The Jewish Federation of
opening of "Illuminations: The
Art of Samuel Bak," a collection
of visual art exploring the myriad
interpretations of Israel identity.
The exhibition is located in the
Roe Green Gallery at the Jewish
Federation of Cleveland's Jack,
Joseph and Morton Mandel
Building (25701 Science Park
Drive in Beachwood).
surrealism, analytical cubism, pop
art, and references to the old mas-
ters, Bak employs imagery that
creates puzzling parallels to our
history and experience. Although
infl uenced by his experiences and
evoking dark memories as a child
survivor of the Holocaust, Bak
has not painted direct scenes of
mass death, said Karen Levinsky,
Exhibition Consultant.
more information on the Cleve-
land Israel Arts Connection, please
visit www.jewishcleveland.org, or
contact Sylvia Owen at sowen@
jcfcleve.org or 216.593.2856.
nection, a program of the Jewish
Federation of Cleveland. It is
sponsored with support from
Cuyahoga Arts & Culture and
Facing History and Ourselves.
engagement manager, Aviva Roland, in this Q&A.
A: I am the new young families
Jewish Federation of Cleve-
land. I am a mom of two
amazing daughters. We have
lived in a few places, includ-
ing Israel, and I'm excited to
now be in Beachwood. I'm
looking forward to connect-
ing with other young Jewish
Cleveland families.
Q Tell us about the PJ
young families. Each month,
children across our Cleveland
community receive free PJ
Library books, to build their
Jewish libraries. Parents
share wonderful snuggly mo-
ments with their children as
they read these books before
bedtime. Those moments be-
come sparks of Jewishness.
Q Who can receive free PJ
old. There is also something
called PJ Our Way, a new
program geared for chil-
dren 9 to 11 years old. The
younger children receive
surprise books by mail, but
the older children select their
books online and have them
mailed, like shopping. All
books arrive addressed to the
child. It's such a treat to see
a PJ package in the mailbox
each month. Best part, it's
totally free.
one event per month. There's
something for everyone. Our
PJ Library engagement am-
bassadors are young Jewish
Cleveland parents who meet
with families one on one,
as well as set up events for
families to get together and
socialize.
Right now we have ambassa-
families with children who
are 0-2 years old, and a Rus-
sian-speaking ambassador
two new
ambassadors
families in the
Solon, Chagrin
surrounding
areas.
families who want to meet oth-
er young Jewish and interfaith
families like themselves.
that young families can do
together?
something we can do with
our hands, and that we can all
do together. It's fun, yummy,
and Jewish, and is a nice way
to go into Shabbat and start
the weekend. It's also fun to
invite another family over to
do it with you while sharing PJ
books. You'll feel connected to
other Jewish families, connect-
ed to Shabbat, connected to PJ
Library, and connected to the
Jewish Federation of Cleve-
land. That's a lot of connec-
tions what fun!
You can fi nd out more infor-
family engagement by contacting
Aviva Roland at 216.593.2926 or
aroland@jcfcleve.org. Sign up for
PJ Library at www.jewishcleve-
land.org/pjlibrary.
the Harold Grinspoon Founda-
tion, PJ LibraryŽ in Cleveland is
generously funded by Mort (of
blessed memory) and Iris No-
vember in celebration of Debra
Ann November's life.