MAY 7 • 2020 | 39

Service Well Beyond the Call of Duty

SHELLI LIEBMAN DORFMAN CONTRIBUTING WRITER
O

fficially, the name of 
the striking, stone-ex-
terior property on 
Southfield Road near 10 Mile 
is Congregation Shomrey 
Emunah. But for nearly 50 
years, it has been referred to 
as “Rabbi Zachariash’
s shul,
” 
in reference to the spiritual 
leader who gathered a con-
gregation by making phone 
calls and meeting neighbors.
Rabbi Shaiall Zachariash, 

of Lakewood, N.J., died of 
COVID-19 on April 26, 2020, 
at the age of 87.
“He was an incredibly 
self-sufficient man,
” said his 
daughter Orah Jundef. “When 
he was 10, his parents made 
the sacrifice to send him from 
their home in Los Angeles 
to Yeshiva Torah Vodaath in 
Brooklyn. At around age 15, 
he became a sofer (scribe) and 
was a walking encyclopedia.
”
He was also a teacher, a 
mohel (circumciser), shochet 
(ritual slaughterer), baal koreh 
(Torah reader), baal tefilah 
(prayer leader) and served as 
head of the Council of 
Orthodox Rabbis of Greater 
Detroit.
“For his congregants, he 
was a marriage counselor and 
helped them make important 
life decisions,
” Orah Jundef 
said. “He was hands-on, not 
just spiritually but in practical 
matters. He was a one-man 
show. Not a jack-of-all-
trades, but a master. He took 
every opportunity to make 
a difference and seize every 
moment.
”
After studying at Ner 
Israel Rabbinical College in 
Baltimore, Rabbi Zachariash 
served congregations in 

New York, 
New Jersey 
and Ohio. 
He brought 
his family to 
Michigan in 
1964 so his 
children could 
attend Yeshiva 
Beth Yehudah, where he also 
taught for 25 years. 
In 1966, he became the 
rabbi of Shomrey Emunah in 
Detroit. When many mem-
bers moved out of the city, he 
stayed, picking up those who 
needed a ride to weekday 
services. 
At the same time, he 
also worked to start a 
new Shomrey Emunah in 
Southfield. “In the freezing 
winter, he would stay in our 
Detroit home for Shabbos 
dinner and shul and, at seven 
the next morning, would walk 
to Southfield for minyan in 
the basement of the house of 
Alice and Marvin Berlin, two 
of the synagogue founders,
” 
Orah Jundef said. 
When there were not 
enough members to make 
a minyan at the Detroit 
synagogue, the Zachariash 
family moved to Southfield. 
There, the rabbi held services 
in the living room and 
dining room of the family’
s 
new home until 1972, when 
the building currently used 
for the congregation was 
constructed. 
When the rabbi’
s wife 
became ill several years 
ago, he moved with her to 
Lakewood, to be near medical 
care. “He always said, ‘
You 
should honor your wife more 
than yourself,
” Orah Jundef 

said. 
The Zachariashs’
 grandson, 
Rabbi Levi Jundef, now serves 
the congregation.
In 1986, Rabbi Zachariash 
established a second 
synagogue, Ohel Moed of 
Shomrey Emunah in West 
Bloomfield, pioneered and 
developed by Orah Jundef 
and her husband, Rabbi Eli 
Meyer Jundef, who serves 
as its spiritual leader. Rabbi 
Zachariash also made sure 
there was a mikvah (ritual 
bath) built on the synagogue 
grounds. 
Orah Jundef says her 
father was a living example 
of everything he asked others 
to do. “He was never in it 
for himself. He was such a 
community person and my 
mother shared him with 
everyone else. When someone 
called the house and he wasn’
t 
home, she would always say, 
‘
Did you try the shul first?’
” 
Rabbi Zachariash was 
the cherished father of 
Rivkah (Rabbi Avraham) 
Schwartz, Orah (Rabbi 
Eli Meyer) Jundef, Avigail 
(Rabbi Eli) Teichman and 
Rabbi Avrohom Baruch 
(Chana) Zachariash; brother 
of Yekusiel Zachariash and 
Chana Gartenhaus. He is also 
survived by grandchildren 
and great-grandchildren.
Rabbi Zachariash was the 
beloved husband of the late 
Brachah Zachariash.
Contributions may be 
made to Congregation 
Shomrey Emunah, 25451 
Southfield Road, Southfield, 
MI 48075.
Interment took place in 
Israel. 

Rabbi Shaiall 
Zachariash

Davison area of Detroit. He 
graduated from Central High 
School in 1939. 
After going on his first date 
with Lillian on New Year’
s Eve 
1941 and escorting her to the 
Central Prom of 1942, they 
married in 1944 and started 
on their incredible journey 
together, raising their family 
in the Green Acres neighbor-
hood in Detroit and later in 
Southfield. Their life together 
was filled with family, fun and 
hard work. 
As the sole proprietor of 
Inkster Linoleum for 39 years, 
he sought balance in his life. 
He could be found at the 
Fisher Theater as an annual 
subscription holder, at the JCC 
playing volleyball or on many 
fields in Metro Detroit playing 
pick-up softball on Sundays 
well into his 80s. He loved 
jazz, baseball, a solid meal, the 
Schvitz and a good cigar. 
Mr. Meisner often said that 
he did not want a eulogy at 
his funeral; “Just play Benny 
Goodman.” 
He was beloved by those he 
encountered and was a source 
of calm and good feeling 
for his friends and extended 
family. With his easy-going 
presence, he was a father fig-
ure to many who needed his 
watchful eye and caring dispo-
sition. His positive demeanor, 
fun-loving manner and gentle 
style will continue to be in 
many hearts forever. 
Mr. Meisner was the 
devoted father of David 
(Pamela) Meisner, Rebecca 
(Bob Beskangy) Meisner, 
Deborah (Leonard) Weiss, 
Matthew (Madi) Meisner, 
Joseph (Gerry) Meisner and 
Benjamin (Risa) Meisner; 
loving grandfather of Meryl 
(Hector Chen) Meisner, Harry, 
Louie, Nathan, Herbert, Ivan 

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