CLEVELAND, OH — The Resident Advancement Committee (RAC) of the Saint Luke’s Foundation has approved $24,000 in grants to support four local grassroots initiatives through its most recent round of community-focused funding. These investments reflect the Foundation’s ongoing mission to achieve health equity by addressing the social determinants of health in neighborhoods surrounding the former Saint Luke’s Hospital.
“These projects are imaginative, inclusive, and rooted in what residents know their neighborhoods need,” said Indigo Bishop, Program Officer at the Saint Luke’s Foundation. “The Resident Advancement Committee is proud to support this next slate of residents and their projects, each of whom is finding creative ways to nurture wellness, civic engagement, literacy, and belonging.”
The four newly awarded projects are:
- Lit(eracy) Lounges & Buckeye Neighbors by Comics on the Corner — $6,000
- This project will host four “Lit Lounges” in local libraries and organize a Trunk-or-Treat/Back-to-School drive. These events aim to build community, promote literacy, and create joyful, educational spaces for families in the Buckeye neighborhood.
- Restoring Together sponsored by Neighborhood Leadership Institute — $6,000
- Vonree Mao will host four wellness workshops at Adun Spice Shop to introduce neighbors to self-care practices like breathwork, self-massage, and yoga. These sessions will center Black healing and build community through restorative wellness.
- Karaoke and Conversation sponsored by Neighborhood Leadership Institute — $6,000
- Karaoke and Conversation is an innovative civic engagement initiative using music and fun to spark deeper conversations. By bringing people together in bars and local venues, the program will encourage political education and community advocacy among youth and adults alike.
- Well Balanced Program by Universal Love Enterprise — $6,000
- This six-week series will offer beginner-level yoga and meditation sessions with a nutritional wellness component. The program provides residents with tools to care for their physical and mental health in an accessible, supportive environment.
About the Resident Advancement Committee
The Resident Advancement Committee (RAC) is Saint Luke’s grantmaking body of ten community members who oversee the Foundation’s community discretionary budget. Through the RAC, residents of the Saint Luke’s footprint review the Foundation’s Community Grant applications and award up to $140,000 annually for initiatives that zero in on the social, economic, and environmental factors which shape health in their own neighborhoods. The Saint Luke’s Foundation is dedicated to achieving health equity by addressing social determinants of health for people in neighborhoods surrounding Saint Luke’s and throughout Cuyahoga County. For more information on the work of Saint Luke’s Foundation, please visit saintlukesfoundation.org
About Saint Luke’s Foundation
The Saint Luke’s Foundation is dedicated to achieving health equity by addressing social determinants of health for people in neighborhoods surrounding Saint Luke’s and throughout Cuyahoga County. Saint Luke’s is committed to demonstrating grantmaking that is responsive to the community and believes that people thrive as a result of living free of racism and poverty and experiencing equitable economic opportunities and conditions that enable them to lead healthier lives. Since it was established with the charitable assets of the Saint Luke’s Medical Center in 1997, the Foundation has awarded over $170 million in grants. For more information on the work of Saint Luke’s Foundation, please visit saintlukesfoundation.org
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Media Contact:
Devonta Dickey
Communications and Marketing Officer
Saint Luke’s Foundation
216.431.8010
ddickey@stlukesfdn.org