Earlier this year, the Cleveland Foundation announced plans to create an Encore initiative to help retirees in the Greater Cleveland region use their time and talents for others.
Today, the Foundation announced three-quarters of a million dollars in grants to two organizations. The bulk of the money will go to Greater Cleveland Volunteers to expand literacy programs in the Cleveland schools. Business Volunteers Unlimited also gets a grant that will encourage retirees to do pro bono work for nonprofit organizations.
The Foundation's Executive Vice President Robert Eckardt says more grants will be coming in the next year and most of the money will focus on helping the region's youth. They hope retirees from many different backgrounds will join the effort.
"We don't want this to just be for retired executives. We believe that there are retiring electricians and plumbers and others that have talents that can help benefit young people.We want this to be a wide ranging effort that really changes how we think about the talent of people in Cleveland," Eckardt says.
The two grants were part of $16.3 million in total grants announced by the Foundation today.