News June 16, 2020

Greater Cleveland COVID-19 Rapid Response Fund partners announce latest round of grantmaking

Grantmaking efforts will now continue through July to meet ongoing need

The Greater Cleveland COVID-19 Rapid Response Fund coalition announced today the most recent round of grants to support the nonprofit community. In total, $928,000 was awarded to 18 organizations and groups serving Cuyahoga, Lake and Geauga counties.

Since the Fund’s creation in mid-March, partners have granted more than $6.6 million to 120 nonprofit groups and organizations.

The latest round of grant recipients includes:

Food & Shelter

  • City Club of Cleveland ($22,000): To support the City Club’s food distribution partnership with Lutheran Metropolitan Ministries, an effort that is producing 10,000 meals every week for Greater Cleveland’s homeless population.
  • Harvard Square Center ($30,000): To support the socially distant delivery of the center’s services and programming to its Southeast Cleveland clients, including delivery of food and hygiene kits, as well as virtual education and wellness programming.
  • Heights Christian Church ($36,000): To support a collaboration with other churches and community organizations to increase the capacity of the Unity in the Community food pantry program to address food insecurity in the Shaker Heights community.
  • Vineyard Christian Fellowship ($15,000): For additional equipment and supplies to store and provide more fresh food for the organization’s drive-up food pantry.
  • Islamic Center of Cleveland ($35,000): To continue to provide housing, utilities, food and necessary supplies to those in need in the Northeast Ohio area.

Connectivity

  • DigitalC ($100,000): To help provide high-speed internet to 200 low-income Breakthrough Schools families in order to access online coursework and community resources.
  • Esperanza Inc. ($25,000): To implement youth, postsecondary, and family engagement support programs for Hispanics in Greater Cleveland via videoconference.
  • PCs for People ($100,000): To continue to provide low-cost computers, internet and tech support to low- income families in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District and other inner ring suburbs.
  • Towards Employment ($85,000): To purchase IT equipment and additional supplies to provide adult literacy services via tele-tutoring and live video sessions to the agency’s more than 1,100 students.

Clinical & Behavioral Health

  • Stella Maris, Inc. ($57,000): To provide emergency room and board for clients who cannot be placed in sober living, as well as the purchase of critical safety supplies and additional telehealth equipment in Cuyahoga, Lake and Geauga counties.
  • Women’s Recovery Center ($19,000): To support the organization as it continues to serve women and their families in Cuyahoga County by providing comprehensive addiction treatment, prevention, and education programs that are client-centered, family-based and recovery-focused.
  • Life Exchange Center ($23,000): To expand peer support services for adults in Cuyahoga County with mental health and/or addiction challenges to include telehealth and at-home kits with personal hygiene items and activities to assist during isolation.

Other Vulnerable Populations

  • Achievement Centers for Children ($62,000): To equip both staff and clients with new laptops, webcams, monitors and software to allow for telehealth appointments for children and adults with disabilities in Greater Cleveland.
  • American Cancer Society Hope Lodge ($46,000): To assist with the reopening of Hope Lodge, including sanitizing the facility, retrofitting the common areas to enable social distancing and providing PPE to both caregivers and patients who utilize the free facility near Cleveland’s cancer treatment centers.
  • Enterprise Community Partners ($23,000): To provide safe, accessible tax services for low-income families in Cleveland due to the extension of the federal and state filing deadline, critical in order for families to receive their COVID-19 economic impact payments.

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

  • Cleveland Baptist Association ($100,000): To help houses of worship to safely reopen by providing PPE, CDC educational guidance signage, and deep cleaning services as well as technology resources that allow long-term access to live streaming of services for sick and shut-in members.
  • Neighborhood Connections ($100,000): For PPE coordinators whose goal will be to develop and execute a dissemination plan in coordination with masks from MAGNET (43,000 cloth masks) and Matthew 25: Ministries (50,000 surgical masks) – with a focus on low income residents in Cuyahoga County.
  • Slavic Village Development ($50,000): To provide PPE to organizational staff, residents and businesses to aid with the safe reopening in the Broadway/Slavic Village neighborhood.

With the community still facing unprecedented challenges during the ongoing pandemic, Fund partners have decided to extend this initial phase of grantmaking through the end of July to help meet the continued need and to be able to react to a constantly evolving situation as Greater Cleveland slowly reopens.

Frontline nonprofits that have pressing needs related to the COVID-19 crisis response should email covid19response@clevefdn.org to receive more information about the streamlined funding process. The funding collaborative will continue to identify potential grantee partners, solicit guidance on proposed projects from community advisors and recommend final awards. Organizations that have already submitted funding requests will remain in consideration for future grant distributions until further notice.

Overall contributions to the Rapid Response Fund now total more than $8.7 million from 81 different corporate, civic and philanthropic partners, including individuals and families across the region. New funding partners (since May 29) include Ellen E. & Victor J. Cohn Supporting Foundation*; The Kent H. Smith Charitable Trust; The Pavey Family; Sotera Health; Stanley E. And Sally Harris Wertheim Family Foundation*.

Funding partners urge other foundations, corporate entities, individuals and organizations to contribute to the fund via ClevelandFoundation.org/Response, where you can also view a list of partners to date. Donations of any amount are welcomed, and all contributions are tax deductible.

Based upon the charitable structure of the Rapid Response Fund, grants are limited to 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations, groups fiscally sponsored by a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, or other charitable organizations able to receive a tax-deductible contribution, such as schools, faith-based organizations and other public entities. The partners are not able to fund individuals or businesses directly, labor unions, or other 501(c)(4), 501(c)(5) and 501(c)(6) organizations.

For more information or to donate, visit ClevelandFoundation.org/Response.

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