Carl Robson, M.D.

Carl Robson was raised in Hinsdale, Illinois. He attended College of Wooster, Ohio, then Case-Western Reserve Medical School. He interned at Parkland Hospital in Dallas TX and then spent 2 years in U.S.Public Health Service, Indian Health:  Turtle Mountain Chippewa Reservation in Belcourt, NorthDakota.

Carl did his Internal Medicine Residency at Cleveland MetroHealth, then worked in the St. Clair-Superior neighborhood, an under-served, inner-city area of Cleveland, spending the next 5 generations there (50 years) in the practice of Family Medicine – mostly private practice.  This was followed by working for NEON (Northeast Ohio Neighborhood Health Services) when government made solo private practice  financially untenable. He moved into this neighborhood in the 1980’s and is still living there, though he retired from medical practice in November, 2020.

Carl says the practice was very rewarding and meaningful to the patients (and doctor), to have the same doctor for so many years.

Carl was recruited reluctantly on an Ethiopian tour in 1982 by his  Mom and became fascinated with the country. This led to an abiding involvement ever since.

Carl married Ethiopian R.N. Senait Shiferaw, who continuously does meaningful, targeted projects of need for Ethiopians.  

Carl formed the non-profit Menelik Hall Foundation Inc. in 1987 for student assistance and Ethiopian projects in general. The Foundation held many cultural/historical programs over the years.  Over 50 student and immigrant sponsorships, medical projects and book shipments. He helped establish and maintain an on-going sister-city connection with Bahir Dar, Ethiopia.

Carl was instrumental in the establishment of the first Cleveland Cultrual Garden of an African country.  He helped with the construction of the Ethiopian Cultural Garden Mosaic Wall which was designed by renowned Ethiopian artist Zerihun Yetmgeta. Carl says that none of this was possible without the teamwork of their strong, dedicated Executive Committee.

Many best know Dr. Robson as the owner of Empress Taytu Ethiopian Restaurant at 6125 St. Clair Ave. in Cleveland where he has worked to bring Ethiopian food and culture to the public.

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Dr. Carl Robson inducted on June 7, 2022

Watch the video of Carl Robson being inducted into the Cleveland International Hall of Fame by Aklilu Demessie.

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Congratulations Carl!

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Akram Boutros, MD, FACHE

Akram Boutros, MD, FACHE

In his five years as the President and CEO of MetroHealth, the public health system in Cleveland, Akram Boutros, MD, FACHE, has galvanized political leaders, entrepreneurs and the public around supporting community-wide health care many had taken for granted.

With his unwavering commitment to delivering high-quality health care to everyone in Cuyahoga County, Akram Boutros has achieved what many thought was impossible. Under his leadership, The MetroHealth System went to market on its own credit in 2017 and sold $946 million in bonds to rebuild its hospital, revitalize its main campus and resurrect its West Side neighborhood.

That is just one piece of the unprecedented transformation of Cuyahoga County’s public health care system Dr. Boutros has piloted since he arrived at MetroHealth in 2013.

In the five years since, he has created an Integrated Delivery System that provides care at more than 20 community health centers, four emergency departments, four clinics in Discount Drug Mart stores, five MetroExpressCare locations and nine pharmacies. Those are in addition to MetroHealth’s main-campus hospital, which is home to the area’s most experienced Level I Adult Trauma Center, a Level II Pediatric Trauma Center, the only adult and pediatric burn center in the state and Ohio’s only Ebola Treatment Center.

Now a more than $1 billion operation, MetroHealth and its caregivers treat patients at more than 1.4 million visits a year.

In the past five years, The MetroHealth System has also created more than 1,300 additional jobs, sent doctors into a dozen Cleveland schools and constructed an $82 million addition to its Critical Care Pavilion. Annual operating revenues have grown from $783 million in 2012 to $1.13 billion in 2017. And last year, MetroHealth returned $231 million – 21.3 percent of its operating expenses – to Cuyahoga County in free care and community benefit programs. That is 2.3 times the national average.

An internist with a 25-year record of successful hospital leadership at academic medical centers, community hospitals and specialty hospitals, Dr. Boutros cultivates personal relationships throughout the hospital system and the community along with an atmosphere of personal excellence for everyone he works with.

A graduate of St. John’s University, SUNY Downstate Medical Center and Harvard Business School’s Advanced Management Program, he has led organizations through strategic repositioning, operational redesign, clinical and physician integration and population-health and risk-contracting programs. He sees collaboration with other health systems, organizations and local residents as a key driver in fulfilling MetroHealth’s mission of leading the way to a healthier community.

His community service includes chairing the American Heart Association 2015 Cleveland  Heart Ball, the most successful in the city’s history, and serving on the boards of:

• America’s Essential Hospitals
• American Hospital Association Section for Metro Hospitals Governing Council
• Cleveland Ballet
• Cuyahoga Community College Foundation
• Global Center for Health Innovation
• Greater Cleveland Food Bank
• Greater Cleveland Partnership
• The MetroHealth Foundation
• Select Assurance Captive
• Unify Project
• United Way of Greater Cleveland
• Vizient

Some of his recent awards include being named:

• Recipient of the 2018 George V. Voinovich Municipal Service Award from The Cuyahoga County Mayors & City Managers Association
• Recipient of the 2018 Richard H. Adler Community Leadership Award from the American Jewish Committee Cleveland
• Recipient of the Stokes Leadership Award
• The American Red Cross 2016 Community Leader
• One of the “183 Nonprofit Hospital and Health System CEOs to Know in 2017” by Becker’s Hospital Review
• EY 2015 Entrepreneur of the Year for Community Impact in Northeast Ohio
• A 2015 nominee for Modern Healthcare’s 100 Most Influential People in Healthcare
• One of Northeast Ohio’s Power 150 by Crain’s Cleveland Business
• Inside Business Magazine’s Power 100 list

Dr. Boutros was inducted by Cuyahoga County Executive Armond Budish

Click on the white arrow to watch the video as Master of Ceremonies Chris Tanaka, news anchor of Channel 19, introduced Cuyahoga County Executive Armond Budish who inducted Akram Boutros MD, the President and CEO of MetroHealth, the public health system in Cleveland, into the Cleveland International Hall of Fame. 

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The Very Rev. Fr. Mikhail Edward Mikhail

 

The Very Rev. Fr. Mikhail Edward Mikhail, D. Min. was born in Cairo, Egypt on August 2, 1949. From an early age, he was active in church life, and was fortunate to have several mentors who clearly influenced his life and guided him to a love for his church and its service. These mentors would all play a role in guiding him to enter the Coptic Orthodox Theological Seminary in Cairo where he would come under the patronage and guidance of his most influential mentor, H. H. Pope Shenouda III, who was Bishop of Christian Education and Dean of the Seminary.

He excelled in his studies and in his ministry, building friendships with faculty and students that would last a lifetime. Upon his graduation in 1972, he was assigned as deacon to one of Cairo's many churches and later sent to New York to be the first deacon to serve in the United States. In the spring of 1974, he married Seham Samuel and on August 23, 1974, was ordained to the priesthood by his teacher and mentor, H.H. Pope Shenouda III at St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in Cairo.

On April 30, 1975, Fr. Mikhail and his wife Seham, who was six months pregnant with their first child, arrived in Cleveland to begin his new ministry as the first resident pastor of St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church. In addition, Fr. Mikhail would be given pastoral responsibilities over the smaller Coptic communities in Columbus, Dayton, Cincinnati, Toledo and Youngstown in the State of Ohio, as well as in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota. All these communities would in due time receive their own resident priests, all due to the care and ministry of Fr. Mikhail.

In 1981 he was elevated to the rank of Archpriest by Pope Shenouda. In 1984 he received a Master of Divinity in Pastoral Care and Counseling and in 1986, a Doctorate in Ministry from Ashland Theological Seminary. He was instrumental in establishing the first Coptic Theological Seminaries in America in 1989, where he served as dean and professor of New Testament and Pastoral Theology. He is a prolific preacher and writer, having written many books, including Focus on the Coptic Family, St. Mary - the Mother of God, The Greatest Acquaintance Party, 1000 Answers to 100 Questions , A Journey With the Church Fathers Through Lent, Passion Week and Commentaries on the Book of Revelation.

Under his pastoral care, the Coptic Orthodox Community in North East Ohio has grown from 50 families in 1975 to over 600 in 2016, with two parishes serving their pastoral and spiritual needs. Fr. Mikhail and his wife Seham are the proud parents of two attorneys; Bishoy (Executive Director of International Development at Cleveland Clinic) and Sherrie Mikhail Miday (attorney at Manley Deas Kochalski and candidate for Common Pleas Court, Cuyahoga County). Together have five grandchildren, three from Sherrie and her husband, Ryan: Athanasius , Mikhaila, Helena; and twin boys from Bishoy and his wife Susan: Theodore and Samuel.

Rev. Mikhail Mikhail was inducted by Seven Hills Mayor Richard Dell'Aquila

Click on the white arrows to watch the videos from the 2016 Induction Ceremony.   Make sure your speakers are on and note that you can maximize the videos to fill the screen.

Video 1: Dan Hanson of ClevelandPeople.Com introduced Seven Hills Mayor Richard Dell’Aquila at the induction ceremony for the 2016 class of the Cleveland International Hall of Fame. Dan told of the beautiful St Mark’s Coptic Orthodox Church in Seven Hills and their annual Egyptian Festival before introducing the Mayor.

 

Video 2: Seven Hills Mayor Richard Dell’Aquila introduced and inducted The Very Rev. Fr. Mikhail Edward Mikhail, D. Min. into the 2016 class of the Cleveland International Hall of Fame.

Video 3: The Very Rev. Fr. Mikhail Edward Mikhail, D. Min. of St Mark Coptic Orthodox Church in Seven Hills was inducted into the Cleveland International Hall of Fame for his many contributions to the Coptic Church and Egyptian community of Cleveland and Northeast Ohio.

 

Video 4: Cleveland International Hall of Fame MC Dan Hanson from ClevelandPeople.Com read part of a proclamation from the Egyptian Embassy in Washington DC.  Then members of his parish sang a song in tribute to Fr. Mikhail.

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El Hajj Amir Khalid A. Samad

 

El Hajj Amir Khalid A. Samad is an internationally known and recognized Community Activist and leader who formerly served as the Assistant to the Public Safety Director for the City of Cleveland for youth gang intervention (Jane Campbell administration). He has also served as a Gang Prevention and Investigative Specialist for the Cleveland Board of Education Gang Task Force 1991-2000). In addition, he is Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Coalition for A Better Life, dba Peace in the Hood, Inc., an organization dedicated to Peace, Justice and Empowerment and also serves as a spokesperson for the International (Formerly National) Council for Urban (Formations) Peace, Justice and Empowerment.

As an internationally acclaimed specialist on Urban Violence, Youth Empowerment and Gang Intervention, Amir Samad has lectured throughout the nation and has appeared on National Radio and television shows such as Tavis Smiley, Night Line, Keeping It Real with Rev. Al Sharpton, The Warren Ballentine Show, BBC, France TV, Britain TV, Tokyo TV and PBS as leading authority on these issues. He has served as a convener for the International Council (formerly National Council) Urban (Formations) Peace and Justice, Leadership Summits the 25th year Gang Summit was held 2013 at Cleveland State University.

In 1987, Khalid Samad, the late Omar Ali-Bey and other community leaders formed The Coalition For A Better Life which addressed the myriad of challenges facing urban America: racism, drugs, gang violence, police corruption, miseducation and an absence of leadership just to name a few. This unified coalition of faith and community based groups involved Muslims, Christians, Jews, Hebrew Israelites , liberals, conservatives, civil rights activists, and community activists, as well as cultural nationalists. This rainbow coalition was inclusive of all ethnic groups and nationalities. This level of cooperation, under Muslim Leadership, was unprecedented in America given this country's history of inter-religious relations. The Coalition was recognized as a national model for crime prevention and intervention.

The Coalition For A Better Life designed and implemented five monumental projects that were nationally acclaimed. These projects were: 1) Community Empowerment Drug Patrols (which were 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and involved street engagement of violent drug dealers as well as assisting them to cross over into productive life styles by dealing with dealer addiction issues; 2) Rites of Passage, 3) Mentoring (Project A.D.A.M.), 4) Entrepreneurship (Project Ujima) and 5) Cultural Empowerment (Hip Hop exchange which included such nationally known rap artists as Public Enemy, and X-Clan as well as nationally known spoken word artists, The Last Poets). These initiatives together formed Cleveland's first Community Empowerment Project. The notorious King Kennedy Housing Estates was averaging 3 homicides and shootings a week during this time. The efforts of The Coalition for a Better Life sparked a multimillion dollar infusion of improvements and services into King Kennedy and throughout the other housing estates in Cleveland.

Khalid A. Samad is a leading authority on cross-cultural relations, one of the most important religious and cultural diversity issues of our time. He has worked as a member of the City of Cleveland's Arab-American Concerns Committee, established after several robberies and shootings took place in Arab-American owned stores.

In December of 2008, Amir Samad was asked to be one of the panelists in Washington, D.C. at a Youth Violence Summit sponsored by Rep. Bobby Scott of Virginia. On May 7, 2009, he spoke on youth violence at the Youth Promise Act Day on the Hill. In 2008, 100 Black Men honored (Khalid Samad) as one of the Five Outstanding Cleveland Leaders.

Khalid Samad was inducted by City of Cleveland Director Blaine Griffin.

Click on the white arrows to watch the videos from the 2016 Induction Ceremony.   Make sure your speakers are on and note that you can maximize the videos to fill the screen.

Video 1: Dan Hanson of ClevelandPeople.Com introduced City of Cleveland Community Relations Board Director Blaine Griffin at the induction ceremony for the 2016 class of the Cleveland International Hall of Fame. Blaine would induct Khalid Samad.

Video 2:  City of Cleveland Community Relations Board Director Blaine Griffin inducted El Hajj Amir Khalid A. Samad into the 2016 class of the Cleveland International Hall of Fame. Blaine said that Khalid was the second African-American and first Muslim to be inducted.

 

Video 3: El Hajj Amir Khalid A. Samad was inducted into the 2016 class of the Cleveland International Hall of Fame. Khalid, CEO of Peace in the Hood,  was the second African-American and first Muslim to be inducted.

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Reverend Dr. Otis Moss, Jr.

Theologian, pastor and civic leader, the Reverend Dr. Otis Moss, Jr. is one of America's most influential leaders. He was born in La Grange, GA. He earned his bachelor's degree from Morehouse College, his master of divinity degree from Morehouse School of Religion/Inter-denominational Theological Center and his doctor of ministry degree from the United Theological Seminary.

In 2008, Reverend Moss retired from Olivet Institutional Baptist Church located in Cleveland, Ohio following thirty-three years of distinguished service. Prior to this service, he held pastoral positions at the Mount Olive Baptist Church in La Grange, GA, the Providence Baptist Church in Atlanta, GA, the Mount Zion Baptist Church in Lockland, OH and as co-pastor with Rev. Martin Luther King, Sr. at the Ebenezer Baptist Church, Atlanta, GA.

Reverend Moss has been actively involved in advocating for the achievement of education, civil and human rights and social justice issues for all of his adult life. His board memberships have included The Cleveland Museum of Art and the Cleveland Foundation. Dr. Moss served as the Chairman of the Morehouse College Board of Directors for over ten years. He served as board member and Regional Director of SCLC during Dr. King's tenure as founding president. He also served as national board member and trustee of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Non-violent Social Change.

His work in the international community has taken him to Hong Kong, Brazil, Taiwan, Japan, West Africa, South Africa Israel, India and Switzerland. He served as an advisor to former President Carter at Camp David and in 1994 he was the special guest of former president Clinton at the Peace Treaty signing between Israel and Jordan. He formally served on President Obama's White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnership Council. In 2009, he co-lectured with Rajmohan Gandhi, the Grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, during a multi-city tour of India illuminating the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi.

Reverend Moss is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Role Model of the Year Award from the National Institute for Responsible Fatherhood and Family Development in 1992 and the Leadership Award from the Cleveland chapter of the American Jewish Committee in 1996. He was inducted into the 2007 Class of the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame. In 2004, Dr. Moss was bestowed the unique honor of the Lyman Beecher Lectureship on Preaching, Yale University. He was twice named by Ebony Magazine as one of America's Greatest Black Preachers. He also holds six honorary degrees from colleges and universities in Ohio, Georgia, and Arkansas. Morehouse College recently named their newest dormitory suites in honor of Dr. Moss.

His service to Ohio and the United States has been recognized by Governors of Ohio, the Ohio House of Representatives, Ebony Magazine, the Cleveland Press, the Call and Post, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, the Black Professional Association of Cleveland, the American Red Cross of Greater Cleveland, Project Love: Remember the Children Foundation, The Cleveland Jewish Committee and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Alpha Phi Alpha, the Shriners,and Rainbow/Push to name a few.

Dr. Moss is a life member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., and Sigma Pi Phi Boulé, to name a few. He has appeared on the Oprah Winfrey show to discuss Current Trends in Religion. In 1997, in conjunction with University Hospitals Health System and Olivet Institutional Baptist Church, Dr. Moss provided the vision to establish the Otis Moss, Jr.-University Hospitals Health Center that offers a wide range of medical services to the greater Cleveland community.

Reverend Moss is married to Mrs. Edwina Hudson Moss and is the Father of Kevin Moss, Daphne Moss (deceased) and Otis Moss, III. Together they are the proud grandparents of five grandchildren and one great-granddaughter.

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