History in Bnei Brak: 'Municipal Secretary and Spokesperson' Retires After 45 Years in Office

May 8, 2019   

History in the city of Bnei Brak: Avraham Tenenboim, the city's secretary and legendary spokesman, is retiring after 45 years in office. Tenenboim served under 11 mayors from different parties. He is retiring upon reaching an age that does not allow, according to the procedures of the Ministry of the Interior, for a further extension of his term as a full-time employee, after his term was extended for three years, beyond the official retirement age. Tenenboim, born in the city of Bnei Brak, began working for the city in 1974 and was elected to his position with the approval of the city council, in accordance with the initiative and recommendation of the late Rabbi Yitzhak Meir, the mayor at the time. Previously, Tenenbaum worked as the secretary of MK Rabbi Avraham Werdiger, the late, within the framework of the Agudat Yisrael Workers' faction, and wrote on various topics in the PAI movement's newspaper 'Sha'arim'. Upon beginning his position at the municipality, he was appointed director of the mayor's office and later spokesman for the municipality. During the time of Rabbi Shmuel Weinberg, the late, as mayor, he was also appointed secretary of the municipality, and was also responsible for convening the council and its committees. Avraham Tenenbaum held this position for the following mayors: Rabbi Yitzhak Meir, the late; Israel Gottlieb, the late; Rabbi Shmuel Weinberg, the late; Rabbi Moshe Eirnstein, the late; Rabbi Yerachmiel Boyar; Amos Mar-Chaim; Mordechai Karelitz, his classmate at Talmud-Torah Rabbi Akiva Center; Issachar Frankenthal, MK Yaakov Asher, Rabbi Avraham Rubinstein - who replaced Yaakov Asher for about ten months about six years ago, who then entered the Knesset; Hanoch Seibert, and today, Rabbi Avraham Rubinstein again. Not long ago, at a national gathering of municipal and local council speakers, Tenenbaum was asked, as part of a professional panel with mayors, MKs and journalists, how he worked with 11 mayors - a phenomenon that has not existed until now - and he replied: "Apparently, you should direct the question not to me, but to the mayors of the cities with whom I worked, but the real answer is that we pray every day to the Creator of all the worlds, who is found to be gracious and wise in the eyes of God and man, and we ask that our prayer be accepted, and this is the only truth." The press release about his retirement reads: "The secretary and spokesman continued his work at the municipality until his last day, even though according to the procedure there are three months of adjustment to receiving a salary without coming to work at all, and he continued his work during these months, in accordance with the instructions of the famous Rebbe, Rabbi David Abuhatzeira Shlita, and at the request of Rabbi Avraham Rubinstein, the mayor. "He was also asked to organize the program and lead the memorial rally for the fallen IDF soldiers. The day after the rally, he continued to fulfill the commandment of 'Visit the Sick', with his wife, who was born in Basel, Switzerland, at the home of their relative hospitalized in a hospital in this city." Until a tender for the position of spokesman is held, his place will be filled by Israel Cohen - the personal spokesman for Mayor Avraham Rubinstein.