Rabbi Leibel Groner

R 

abbi Leibel Groner, the sentry standing watch at the door of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, was loyal and devoted, matching the Rebbe’s superhuman schedule. Somehow, along with the duties as gabbai in a worldwide network of chassidim and institutions, he was also a talmid chacham of note. When the Rebbe wrote “a chacham pointed out” in his own chiddushim, chassidim knew that he was referring to Reb Leibel.

In conversation with this magazine, Reb Leibel referred to a seminal moment in his life: Early on, he arrived home in the middle of the night and looked forward to two hours of sleep. Just as he dozed off, someone called from Eretz Yisrael with a question for the Rebbe.

“Do you know what time it is in New York?” the secretary asked his caller.

“Who cares what time it is if I have an important question for the Rebbe?” was the reply.