News and Events

Grant research through the The Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library has pivoted through the pandemic to make it as accessible as possible to nonprofit leaders. During COVID “quarantine” times, The Foundation Directory Online Essential Tier, a search engine for grant opportunities, had been available 24/7 through home access with a library card. 

As of Thursday, March 25, with a Cincinnati Public Library card, individuals will only be given one single 24-hour period (within a given month) to have home access to this database. (A day pass can be re-issued after 30 days.)  For library card holders — the good news with returns to “normalcy” is that the Foundation Directory Online Essential Tier has returned to being available for daily use at the main library – but the only catch is that use is by appointment only. 

NOTE: To assist agencies that can’t devote time for a downtown visit, or for agencies that need more extensive grant lists than they are able to do for themselves, OneSource Center now provides grant search services. Several agencies have utilized this offering, and laud its benefits. Contact Vickie Ciotti to get more information!

Kent Mulcahey, the library’s grant resource librarian, is an incredible resource and is available for Zoom/Google Meet sessions to discuss strategies and help guide your library grant search for the very best funders if you would like to utilize him during your “at home” pass day.  (Be sure to set up an appointment ahead of time to be sure he is available.)  

Questions? Email Kent at kent.mulcahy@cincinnatilibrary.org for instruction sheets, guidance or appointment times. Email Kent to schedule your grant research time at the library as well. More information, provided by the Grant Research team at the Cincinnati Library is here.

The University of Cincinnati’s Work Study office and its Service Learning Co-op program are working together to provide nonprofits with free college student assistance. The partnership enables nonprofits to hire a Work Study-eligible student to work for up to 24 hours per week (40 in the summer) at no charge. The program will run year-round, but to get the most out of the program, recruiting should take place prior to the start of each semester. Want more information? Contact Paula Harper, Manager of Partnership Development, UC’s Division of Experience-Based Learning and Career Education at harperpr@ucmail.uc.edu or 513-556-9811.

Agency clients and community members interested in supplementing their summer food supply are getting support from The Civic Garden Center of Greater Cincinnati and the Cincinnati ToolBank. The “Victory Garden” initiative, a throw-back gardening program historically designed to help ease the pressure of food scarcity, helps local residents increase the availability of fresh produce and get the joy of “working in the dirt.” Through the program, the ToolBank is providing free tool rental and the Civic Garden Center is offering “How To” programming to help get projects moving. A free Zoom session “Create a Community Victory Garden” is being held on April 22, 7 – 8 p.m. to discuss the ins and outs of starting a garden. Speakers will also include GroundWorks Ohio River Valley, who will present gardening success stories.  A free resource from GroundWorks titled “Chris’s Urban Garden Adventure” shares a story of learning creative ways to safely start growing a garden in an urban setting.

The OneSource Center Common Good Voucher Program is an answer to community need, providing free retail products to individuals in our region impacted by the pandemic or challenging times. The program is a continuation of an initiative begun in 2020 which allows nonprofit agencies to recommend low-income clients to the OneSource Center program.  Individuals utilizing the voucher program come from a variety of backgrounds, but can be from recovery centers or homeless shelters or dealing with pandemic times. Voucher recipients are working with agency representatives to establish self-sufficiency, and this program supports this vision. 

All donations to the Common Good Voucher Program are used to provide vouchers to clients of nonprofit agencies.Items available through the program can include personal care, household and kitchen items and even furniture – items donated to OneSource Center’s warehouse distribution center by philanthropic corporate donors.  Free vouchers for extremely reasonably priced furniture and products are distributed in $25 increments to OneSource Center member agencies for use by their clients. Multiple vouchers can be combined for larger purchases. An agency representative accompanies their client(s) when shopping. (more…)