PJ Library has a new partner: Yehuda Matzos, an Israeli company touting the Jewish literacy program this Passover season.

For many of the children attending a recent PJ Library gathering, the Chagrin Falls Fire Station was the most exciting destination they could imagine. Some came dressed in their red firefighter' s costumes, complete with helmets, coats and boots, while others were happy to put on firefighter helmets given to them by the fire station. They watched carefully as firefighter Tim Alder demonstrated how to put on gear to fight fires. They also loved the fire trucks tour.

Did you know? Three #JewishCleveland moms are making it easy for new moms and all kinds of Jewish families in Twinsburg, Aurora, and Chagrin Falls to connect to each other and kid-friendly Cleveland. They are the Jewish Federation of Cleveland’s PJ Library Engagement Ambassadors, and they can’t wait to get to know you. Meet them here.

Tu B’Shevat is around the corner. As 10-year-old Gabe says, it’s hard to celebrate the “festival of trees” in Cleveland this time of year when the ground is covered in snow. Youngsters like Gabe understand the importance of this holiday through Federation-supported programs like PJ Our Way and our Community Relations Committee’s (CRC) Interfaith Tu B’Shevat Seder. Read how Gabe learned about the values of Tu B’Shevat right here in snowy Cleveland:

CLEVELAND – Madeline (Maddie) McCann, 10, of Beachwood has been selected to join the national PJ Our Way Design Team, a prestigious position through the PJ Our Way program that gives young people the opportunity to develop leadership skills, while connecting with other pre-teens across the country.

Jacob and Charlie have been giving tzedakah (charity) for as long as they can remember. Their mom, Heather, puts a tzedakah box on the table every Shabbat and they happily share their nickels and dimes. As little kids, they loved hearing a little plunk as the coins fell through the slit in the box. For years now, they know, because their mom tells them, that each little plunk is a mitzvah (good deed) that they can feel proud of.

Meet Hannah. At just 10 years-old, Hannah represented our Cleveland community on the National PJ Our Way Design Team! She is part of the PJ Our Way community, a new pilot program created by the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, that was designed to give 9- to 11-year-olds ownership over the material they read by allowing them to select their own books and express their opinions online.

Robyn and Daniel Raskin had never seen a tzedakah box like it before. It was white. Flat. And made of construction paper. But since they started receiving books from PJ Library six years ago, mother and son are used to getting unexpected surprises delivered right to their door.