Established in 1988, The Lake-Geauga Fund of the Cleveland Foundation is a committee-advised fund focused on serving the residents of Lake and Geauga counties. Since its inception, the fund has distributed more than $17 million and has been a critical resource to jumpstart new ideas, guide organizational strategy, leverage additional dollars and address high priority program needs in Lake and Geauga counties. Typically, the fund awards grants through an annual request for proposals process in the fall. However, with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in Northeast Ohio, the Lake-Geauga Fund Advisory Committee realized it would need to step up to provide assistance right away and decided to make its 2020 grants in the spring season.

In partnership with the Greater Cleveland COVID-19 Rapid Response Fund, and in consultation with organizations and leaders in Lake and Geauga counties, the Lake-Geauga Fund Advisory Committee identified pressing community needs as well as the local organizations best equipped to meet those needs. An initial round of grants totaling $222,500 was awarded to the following organizations:

• Lake County Free Clinic ($10,000)
• Lakeland Foundation ($10,000)
• Crossroads Health ($25,000)
• Project Hope for the Homeless ($22,000)
• Fine Arts Association ($10,000)
• University Hospitals Geauga Health Center ($25,000)
• Claridon Community Helps ($5,000)
• Geauga Hunger Task Force ($20,000)
• Chagrin Falls Park Community Center ($15,000)
• Deepwood Foundation ($20,000)
• Metzenbaum Shelter Industries ($14,000)
• Ravenwood Health ($15,000)
• Kent State University Geauga Campus ($20,000)
• NAMI Geauga County ($1,500)
• Educational Service Center of the Western Reserve ($10,000)

“We had an opportunity at the onset of the pandemic to determine our role in assisting the many organizations in need during this critical and uncertain time,” said Nancy Guthrie, Lake-Geauga Fund Advisory Committee immediate past chair. “I am so proud of the work we did as a committee to make a positive impact in our communities through our fund.”

The Lake-Geauga Fund Advisory Committee will reconvene in the fall to monitor rising community needs related to COVID-19 in Lake and Geauga counties.