11/26/2025
Former Hostages Headline Jewish Federation of North America General Assembly
Jason Wuliger of Hunting Valley, JFNA public affairs chair, addresses attendees during the Nov. 18 plenary at the JFNA General Assembly. Photo / JFNA
Article reprinted with permission from Cleveland Jewish News.
by Jimmy Oswald
The atmosphere at this year’s Jewish Federations of North America General Assembly was “passionate, energized and exciting,” according to Lynne Cohen, a board of trustees member for both the Jewish Federation of Cleveland and JFNA.
For Cohen, the enthusiasm that filled the hall came as no surprise. It is precisely this spirit that has drawn her back to the annual gathering time and again, she said.
This year’s GA was held from Nov. 16 to Nov. 18 in Washington, D.C.
“This was probably my third or fourth one,” Cohen, a Pepper Pike resident and congregant of B’nai Jeshurun Congregation in Pepper Pike, told the Cleveland Jewish News. “I continue to go back every year because I find it really invigorating, motivating and inspiring to be with likeminded lay people and professionals who all share that same passion for the Jewish people and Israel. And that’s why I will continue to go to them.”
Jason Wuliger, chair of the JFNA public affairs committee, was attending his fourth GA and said it provides a tremendous opportunity for Jewish activists from around North America to “convene, learn together and build our capabilities for the year ahead.”
“We were really pleased to have senators from both sides of the aisle address our plenary sessions that talked about fighting back against antisemitism in their own parties,” Wuliger, a Hunting Valley resident and also a congregant of B’nai Jeshurun, told the CJN. “Those plenary sessions brought together the over 2,000 participants while the breakout sessions allowed every participant to pick and choose from the topics that interest them most.”
Topics ran the gamut, including the fight against antisemitism in the K-12 space to tax law changes that would benefit day schools to effective communication tactics.
Speakers included Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., Tamar Ish-Shalom, an Israeli journalist and host of Jewish Crossroads, a program that uses interactive, one-man plays to educate about Judaism, and Rabbi Angela Buchdahl, a senior rabbi at Central Synagogue in New York City.
Wuliger said that the most impactful moment for him was hearing from released hostages taken during the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led surprise attack on Israel.
“They shared details about their ordeal and expressed their gratitude for keeping them in our prayers and on the minds of the decision makers who could work to secure their release,” he said.
Cohen also found the words of the “three or four” hostages who spoke inspiring and said that the amount of hope that they held through the entire situation should give the Jewish people hope for the future.
“I found that by opening the general assembly with them, they set the tone for the whole conference, which is that there’s hope here,” she said. “We’re a strong Jewish people that are resilient and are going to come back stronger than ever. A big theme was that we have to work together to bring Israel back to where it was and crush antisemitism.”
JFNA national campaign chair David Heller, a Moreland Hills resident, spoke on stage about the Rebuild Israel project, an effort to return Israel to its pre-war strength and the result of a $908 million Israel Emergency Campaign.
The initiative will seek to help tackle mental-health education, assists the families of reservist soldiers and collaborate with partner organizations to take on the issues.
“And one thing that stuck with me at this general assembly was not only the support of the Jewish people, but also non-Jewish people,” Cohen said. “We heard from a pastor from Youngstown who was incredibly inspiring. I always love to hear different perspectives and about what other communities and people are doing. And what was a little different about this GA is that we heard from some influencers.”
Putting a focus on those who make videos or posts on TikTok or Instagram will become crucial, Cohen said, because many younger people get their information from those social media sites. She said she was happy to learn more about this untapped market.
Wuliger appreciated the fact that leadership from Washington had the chance to hear about the concerns of the attendees.
“Many participants went to Capitol Hill and lobbied their elected officials about issues that are most important to our community right now,” he said. “And my main takeaway from the event is that the Jewish people are strong and resilient. While we face many challenges right now, those challenges are being met by people who are more determined than ever to be a community that is proudly American and Jewish and will not allow any other group or individual to tell us who we are.”
Former hostages Evyatar David, Guy Gilboa-Dalal, Noa Argamani and Avinatan Or speak about their experiences at the hands of Hamas, hope for the future and the need for unity at the JFNA GA’s opening plenary on Nov. 23. They also thanked the Jewish community for its support throughout the war. Photo / JFNA
For both Cohen and Wuliger, attending the assembly also provided a chance to represent Cleveland’s Jewish community on the national stage.
“I am always Cleveland proud and always extremely proud to represent Cleveland because we are the best Jewish community and we are thought of that way not just throughout the United States, but throughout the world,” Cohen said. “There were many Jewish Clevelanders on the big stage at the GA, and I am always so proud to see them up there.”
Former and current Clevelanders who took to the stage include JFNA President and CEO Eric Fingerhut, former Shaker Heights resident Adam Lehman, who is the CEO of Hillel International, Wuliger and Heller.
A feeling of optimism resonated with Cohen well after the assembly ended, an emotion further driven by the fact that her daughter and daughter-in-law both joined her at the General Assembly.
“That was a huge bonus for me to see the next generation so engaged, involved and wanting to create a better Jewish world,” she said. “We are all in this together. All the Jewish people all over the world want to create a stronger Jewish community and stronger Israel, and I have full confidence in that.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a video message to the attendees..
