Rebbetzin Chaya Ausband, z”l

Rabbi Yisroel Salanter famously taught: It is worth all the preparation
and research, the hours of toiling, just for that 13 minute drasha. It is
worth it even if the only result is that one person will be inspired to
daven just one better shemoneh esreh. And this is all true even if that
person is the speaker himself.
I try to work by this code, especially if I happen to notice someone
dozing off during a shiur or derasha.
Yet, there are certain speakers, darshunim and baalei mussar whose
impact can be felt many years later, sometimes for the lifespan of the
listeners.
This is one such speech.
A few months ago I mentioned to my mother-in-law that I began doing
some work in Yeshiva of Telshe Alumni, better known as the Riverdale
Yeshiva.
Her response surprised me.
To understand what comes next, it is important to know a basic
background of the Telshe yeshiva.
In the mid-1870’s a yeshiva was founded in the city of Telshe for the
local students. Although begun by renowned talmidei chachamim, it
served mainly the local younger bachurim.
About ten years later, the city of Telshe hired a new rav, Rav Laizer
Gordon. Rav Lazer Gordon saw the winds of the enlightenment affecting

people’s attitude toward yeshivos in general, and sought to create an
environment of pride.
One amazing example of this was his doing away with essen teg, where
yeshiva bochurim would go to various homes of local balla battim to be
served free meals. He instituted that all bochurim who came from
wealthy homes would pay their own way for food. In addition, those
who could not afford it would receive a stipend from the yeshiva office
with which to pay their hosts for the meals.
This not only created a sense of pride in the students-as they no longer
saw themselves as beggars-but created a different mindset toward them
in the eyes of the local balla battim.
Rav Laizer also brought his nephew Rav Shimon Shkop, as well as his
son-in-law Rav Yosef Leib Bloch to be rebbeim and leaders in the
yeshiva. Among their early student body was Rav Elchanan Wasserman
and others who would go on to greatness.
Still, the yeshiva often suffered financially. It was in 1910, while on a
fundraising trip to London that Rav Laizer Gordon was niftar.
At this time Rav Shimon Shkop had already left Telshe to become the
rav of Breinsk –a void filled in Telshe by Rav Chaim Rabinowitz – and
the rabbanus and the yeshiva was given over to Rav Yosef Leib Bloch.
Rav Bloch was a brilliant and fascinating individual, having delved the
yam hatalmud, a master in mussar, as well as having learned sodos
Hatorah with the holy Leshem (the grandfather of Rav Elyashiv).
The yeshiva continued to grow under his guidance, becoming one of the
great, select yeshivos in Europe.
The city too would continue to grow, soon (1929-1931) seeing the
opening of the revolutionary Telshe mechina for boys, and the Yavneh
High School for girls.

In 1929 Rav Yosef Leib Bloch was niftar. He left behind three sons, and
two sons-in-laws. While many know of his youngest son, Rav Eliyahu
Meir Bloch, as well as his son-in-law Rav Chaim Morechai Katz –both
of whom who would later found the American Telshe yeshiva –it was
his middle son, Rav Avraham Yitzchak Bloch who took over the
rabbanus and the yeshiva.
Although only in his late 30’s at the time, he was seen as a leader among
men, becoming a member of the moetzes gedolei hatorah.
But Telshe suffered a bitter, almost unspeakable end. First, the Soviets
entered the city and closed the yeshiva down. Many fled and the yeshiva
was down to about 100 students. Amazingly, the rebbeim would still
meet up with groups of bochurim, at different times, around the city to
give shiurim.
But soon the Nazis entered the picture. On 20 Tammuz the Nazi
paramilitary unit, or the einsatzgruppen, who were responsible for mass
killings, murdered the male Jews in town, including the entire yeshiva,
the hanhala, and the rosh yeshiva, Rab Avraham Yitzchok Bloch. On 7
Elul the women of Telshe were massacred. Hashem Yinkim Domum!
Three of his daughters survived. One, Rebbetzin Chaya Ausband, was
married to Rav Eizik Ausband z’l (d. 2012) who himself became the
rosh yeshiva in Telshe, Cleveland. The Rebbeitzen herself founded
Yavneh of Cleveland.
It is Rebbitzen Chaya Ausband’s son, Rav Avraham Ausband, who
founded Telshe in Riverdale.
My mother-in-law, began to get emotional. “I remember Rebbitzen
Ausband’s speech to staff of teachers at Beis Yaakov in Montreal” she
began.

My mother had not taught there-or lived there-in close to forty years!
“You remember a speech from four decades ago?!” I asked
incredulously.
“Every single word. I will tell you three things that stuck with me, and
that I think about often.
“First, she recounted a little of the history of Telshe, and said the
following amazing statement: ‘No matter how painful those final days in
Telshe were, never once did any of us ever wish we were the rotzchim
instead of the nirtzachim.’”
That indeed is a powerful and mighty message, exhibiting the strength,
beauty and bitachon of klal yisroel.
“Two: She said that when ever she was trying to fix a bad midda in her
younger children she would try everything, until she realized the
simplest trick. If she worked on that midda herself, if she improved her
own challenges in that same area, then magically, and without fail, it
would disappear in her children.”
I don’t know if my mother-in-law was hinting to me something, but I
have tested this myself, and not only does it work, but by watching one’s
young children develop one can measure and often discover what needs
to be fixed in one self. It is a powerful tool for changing one self and bad
behavior in children.
“Finally, she spoke about the pain of OTD children. This was in the
early 1980’s when it was rarely if ever spoken about aloud, or seen as
the epidemic it would so sadly become. She warned us not to judge such
a family. There is so much influence today from the outside, that if a
child leaves Torah it is not in any way to be blamed on the parents.

“How can one forget such wise words heard from the mouth of someone
who had seen so much Torah and so much suffering? Not only did she
move on with her life after so much loss, but she continued to rebuild
Torah in America. Instead just focusing on the past, she contemplated
the Jewish future.”
When my mother-in-law recounted this I could not help but comment
that if such lessons were taught by the few who escaped Telshe, just
imagine the Torah and wisdom that were snuffed out and we will never
get to hear.
Sometimes a speech, and the history behind it, can change many, many
lives, and even be published forty years after it was presented.