On March 4, I attended the funeral services for Rabbi Isaac Lerer at Temple Menorah. By 11 a.m., the entire 400 seats in the main sanctuary were filled. An additional 150 seats were quickly set up in the social hall.
As I listened to the outpouring of love, respect, and admiration for Lerer, I was moved by the magnitude of his life’s effect on his family, synagogue family, and the community at large.
It is a blessing that so many of us had Lerer’s presence for the length of days that were bequeathed to him. He was without question the rarest of individuals, especially in his humanity and his ability to transpose his Jewish knowledge into a role model for his family and community. The blueprint of his life is the legacy he has given to all who knew him.
Men such as Lerer are never replicated. They are seldom among us, but once they appear, we are all forever altered by their remarkable souls.
It has been my great honor to have known Lerer personally. It matters little that there are legions of us who cared for and respected him as I do. It only matters that in our lifetime we were blessed to call him friend and rabbi.
Al Simon
President
Beth El Ner Tamid Synagogue
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