The Jewish Federation of Cleveland’s Young Leadership Division (YLD) has launched a new Microgrant Program. With the YLD Microgrant Program, YLD hopes to create a thriving, vibrant Jewish Cleveland young adult community by empowering individuals or groups to create, plan, and host experiences for Jewish Clevelanders (ages 22-45).

What you inherit or earn during your lifetime may end up in many different places when you pass away – you may have spent it all while you were alive, it may go to the government (especially if you don't have a will), you can leave it to your children, or you can do something good for the causes you care about. Fran and Jules Belkin chose to do something good.

In 1926, the Hebrew Cultural Garden was dedicated as part of the Cleveland Cultural Gardens. Nearly 100 years later, the Jewish Federation of Cleveland proudly supports and manages this historic garden and maintains its landscape. “This is all thanks to the generosity of many people in our community," said Donna Yanowitz, Chair of Federation's Hebrew Cultural Garden committee. “We all care about maintaining such an important landmark in the city of Cleveland.”

Forty Cleveland civic leaders spent a week in Israel in July, as part of a new Jewish Federation of Cleveland trip, where they got a sense of the country and issues shared by Northeast Ohio and Israeli communities.

A contingent of civic leaders just returned from a week in Israel. We'll gather some to discover what they learned.

Jewish Cleveland’s Emily Friedman is participating in Onward Israel, a summer internship program supported by the Jewish Federation of Cleveland. She’s interning in Tel Aviv at Daystage, a discovery platform that enables musicians to gain more exposure and get booked.

Anthony and Erica Lazzaro of Moreland Hills love living in Jewish Cleveland. Along with spending time in the community as members of Park Synagogue and as a Gross Schechter Day School family, the Lazzaros enjoy the Cleveland Metroparks and snacking on the many choices of ice cream around the city with their children.

When Hedy Adler’s mother, Helen Kangesser, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in the 1990s, Adler remembers the shock and difficulty of navigating the world of home aides, memory care and smaller struggles like finding a dentist for her mother and someone to do her hair.

Forty of Cleveland’s esteemed civic leaders are in Israel on the Thomas and Joann Adler Civic Leaders Israel Mission. This new biennial mission launched by the Adlers of Shaker Heights was established through an endowment at the Jewish Federation of Cleveland. The purpose is to expose Cleveland leadership to Israel’s innovative approaches to economic and community development, education and support of at-risk and disadvantaged populations, and to create opportunities for partnership with each other and Israeli counterparts.

The Cleveland Chesed Center opened in March 2016 in Cleveland Heights to help our local community in need. In the past year, the Chesed Center has provided 1,370 individuals (750 children and 620 adults) with basic necessities including kosher food, personal care items, cleaning supplies, clothing, and furniture thanks to the efforts of Jewish Cleveland and the Jewish Federation of Cleveland.