Records of marriages among Jews show that on the 22 day of November,1891, Schmerko Wiernik, 18, son of Shemeryonu and Bryna Wiernik of Antopola, Russia, was wed to Rochla Leah (Rochel) Sopoznik, 20, daughter of Zacharia and Shayne Krayne Sopoznik of Drohiczynie, Russia.
O G-d, full of mercy, who dwells on high, grant proper rest on the wings of the Divine Presence - in the lofty levels of the holy and pure ones, who shine like the glow of the firmament - for the soul of Yisroel ben Avraham Dovid (Israel Rubin) who went to his world, because, without making a vow, I will contribute to charity in remberance of his soul. May his resting place be in the Garden of Eden - therefore may the Master of mercy shelter him in the shelter of his wings for eternity; and may He bind his soul in the Bond of Life.
Israel Rubin was my mentor, my father, my brother, my friend. But most of all he was my soulmate. Though he was a fervent Jew and I a humanistic gentile, our spirits were amazingly in harmony.
I want to share with you some of what I remember and will remember about father:
Call him a character.
For example, take his hat -- please! It was the kind you could crumple and shove in your pocket and, when you took it out, it looked just as if . . . you had crumpled it in your pocket. But dear Israel gloried in his and wore it everywhere.
And then there was his politics. In the first months that I knew him, I used to greet him by saying, "You look pretty good -- for a Republican." But soon afterward I stopped -- because he never teased me back, because he was too good-natured to take umbrage or be difficult about anything.
I feel very at home here among all of you. I want to thank you for being here to honor my father. It was his love of his family and friends that gave him his greatest joys in life.
Judaism, as most of you know, was my father's passion. It was what fueled his life as a husband and a father; It became central to a lot of his work; and in one way or another, it was his focus in leisure as well.
My Brother Rubin believed that if you saved one life by helping another you might be saving the entire universe. Not only would the world then be a better place for all of us, but those who lived by this belief would surely gain a special place in the hereafter. He preached this and he practiced this for as long as I was privileged to know him.
My friendship with Israel was based on our shared devotion to learning, and Israel had a passion for learning.
Israel in my classes-"I don't think my Chasidic friends would agree with that!"
Israel and SW Jewish Archives-"People need to know this stuff or at least have access to it."
Israel and Sekhel ve Lev-"We need to create a learning event for adults in the middle of the day."
