Friday Five – October 23, 2026

Keeping our community safe happens long before anyone needs it. This week, that work has taken our Chief Security Officer, Michael Higgins, and Bexley Police Chief Gary Lewis to Israel, where they are part of a 29-member delegation of Ohio security leaders.

Over eight days, they will meet with the Israeli officials who protect Israel’s communities, study the systems and technology behind that work, and stand at the site of the Nova Music Festival and Yad Vashem to remind us why this work matters.

Protecting Jewish life in Central Ohio depends on the right knowledge, preparedness, and the right relationships. We are proud to build both alongside partners like Chief Lewis, who make our community’s safety a priority.

We look forward to sharing what they learn.

Every child needs a place to ask big questions. At Agudas Achim, that place is Makom. Hebrew for “place,” it is where children learn, sing, and grow up surrounded by a community that knows them. Early funding by JewishColumbus helped bring Makom to life, and now Agudas Achim is one of just five congregations across North America that have been selected for a three-year Synagogue Engagement Grant from the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism to support this initiative.

The grant will grow Makom into a learning community for the whole congregation — from a child’s earliest years through high school and beyond, the lessons learned there will reach congregations across the continent. It started with a gift from our own community. Now it will help children far beyond Columbus find their place.

Cheri and Tod Friedman grew up together, from JCC summer camp to BBYO to Ohio State Hillel, building a shared philanthropic life on the example their parents set. “They left a legacy of education and guidance on why charitable giving is important,” Tod says. Now the Friedmans are leaving a legacy of their own, with bequests in their estate plan to Columbus Torah Academy, Beth Jacob Congregation, and Temple Israel.

They’ve passed this lesson down to their children. At each child’s bar or bat mitzvah, the Friedmans set up a philanthropic fund in that child’s name, and today their children give generously in their own right. “They’re living it,” Cheri says.

This week is National Estate Planning Awareness Week, a moment when we encourage you to think about the mark you want to leave on the community. Let us help you imagine what that might look like. Visit our website or contact Lori Maier Wishne at [email protected].

Something happens to a teen who spends time in Israel. They float in the Dead Sea with new friends, hike Masada before sunrise, and stand at the Kotel with thousands of Jews from around the world. They come home knowing they belong to something bigger than themselves. That’s why RootOne scholarships for Israel trips of three weeks or longer are increasing from $3,000 to $3,600. Combined with a JewishColumbus Israel Experience Grant, these two awards put an Israel summer within reach for every Central Ohio Jewish teen age 15–19. JewishColumbus is proud to invest in the trips that turn teens into proud, connected Jewish adults. Learn more and apply online.

Recently, two young Israelis, Eden and Tomer, stood before our community and shared what it was like to grow up without a home of their own. Both found one at Orr Shalom.

When Tomer arrived at age 18, just as his army service was starting, he resisted. He didn’t want to carry the “at-risk” label and believed he could handle things on his own. Then he met Hila, his social worker, whom he calls his “angel.” She helped him gain Lone Soldier status and connected him with a family who gave him a steady place to rest on breaks. He no longer had to bounce from couch to couch. That stability let him succeed beyond anything he could have imagined.

Tomer’s story is one of many. Each year, 3,000 children in Israel are removed from their homes, and for 45 years Orr Shalom has given them a warm, therapeutic one, from birth to age 26. Over the past five years, the Columbus Jewish community has invested nearly $100,000 in that care, for Eden, Tomer, and so many others.