Stephen H. Hoffman, chairman of the Mandel Foundation, speaks while a picture of the Mandel brothers, Joseph, Morton and Jack, is on display during the Cleveland Arts Prize’s 65th Annual Awards on Oct. 22 in the Simon and Rose Mandel Theatre at Cuyahoga Community College’s Eastern Campus in Highland Hills.
CJN Photo / Jimmy Oswald
By Jimmy Oswald
It was a night that Thom Mandel said his father, Mort, would have loved: celebrating the rich Cleveland arts scene and honoring those who have contributed to the growth of the community.
The Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation – which Thom Mandel’s father and two uncles founded in 1953 to support Cleveland’s cultural, health care, educational and Jewish institutions – received the Barbara S. Robinson Prize for the Advancement of the Arts at the Cleveland Arts Prize’s 65th Annual Awards on Oct. 22.
What made the honor even more meaningful was that the ceremony took place at the Simon and Rose Mandel Theatre –
named for the Mandel brothers’ parents – on the Cuyahoga Community College Eastern Campus in Highland Hills.
“My dad was a huge fan of the arts,” Thom Mandel, an Akron resident, told the Cleveland Jewish News. “I remember walking through the Museum of Modern Art in New York City and going ‘My dad has one of those and he has one of those.’ He would have been absolutely thrilled at this.”
Richard K. Smucker, chairman emeritus of the J.M. Smucker Co. and a longtime trustee and former board chair of The Cleveland Orchestra, presented the award to Stephen H. Hoffman, chairman of the Mandel Foundation, who accepted the honor on behalf of the organization.
“On behalf of our president, our board, our staff and myself, thank you for this really wonderful recognition of our foundation’s efforts,” Hoffman said to the audience while receiving the award. “The (Mandel) brothers have created our foundation’s priorities to embrace the promotion of the humanities as a field of study and in public life. In this way, we see the arts as an expression of human yearning and understanding, the search for meaning through faith, philosophy and history in the making.”
Hoffman concluded his acceptance speech by announcing that the Mandel Foundation would match up to $20,000 in donations raised that evening to support the Cleveland Arts Prize and its mission to sustain Northeast Ohio’s vibrant arts community.
“My dad would have been very proud of Stephen and the way he presented and the fact that he was matching tonight’s fundraising,” Mandel said. “He loved the orchestra, he loved the art museum. If it was going on in University Circle, he was there. It really meant a lot to him.”
By the ceremony’s end, $27,700 had been raised – matched by the Mandel Foundation for a total of $47,700 – with additional donations expected during the after-party.
“Steve Hoffman’s announcement to match equal to our goal tonight is simply breathtaking,” Charna Sherman, a trustee for Cleveland Arts Prize, said from the podium. “And it’s even more poignant that we are in a Mandel theater. We all need to absorb what an impact another $20,000 would be to the core mission of this extraordinary organization. This really is a first for the Cleveland Arts Prize, and it will go far in continuing our 65-year tradition of keeping the arts alive, vibrant and thriving in our beloved home of Cleveland.”
When introducing the award, Smucker described the foundation as one that provides “extraordinary” leadership and philanthropic support to Northeast Ohio’s cultural landscape.
“From the Cleveland Museum of Art to the Cleveland Public Theater to the Cleveland Institute of Art to The Cleveland Orchestra – the foundation’s approach to giving is never just about funding,” he said. “It’s about strengthening institutions and communities and ensuring that the arts continue to inspire, educate and connect people across our city.”
Richard K. Smucker, left, with recipients of the Cleveland Arts Prize’s 65th Annual Awards, who assembled for a group photo on the stage of the Simon and Rose Mandel Theatre at Cuyahoga Community College’s Eastern Campus in Highland Hills. Each honoree was presented a medal and bouquet of flowers.
CJN photo / Jimmy Oswald
Smucker emphasized the Mandel Foundation’s $50 million grant to The Cleveland Orchestra, the largest in its 103-history, as an example of the impact the organization has had.
“It secured the orchestra’s ability to not only continue to share great music, but to strengthen our community education efforts by creating the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Opera and Humanities Festival, now in its fourth year, which brings together music, art and civic dialogue with a number of other arts organizations in new and inspiring ways.”
It also resulted in the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Concert Hall at Severance Music Center in Cleveland’s University Circle neighborhood.
Helping provide a boost to the orchestra is just one of many philanthropic actions that the foundation has taken on over the years. It also provided funding to the Cleveland Museum of Art, expanding access, exhibitions and community engagement as well as updating and renaming the Armor Court to the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Armor Court.
The foundation also awarded a 2024 challenge grant to Cleveland Public Theatre to enhance its Gordon Square campus and made gifts to the Cleveland Institute of Art to establish the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Atrium, support academic programs, and expand student access through the Mandel Leadership Scholarship.
It also continues to supply ongoing support for local community arts initiatives, including placemaking murals along East 72nd Street commissioned by LAND studio and the CLEVELAND WALLS! mural program organized by MidTown Cleveland Inc.
In one of its latest moves, the Mandel Foundation awarded $5 million to philanthropists at Friends of Mendelsohn to aid in transforming Park Synagogue’s Cleveland Heights campus into Park Arts.
“I also want to express our profound appreciation for the other honorees tonight as we celebrate their creativity and artistry,” Hoffman told the crowd. “Having our name associated with Barbara Robinson is especially meaningful to me as I knew her well. We had many conversations over the years about the funding of the arts and the vitality of the arts scene in Cleveland.”
The Cleveland Arts Prize began in 1960, founded by the Women’s City Club, with its main mission being to recognize outstanding artists from all disciplines. It accepts applications from visual, music, literature, design, theater and dance artists. This year, 180 applications were received.
Richard K. Smucker, chairman emeritus of the J.M. Smucker Co. and a longtime trustee and former board chair of The Cleveland Orchestra, congratulates Stephen H. Hoffman, chairman of the Mandel Foundation, after introducing the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation as the recipient of the Barbara S. Robinson Prize for the Advancement of the Arts at the Cleveland Arts Prize’s 65th Annual Awards, hosted in the Simon and Rose Mandel Theatre at Cuyahoga Community College’s Eastern Campus in Highland Hills on Oct. 22.
CJN photo / Jimmy Oswald
Other winners included:
• Emerging Artist Award: Ali Black, a vital voice in Cleveland’s literary scene whose latest poetry collection, We Look Better Alive, explores the struggles and resilience of Black women.
• Mid-Career Artist Award: Jason Vieaux, a Grammy-winning guitarist and longtime Cleveland Institute of Music instructor. Known for his international performances and local community engagement, Vieaux is celebrated for offering free concerts, teaching in underserved areas, and inspiring audiences with his artistry.
• Lifetime Achievement Award: Mark E. Howard, a sculptor, painter, muralist and textile artist whose works have graced some of the city’s most prominent public spaces, including the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, and the Cleveland Public Library.
• Robert P. Bergman Prize: Greg Peckham, whose 20 years as executive director of LAND Studio transformed Cleveland’s public spaces through art and place-making initiatives. Peckham now brings his vision for equity and access to the Cuyahoga Valley Land Conservancy.
• Martha Joseph Prize for Distinguished Service to the Arts: Robin Pease, a playwright, actor, educator, and founding artistic director of Kulture Kids. Of Native American descent and a member of the Mohawk Nation, Pease’s interactive performances celebrate Indigenous heroes and history, fostering empathy and cultural pride in audiences of all ages.
To learn more about The Cleveland Arts Prize, visit clevelandartsprize.org.
This article first appeared in the Cleveland Jewish News, a sister publication of Canvas. To read more like this, visit cjn.org.
