It wasn’t your ordinary day at Jewish Federation of Cleveland headquarters. At 9:47 in the morning April 10, (fake) gunfire went off as an assortment of local and federal law enforcement practiced their response to a hypothetical attack.

Amongst a sea of people, bid paddles were shooting through the air. The auctioneer (just like you might find in the movies) reeled off monetary values at a mile a minute, hardly stopping to catch his breath. The cause? The Mandel JDS Annual Spring Benefit Auction.

The preeminent medieval scholar, Rambam wrote, "As long as a person exercises and exerts himself…sickness does not befall him and his strength increases." (Hilchot De’ot 4:1; 4:14-15). It’s no secret that Jewish values underlie and drive everything that we do at Schechter. In the case of physical education, it’s no different. At Schechter, we look to the value of shmirat ha’guf, (guarding one’s body), which serves as the driver for encouraging and promoting exercise, healthy nutrition and stress management in our students’ lives. Here are three ways you can apply shmirat ha’guf with your children.

The Jewish Federation of Cleveland will continue a 90+ year tradition and recognize the recipient of the distinguished Charles Eisenman Award for exceptional civic contributions: Rev. Dr. Otis Moss Jr. The Federation will honor Rev. Moss and celebrate the strength of a community and the power of a people at the 112th Annual Meeting on Tuesday, April 12 at 7:30 p.m. at Park Synagogue, 3300 Mayfield Road, Cleveland Heights. All are welcome to attend this free event.

The Rev. Otis Moss Jr. has received many awards during his illustrious career, including the Leadership Award from the Cleveland chapter of the American Jewish Committee in 1996.

When one thinks of international politics, eleven, twelve, and thirteen year old students are not typically the first image conjured in the brain. Maybe now that image will change as Mandel JDS students were given the opportunity of a lifetime, trekking to New York City to compete in the “Global Classrooms International Middle School Model UN Conference.”

Bobby Goldberg looked out at the crowd – 400-plus, many streaming out of the Mandel Jewish Community Center’s Stonehill Auditorium, some still dancing to lively Israeli music – as the Jewish Federation of Cleveland celebrated 20 years of friendship and partnership with Beit Shean.

Jim Hartnett, director of community-wide security for the Jewish Federation of Cleveland, said attending the first Secure Community Network Mission to Israel was a valuable experience for him.

For his mitzvah project, a Beachwood boy enlists help of local sports teams to cheer and support at-risk

A total of 12 Mandel JDS students competed at this year’s NEOSEF Science Fair, with each student placing overall in the tournament. The twelve students are comprised of ten current students and two alumni.