When Rabbi Michoel Zvi Fettman was taken to his local hospital with possible COVID-19 symptoms, few would have expected the end to come as quickly as it did, just five days later on March 30.

The charismatic father of nine was a dynamic force in the Oak Vine neighborhood of Lakewood, N.J., where he had only recently settled after relocating from Brooklyn, N.Y.

Community members attested that Fettman was a special person with an open heart, whose humility was outstanding. “Everything we have is because of him,” a community member shared. “He kept our community going, our Torah classes going ... and he never asked for anything in return.”

In the weeks before contracting the coronavirus, Fettman was championing social-distancing and safety measures surrounding the pandemic.

On the Friday before his passing, he shared an inspirational and tragically prophetic message on his social-media pages: “Let’s show each other and our children that we believe Hashem does everything that happens in this world for good reason and our benefit, even if we don’t understand.”

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