Forge Your Dot Org

Breakthrough Charter School’s vision statement really got to us:

“Our vision is to grow from serving 1,100 students to 7,000 students across 20 urban campuses by 2020, preparing 100% of our students to graduate from college and become engaged, responsible citizens.”

At their current state, it seems they are well on their way. According to Cleveland.com, Breakthrough Charter Schools received $2 million for expansion in December. Now they will be able to open four additional facilities, two of which they are opening next year.

In addition, their answer to why they love working there is also very powerful:

“We love working here because we have the opportunity to impact the lives of more than 1,000 inner-city kids, and the future of our city. In Cleveland, more than 38,000 children attend failing schools. Every day at our schools, our students dispel the notion that urban students can’t excel.”

By donating, you can help Breakthrough Charter Schools continue to open new schools and keep improving the lives of Cleveland youth.

Sometimes nonprofits that aren’t performing super-humanitarian services (like housing, feeding, or counseling people in need) can get overlooked. This way of thinking parallels how music classes are sometimes viewed as nonessential in the school systems. However, we think nonprofits in the arts realm can really make a community a more enjoyable place to live, and can also make a huge impact in the school systems where they share their art.

For this reason, Cleveland City Dance Company really caught our eye. We especially admired their drive to start the organization where there wasn’t already an existing dance company:

“We feel we are unique to the Greater Cleveland area because we are serving an area that has been without a ballet company for 10 years. We are trying to fill that void in the Cleveland arts scene and we know it is important to do it right the first time.”

This year, their performance will be on June 11th and 12th. So if you’re in the Cleveland area, be sure to see their show!

To understand why Energize Clinton County was created, you first need to know about the adversities of the city––Wilmington, Ohio––where the nonprofit was established.

Founders Mark Rembert and Taylor Stuckert explained, “Since 2008, our community has lost more than 8,500 jobs and faced a severe economic crisis. Energize Clinton County grew out of a citizen movement to broaden participation in economic development, and regain control of our local economy.”

We admired how many different problems Energize Clinton County is tackling:

• obtaining stimulus funding for renewable energy projects for the city of Wilmington
• helping businesses save money on bills by completing free energy audits
• promoting local businesses with a “Buy Local First” campaign
• working to promote a stronger focus on the small town

But they’ve run into a sort of catch-22 for funding:

“As our community continues to suffer the highest unemployment rate in the state, our long-term financial sustainability must include donors from outside the community. Unfortunately, many of these potential donors are disconnected from places like Wilmington.”

You don’t have to be a resident of Clinton County to help. If you believe in the cause, please donate so Energize Clinton County can strengthen their efforts in Wilmington and spread their ideas to other struggling communities. We agree that there are many cities in Ohio that could benefit from this approach and we wish them success in expanding the program.

You might have seen the special license plates and wondered what exactly The Fraternal Order of Police Foundation (FOP) does. Let’s start with their own words, with their mission statement:

“To promote and support educational and athletic opportunities for law enforcement officers, community activities to improve working environments, and provide support to distressed officers and families due to death or disability in the line of duty.”

This support is given in many different ways. They pay for their officers to participate in community events like Race for the Cure, Pelotonia, and Polar Bear Plunge. In a recent case, they have been providing food and helped with Christmas for the family of an officer that was shot and has been in the hospital since multiple surgeries.

We all need to recognize the risks our officers make every day to protect our lives and make our community a safer place to live. We can never replace a life but we can help to provide continuing financial support to the family.

Want to know how you can contribute? The Foundation will be hosting its 1^st Annual Officer’s Gala on Saturday, March 12 at the Hilton Columbus at Easton. The proceeds will benefit local fallen officers. Contact Stephanie at 614-882-4683 to reserve tickets or to make a donation. Can’t make it? You can also support the FOP Foundation by visiting www.fop9.org/foundation.html.