Thousands of Bnei Brak residents, including roshei
yeshivos, rabbonim and dayonim as well as hundreds
of students and former students from Yeshivas Daroma took
part in the levaya on Friday, Erev Shabbos Veyakhel-
Pikudei, for HaRav Moshe Shlomo Halevi Fisch zt"l, the
founder and rosh yeshiva of Yeshivas Daroma for
bochurim from Latin America. He passed away Thursday
night 24 Adar at the age of 71.
Moshe Shlomo Halevi Fisch was born in Buenos Aires in 5698
(1938) to Rav Dovid, who immigrated to Argentina from Galicia
after World War I and who became part of a small group of
Jews from Galicia and Warsaw who started a nucleus of
observant Jews in what was then a spiritual wasteland.
While growing up, Moshe Shlomo saw his father switch jobs
from week to week after constantly getting fired for "not
coming in on Saturday." To make their home distinct from the
local environs, his father allowed only Yiddish to be
spoken.
During this period HaRav Zvi Zeidel Semiatitzky and HaRav
Nisan Packar, who had studied at Yeshivas Mir under the
Mashgiach HaRav Yeruchom, arrived in the city, gathering
together a group of Jewish youths to form a yeshiva. Moshe
Shlomo cleaved to HaRav Packar, who he considered his rov
muvhok.
After marrying Ettel Freisler they moved to Eretz Yisroel,
where he studied at Kollel Ponovezh.
He went on to serve as ram and mashgiach at
Yeshivas Yehud under HaRav Tortzin, and later taught at
Talmud Torah Tashbar in the home of the Chazon Ish
zt"l.
Over 30 years ago, based on instructions from HaRav Shach, he
sparked a major transformation among Jews in Argentina,
Uruguay, Paraguay, Chile, Panama and Mexico by gathering a
core group and bringing them to Eretz Yisroel to open a
yeshiva. A few years later a donor paid for the yeshiva
building that has been standing on Rechov Yehuda Halevi in
Bnei Brak for the past 25 years. Hundreds of young men have
studied there over the years, serving as a core to foster the
development of Torah Judaism in Latin America.
HaRav Fisch would spend half of his time in Latin America,
seeking out young men to study at the yeshiva in Eretz
Yisroel.
Before his petiroh he spent a week at Sheba Medical
Center after collapsing in his home the previous Shabbos.
Hespeidim were delivered by HaRav Sholom Stefansky,
formerly a ram at the yeshiva, HaRav Nachum Guttentag,
a former talmid of the niftar who now serves as
a dayan in the beis din of HaRav Nissim
Karelitz shlita, HaRav Chizkiyohu Mishkovsky, HaRav
Aryeh Kovalsky, rosh yeshiva of Yeshivas Hadras Melech, Rav
Daniel Califa and the niftar's sons, Rav Yitzchok
Zeev, one of the founders of Beis Knesses Heichal Yitzchok in
Kiryat Sefer and a prominent member of Kollel Breslav, and
Rav Mordechai, a mashgiach at Yeshivas Ohr Elchonon
Letzei'irim.
HaRav Moshe Shlomo Halevi Fisch zt"l is survived by
his two sons and six daughters, who are married to
avreichim bnei Torah and thousands of talmidim
mourning the histalkus of their beloved teacher and
rov.
