Menachem Cohen
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
Menachem Cohen joined the Youth Outreach Team in 2006 and has brought his ability to build relationships and find creative strategies to engage young people we serve to the homeless youth he encountered in a safe, nonjudgmental way. Inclusive, kind and relatable are words often used to describe him. Helping to restore hope in the lives of young people who’ve felt cast aside and invisible has been his passion since day one. It is Menachem’s ability to connect with youth and adults on the street and provide leadership, training and awareness to community stakeholders that has allowed him to establish a strong presence within the homeless provider community and be seen as a trusted adult youth can depend on. His kilt and beard make him unmistakable and impossible to miss. Homeless youth have a friend in him. They can get basic needs met through him. He works to provide comfort and safety when there is none. He embodies the faith and the work of rabbi and is an inspiration to all.
— Allison McCann-Stevenson
+ 7 other nominations
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