YWN regrets to inform you of the petira of HaRav Shimon (Shimmy) Betzalel ben Reb Mordechai Yitzchok Edelstein Z”L. He was 52 years old. Reb Shimmy, a lifelong Flatbush resident, was a gifted talmid chochom with an extraordinary mastery of Torah. He learned in Yeshiva Torah Temimah and was one of the prized talmidim of Hagaon HaRav Shlomo Feivel Schustal. A true ilui, he possessed a phenomenal bekius in Shas—both Bavli and Yerushalmi—as well as in Poskim, able to quote entire passages verbatim. Though he worked as an attorney to provide for his family, his true passion and essence were entirely devoted to Limud HaTorah. Every free moment was spent immersed in learning.

YWN regrets to inform you of the petirah of Rabbanit Helen Yedid a”h, the esteemed wife of Chacham Yom Tov Yedid zt”l, the last Chief Rabbi of Aleppo, Syria. A true isha chashuva, she stood as a pillar of strength beside her illustrious husband, playing a pivotal role in leading and preserving the kehilla in Aleppo through turbulent times. In 1980, the Yedid family emigrated to the United States with their nine children, where they built a vibrant Sephardic community steeped in Torah, chesed, and mesorah. The Yedid name has since become synonymous with harbotzas haTorah and acts of tzedakah, with Rabbanit Helen a”h at the heart of it all, instilling these values in her children and grandchildren.

YWN regrets to inform you of the tragic Petira of Yeshaya (Shuki) Roth from Flatbush (Israel), who was killed in a crash on the Palisades Parkway on Monday. He was 30. According to reports by Monsey Scoop, the crash occurred at around 5:45PM on the Palisades Northbound heading from the George Washington Bridge toward Monsey, near Exit 1. Hatzolah and other emergency personnel were on the scene, and transported him to Hackensack Medical center where he was unfortunately Niftar. The Niftar leaves behind a wife. Rabbi Abe Friedman, Chaplain for the Palisades Police (PIPPD),diligently worked with local and state officials to ensure proper Kavod Hames for the Niftar and timely notification of families.

A devastating accident on Route 17 has left the Vishnitzer community in mourning after a horrific collision claimed the life of a beloved Yungerman, returning from a Vishnitzer Rebbeisha chasunah in Monsey. Sources tell YWN that R’ Mordachai Zafir Z”L, 54, and his 17-year-old son were traveling back to the Vishnitz (Gibbers) community in Kiamesha after attending the chasunah of the granddaughter of the Viznitzer Rebbe of Monsey and the grandson of the Viznitzer Rebbe of Kiamesha when tragedy struck. At approximately 1:45 AM, near exits 126/127, a wrong-way driver collided head-on with their vehicle in a fatal crash. R’ Mordachai Z”L was tragically niftar at the scene.

Rose Girone, believed to be the oldest living Holocaust survivor, passed away on Monday morning at the age of 113. Girone ran a knitting shop in Forest Hills, Queens, and credited the craft with helping to sustain her family during the Holocaust. She was also a dedicated witness to history, sharing her experiences with the USC Shoah Foundation, the Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center of Nassau County, and other institutions. Born in Janov, Poland, in 1912, Girone’s family later settled in Hamburg, Germany, where they operated a theatrical costume shop. In 1938, she married Julius Mannheim in an arranged marriage and moved to Breslau, Germany (now Wroclaw, Poland) just as Nazi persecution escalated.

After nearly a week of extensive search efforts, Stewart “Stewie” Mandel, a former president of the Swan Lake Shul, has tragically been found deceased. Mr. Mandel, who was 69 years old, had been missing since last Tuesday, last seen in Presidential Estates in Swan Lake, NY. Law enforcement and volunteers had been actively searching for Mr. Mandel throughout the Catskills region, but efforts yielded no leads. On Sunday morning, a Catskills Hatzolah volunteer spotted his vehicle off-road in the Harris area. Upon further inspection, authorities found Mandel inside the vehicle, but tragically, he was no longer alive. The circumstances surrounding the incident are currently under investigation, and officials have not yet released further details on the apparent accident.

YWN regrets to inform you of the petirah of Reb Yitzchok Stefansky z”l, who was niftar in the wee hours of Sunday morning. He was 88. Rev Yitzchok, the owner of Dagim Fish and an understated talmid chochom, is perhaps best known for being one of the founders of the famed Lakewood Minyan in Boro Park, where he served as gabbai for half a century. He is survived by his children: Shmuel, Shua, Yaakov, Chaim Yisroel, Bentzy, Moshe, Shneur, Hadassah Oelbaum, Naomi Goldstein, Leah Kaufman, Shulamis Schuck, and Rivky Gold. The levaya is scheduled to take place at 10:00 am at the Lakewood Chapel, 613 Ramsey Ave., followed by a second levaya at the Lakewood Minyan in BP at 12:15. Baruch Dayan Ha’Emes.

YWN regerets to inform you of the Petira of Rebbtizen Ettel Gestetner A”H**, the Almanah of Hagaon HaRav Nosson Gestetner ZT”L, Mechaber of Teshuvos Lehoros Nosson, and one of the previous leading Poskim in Eretz Yisroel. She was Niftar at the age of 93 at Maayanei Hayeshua Hospital in Bnei Brak. Born in Austria in 1931 (5691), she was the daughter of Hagaon HaRav Meir Chaim Ungar ZT”L, the Av Beis Din of Lackenbach, Hungary, and Rebbetzin Sarah A”H. Her father later moved to Yerushalayim, where he authored Maor Chaim and Maor HaTorah. In 1951, she married HaRav Nosson Gestetner ZT”L, whose Chasunah was held in Yerushalayim in the presence of leading Gedolim.

YWN regrets to inform you of the Petira of Reb Avigdor Rubinstein Z”L, a prominent Ger Chosid, he was 71 years old. The Levaya will take place Monday at 10:30 AM at the Ger Yeshiva Building 5115 Old New Utrecht Avenue, The Kevurah will take place in Eretz Yisroel. Boruch Dayan HaEmmes…  

The world has lost a true hero. R’ Yehuda Lindenblatt Z”L, a Holocaust survivor and longtime Flatbush Hatzolah volunteer, was niftar at the age of 88. A man of unyielding strength and boundless chesed, Yehuda dedicated his life to saving others—continuing to respond to Hatzolah calls when he was already well into his 80s. Known by his unit number F-71, or affectionately as “Seventy Von,” Yehuda was a pillar of the Flatbush Hatzolah community. Even as recently as a year ago, he was still answering emergency calls, often arriving on scene before members who drove, as he sprinted from his daily jog on the Brighton Beach boardwalk. A survivor of the Holocaust, Yehuda was just a young child when he and his two brothers escaped Nazi persecution in Budapest.