22/09/2026
Chabad on Campus Mourns the Tragic passing of our dear friend, supporter and founding member of The Chai Club™️ Marc Sternberg 💔
Message from Rabbi Nissen Goldman:
——————
Baruch Dayan Ha’emet ~ Blessed be the true judge!
Dear Friends,
Words can do no justice. But the enormity of this loss needs to be expressed.
Marc, was such a champion of our community. He was there for us on day one. Actually even before day one. Marc was the very first person in this city to commit a monthly donation to make our work on campus possible. And that is because he didn’t even give me the chance to ask…
I was sitting in shul Camps Bay one shabbos, (we lived there before moving to UCT) when I met this lively chap at the Brocha. We got talking and when he heard that we were planning to start a community for Jewish students he said, “I love it! Count me in for a monthly donation! And thats how I met Marc.
He loved that Jewish students were being taken care of supported and He wanted to be there for it. He loved the potential and possibility that this stage of life offered. He would always ask me if there was anything more they needed. He loved giving. At his core, it’s who he was - a giver.
He also just loved the mitzvah of Tzedaka! I vividly remember in the early days, sitting in his office back at SparkATM where he excitedly showed me his favourite spreadsheet (he had many, he loved them) but his favourite was his Tzedaka. He’d spent weeks figuring out the perfect formula for his monthly Tzedaka allocations. I was blown away. I’d never met someone so passionate about tzedaka. What’s more, was the sheer number of organisations that he had listed on that sheet. Endless!
I truly believe we have no conception of the extent and reach of his impact. We will probably only start finding out now. Most of it was done quietly, without the need for acknowledgement.
He loved that our program expanded to Stellies and would always sponsor the Annual welcome Braai there and as many mezuzot as the new students needed. He couldn’t handle that Jews around the world were taking theirs down to hide their identity. He may not have been the most frequent Shul goer but he was one strong and proud yid. And he wanted to see Capetown Jewry flourish!
Truthfully it is Marc who is owed the thanks for pushing me to expand Chabad on Campus in Stellies to become full-time and launch Chabad On Campus-Stellies, now ably run by The amazing Duthie’s. I was so hesitant to take the leap, as we were still struggling to cover our Cape Town budget. He said, “Nissen, just go for it, the money will come. And if you need anything come to me!”
Baruch HaShem, today, because we did, 150+ students studying in Stellenbosch have access to a full time Chabad House with Socials, shiurim and Shabbos meals. Rabbi & Rebbetzin Duthie are there 24/7 offering friendship and support.
Marc did way more than just give money. That came Easy to him. He gave me his time. His guidance. He was a mentor to me. And boy did he push me. At times, uncomfortably. Becuase if you know Marc, you know that not everything was lovey dovey fun and games. He was serious about “the way things ought to be done” and he had absolutely zero chill when it came to telling me if he thought I was out of line. His chutzpah was his trademark And I got plenty of his fierce, tough love. And I so appreciated it (maybe now in hindsight a bit more than in the moment) because I could see it came from a place of love, concern and him truly wanting me to get better.
Marc my brother, you lived such a rich, full life. There is so much I can learn from you. You had no fear. You broke the rules. You made up new ones. You didn’t care what people thought of you. You just did what you saw needed to be done. What you wanted to do and what you loved doing.
I thank HaShem that our paths crossed and I’m so honoured to have walked this journey of life for the time we had. You enriched my life and the lives of everyone who’s benefited from this community we built together. There is still so much left to do that we haven’t ticked off…
The last phone call I received from Marc he out-of-the-blue asked me if we’d found a property yet for the new Chabad House in Stellies. He’d wanted to help buy one so there could be a permanent home for Jewish student life there. I was shook! I hadn’t asked him. I didn’t even bring it up! That’s just who he was… he wanted Yiddishkeit in Cape Town to flourish and he wanted to make it happen!
There is so much more to say… but this brief and grossly inadequate reflection will have to suffice for now. (The real tribute was the massive line of cars at Pinelands cemetery today waiting to find parking to pay respect to a legend of a man. Hands down, The biggest funeral I’ve ever attended in Capetown.)
But I’ll just end with this. And this really sums it all up. Marc truly lived up to his name: “Meir Adam” which in Hebrew means “Shining Human”!
To our dearest Tanya, Zoe, Aaron, Liv, Michael, Leora and Lauren. HaShem gave you a gift. And yes, HaShem took back His gift. I just want to say Thank you! Thank you for sharing your gift with us all. He may have loved all the things he did. And there were many…But he loved you guys more than anything in the whole entire world. And everyone knew it! He made sure.
We will never forget you Marc. We will keep your light Shining ✨
Love your brother, ❤️ Nissen
________
📸 Caption: One of many random selfies Marc sent me. This was during his brief time at UCT mentoring students in entrepreneurship!
