A Touch of Teddy, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, seeks to give comfort to families who have experienced pregnancy or infant loss by providing teddy bear ornaments for loss families during the holidays. These ornaments can be ordered year-round for a small cost and are free for loss families during the month of October. In the last three years, we've provided over 8,000 ornaments for free to families missing their babies.

Adoption Network Cleveland (ANC) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1988 that connects and empowers individuals, organizations, and communities impacted by adoption, kinship, and foster care while providing a source of healing for those in need. We recognize adoption not as a single legal event, but as a complex, lifelong, and often intergenerational journey that affects adoptees, birth families, adoptive families, kinship caregivers, foster families, and professionals.

 

Through trauma-informed, peer-based support, education, advocacy, and community engagement, ANC helps individuals navigate the unique challenges and opportunities that arise throughout their lives. Our core service areas include Family & Youth Programs, Adult Adoptee & Birth Parent Programs, Search Assistance & DNA Discovery Services, and Education & Community Outreach. These programs provide support groups, educational workshops, family activities, search and reunion assistance, parenting education, professional training, and community resources that promote healing, resilience, and connection.

 

Each year, ANC serves thousands of individuals across Ohio and beyond, creating safe spaces where people can share their experiences, build supportive relationships, and access trusted information. By fostering understanding, promoting best practices, and advocating for policies that strengthen families and honor lived experience, Adoption Network Cleveland works to build a more informed, compassionate, and inclusive community for everyone impacted by adoption, kinship, and foster care.

The Greater Cleveland Chapter of the American Association of Zookeepers (GCAAZK) is a 501(c) charitable organization (EIN 34-1658349) geared toward supporting the professional development of zookeepers and other zoo professionals in the Greater Cleveland area, as well as contributing to conservation efforts both locally and across the globe. Since our organization was founded, our chapter has been one of the leading chapters in supporting conservation efforts. We encourage and support our members and their specific animal passions by helping them create events to support conservation organizations of their choice.

 

Locally, we have supported organizations and initiatives such as the migratory bird rescue Lights Out Cleveland; the spotted turtle project, in collaboration with Cleveland Metroparks Zoo and the Cleveland Aquarium; and the Trumpeter Swan Society. We also organize several local tree plantings each year so that parks can be enjoyed by both the community and local animal populations.

 

Globally, we have supported an array of conservation efforts over the years. Examples include our annual Bowling for Rhinos event, supporting the International Rhino Foundation; Drafts for Giraffes, supporting the Giraffe Conservation Fund; and Burritos for Bears, supporting the Andean Bear Conservation Alliance. These are just a few examples.

St. Mary Church and Chardon United Methodist Church in Chardon, Ohio, host a yearly special needs prom called Night to Shine. This prom is part of a worldwide movement of hundreds of churches and organizations hosting special needs proms on the same date each year to share God’s love in a unique way! These proms are part of the Tim Tebow Foundation and are for guests with special needs ages 14 and older.

 

Locally, we will host approximately 100 guests with special needs and crown each of them king or queen on their own special night. We will also invite guests' parents and caregivers to enjoy a special night as well.

 

Every guest of Night to Shine will be welcomed with a red carpet complete with paparazzi. Guests will receive VIP treatment, including dinner, hair and makeup stations, shoe-shining stations, corsages and boutonnieres, a karaoke room, and dancing! The highlight of the night will come when every guest is crowned king or queen of the prom. Hundreds of volunteers also join in to make this the best night of the year!

Taking care of people with disabilities is where Our Lady of the Wayside enters the world:
• 500 individuals with disabilities supported by Wayside's Healthcare Services Program
• 70 homes managed by our Residential Program
• 120 accessible vehicles logging over one million miles annually through our Transportation Program
• 5 Pathways Day Program sites throughout Northeast Ohio
• 500 professional staff members providing support every minute of every day

The agency is one of the largest waiver providers in the state of Ohio and has been trusted with the care of the region's most vulnerable people for six decades.

Project Noelle was created by a grandmother who lost her daughter to the opioid epidemic. She took in two grandchildren and realized there was really no support for those kids. Project Noelle helps provide support to children affected by a loved one's addictions and to their caregivers. Many of these children are in foster care or placed with relatives. Many have parents who have passed away, are incarcerated, are in rehabilitation facilities, have abandoned them, or may be in recovery and working to get back on their feet.

 

Project Noelle helps with Christmas and Easter, school supplies, emergency clothing and diapers, recreation and sports, and grief support. We work closely with the National Guard Counter Drug Program to help stop the cycle from repeating and to educate children that they do not have to follow their loved ones' path. Last year, Cuyahoga County helped over 800 children for Christmas and over 400 children for Easter.

Scouting America is chartered by Congress to serve our nation’s youth by instilling the values of the Scout Oath and Law. Scouting America aims to prepare young people for lives of impact and purpose. We welcome, at every level of our movement, youth and families who wish to live such a life of impact and purpose, guided by the Scout Oath and Law.

 

Scouting America is committed to creating a welcoming, safe environment where Scouts can freely express themselves, share their experiences, and become the best version of themselves by learning from and respecting each other.

Scouting America is nonpartisan. The national organization, local Scout communities (councils), and units will ensure that their decisions, public statements, relationships with third parties, activities, and events are consistent with our nonpartisan nature and maintain the welcoming and supportive nature of Scouting.

 

The Great Trail Council oversees Portage, Medina, and Summit counties. The Soaring Eagle District includes troops located within Medina County and some surrounding areas. This donation would benefit the Scout troops located in this area by supporting their involvement in extraordinary opportunities that will help them discover and grow their potential to become future leaders.

https://www.scouting.org/about/

Stockings From Victor is a nonprofit organization created to bring hope, dignity, and encouragement to individuals in recovery. Founded in loving memory of Victor Nieves, the organization grew from a simple belief: even the smallest act of kindness can remind someone they are not alone.

 

Through partnerships with treatment centers and recovery programs, we provide care packages filled with essential personal care items such as socks, toothpaste, deodorant, and other everyday necessities. These simple items can make a meaningful difference for someone working to rebuild their life.

 

At Stockings From Victor, our mission is to ensure that every person in recovery knows they are supported, valued, and never forgotten.

The M.O.R.E. Cafe is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to empower and validate differently abled individuals by offering meaningful opportunities within their community. Traditionally, differently abled individuals have not been offered the same opportunities as neurotypical individuals. Work opportunities, as well as social opportunities, are limited as these individuals reach adulthood and are typically repetitive and sheltered in nature.

 

The M.O.R.E. mission looks to change this. Every day, meaningful opportunities are offered to individuals who are too often overlooked. At the heart of the M.O.R.E. mission is the belief that every person with a disability deserves the chance to contribute and thrive. Individuals who are part of The M.O.R.E. mission become part of a community, develop a social circle, take their place at the front and center of a business, and, most importantly, turn “I wish I could” into “I just did.”

Village Project is a nonprofit organization working together as a community to provide nourishing meals and extended support to families undergoing active cancer treatment throughout Avon, Avon Lake, Bay Village, Fairview Park, Rocky River, and Westlake.

 

We believe that healthy, nourishing meals can make a meaningful difference during one of life's most difficult journeys. Through the dedication of our volunteers and the generosity of our community, we provide nutritious meals that ease the burden of daily meal preparation, allowing families to focus on healing and spending time together.

 

Each household member receives three meals with sides and dessert each week, delivered free of charge for up to six months while the client is in active cancer treatment. Clients also receive our signature vegetable broth each week and bone broth each month for added nourishment.

St. Joseph’s Helpers is a Christian, volunteer-driven 501(c)(3) nonprofit that helps seniors, veterans, individuals with disabilities, and other neighbors in need remain safe and secure in their own homes. Through free, safety-focused home repairs and accessibility improvements—including wheelchair ramps, grab bars, handrails, stair stabilization, and other essential repairs—the organization helps clients maintain their independence and age in place with dignity. In its submission, St. Joseph’s Helpers reports support from more than 390 volunteers and says that, during the past year, it responded to more than 2,500 requests for assistance, completed over 1,700 home repair and accessibility projects, and served approximately 1,500 individuals across 750 households in Southeastern Michigan.

 

The Gathering Place supports, educates, and empowers individuals and families coping with the impact of cancer through programs and services provided completely free of charge. Its offerings include professionally facilitated support groups, programs for children, teens, young adults, and families, nutrition and exercise programming, art, music and meditation, educational resources, a wig salon, and grief support. The organization serves participants through locations in Beachwood and Westlake, Ohio, as well as online programs that extend support beyond Northeast Ohio.

 

Providing compassionate support and stable housing for pregnant and parenting women across Northeast Ohio experiencing homelessness.

 

Nested Hope is a community-driven 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to filling a critical gap for families navigating the daily realities of special needs. We provide a secure, welcoming environment offering caregiver support groups, informative workshops, casual respite, and specialized sensory-friendly recreation. By centering our work on compassion and connection, Nested Hope ensures that caregivers do not have to walk their journey alone, fostering a thriving community where both individuals with special needs and their families are supported, valued, and empowered.