With great sadness, we inform you of the petira of the legendary gabaai tzedak, Rav Chaim Goldberg. Rabbi Goldberg, a Chicago native, spent the last fifty years searching out and assisting the neediest, most downtrodden residents of Jerusalem, and in fact, all over Eretz Yisrael.

He was familiar with nearly every single legitimate case of poverty in the frum world across Eretz Yisrael. His mind held every detail of a situation, often including names of a clients children, their parents and grandmothers.

Some of the greatest philanthropists in Klal Yisrael sent the bulk of their tzadaka money to this quiet, unassuming tzadik. Rav Chaim never had an organization, and never took a salary for his work. His lifelong partner in tzedaka work, Reb Dovid Cohen, ylc”t, was a childhood friend from Chicago. While Rav Chaim distributed money all over the country, Reb Dovid scoured the world for donations to support Rav Chaim’s work.

For the past several years, Rav Chaim suffered from a debilitating illness, ut did not allow this to stop him. When he became confined to his home, he established a cadre of gabboim working under him, and continued to direct the tzedka work, unabated. Especially when he was particularly weak or suffering, the solution was always: tzedaka. His assistants knew that if he was in pain, all they had to do was enter with a checkbook and a list of aniyim, and his condition would immediately improve.

The levaya was held at Rav Dovid Solechik’s yeshiva, Rechov Grossberg 1. The Kevurah was at Eretz HaChaim Cemetary in Bet Shemesh.

Yehi Zichro Baruch…