In Yerushalayim, the righteous Rebbetzin Ettel Dina Berlin
o"h, eishes chover of HaRav Elchonon Berlin and
daughter of Maran HaRav Yosef Sholom Eliashiv, shlita
went to her eternal resting-place. She was sixty-seven at the
time of her petiroh. Thousands of bnei Torah
accompanied her on her final earthly journey.
Rebbetzin Berlin was born in Yerushalayim in Menachem Av,
5694 (1934). She grew up in an atmosphere of kedushoh,
histapkus and modesty, in a house wherein Torah study was
the song of life day and night. In this atmosphere she
imbibed her love of Torah and yiras Hashem: her
illustrious parents serving as her spiritual guides. From her
mother, the tzadekes Rebbetzin Eliashiv, and her
father, Maran, shlita, she learned that one must
sacrifice everything for the sake of Torah. From them, she
also derived her middos tovos, her love of her fellow,
and the amiable manner in which she greeted everyone.
Ettel Dina's grandfather, the tzaddik HaRav Aryeh
Levine, was very fond of her.
In 5717 she married HaRav Elchonon Berlin and assumed the
task of providing for their household so that her husband
could study Torah undisturbed. She was very industrious,
seeing to the needs of her household and working as a
kindergarten teacher for over forty years. She regarded her
work as an important spiritual shlichus and instilled
her small charges with love of Torah, middos tovos,
tsnius and the willingness to suffice with little.
Many parents sought to enroll their daughters in her class.
In her humility, she didn't understand why they particularly
wanted to their children to study under her. She treated
every one of her pupils with a great deal of warmth, and this
attitude had a profound impact on them. Once could always
detect that a particular child had studied under Gannenet
Dina, who devoted so much of herself to her charges.
Such devotion was part and parcel of her personality. She
would fulfill every assignment or project she undertook with
completely and with all her heart, even during her later
years, when her illness grew worse and her strength had begun
to wane.
She was very careful about shemiras haloshon and was
known as one who did not divulge others' secrets.
After the petiroh of her mother, she stopped working
as
a teacher so that she could fulfill the mitzvah of kibbud
ov on a daily basis. She did this with outstanding
mesirus nefesh, even during the final period of her
life.
Rebbetzin Berlin's sons and sons-in-law are all outstanding
talmidei chachomim and rabbonim. Her sons are: HaRav
Eliezer Dovid, HaRav Yaakov and HaRav Avrohom. Her sons-in-
law are HaRav Dovid Miller, one of the roshei yeshiva of
Ponevezh, HaRav Aryeh Rimer, HaRav Leib Lehr, and HaRav Aryeh
Leib Kaufman, outstanding avreichim in Yerushalayim.
Her grandchildren and great grandchildren are continuing
along the paths of Torah and yir'oh.
She was buried on Har Hamenuchos near her mother
o"h.
