05/14/2026
Gov. DeWine Receives Federation's 2026 Charles Eisenman Award
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine stands beside the Eisenman Award and shares remarks following his acceptance. CJN Photo / Casey Couch
Article reprinted with permission from Cleveland Jewish News
by Casey Couch
The son of a proud World War II veteran who arrived at Dachau Concentration Camp just days after it had been liberated, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine was recognized as the 2026 recipient of the Charles Eisenman Award for Exceptional Civic Contributions – the Jewish Federation of Cleveland’s highest honor – at the Federation’s 122nd Annual Meeting on May 12 at Landerhaven in Mayfield Heights. He was presented the award by J. David Heller, a past board chair of the Federation.
DeWine, who has served as governor since 2019 and was previously Ohio attorney general, was selected for the award due to his unwavering commitment to the Jewish community’s safety and security following Oct. 7, 2023, and domestic, antisemtic attacks that prompted increased support from Columbus.
Following the formal program, DeWine told the Cleveland Jewish News that he was very surprised when he was notified that he would be receiving the Eisenman Award.
“I got a call from Albert Ratner, my friend, and he told me about it,” DeWine said. “I was very surprised, but very honored, and I’m honored to be here tonight.”
Reflecting on his support of the Jewish community since the Hamas surprise attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, DeWine said that he made sure to connect with the state’s Jewish communities to ensure there would be increased safety and security measures.
“It’s important that everybody in Ohio feels safe,” DeWine told the CJN. “There’s just absolutely no doubt, when you see these events, and that was the most horrific event, that you know that it’s going to cause Jews to be targeted.”
While it is his job to defend the safety of all Ohio’s citizens, DeWine said that because the Jewish community was more vulnerable after Oct. 7, he wanted to do whatever he could to provide help. It’s been a privilege, he said, to work with the Federation’s top-tier security officers.
“We do have people who work for the Ohio Department of Public Safety who have expertise in security and other things,” DeWine told the CJN. “What was good is that we were able to work with the Federation, not just in Cleveland, but in other cities, with their security. You have very good security, people who know what they’re doing, and so it was very easy for us to just plug in and say, ‘What can we help you with?’”
During the fireside chat interview, which followed the award presentation and was moderated by meeting co-chair Amy Kaplan, DeWine shared a story of his father, who arrived as a soldier in Dachau Concentration Camp just days after the camp had been liberated – a story that led him to recognize the importance and the need for continued Holocaust education.
“He talked about the remains that were there, and some of the survivors took him through and explained what the Nazis did in horrible detail,” DeWine said. “...It really had a profound impact on him.”
According to DeWine, Holocaust denial has become a real problem as the population of survivors decreases. In the past year, DeWine has attended multiple events and spoken on issues related to Holocaust remembrance, most recently making remarks for the 46th Annual Holocaust Commemorationon April 13 at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus.
Putting a focus on history in schools needs to be a priority to ensure that the general population remains educated on the Holocaust, DeWine said.
“It’s a real concern, and I think we all have to do everything we can to make sure that stays in schools,” he said.
An additional key policy effort in Ohio over the past year is the proposed Senate Bill 87, which would formally adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism into state law. This legislation, which passed in the Senate in March and is currently pending in the House, builds directly on a prior executive order from DeWine that mandated use of the IHRA definition across state institutions.
DeWine, who was raised in Yellow Springs, Ohio, met his wife, Fran, in first grade, and together, the couple has eight children, 28 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
“Family is at the core of everything Mike DeWine does,” Kaplan said during the program. “That’s why he has devoted his life to fighting for Ohio’s families. He knows when families are strong, Ohio’s communities are stronger and our future is bright.”
A graduate of Miami University in Oxford, DeWine became the 70th governor of Ohio in 2019, after previously serving as the state’s 50th attorney general, in addition to holding multiple other elected offices, including U.S. Senator.
According to Kaplan, this work and more made DeWine a perfect fit for the award. DeWine was selected by a nominating committee, which is formed new each year, comprised of leaders in the Jewish community, as well as partners in the non-Jewish, general community. The 2025 Eisenman Award recipient was Mt. Sinai Health Foundation.
