11/29/2017
Kim Meisel Pesses Receives Gries Award
- Share This Story
Award recognizes individual’s impact on Cleveland communities
Kim Meisel Pesses of Moreland Hills has been named the 2017 recipient of the Gries Family Award for Community Leadership. The award recognizes Pesses for her lasting impact on Cleveland’s Jewish and general communities. Pesses was presented the award at the Jewish Federation of Cleveland Board of Trustees meeting on November 29.
“I’m so honored to receive this award,” said Pesses. “Being involved and giving back in both the Jewish and general community builds bridges that not only promotes understanding across all communities, but enriches all of us.”
Pesses’ involvement with the Federation has spanned more than 20 years, serving on more than a dozen committees. She currently serves as a member of the Federation’s Board of Trustees, Development Committee, and Foundation Advisory Council. She has played an active role on the Federation’s Community Planning Committee, serving on the Alzheimer’s/Dementia Task Force and Strengthening and Growing Jewish Cleveland Joint Research Subcommittee.
Pesses has led the way for many prominent Cleveland organizations that resonate with two of her passions, children’s health and Alzheimer’s disease awareness, and served as a Trustee for the Alzheimer’s Association and President of Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital She currently serves as a Trustee for The Mt. Sinai Health Care Foundation and is a Founding Board Member of Engage!Cleveland. She previously served on the boards of Jewish Family Service Association (JFSA), Mandel JCC, The Temple-Tifereth Israel, and Cleveland PlayHouse Junior Committee.
“Kim is very well-known in the community in terms of her involvement in the hospital network, economic development, and a multitude of charities,” said Gary Shamis, Chair of the 2017 Gries Family Award Committee. “The amount of places she is involved with and held leadership positions at is an amazing accomplishment.”
The Gries family was one of the first Jewish families to settle in Cleveland. The Gries Family Award includes a donation to a charitable cause chosen by the recipient. Kim Pesses designated a donation to the JFSA, a Federation beneficiary agency, and Cleveland PlayHouse.
