Sullivan County, NY - Satmar - Lubavitch Strengthen Its Relationship With New Mikvah Donation
Rabbi Shlomo Drimmer right
Sullivan County, NY - White Lake is a small hamlet in the town of Bethel on Route 17B. As most people familiar with the Catskills in Sullivan County know, White Lake becomes a strong Satmar enclave during the summer months. Few people, however, know that a new Mikveh is being built in the area to accommodate the spiritual needs of the Satmar Chassidim that make their summer homes there. And even fewer people know that the Mikveh was the result of the generous philanthropy of Reb Shlomo Drimmer, a Lubavitch Chassid.
No, you did not misread that last clause – Rabbi Shlomo Drimmer is a Lubavitch Chassid who, in fact, just hosted the Satmar Rebbe – Rebbe Zalman Leib Teitelbaum in his summer residence. arranging this meeting was Reb Bourch Stein a satmar chosid and a friend of Shlomo, Present at the meeting was Rabbi Yoseph Tzvi Segal – the Rosh Kollel of the Tzemach Tzeddek Kollel in Jerusalem. Rabbi Drimmer in recalling the antagonism between the two Chassidic movements in the seventies remarked, ''Things, of course, have changed considerably.''
Reb Zalmen Teitelbaum is one of the two Satmar Rebbes and is the third son of the previous Satmar Rebbe. In 2007, Reb Zalmen was voted the 15th most prominent Rabbi by Newsweek. Reb Zalmen's older brother Reb Aharon is the other Satmar Rebbe and has a stronghold in Kiryas Yoel in Monroe.
As reported in a VIN News
previous report, this past May, Lubavitch Shlichim from Morristown New Jersey and from Princeton New Jersey met with the other Satmar Rebbe Shlita - Rav Aharon Teitelbaum and cordially presented him with Lubavitch Seforim . The meeting was very effective in building new bridges between them. As well in April
a fund raising was held in Kiryas Joel to help A chabad Rabbbi from Palm Springs, CA.
The idea for the Mikveh in White Lake started years ago and Mr. Drimmer, a succesful business from Crown Heights, decided to donate generously. Two weeks ago, the groundbreaking ceremony was held, in the presence of Mr. Drimmer. Mr. Drimmer is a successful appliance dealer. Rabbi Segal and the Satmar Rebbe both happen to be descendants of the Bais HaRav.
''I live just two minutes from them, and I get along quite well with them. I Daven Mincha there every Shabbos.'' After Mincha, Mr. Drimmer speaks in learning to one of the more prominent Maggidei Shiur there – Rabbi Shmaya Greenbaum – author of Mishnayos Seyata D'Shmaya. Rabbi Greenbaum noted that the meeting was an important doorway to open. Mr. Drimmer is grandson of Rabbi Shlomo Drimmer zatzal – author of the Bais Shlomo.
''Boruch Hashem, we have seen a thawing out of the tension that existed between these two movements,'' remarked a Dayan that deals with both Satmar and Lubavitch. ''This is clearly a product of our Tefilos for Shalom al Kol Yisroel – we must continue to have strong kavanah in all our Shalom-oriented Tefilos.''
Mr. Drimmer has a reputation in Crown Heights for tolerance of all types of movements within Lubavitch. Mr. Drimmer was clearly influenced by his own mentor, Rav Zalman Shimon Dvorkin ob''m, in his general outlook - how to approach other people and how to deal with any given situation.
This is, by the way, not a unique donation – as the Chabad Mikveh in Beijing China was recently sponsored by, you guessed it, Satmar Chassidim. They also donated a Sefer Torah.
In a related story, a new housing project in White Lake on Route 55 recently held an open house. Although primarily targeted to Satmar families – the open house attracted Chassidim of all types and also had Lubavitch visitors visiting as well.
It is the hope that the latest developments in intra-Hasidic relations will be a portent of the arrival of Moshiach Tzidkainu Amain.
