0407 - Presenting the Rebbe with a New Picture of the Rogochover Gaon - R' Shimon Shukin

00:01 When I moved to Miami about 45 years ago, there was an older man, his name was Reb Shimon Shukin. He used to come from time to time to the yeshiva. He told me that he used to live in the city of Rogatchov in Russia, and he remembers very good the Rogatchover Goan. Even though the Rogatchover Goan was not the Rov of Rogatchov, he did not live in Rogatchov. He was the Rov in Dvinsk, the Chasidishe Rov in Dvinsk. But he was called the Rogatchover because he was born in the city of Rogatchov. And when he was young, still living in Rogatchov, he was known as the Ilu of Rogatchov. So therefore, even later when he moved out of Rogatchov and he was called Goan rather than Ilu. Ilu is usually used on a young person. When he became older, he was called the Goan. So they still kept the name Rogatchover Goan. But he used to come to Rogatchov every year because it was his father's yort site, I think, on Tisha B'Av around that time was his father's yort site. So he used to come for the yort site to Rogatchov, stay there for a while. I don't remember for how long, a week or a few weeks or something. He used to stay there. And this person says he remembers every year when he used to come to Rogatchov. And he remembers people would come and ask him questions and talk to him, et cetera, et cetera. He had a picture of the

01:16 Rogatchover. Those years, I would say about 45 years ago, there was one picture known of the Rogatchover, the famous picture, but that's about it. He had another picture. I don't know how he got it, but he had another picture of the Rogatchover. And he showed me the picture. Actually, he gave me a copy of the picture of the Rogatchover. And he told me that he went into yechidas to the Rebbe, and he told the Rebbe that he has a picture of the Rogatchover, and he told him, I guess, that he's from Rogatchov. And he gave the Rebbe a copy of that picture. And he says when the Rebbe took it and looked at it, the Rebbe stood up, and the Rebbe said, "Yo, yo, dos iz er." Yes, this is him. It seems like from the other picture wasn't exactly the way he looked when the Rebbe saw him, when the Rebbe was friendly with him, when the Rebbe used to go visit him. But the picture that he gave seems to be fitting more at the time when the Rebbe remembers the Rogatchover. So this is what he said. He gave it to the Rebbe. The Rebbe, I don't know if his face like lit up, and he stood up, and he said, "Yo, dos iz er." In other words, this is really the picture of the Rogatchover. And I think that now this picture is already meforsim, this picture is already publicized, but I think it all comes from Shimon Shukin, that he

02:26 gave it to other people probably also, and that's how we have that picture.