The George Gund Foundation

03/11/2008 in Grantmaking

Foundation Awards $2.4 Million in March

CLEVELAND OH — The George Gund Foundation made grants at its March meeting for a new theater in downtown Cleveland, a program that delivers locally-produced foods to urban neighborhoods and expansion of a project to improve health outcomes for low income children and their families.

Bang and The Clatter Theatre Company, which received a $35,000 grant, will open its first production in a renovated Euclid Avenue storefront near the East Fourth Street Entertainment District later this month.

The New Agrarian Center’s City Fresh Program distributes produce grown by Northeast Ohio farmers at ten “Fresh Stops” in Cleveland and two in first-ring suburbs. The project, which received a $40,000 grant, also emphasizes nutrition education and cultivation of direct farm to business connections.

Other grants related to local food production included $34,920 to the Ohio State University Research Foundation for community gardening programs and $90,000 to the Cuyahoga Valley Countryside Conservancy for its work on farm land preservation and efforts to encourage individuals and businesses to “eat local”.

The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland will use a $30,000 grant to launch the Ohio Medical-Legal Partnership, a network of programs based on a successful pilot at Cleveland’s MetroHealth Medical System that provides proactive legal assistance in community healthcare settings.

Trustees made 57 grants totaling $2,426,420 at their first quarterly meeting of 2008 to a variety of education, arts, environment, human services and community and economic development organizations.

Other grants of interest included:

  • $60,000 to the Cleveland Heights/University Heights School District for several projects being planned by the First-Ring Superintendentsí Collaborative, a group representing 15 first-ring school districts
  • $100,000 to the National Trust for Historic Preservation to evaluate Ohioís pilot Ohio Historic Buildings Rehabilitation Tax Credit and determine its economic impact
  • $100,000 over two years to the Economic Growth Foundation to help Greater Cleveland businesses address environmental challenges and opportunities facing the region
  • $75,000 to Planned Parenthood Affiliates of Ohio Institute for Research and Education for public policy work

The George Gund Foundation was established in 1952 by George Gund, former chairman of the Cleveland Trust Company. The Foundation funds programs that enhance our understanding of the physical and social environment in which we live and increase our ability to cope with its changing requirements. Grants are made quarterly in the areas of education, human services, economic and community development, environment and arts. Foundation commitments to date have totaled more than $506 million.

For further information contact:
Deena M. Epstein (216) 241.3114