A respected elder of the Ger Chassidic community in the United States, Elya Gelbert rose from the ashes of Holocaust to lead a rich life dedicated to his family and community until his passing on April 2 as a result of complications due to COVID-19.

Gelbert fondly spoke of the merit he had to see with his own eyes and remember the legendary Imrei Emes—Rabbi Avraham Mordechai Alter of Ger—when he was a young boy in Poland.

After moving to Brooklyn, he became a familiar sight in the Gerer Shtibel synagogue in Borough Park and was seen there as recently as Purim in early March.

He is survived by his children in Brooklyn and in Israel.

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