyn for the mountainous air of Camp Munk, where he spends his days immersed in piles of seforim, answering the hundreds of sh’eilos that come in through the two landline phones installed near his seat, and interacting with staff and campers, who are grateful to have a gadol in their midst.
Rav Cohen takes care to arrive in camp on a Tuesday, wanting to start the summer season on the day the Torah twice refers to as “ki tov.”
As the beloved rav exited his car after the two-hour trip from Brooklyn, camp staff rushed over to greet him and help him bring in his belongings.
A family member of Rav Cohen suggested he come inside the air-conditioned bungalow his car had pulled up to, where he’d be able to have a cold drink and rest from the ride. Rav Cohen refused. He explained that the first place a person steps foot in upon arriving in any destination holds special significance. As such, he wanted to go to the most important building in camp: the beis medrash. With that, Rav Cohen turned around and made his way down the paved path to the beis medrash, where his shtender waited him.
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