08/27/2026

Jewish Cleveland Builds on Deep Sense of Connection

Tags: Federation

Article reprinted with permission from Cleveland Jewish News

by Casey Swinarski

Jewish Cleveland is deeply connected.

It’s a statement community leaders have guessed at, and one proven true in the Jewish Federation of Cleveland’s 2022 population study, with 98% of participants reporting feeling connected to the Jewish people and over half saying “a great deal.”

“It’s an exciting number, and it’s a number to take a lot of pride in as a Jewish leader,” Senior Rabbi Hal Rudin-Luria of B’nai Jeshurun Congregation told the Cleveland Jewish News. “Jewish Cleveland is both a connected community within ourselves and also in feeling a deep connection to Judaism.”

Moreover, 84% reported feeling connected to Jewish Cleveland, and 72% said being part of it is important. Everyone is trying to put their finger on the “secret sauce,” Rudin-Luria said, but he guessed that Cleveland’s Midwestern hospitality and geographic closeness may contribute to the sense of belonging.

“I think some of the qualities that contribute to that is the respect that exists between organizations, synagogues, denominations, and a real feeling of partnership and commonality,” Rudin-Luria said. “We see each other so often in the community that there is a real sense of family and familiarity.”

Rabbi Melinda Mersack, director of jHUB and engagement strategies at the Jewish Education Center and population study committee member, told the CJN that interfaith households are among the groups seeking a sense of community in Cleveland.

“That is what jHUB tries to offer, because it’s what we’ve learned from our participants,” she said. “We’re intentional to not be prescriptive, but to try to listen and understand the wants and needs of our families and couples, and respond without judgment.”

According to the population study, interfaith households reported a high sense of belonging at 74%. This, Mersack said, was intentional, as jHUB was created as a result of the 2011 study, which showed the need for such an organization.

Additional JEC programs, like Chayim Tovim for adults aged 55+, continue to fill engagement gaps for varying age groups looking to connect. Since the 2011 study, growth has only increased, she said.

“Engagement has definitely increased,” Mersack said. “We’ve had steady growth, which I think reflects the makeup of our community. There are more interfaith families today, so we do see more people participating in jHUB programs and activities.”

But despite strong feelings of connection overall, the study showed that barriers to participation are real. Overall, 44% of Jewish adults reported experiencing at least one limitation to participation in 2021-2022, a statistic that reflects the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The most common barrier reported was not knowing many people – 18% – followed by not feeling welcome and cost, both at 14%. Location was also an obstacle, as residents of the West Side and Central and Northeast/Northern Heights regions were especially likely to cite location and cost as barriers.

“Even in the current population study, we see that there are still barriers for participation,” Mersack said. “The more types of Jewish programs and opportunities we have, the better chance that there will be something that resonates for each individual or family, where hopefully they can connect as well.”

The combination of strong emotional connection paired with participation barriers, specifically amongst groups such as the LGBTQ community and those in financial distress, reflects a baseline for what may have changed since the surprise attack on Israel by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, when the study took place prior.

In response, the Jewish Federations of North America conducted multiple national surveys following the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks and found that 43% of American Jews became more engaged immediately after – what they described as a “surge of engagement.” One year later, 31% remained more engaged.

According to Rabbi Zushe Greenberg of Solon Chabad, the events of Oct. 7 reminded the Jewish community that they are one people – a “family.”

“After Oct. 7, many people connected to the community on a stronger level,” Greenberg told the CJN. “It was a huge awakening all over the world. Forget about Cleveland – it was international. At the end of the day, we were all connected.”

It can be easy for a Jew to lose their sense of connection to the community, Greenberg said, especially if one is not involved in religious or cultural Jewish activities. This is where a sense of connection, he said, can feel lost, though one never truly is.

“Judaism and Hasidic philosophy believe that within every Jew, there is a spark of God that can never be lost,” Greenberg said. “When you speak to a Jewish person, you will wake up this spark, this connection. An event like Oct. 7 did it in one shot, because suddenly everybody remembered and was reminded they were Jewish, and that’s why there was such an awakening.”

Greenberg added that he believes leaders in the community should continue to harvest that surge in engagement, but that the job of connection is not just the job of a rabbi. “Any one of us,” he said, can build connections – something that is especially important to foster in the next generation.

“This is something that we have to develop and cultivate, because it’s a constant struggle and battle against the temptations of the world,” Greenberg said. “The world is pulling you in one direction, and the Jewish world is pulling you in another direction. To be Jewish means to be different, that’s a fact, and many times, young people don’t want to be different.”

Emily Tuchfeld, a member of the Federation’s Young Leadership Division board, told the CJN that she feels the young adult population is growing in terms of engagement in Cleveland because of how “vibrant and diverse” the community allows one another to be.

According to the study, young adults, or 18 to 34 years old, reported the strongest connection compared to other age groups, at 87%.

“When I was growing up, I felt like the community was pretty separated by type of observance and where you lived,” Tuchfeld, 32, said. “Nowadays, especially at young adult events, we seem to span all types of Jewish observances and all locations around the Cleveland area. I think that our specific age range has cultivated a culture of inclusivity that is kind of newer and so beautiful.”

Jewish Cleveland and its organizations, she added, have invested in programming that is important to young adults. By doing this, she said, it further drives an increased sense of belonging and participation.

“Young Jewish people have decided where they’re going to live and where they’re going to set up their lives, and I think Jewish Cleveland has made great choices in what they’ve invested in to help build that,” Tuchfeld, who resides in University Heights with her husband, Zach, said.

Still looking for that “secret sauce,” Rudin-Luria concluded that the “deep respect” between Jewish professionals, from rabbis to organization presidents, helps to keep all members of the community connected and engaged.

“We understand that we all have a shared purpose – that each of our organizations can work together and support each other,” he said. “Cleveland almost becomes sort of a lab where, when one elevates, we elevate each other, and that’s really special. You don’t find that in every city.”

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