Twelve Jewish Cleveland young leaders are having the adventure of a lifetime on the Young Leadership Division (YLD) Weinberg Mission to Israel! Participants are experiencing Israel’s vibrant arts and culture scene, learning about innovative technology, networking with leaders in the nation’s up and coming industries, tasting the flavors of the country, and finding their own connection to Israel. Check out their Mission blog below!

On March 7, the Cleveland Israel Arts Connection, a program of the Jewish Federation of Cleveland, will host “Dancing Conversation: Cultural Diplomacy.” This event will explore how dancers' experiences performing in the United States, Israel, and around the world have informed their expression and in some cases, changed their lives. To register for this event, please visit www.jewishcleveland.org.

Cleveland native William Daroff lobbies on behalf of the Jewish people as the director of the Washington DC office and the senior vice president of public policy for the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA).

The Cleveland Israel Arts Connection, a program of the Jewish Federation of Cleveland, will host “Dancing Conversation: Cultural Diplomacy,” on Thursday, March 7 at 7:00 pm at the Jewish Federation of Cleveland’s Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Building (25701 Science Park Drive in Beachwood). Registration cost is $10/person. To register for this event, please visit www.jewishcleveland.org.

Rabbi Hanan Schlesinger and Shadi Abu Awwad see a future where there is peace between the Israeli and Palestinian people. As leaders of the non-profit organization, Roots, they are building a unique network of local Palestinians and Israelis who have come to see each other as the partners needed to make changes and end the ongoing conflict between the two cultures. Through their work, they are fostering a grassroots movement of understanding, nonviolence, and transformation founded on dignity, trust, mutual recognition, and respect.

Hannah Firestone has dreams of becoming a United States Supreme Court Judge. The Beachwood resident and Allegheny College senior started her path to fulfilling her career dreams last summer through Cleveland’s Onward Israel internship program.

General Mansour abu Rashid of Jordan spent his entire military career and post-military career promoting peace in the Middle East including his role in the 1994 signing of the Peace Treaty Accord between Israel and Jordan. His efforts have successfully led to a Jordan/Cross-Border Initiative between Jordanians and Israelis in Beit Shean, Cleveland’s sister city.

On Jan. 24, the Jewish Federation of Cleveland’s community relations committee held its 72nd annual meeting in conjunction with the Sidney Z. Vincent Memorial Lecture at the Mandel Jewish Community Center in Beachwood for 225 attendees, including many community leaders.

When Felton Thomas Jr., Cleveland Public Library executive director and CEO, visited the library in Beit Shean, Israel, he was initially thrown off by how its run but quickly became inspired to install a similar approach at Cleveland Public Library with help in part from a Jewish fellow.

On November 9, 1938, Nazis in Germany torched synagogues, vandalized Jewish homes, schools and businesses, and killed close to 100 Jews. That horrific night has been forever known as Kristallnacht – “the night of broken glass.”