מאגר סיפורי מורשת

שמי אלישבע עליתי לארץ לפני 8 חדשים מארהב ,את הסיפור על סבא מכלוף ז"ל שמעתי מהורי, ובחרתי להעלות אותו למוזיאון אנו.

My Saba Rabbi Machluf Elbaz (זכרונו לברכה) was born in Morocco, in the late 1920’s. Before making Aliyah to Israel, Saba Machluf was a Chazan in his shul and a school teacher. He married my grandmother, Savta Esther (The story of Grandma Esther,you can read here) , and they made Aliyah to Kiryat Gat in1956. In Kiryat Gat, Saba Machluf worked as a  welder in a furniture store. In addition, he continued to be the Rabbi in a shul in Kiryat Gat.

He was a well-respected figure in his community, and people often came to him for advice and blessings. He was a true Talmid Chacham who knew the Five Books of the Torah by heart! If you started any pasuk he would complete it!  Saba Machluf was always an important presence at all varied smachot in the city like: weddings, Chanukat Bayit, putting up of mezuzot, the first putting on of tefillin, peace in the home.

Every Pesach, Saba Machluf and Savta Esther would prepare a special haroset that they would give out to the community. He had the special chair of Eliyahu Hanavi that he would bring with him to every Brit Millah.

A recent newspaper article about my grandfather Rabbi Malcuf Elbaz

My grandfather passed away at the age of 58 in 1986, so I never had the privilege of meeting him. However, after his passing my family purchased a Sefer Torah in his memory and it is kept in his shul to this day. This past year, there was a news article about him and how he had influenced the Kiryat Gat community. In it were many of his contributions to the community (as listed above). It also mentioned that after Rav Machluf’s passing, his congregation wanted to repair his special Eliyahu Hanavi chair, and donated it to his shul.

While it was being refurbished, it was placed in a corner in a carpentry shop. There was a fire, and the carpentry shop went up in flames! The chair was the only thing that survived the fire, and it was perfectly intact!! My Saba, Rav Machluf Elbaz, was a true Tzadik, and he is missed everyday.

הזוית האישית

The Granddaughter: I thoroughly enjoyed writing about my grandfather, and hearing his stories from my father, uncle, and cousin. It was also a real treat to see an article about him in the newspaper! I learned so much more about him through the article. My grandfather was an exemplary figure in Torah, Middot, and his community. This was a very meaningful time for me and I miss my grandfather very much.