(Courtesy of TABC) Torah Academy of Bergen County (TABC) will hold its 37th annual dinner on Sunday, Jan. 2, at Congregation Keter Torah in Teaneck. The dinner’s guest of honor is Mo Fuchs. Linda Moed Cohen will be recognized with the Faculty Service Award and Tzvi Solomon ‘09 will receive the Alumni Tribute Award. The annual dinner is an opportunity to recognize and celebrate the students, parents, staff and the wider school community that contributes to the exceptional TABC experience.
The name “Mo Fuchs” is almost synonymous with yeshiva floor hockey. He has been the varsity coach and director of hockey operations at TABC since 1994 and is the architect of TABC’s successful program. Fuchs has inspired a culture of sportsmanship, athleticism and school spirit. He has served as a role model for his players, and instilled in them the values of teamwork and leadership. The ever popular annual team shabbatonim and barbecues encourage life-long bonds among both players and parents. Under his direction, the JV and varsity teams have won a collective 14 championships.
Fuchs’ reach extends beyond TABC’s students. His TABC junior hockey league is an enormously popular program in which local middle school students play hockey in a Torah environment, and are coached by TABC players. By expanding his reach beyond Bergen County, Fuchs has also been a fixture in the hockey programs at camps Mesorah, Morasha and Dovid for many years.
TABC Rosh Yeshiva Rabbi Yosef Adler is supportive of the honor. “Mo is one of the very few to apply the mitzvah בכל דרכיך דעהו, to know God in every way, through playing hockey,” he said. “His passion and commitment have inspired a school culture of athleticism, camaraderie and good middot.”
When he’s not coaching, Fuchs serves as the vice president of sales for Morre-Tec Industries, Inc., a manufacturer and reseller of nutritional, cosmetic and pharmaceutical ingredients for various companies. He has served on the boards of Congregation Rinat Yisrael, The Moriah School and Ma’ayanot. Fuchs and his wife Rina live in Teaneck and are the proud parents of four daughters (all of whom would have attended TABC).
Linda Moed Cohen has been the school nurse at TABC for the past 16 years. During that time, while certainly ensuring TABC met all state and immunization requirements, Cohen implemented several important programs, including emergency response training for teachers and coaches, the bi-annual blood drive and the bone marrow registry drive. She has also brought in many speakers throughout the years to address students on topics such as substance abuse, healthy eating habits and skin cancer.
“Linda is not only reactive in her service as school nurse but proactive by trying to improve the health of every member of the TABC family,” Rabbi Adler said. “She takes the mandate ושמרתם את נפשותיכם very seriously. Linda’s office is always open to students who want to talk, and she has been the sounding board and confidant for countless students throughout her years at TABC, working closely with guidance counselors, teachers and administrators to ensure wellness.” Linda also initiated the faculty lunch-and-learn series with Rabbi Daniel Fridman, which meets weekly.
Cohen’s communal involvement extends beyond TABC. Her passion for Jewish activism developed while growing up on the Upper West Side of Manhattan and attending the Jewish Center. While studying in Israel, where she was fortunate to learn under Nechama Leibowitz z”l, she volunteered at Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem. She has been very involved in Bikur Cholim of Highland Park and Raritan Valley, as well as organizations dedicated to Israel advocacy. In 2000, she was the nurse on March of the Living.
Cohen and her husband Dr. Hillel Cohen live in Highland Park and are the proud parents of Leora and Sam Schiff (and grandparents to Shamir Schiff), Aryeh (TABC Class of 2008) and Ariella.
Tzvi Solomon is a graduate of TABC’s Class of 2009. As a student at TABC, Tzvi played on the JV and varsity basketball teams, founded the Tzedakah Committee with Rabbi Chaim Jachter and participated as a student representative at the annual open house for prospective students. Most notably perhaps, Solomon is the mastermind of Pink Day Around the World, which expanded TABC’s Pink Day to schools and universities worldwide. Ever since then, thousands of students have taken part in this meaningful day to benefit Sharsheret.
“Tzvi is a model TABC alumnus,” said Rabbi Chaim Jachter, director of alumni relations and longtime TABC rebbe. “He is an excellent husband and father, dedicated to community, faithfully devoted to shemirat Torah and mitzvot and dedicates time each day to Torah learning. He is so deserving of this award.”
In addition to serving on the TABC alumni committee, Solomon’s current communal involvement includes serving on the executive committee of SINAI Schools and as a board member of American Friends of Migdal Ohr. In 2017, He received the Lev Tov Young Leadership Award from American Friends of Migdal Ohr. Solomon is a graduate of Yeshivat Lev HaTorah and Yeshiva University’s Sy Syms School of Business, where he was recognized with the Professor Richard Williams Memorial Award for Service and Character. He is currently a Vice President at Goldman Sachs in the CIMD division. He comes from a family dedicated to TABC’s growth and success and joins many relatives in an esteemed circle of past dinner honorees. Solomon and his wife, Erica, live with their son Matthew in New Milford.
All members of the community are invited to attend the annual dinner and celebrate the important role TABC plays in educating and strengthening the next generation of klal Yisrael. For more information and to make a pledge, please visit tabc.org/annualdinner.
