After the devastation that occurred on October 7, Cleveland immediately stepped up to help the communities impacted by the attacks. Cleveland has since established a partnership with Kibbutz Kissufim, a community in the Gaza envelope that suffered a great deal of damage on October 7. In April, several volunteers from Cleveland traveled to Israel and spent two days helping rebuild Kibbutz Kissufim. Cleveland and Israeli volunteers from our sister community of Beit Shean/Valley of Springs were able to exchange stories, laugh together, and build hope while gardening and cleaning the Kissufim community.

Last summer, the Jewish Federation of Cleveland’s Cleveland Israel Arts Connection started planning a Roe Green Gallery show of Israeli photographer Michal Chelbin’s works.

The Jewish Federation of Cleveland is committed to supporting the elderly in our community. Collaborating with our beneficiary agency, the Jewish Family Service Association, we created the Alzheimer's Disease and Dementia Caregiver Support Program.

Rabbi David Wolpe, Max Webb Rabbi Emeritus of Sinai Temple, recently spoke to our Cleveland community at Federation’s 120th Annual Meeting. During our one-on-one interview with him, he answered questions about being a proud Jew during these difficult times and gave advice about standing up to hate, while providing a message of hope and optimism.

Please send a note to County Council members to thank them for withdrawing this resolution that was designed to use covert financial and economic maneuvers as weapons to attack a long-time and loyal ally of the United States.

The Jewish Federation of Cleveland today issued the following statement with regard to the withdrawal of Cuyahoga County Council Resolution 2024-0208:

Eight months ago, Shlomo Mantzur was believed to be taken from his home in Kibbutz Kissufim into Gaza during the Hamas surprise attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. His family, including his daughter, Batya Mantzur – who traveled to Cleveland from June 4 to June 6 – still holds out hope of seeing him again.

The Jewish Federation of Cleveland announced at the 120th Annual Meeting on May 23 that Gary L. Gross has been named the 100th recipient of the Charles Eisenman Award, the Jewish Federation of Cleveland’s highest civic honor for outstanding contributions to our community.

The Lois Marcus Leadership Award recognizes a Lion of Judah Society member that has shown commitment to the Cleveland Jewish community through emerging leadership and volunteerism and who proudly promotes the values of women’s leadership and philanthropy, cares for our community and its future, and leads with integrity, compassion, and kindness.

Mazel tov, Jennifer Cohen for receiving the 2024 Ruby Bass Challenge Award for her exemplary dedication and leadership to the Jewish Federation of Cleveland and the Women IN Philanthropy Campaign.