Weekly News from LMM

Blessed, to Be a Blessing

Renderings for our first BNG house at 6401 Bonna Ave.

Does your congregation have an endowment? Many temples, churches, mosques and other faith associations were the beneficiaries of very high returns on their endowment investments in the past year. Perhaps your congregation is considering how to best utilize this unexpected blessing. For those of us who are people of faith, we know that we are “blessed, to be a blessing”.   Two congregations have let LMM know that they will be sharing a part of their investment windfall with LMM’s Breaking New Ground (BNG) Affordable Housing Campaign. Perhaps your faith community is in a position to do the same.    BNG is the perfect opportunity for your congregation to make a lasting difference in the lives of women and children experiencing homelessness.    Breaking New Ground is an innovative $3.5-million dollar renovation and rental project designed to provide 20 newly refurbished, affordable homes in the St. Clair-Superior Neighborhood to families who are struggling to overcome homelessness. The program has the potential to permanently change the lives of these families, with the goal of helping them to finally break the cycle of poverty.   We are VERY CLOSE to meeting our campaign goal, with only about $780,000 left to raise!    That’s where you come in…   We know that decisions about congregational endowment investment returns are being made in the next few weeks. Would you be willing to bring this opportunity forward to your clergy or congregational leadership? We stand ready to provide further information or answer any questions you might have. Please contact LMM Director of Development Kate Maver, at [email protected] or 216-658-7204 to discuss this unique opportunity to invest in the lives of others. For further information about the campaign, click here.

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Chomping4Change Movie Night Baskets Sure to Please Every Palate

LMM’s Workforce Development programs have made a significant impact in the lives of restored citizens, people with limited employment skills and individuals experiencing homelessness. Your support of our work is what fuels our ability to enhance the employability of these individuals as they pursue independence and personal agency. LMM is excited to share that graduates of our Chopping For Change (C4C) Workforce Development Program are the subjects of the documentary Apart, featured in the Cleveland International Film Festival (CIFF) this month. To celebrate the local release of the film, we are hosting the Chomping4Change gift basket fundraiser. To purchase a Chomping4Change gift basket filled with delicious culinary treats and LMM swag, click the button below. All gift basket proceeds will benefit LMM's Workforce Development program.

BUY A BOX

Join LMM for the Apart Movie Night & Documentary Panel Discussion

LMM is honored to highlight graduates of our Chopping For Change (C4C) Workforce Development Program in the Apart documentary featured in the Cleveland International Film Festival (CIFF) this month. LMM is a community partner of the movie 'Apart', which will air at CIFF from April 7 – 20. The film features three alumni of C4C as they navigate life and involvement in the criminal justice system. LMM supporters and friends can purchase discounted tickets to view the film online by visiting the CIFF website. LMM will host a community viewing of 'Apart' on April 20. We invite you to join the LMM community as we journey through the lived experience of our program participants, host a live online chat via our Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts, and gather your thoughts and questions about the film. On April 27, we will pose your questions to Tomika, Lydia and Amanda from the film, during a live panel discussion. Want to Join in this Special Recognition? Here’s What You Need to Do: Step 1: Purchase tickets for the film, by clicking here. Enter the code "LMM" in the Discount Code box on the Payment Information screen during checkout to take $1.00 off each ticket in your cart! Step 2: Join Us April 20 for an LMM Community Movie Night. Click on your ticket link on 4/20/21 at 6:00 PM and join the LMM community for a movie night chat on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram from 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM. Pose questions or share observations you have about this unique experience of reentry. Step 3: Engage with Lydia, Amanda and Tomika from the film during a live panel discussion on April 27. To participate in the live panel discussion visit our Facebook page @lmmcleveland or go to www.lutheranmetro.org at 7:00 PM.

Take this Survey to Inform LMM's Housing Work

LMM is currently in the process of growing our community development and affordable housing work, which includes the Breaking New Ground renovation initiative located in St. Clair-Superior. We are seeking community input and feedback throughout this process from residents who live in the neighborhood, as well as existing LMM clients. Our goal is to contribute to equitable neighborhood development in a way that purposefully centers the needs and wants of our community. Take the survey here!

Johnson & Johnson Vaccines Put on Pause

The single-dose Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine has been temporarily paused "out of an abundance of caution" after six reported cases of blood clots across the United States. Ohio's mass vaccination clinics, which had been distributing the Johnson & Johnson shot, have shifted to providing Pfizer or Moderna vaccines during the J&J pause. If you originally had an appointment to receive the J&J vaccine, it is recommended that you check with your provider for more information. Read more here.

Community Survey from NEO SOJO

Northeast Ohio Solutions Journalism Collaborative (NEO SOJO) is a group of news outlets that spent the last year covering how COVID-19 has impacted marginalized communities in Northeast Ohio. The collaborative is made up of 20+ news outlets, including Cleveland.com, Ideastream (WCPN), The Land, Freshwater Cleveland, the Cleveland Street Chronicle (from NEOCH) and many more. You can read more about NEO SOJO here.   They are seeking input for a community survey which will be key to determining what NEO SOJO's main focus will be with their new grant cycle starting in May 2021. The next topic for the next year could be housing and homelessness, or the digital divide; you can help them decide! Here's a link to the survey.

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