Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka (Moussia) Schneerson was born in Babinovitch, near the Russian city of Lubavitch. She was the second of three daughters of the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak and his wife, Rebbetzin Nechama Dina Schneersohn. When she was born her Grandfather was travelling and was sent a telegram announcing her birth. He wrote back congratulations and if you have not yet named he she should be named Chaya Mushka, the name of the wife of the Tzemach Tzedek the third Lubavitcher Rebbe. In the autumn of 1915, during World War I, Chaya Mushka and her family fled Lubavitch and settled in Rostov. Life became increasingly dangerous for the Jews of Rostov, and in the spring of 1924 her family moved to Leningrad. Before leaving Russia in, Chaya Mushka was engaged to marry the Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson. The actual marriage was delayed until 1928 and took place on the 14th day of Kislev. They went to live in Berlin, where they studied in the local University. In 1933 they fled to Paris. In 1941 they escaped from France on the Serpa Pinto, which was the last boat to cross the Atlantic ocean before the U-boat blockade began. They settled in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn, New York. Her younger sister Shaina and her husband, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Horenstein were trapped in Poland and were killed by the Nazis in the gas chambers of Treblinka. There is a tribute at the bottom of her stone to Shaina. In 1950, her father passed away, and her husband became the seventh Lubavitcher Rebbe. Chaya Mushka had no children, however once when a child visiting her house asked her "where are your children?" she answered that the Chassidim were her children. Her name Chaya means life and Mushka is an aromatic spice. Thousands of little girls around the world proudly bear her name. Naming a child after her is quite common. The Rebbe's wife of 59 years, Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka Schneerson, passed away after a brief illness. She had felt ill the night before and was brought to the hospital, where she requested a glass of water. After reciting the blessing "Blessed are You, G-d… by whose word all things come into being", she passed away. In a farewell fit for a queen, a procession fifteen thousand strong led by an official police motorcade accompanied her to her final resting place. There she was interred near her father, the previous Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson. She is buried next to her Grandmother and Mother. On the very day of her burial, the Rebbe established a charity fund in her name, which continues to this day to serve a variety women's social and educational purposes.