Cinnaire Cares was established to provide our staff with an opportunity to collectively make an impact and support the communities we serve. It is a 100% employee-driven initiative that gives our team members an opportunity to support communities and community organizations financially and through direct service activities. Since Cinnaire Cares launched in 2017, our staff has raised more than $138,600 to support our mission-driven partners across our geography.
We are pleased to share the most recent Cinnaire Cares recipients! With Cinnaire’s matching contribution, a total of $25,224 was generated this funding round, making this our largest round to date. Each organization will receive $4,204 to support their mission. From providing affordable housing and homeownership opportunities, to supporting teachers and schools, to delivering cultural opportunities for youth, the Cinnaire Cares recipients are once again a diverse group of organizations and missions.
Aspire Relationship Education – Serving Michigan
Nominated by Anthony Winston
Aspire Relationship Education strives to educate, equip, and empower teens and adults to make positive choices leading to healthy relationships. Their holistic approach to relationship education focuses on the potential physical, psychological, and social impact of individual choices. The Cinnaire Cares donation will be used to operate the online academy – which has been well received, increasing the program’s reach and accessibility – and to restart programming in schools when students return for in-person learning.
Christina Cultural Arts Center – Serving Delaware
Nominated by: Dionna Sargent
The mission of Christina Cultural Arts Center, Inc. (CCAC) is to change the trajectory of a child’s life by making affordable arts, education, career pathways, gallery exhibitions, and live performances accessible to all in a welcoming environment. For nearly 70 years, CCAC has been an anchor in the Delaware arts community and Wilmington’s Creative District, focusing on the tenants of Hope, Knowledge, Inspiration, and Passion by providing instruction and performance/exhibition opportunities in music, dance, drama, visual arts, and poetry. CCAC will use Cinnaire Cares donation to support the operations of the center and enable the organization to deliver quality and affordable arts programs.
Foundation for Madison Public Schools – Serving Wisconsin
Nominated by Chris Laurent
The Foundation provides funding for Madison’s public schools to ensure that every student reaches their full potential, every educator feels supported, and every school community is thriving. Donations have helped schools foster creative learning by funding enhanced recreation areas, art programs, and summer literacy sessions. Teachers are given access to both basic school supplies and hands-on learning tools, helping to eliminate the $1.4 million they collectively spend each year of their own monies to fill gaps in tools and supplies. Donations will be used to help the Foundation implement innovative programs, establish community partnerships, and advocate in support of the Madison Metropolitan School District.
Nominated by Kait Schutz
Lacasa is a nonprofit housing agency with programs to help clients achieve financial stability, find a new home, prevent foreclosure, find affordable rentals, get home repair assistance, immigration counseling, and neighborhood engagement. Lacasa believes that every family deserve safe, affordable housing. The Cinnaire Cares donation will be used for welcome packages, pest control treatments, and social programming (events) as they re-open their community space.
Ruth Ellis Center – Serving Michigan
Nominated by Jerrell Harris
Ruth Ellis Center’s mission is to create opportunities with LGBTQ+ young people to build their vision for a positive future. They have established a national reputation for quality and innovation in providing trauma-informed services for lesbian, gay, bi-attractional, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ+) youth, and young adults, with an emphasis on young people of color, experiencing homelessness, involved in the child welfare system, and.or experiencing barriers to health and wellbeing. The center is named for Ruth Ellis a fierce advocate for African Americans, senior citizens, and the LGBTQ community. When she died at the age of 101 in 200, she was one of the oldest openly gay Black women in the world. A Detroit icon, Ruth became the first African American woman to own an off-set printing business in the city. Cinnaire’s Jerrell Harris serves on the board for the center. The Cinnaire Cares donation will be used to support outreach and safety-net services, skill-building workshops, and HIV prevention programs for LGBTQ+ youth.
Cinnaire’s Emergency Fund
For the fifth time, a portion of funding from Cinnaire Cares will be allocated to an emergency fund, set aside for pressing causes. Cinnaire’s emergency fund is used to support our nonprofit partners during crisis, economic, or natural disasters.
Cinnaire is a non-profit financial partner that supports community and economic revitalization initiatives through creative investments, loans, and development services. Since 1993, Cinnaire has invested $4.7 billion to develop 811 housing communities in 10 states, providing 49,700 affordable apartment homes for more than 100,000 individuals and families, and has provided community development loans to support the creation/retention of more than 187,000 square feet of commercial, mixed-use, and community space. In its mission to change lives and transform neighborhoods into thriving communities, Cinnaire has helped to create or retain over 76,000 jobs and spurt $7.9 billion in economic impact. www.cinnaire.com
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