GAR Foundation awarded nearly $2 million in grants to 24 Akron-area nonprofit organizations following its May distribution committee meeting. Among this quarter’s grantees, GAR is highlighting three organizations whose work reflects both immediate community needs and long-term community vitality: Summit County Continuum of Care, Signal Akron, and the National Center for Choreography-Akron (NCCAkron).
Summit County Continuum of Care is receiving support for its Lived Experience Committee (LEC), a community-driven group that ensures individuals with firsthand experience of homelessness play a meaningful role in shaping local strategies and systems. This investment will help strengthen stipends, training, and capacity-building efforts as the LEC expands its membership and deepens its ability to inform policy development, system design, and community-based solutions.
“Ending homelessness requires more than programming. It requires listening to and learning from people who have lived it,” said Chris Richardson, Executive Director of Summit County Continuum of Care. “This support allows us to deepen that engagement, strengthen our system, and ensure lived experience is embedded in decisions that affect housing stability and opportunity across Summit County.”
Signal Akron, Akron’s nonprofit newsroom launched in 2023, is strengthening community understanding through accessible, in-depth local reporting. The all-digital newsroom has become a trusted source of daily coverage on major local issues, helping residents better understand the forces shaping Akron’s future. Through clear, relevant journalism on topics such as economic development, education, arts and culture, and community well-being, Signal Akron helps build shared knowledge that supports more informed and meaningful community engagement.
Alongside strong information systems, arts and culture play a critical role in fostering connection, creativity, and a shared sense of place.
Celebrating its 10-year anniversary in 2026, NCCAkron is a national incubator for dance innovation. Over the past decade, the organization has supported more than 800 dance artists from 100 U.S. cities while connecting artists and community through residencies, performances, educational programs, and partnerships with local organizations. In the past year alone, NCCAkron engaged nearly 5,000 individuals, including more than 1,400 in Akron, and continues to broaden its reach through publications, podcasts, and site-responsive work that invites residents into the creative process.
“At its core, our work is about creating the conditions for artists to experiment, collaborate, play, and connect meaningfully with the community,” said Christy Bolingbroke, Executive/Artistic Director of NCCAkron. “Support like this helps us sustain that environment, one where creative risk is valued and where Akron residents can engage with dance in unexpected and inspiring ways.”
Christine Amer Mayer, President of GAR Foundation, emphasized the importance of investing across sectors to support both stability and vitality in the region.
“These grants reflect our belief that a strong community depends on meeting essential needs while also fostering creativity, connection, and shared understanding,” Mayer said. “Organizations like Summit County Continuum of Care, Signal Akron, and NCCAkron are strengthening the systems, information, and cultural fabric that help people feel supported, informed, and valued. Together, this work helps Akron thrive.”
Through investments like these, GAR Foundation reaffirms its mission to make Akron smarter, stronger, and more vibrant by supporting education; economic, workforce, and community development; arts and culture; and basic needs in the region.
Among the grants awarded are the following:
- ACCESS — $180,000 for multiyear operating support
- Akron Art Museum — $250,000 for multiyear operating support
- ArtsNow — $145,000 for operating support and ArtsForward administration
- ArtSparks — $25,000 for operating support
- Axess Family Services — $70,000 for Mobile Meals operating support in Summit County
- Better Kenmore — $55,000 for operating support
- Center for Applied Theatre and Active Culture (CATAC) — $15,000 for operating support
- Community Legal Aid — $80,000 for multiyear operating support
- Downtown Akron Development Corporation — $100,000 for multiyear operating support
- Nazareth Housing Development Corporation — $20,000 for the Building Akron Together program
- National Center for Choreography – Akron (NCCAkron) — $25,000 for operating support
- Ohio Shakespeare Festival — $10,000 for operating support
- Project Learn of Summit County — $130,000 for multiyear operating support
- Progressive Alliance CDC — $35,000 for operating support and challenge grant
- Red Oak Behavioral Health — $50,000 for mental health consultation in APS pre-K classrooms
- Signal Akron — $100,000 for operating support
- South Street Ministries — $55,000 for operating support
- Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens — $30,000 for operating support
- Summit County Continuum of Care — $20,000 for the Lived Experience Committee
- Students With a Goal (SWAG) — $25,000 for operating support and challenge grant
- Urban Vision — $35,000 for the Set on Success afterschool program
- VANTAGE Aging — $40,000 for Meals on Wheels of Northeast Ohio
- Vincent House (Citizens Akron Church) — $20,000 for the Middle School Leadership Program
- West Hill Neighborhood Organization — $10,000 for WonderFest and West Hill Wednesdays
- Youth Success Summit — $250,000 for operating support