Abe (Avraham Dovid) Goldstein of Elmont, N.Y., passed away on April 20 due to complications from COVID-19. He was 101 years old.

Born in New York in 1919, Goldstein was a veteran of World War II. After the war, he married his wife, Sarah, and settled in Elmont, N.Y.

For many decades, he served as the dedicated gabbai of the Elmont Jewish Center on Long Island, where he welcomed everyone with a smile and helped them participate in prayers.

His longtime community service was recognized with a citation of honor from the Nassau County Legislature, presented to him on the holiday of Purim in 2013.

In recent years, yeshivah students from the nearby Ohel Chabad-Lubavitch would frequent the Elmont Jewish Center to assist the aging congregation. Goldstein would regale the young men with his stories and witticisms. He often remarked that growing up in the 1920s and 1930s, he only saw white beards in synagogue as the older generation were the foremost Torah scholars. But now, he proudly observed, it is the young men who sport beards and dedicate themselves to Torah study.

Goldstein was passionate about educating the public about the tragedy of the Holocaust and the world’s failure to help the Jews. He lectured to groups on the topic, and also produced and distributed recordings.

A staunch patriot, he also sought to educate about the sacrifice made by his fallen comrades in World War II. A picture of a friend killed in the war hung in his shul closet, and he dutifully showed it to every visitor.

When U.S. President Ronald Reagan attended a ceremony at a German military cemetery in Bitburg, he received an impassioned letter of protest from an incensed Goldstein.

In addition to his wife, Goldstein is survived by their sons Joe, Munro, Perry and Leslie.

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