CLEVELAND (December 16, 2021) – Neighborhood Connections has approved $323,930 in grants to support 126 projects in Cleveland and East Cleveland. Cuyahoga Arts & Culture, the local public funder for arts and culture, will co-fund 22 of these resident-led arts and culture projects through a partnership with Neighborhood Connections.
Highlights of the grants include:
- Creative Healing Foundation received $3,000 to expand their “City Scenes” artist photo walk program throughout Cleveland. These programs allow participants to render their own interpretations of the landscapes and introduce people to new areas of the city and culminate with a printed photo gallery show.
- Furaha Forever Productions received $2,000 to provide Family Creative Kits to families in need, and those negatively impacted by COVID-19 in the Old Brooklyn neighborhood. Kits will be accompanied by virtual and in-person programming with artists and guest speakers.
- Barrioboy Community Garden received $2,250 to help develop a fence around their community garden in the Clark Fulton neighborhood. The fence will help protect the garden and programming for children from the busy street, and will be a canvas for a community created mural.
- Black Men Who Excel received $2,250 to provide free piano lessons to children in the Fairfax neighborhood, in partnership with Ambitious Artists.
“We received more proposals from Greater Clevelanders this round than ever before,” said Tom O’Brien, program director of Neighborhood Connections. “People are resilient and working to create extraordinary communities right where they live despite many obstacles, including the pandemic. The funded projects show what can happen when we invest in residents working together to make the change they want to see.”
Since 2003, Neighborhood Connections has invested more than $10 million in more than 3,500 resident-led projects in Cleveland and East Cleveland.
“Now more than ever, we need creative experiences that are safe, welcoming, and close to home,” said Jill M. Paulsen, executive director of Cuyahoga Arts & Culture. “By investing in Neighbor Up grants, we are recognizing the power and expertise that people have to use arts and culture to make their neighborhoods stronger.”
Cuyahoga Arts & Culture invested $60,000 in Neighborhood Connections in 2021 to support community-based arts and culture activities organized by and for Cuyahoga County residents. CAC defines arts and culture broadly to include nature, science, cultural heritage, and history in addition to other art forms. Through this partnership with Neighborhood Connections, CAC has co-funded more than 400 resident-led arts and culture projects in Cleveland and East Cleveland since 2013.
View a list of the co-funded projects. For a complete list of grants awarded visit NeighborUpCLE.org.
Neighbor Up grants are offered several times each year to groups of residents in Cleveland and East Cleveland and, for projects related to the pandemic, to residents in Cuyahoga, Lake and Geauga counties, to do projects that improve the quality of life in their neighborhoods. Groups are encouraged to work with partners and to propose creative solutions to challenges in their community.
About Neighborhood Connections
Neighborhood Connections is a nationally recognized community-building program established in 2003. Its mission is to fuel the power of neighbors to create, together, an extraordinary world right where they live. Our small grants program is one of the largest in the country. For more information, visit NeighborUpCLE.org.
About Cuyahoga Arts & Culture
Cuyahoga Arts & Culture (CAC) is one of the largest local public funders for arts and culture in the nation, helping hundreds of organizations in Cuyahoga County connect millions of people to cultural experiences each year. Since 2007, CAC has invested more than $218 million in 445 organizations both large and small, making our community a more vibrant place to live, work and play. For more information, visit cacgrants.org.
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CAC Staff