The haredi philanthropist Rabbi Aharon Aberman lived next door to the Kaliver Rebbe, who passed away on Sunday, and spent time with him on a daily basis. He spoke to Arutz Sheva about the Rebbe's devotion to Torah and the Jewish people.
"My son was the Rebbe's attendant for many years until he was murdered," Aberman said. "When he was murdered, the Rebbe said it was as if his son was murdered. All his life, he spoke all the time only about the Holocaust. He suffered terribly during the Holocaust and we know that he has no children due to what he endured during those years."
Aberman also spoke about the Rebbe's devotion to the dissemination of Torah to the Jewish people. "Every day he would sit for a few hours to write books on Torah. He wrote a special book of Psalms with commentaries, books on Jewish law and a Passover Haggadah with commentary," he said.
Aberman described how the Rebbe had toiled on writing his Torah books until the last minute despite his physical limitations. "Right before Passover, they were still preparing additional material to add to the book he wanted to publish. In recent years, it was hard for him to read, so there was someone standing next to him who would write all the interpretations and things he said."
"We were by his side day and night to avoid leaving him alone even for a minute. I live right next door to him and I was with him every day. I would come whenever there was a problem," Aberman concluded.