The mitzvah (commandment) of hachnasat orchim is of Biblical origin. Our forefather Avraham left his sickbed to welcome strangers into his tent, teaching us this core Jewish value.

Throughout the shtetls of Eastern Europe, towns provided for needy Jews through a communal hachnasat orchim society. In the late 1880’s a group of Cleveland Jewish leaders committed themselves to fulfilling this important mitzvah by establishing the Hebrew Shelter Home. The Home began welcoming immigrants and those in need as befits a Jewish community. In 1904, the Hebrew Shelter Home incorporated, and became a founding beneficiary agency of the Jewish Community Federation of Cleveland. As the Cleveland Jewish community has grown and moved, so too, has the Hebrew Shelter Home. From the original location on Orange avenue, to the Glenville area, the Kinsville area, and now in the Heights, the Hebrew Shelter home continues to affirm that there is no Jew who is a stranger.

Please help to support the Hebrew Shelter Home today.