The Rev. Otis Moss Jr. and Reneé Chelm both received standing ovations from a crowd of more than 300 people when they were recognized at the Jewish Federation of Cleveland’s 112th annual meeting April 12 at Park Synagogue Main in Cleveland Heights.

At the 112th Annual Meeting, our highest civic honor, the Charles Eisenman Award, was presented to Rev. Dr. Otis Moss, Jr. He is a true living legend. His lifetime of service and achievement in issues of civil rights, voting rights, and economic inequality have put him on the forefront of positive change.

As anyone who has shepherded a son or daughter through the joys and trials of middle school can attest, it can be challenging to keep eighth-graders motivated and focused on their studies during the final part of the school year. That’s not particularly surprising, given the potential for distractions

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.

Music accesses the part of ourselves that is soul-worthy. To reach the "specialness" that each of us represents, we sing, emote and dance rhythmically to express melody and the beat. We can connect through song in a way that transcends differences, which is one of the reasons music is so powerful.

World renowned speaker Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks inspired us as he shared his perspective on Jewish continuity with our Jewish Cleveland community on April 7, 2016. Watch his full speech here.

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.

Like many schools, Gross Schechter has an expressed goal of ensuring that our students learn effective, proficient and fluent use of technology. We all know that developing and honing this skill is a necessary part of a 21st-century, outstanding education, and, yet, there is sometimes a barrier of fear.

My name is Danielle and I am a Shlicha, which means Israeli emissary in Hebrew. It’s my job to bring Israeli life and culture to Jewish Cleveland. And, this time of the year I want to bring you something very special.