Editing Yehuda Shmotkin (section)

== Life History ==
Born in Warsaw, Poland to Rabbi Shneur Zalman Smotkin, who was a wealthy book merchant and managed the Warsaw branch of Yeshivas Tomchei Tmimim.

In his youth, he made aliyah to Eretz Yisroel in 1920 with his grandfather Rabbi DovBer Moshe Smotkin. He studied at Yeshivas Toras Emes in Yerushalayim. Afterwards, he began working in orchards near Tel Aviv for parnossa, staying with his uncle R' Yosef Smotkin who lived in Tel Aviv. Every night after returning from work, he would quickly go to sleep, wake up at 2 AM, and sit in the Nachalas Binyamin shul learning Chassidus until davening time, after which he would go to work.

In letters from Rebbetzin Shterna Sarah Schneerson, mother of the Frierdiker Rebbe, she would write to R' Yehuda referring to him as "my relative" (apparently through his mother, Mrs. Leah Reizel, who was a granddaughter of R' Shlomo Chaim Perlov of Koidanov, whose family had marriage connections with Beis HaRav).