With a record-setting recent round of grants, The Cleveland Foundation is ensuring, among other things, that a well-loved local institution will continue to make beautiful music.

Last week, the foundation's board of directors approved a best ever $26.6 million in grants for the first quarter of 2013. The funding included a $10 million grant to the Cleveland Orchestra in support of operation and programming efforts as well as the organization's larger initiative to attract a broader audience. Besides the orchestra grant, additional monies totaling nearly $10 million will bolster core neighborhood and youth initiatives.

The orchestra funding is the largest single grant given to an arts organization in the foundation’s 99-year history, notes executive vice president  Bob Eckardt. A portion of the grant stands as a leadership gift to help fund the ensemble's “Sound for the Centennial" strategic campaign, culminating with a century celebration in 2018.

"The orchestra is an important part of Cleveland's brand," says Eckardt.

Another grant recipient is Neighborhood Progress, Inc., which garnered $5 million in support of its strategic plan to forge a new community development network for Cleveland’s underserved neighborhoods.  

Overall, Cleveland Foundation beat its previous grant-giving record of $21.6 million set in the third quarter of 2012. The large orchestra grant helped boost this number, but the nation's slow economic recovery has also grown the foundation's capacity, says Eckardt.

The organization's VP hopes this winter's big gain is just the start of a year that at the very least matches 2012's $90 million in total grants.

"We'll be in that neighborhood again," Eckardt says.

SOURCE: Bob Eckardt
WRITER: Douglas J. Guth