By Kaitlyn McCormick August 29, 2022 Zzak G. “Applaud Our Kids” Foundation Inc. Two sisters, a deathbed regret and a spare $100 started the Zzak G. Applaud Our Kids Foundation (AOK), a unique New Jersey nonprofit that funds students ages 7-22 pursuing the performing arts.  When their father died from ALS(Lou Gehrig’s disease), sisters CEO Jodi Grinwald and President Melissa Grinwald-Bartz racked their brains to find a way to honor him. Knowing that their father was a songwriter and opera singer who lamented up until his death that he was unable to afford vocal lessons until his 30s, the s ..read more

Children at the Ronald McDonald House of Greater Cincinnati.  Photo courtesy of RMHC. By Kaitlyn McCormick Nonprofit Sector News When the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown hit in March 2020, most nonprofits that provided services could not just stop operating, and many organizations had to find new ways to provide for their beneficiaries in light of many uncertainties. In November of 2020, the Ronald McDonald House of Greater Cincinnati finally celebrated a grand opening after undertaking a 99-room expansion, making it the largest house in the now international organization. The process of getti ..read more

By: Kaitlyn McCormick Nonprofit Sector News July 20, 2022 When the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown hit in March 2020, most nonprofits that provided services could not just stop operating, and many organizations had to find new ways to provide for their beneficiaries in light of many uncertainties.  In November of 2020, the Ronald McDonald House of Greater Cincinnati finally celebrated a grand opening after undertaking a 99-room expansion, making it the largest house in the now international organization. The process of getting the spaces filled, however, was staggered due to health safety meas ..read more

By Naga Prudhvi Panguluri Nonprofit Sector News January 4, 2022 The League of Women Voters (LWV) has been working at both the national and local levels for months to help pass the Freedom to Vote Act, a new comprehensive revamp of the voting reforms that has been repeatedly delayed in Congress.   The bill, introduced in the US Senate on September 14, is designed to expand voting opportunities, modernize voter registration, and promote election security. The bill is supported by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and most, if not all, other Senate Democrats.   Key provisions ..read more

Current photo from the Urban League’s website emphasizing its current work on voting rights legislation. By Emely Salguero Nonprofit Sector News December 10, 2021 A National Urban League program designed in 2009 to limit home foreclosures during the Great Recession has been overhauled to limit home foreclosures during the COVID-19 pandemic. The program, Restore Our Homes, has been helping Americans, especially low-income and minority homeowners, attain and retain housing for many years, said Ayanna Fortson, the Urban League’s Vice President of Housing and Community Development. “So whether t ..read more

Moscow Central Lions Club’s newly elected officers for the 2021-22 year. (Photo courtesy Moscow Central Lions Club.) By Naga Prudhvi Panguluri Nonprofit Sector News July 14, 2021 Americans will never know even how many individuals, nonprofits, corporations, and government agencies—let alone all of their names—that volunteered or donated to help the U.S. public through the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting recession. So many jumped in, without being asked and without taking credit. Around the country, one such organization was Lions Clubs International. The Illinois-based nonprofit is familiar to ..read more

 National Urban League website photo By Megan Finke Nonprofit Sector News July 7, 2021 Like so many other nonprofit organizations nationwide, the Urban League of Greater Southwestern Ohio (ULGSO) is fighting to get its community members vaccinated against COVID-19. This affiliate of the National Urban League serves 12 counties from Dayton to Northern Kentucky and comprises both the Greater Cincinnati Urban League and the Miami Valley Urban League. Since the coronavirus outbreak, ULGSO has hosted a site where people can get tested and since April 2021, be vaccinated. The site, at 3458 Read ..read more

The River Valley Regional Food Bank, part of Feeding America, distributes needed food in eight West Central counties of Arkansas. By Jolie Shave Nonprofit Sector News May 20, 2021             At one point during the COVID-19 pandemic, the National Guard was working in about half of Feeding America’s food banks to help offset the loss of volunteers. And while many at the national organization—a network of more than 200 food banks—are optimistic about recent rebounding, two thirds of Feeding America sites still are short on volunteers.   ..read more

By Megan Elaine Finke Nonprofit Sector News April 13, 2021 The National Urban League already has had conversations with “senior leaders in government” about its new plan, released in late January, to get broadband internet access to all Americans. Although about 85% of all Americans have broadband access, the Urban League stresses that only about 54% of households with total incomes less than $50,000 have broadband access. Broadband internet is a high-capacity transmission technique using a wide range of frequencies, which allows simultaneous communication of large amounts, and many types, of ..read more

Image Copyright United Way 2021 Lindsey Potter Nonprofit Sector News April 9, 2021 United Way Worldwide has been serving its mission of improving lives by mobilizing the power of communities to advance the common good since 1887. This year, their mission in providing accessible healthcare for all shifted to focusing on COVID-19 recovery. United Way Worldwide, for its 2022 agenda, is hoping to focus on rebuilding rather than recovery. “And we are continuing to move forward with that with the new Biden administration,” said Dave Wallace, health policy director for United Way Worldwide. “And we’v ..read more