Two Cleveland boys from modest backgrounds in the Glenville neighborhood dreamed up Superman 80 years ago. The beloved character -- and many more like him -- have been rescuing boys from boredom and engaging them in reading and writing ever since.

This week, in an inspired twist on this fabled story, a group of third grade and seventh grade boys from Citizens Academy and University School are participating in a superheroes story workshop at Ohio City Writers, a new nonprofit writing center on Lorain Avenue in Ohio City. 

The creators of the event hope that the workshop not only gets kids interested in reading and writing, but also helps them soar to new heights as engaged learners.

During the workshop, groups of boys will team up to create characters, settings and plots, then write their own superhero stories and share them with the group. It is being led by Frank Lewis, former Free Times and Scene editor and founder of Ohio City Writers.

Patty Dowd, Director of Student Enrichment at University School, says that extracurricular programs such as this one are important because they inspire boys to read and connect boys of different backgrounds in a fun, social setting.

"Reading is always an issue with boys, and they often don't have male role models who read and like to read books that are recommended by other boys," says Dowd. "Comic books are a great way to get boys into reading and writing."


Source: Patty Dowd
Writer: Lee Chilcote

This month Cleveland welcomes Great Lakes Courier, a high-energy free monthly paper that caters to Northeast Ohio's enthusiastic cycling community. "One of the things we hope to provide is a place for different groups of cyclists to tell stories and interact," says editor Michael Gill.

What’s on your summer to-do list? Hanging out at your favorite outdoor café? Taking a dip at Edgewater? Enjoying a Tribe game at Progressive Field? Well, here’s another: touring Cleveland by bicycle. This year it’s easier than ever to see the city via two wheels thanks to new bike-tour operators, public rides, and bike rental companies.

Fixing up an older home can be a daunting task. These days, many homeowners don't know a wrench from a pair of pliers, and even if they are handy, both their tools and their skills may be a little bit rusty.

That's where the Home Repair Resource Center (HRRC), a 40-year-old nonprofit organization based in Cleveland Heights, can help. HRRC offers how-to classes for residents throughout Cuyahoga County and a tool-loan program geared to residents of Cleveland Heights.

"We want to empower people to fix their own homes, especially now because there's such a need," says Kathryn Lad, Executive Director of the HRRC. "We teach people how to do it themselves or to hire the right person for the job."

Since the HRRC was founded out of a church in Cleveland Heights, the group has facilitated over $14 million in home improvements. Lad recalls with pride a class geared towards women that spurred a group of friends to build their own garage. The group also offers foreclosure intervention services, financial education and financial assistance programs for low-income homebuyers.

"Everybody is having a tough time right now, and money is tight," says Lad. "People tend to be doing more repairs in reaction to emergencies than remodeling projects. We help people take care of things they have to take care of."

The HRRC has an ongoing series of Tuesday night classes and is also offering a new series entitled "Practical Sustainability: New Thinking for Older Homes."


Source: Kathryn Lad
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Mentor native Erin Huber wasn't exactly sure how she would bring together her passion for water conservation and international development when she finished graduate school. She'd grown up in a blue collar family that spent summer weekends camping near lakes, streams and rivers, and those early experiences nourished her love of fresh water.

After completing her master's degree in Environmental Studies at the Levin College of Urban Affairs at Cleveland State University, she decided to create her own nonprofit organization to bring together these passions under a single roof.

Drink Local Drink Tap is a new organization that works to educate Clevelanders about the pollution that is created by drinking plastic bottles of water and the need to conserve fresh water locally and internationally. To educate both youth and adults, Huber creates water-themed art installations and provides free environmental education at schools.

Next month, Huber will fly to Uganda, where she and her team members will bore a 70-meter hole to provide fresh drinking water to hundreds of residents in a small village there. Currently, children must walk over a mile to find a water source near the village, and the water isn't clean or safe. Huber and her team members also are filming a documentary entitled Making Waves from Cleveland to Uganda that will be released at next year's Cleveland International Film Festival.

For Huber, the project is about sharing the water wealth of the Great Lakes -- which hold 20 percent of the world's fresh water -- with areas in dire need.

Huber, who describes her group as a "very nonprofit organization," is still raising funds for the project. You can donate to the cause on the organization's website.


Source: Erin Huber
Writer: Lee Chilcote

The population of Northeast Ohio's 12 most populous counties fell by seven percent from 4.1 million in 1970 to 3.8 million in 2010. Yet at the same time, suburban areas added 400 square miles of roads, shopping centers, housing developments and office parks.

That unabated trend towards urban sprawl is not sustainable, argues the Northeast Ohio Sustainable Communities Consortium, a new initiative that won a $4.25 million grant from the federal government in 2010 to plan for more sustainable land use patterns across the region. It also wastes resources, harms cities and makes the region less competitive.

So what would a truly vibrant future look like for Northeast Ohio? The NEOSCC hopes to engage young professionals in answering that question at a series of public engagement meetings. The next event is scheduled for Wednesday, May 16th at Brothers Lounge in Cleveland.

"A lot of times, decisions are made without involving young people, and we wanted them at the forefront," says Jeff Anderle, Director of Communications with the NEOSCC. "We keep hearing that they want a competitive economy in the region so that there are more job opportunities. They also want walkable communities and more vibrant downtowns throughout the 12-county area."

Anderle stresses that the NEOSCC is not dictating people's choices -- "We want to educate people so that they understand the big picture infrastructure costs and how they affect everyone," he says -- yet the initiative's impact will come down to how communities throughout the region adopt the NEOSCC's recommendations. The group plans to release an initial report on existing conditions in June.


Source: Jeff Anderle
Writer: Lee Chilcote

For a teenager, it's the opportunity of a lifetime to spend a week sailing on a 150-foot tall ship -- tying ropes, keeping watch and sleeping in hammocks while learning to work together as a close-knit team.

Through Project YESS -- Youth Empowered to Succeed through Sailing -- a handful of lucky teenagers are offered this rare opportunity each summer in Cleveland.

The program, which is organized by the Rotary Club of Cleveland, began in 2010 during the Tall Ships Festival. It has continued thanks to the dedication of a small group of volunteers who have raised funds for the project, which costs at least $1,500 per student. The group spends months identifying students with leadership skills who would not be able to afford such an experience.

On Friday, May 11th, Drinks for Do Gooders will host a benefit for Project YESS. Tickets cost $20 and include a drink ticket and appetizers. There will also be a separate raffle to win two free round-trip tickets from Southwest Airlines.

"Navigation is our theme, and it's not just about navigating on a ship," says Eileen Smotzer, a Rotary Club member who has helped to spearhead the YESS program. "Hopefully that message transcends to navigating through life and community. These students are the future leaders of our country and region."


Source: Eileen Smotzer
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Is 2012 the year of the collective? Based on the DIY art spaces that are springing up across the city, it would certainly seem like a trend-in-the-making.

BuckBuck, a new collaborative art space that is located in a former auction house, is the latest creative hotspot to join the list. Founders Joe Lanzilotta and Derek Maxfield are recent college graduates who started the gallery and co-op style workspace after obtaining fine arts and graphic design degrees from Ohio University and being faced with a tight job market.

Yet the founders' desire to start their own creative space went beyond their dim job prospects, Lanzilotta says. They began hunting for cool, affordable space because they wanted to do their own thing and shape their own destiny.

"We wanted a spot we could build our own reputation from," says Lanzilotta, who seized the 5,700-square-foot space at 3910 Lorain Avenue after the sympathetic landlord enticed them with a couple months free rent and an affordable lease rate. "After I completed an internship in Chicago, I had the feeling that I really wanted to come back to Cleveland and create something on my own."

BuckBuck recently hosted its first art show in the newly-created gallery -- its founders literally erected walls and hung artwork with only a few weeks notice -- during this year's Palookafest event. The annual chili cook-off and competition was created by Ian P.E., the owner of Palookaville Chili, which opened in an adjacent storefront in early 2011.

Thanks to a proliferation of cheap, available storefronts on Lorain, Lanzilotta says that a small creative community is springing up. Recently, a furniture maker moved in next door, and there is also a new tattoo shop across the street.


Source: Joe Lanzilotta
Writer: Lee Chilcote

May is National Bike Month, but locally the party kicked off last week at Respect the Bike, an all-Ohio-made bike showcase held at the Greenhouse Tavern. Before the event, hundreds of riders cruised through downtown for a traffic-stopping Critical Mass ride, then lined up their bikes along E. 4th Street for a rooftop bar celebration. Elsewhere in the Tavern, diners feted on chef Sawyer's creations as historic bikes hung in the air like flying machines.

It was a fitting start to a month packed with over 50 bike-centric events, including art shows, bike repair clinics, Towpath pajama rides, neighborhood bike rides and the region-wide Bike to Work Day.

Bike Month also includes two special events that benefit good causes. For the first time ever, the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo is opening its grounds to bicycles during Wild Ride at the Zoo, a new after-hours event. Bike for the Beck is a new fundraising ride for the Beck Center in Lakewood on May 19th.

The City Club is also hosting an event with Mark Gorton, Founder and Chairman of Open Plans, entitled Rethinking the Auto: Building Cities for People, Not Cars. The forum takes place on Wednesday, May 9th, and Bike Cleveland is hosting a free social afterwards at Market Garden Brewery in Ohio City.

Finally, there perhaps is no better way to kick off Bike Month than with the announcement of an exciting new project. This week, Fast Track Cycling broke ground on the Cleveland Velodrome, a massive, 166-meter outdoor cycling track in Slavic Village. The bike track will initially be a seasonal facility, but organizers hope to eventually raise enough money to enclose it for the winter months.


Source: Bike Cleveland
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Registration for the 2014 Gay Games (GG9) begins in May. This represents an opportunity to sell Northeast Ohio as a welcoming, inclusive region to a global audience, says GG9 Director Tom Nobbe.

"Cleveland represents a blank slate to many people in Western Europe and Asia, and that's both a challenge and an advantage," he says. "We have a compelling story to tell. We can position our region as not only welcoming to outsiders, but also as inclusive."

The Gay Games is a global sports and culture event that is coming to Cleveland and Akron August 9 through 16, 2014. It is one of the largest multi-sport festivals in the world that is open to all -- regardless of skill level, age (as long as you're 18 or over), sexual orientation or physical challenge. The weeklong festival is expected to draw more than 10,000 participants, along with an estimated 20,000 additional visitors, spectators, performers and volunteers.

GG9 has recruited more than 100 active volunteers to serve on nine committees that will promote the event. Local creative agencies such as Brokaw, Aztek and Consolidated Graphics Group are providing pro bono marketing services.

Nobbe wants to enlist Clevelanders to help promote the games and welcome participants while they're here. "This is going to change the region," he says. "Participants are going to spend money on hotels and restaurants."

"This is an opportunity to say, 'We've got a vibrant LGBT community,'" he adds. "We may not have Boystown, Chelsea or Castro, but that's because we're comfortable going to any community in Northeast Ohio."


Source: Tom Nobbe
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Now that the urban farming movement is becoming steadily more mature, cities are looking beyond backyard hens and market gardens to longer-term agricultural land use policies. They can and should learn from what works in other places while also advocating for better public policy at every level.

These were the messages conveyed at a forum on urban agriculture that was held last week at Cleveland State University. Kimberly Hodgson, a planner and public health advocate from Vancouver, Canada, said that Cleveland is considered a leader in the new agrarian movement, but that U.S. and Canadian cities have much to learn from each other.

Baltimore completed a study to prioritize and focus urban agriculture in needed areas, Hodgson told an audience of 100-plus planners, farmers, students and lawyers. Minneapolis conducted an analysis to determine which parcels of land have low value for development and would thus be appropriate for urban farming.

The goal of such plans, Hodgson said, is generally to promote and support equal access to urban farming and gardening, create economic opportunity for residents, reduce regulatory barriers to farming and expand agricultural production.

Other examples Hodgson cited included Vancouver, which has developed urban agriculture design guidelines, and Baltimore, which hired a Food Policy Director using money raised from area foundations. Within six months, the new Director had leveraged enough money on her own to fund the position without subsidy.


Source: Kimberly Hodgson
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Providence House, the first crisis nursery in Ohio and one of only 70 similar facilities in the U.S., recently broke ground on a $2 million, three-phase project in Ohio City that will allow the nonprofit agency to better serve Northeast Ohio families in crisis.

"We have a waiting list that is 20 to 30 kids long right now," explains Natalie Leek-Nelson, Executive Director of Providence House, which is expanding its current location at W. 32nd Street and Lorain Avenue. "Phase I of the expansion will allow us to have 250 kids per year in our crisis nursery, and it will also increase the ages of the kids so that we can take older siblings."

Providence House provides short-term housing for kids who are unsafe in their homes because they're at risk of abuse, neglect or generally unsafe conditions. The agency is unique because it offers intensive therapy to help families stay together. More than 95 percent of families whose children end up at Providence House are eventually reunified. The facility also offers housing to kids whose parents are unable to care for them (for instance, because they've suddenly gotten sick).

"Parents don't want to give up their kids, so things often escalate until they're out of control," says Leek-Nelson. "Providence House is an alternative to the emergency foster system. We let families know it's okay to get help."

When asked why Providence House's work is important, Leek-Nelson cites a statistic that 75 percent of high school dropouts are abused kids. "Is it the school system or something at home that keeps them from succeeding?" she asks.

Providence House has already raised about 75 percent of the funds that are needed to complete Phase I of its expansion plans. "It's been a big challenge, but the community has really stepped up," says Leek-Nelson. "We have more than 300 individuals, foundations and businesses that have donated."


Source: Natalie Leek-Nelson
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Last week, PNC Bank employees spent time reading "Where the Wild Things Are" to kids enrolled in Head Start, Cleveland Clinic employees shared tips on preparing for the workforce with students at New Tech West, and human resources pros helped people in transitional housing to prepare their resumes.

The events were organized by Business Volunteers Unlimited as part of National Volunteer Week, which rallied more than 1,300 volunteers to participate in 85-plus service projects throughout Northeast Ohio.

"Ordinary Day, Extraordinary Outcomes" (ODEO), a one day event held on Friday, April 20th, engaged 28 corporate teams in combating poverty through education. Two companies, OE Connection and Jo-Ann Fabric and Crafts, hosted a week of volunteer opportunities for all of their employees. Finally, Global Youth Service Day, which engaged young people in volunteering across Greater Cleveland, took place from April 20 to 22.

"We really tried to develop interactive experiences that would engage the community," says Roseanne Deucher, Director of the Volunteer Center at Business Volunteers Unlimited. "This year, we had a focus on education. We also tried to match the skills of folks in the business sector with needs in the community."

She adds, "A lot of people read about issues in the public school system and unemployment, but they don't know how to get involved. After this event, they felt they'd touched lives. Many wanted to volunteer on an ongoing basis."

BVU maintains an online Volunteer Center which lists more than 500 volunteer opportunities throughout Northeast Ohio. The nonprofit group is also currently partnering with the Cleveland Indians to host a Volunteer Challenge. Any individual who completes four hours or more of volunteer work through BVU is eligible for a voucher for two free tickets to select Indians games.

BVU is also hosting its annual Summer of Service day, which seeks to engage young professionals in volunteer activities, on July 18th of this year.


Source: Roseanne Deucher
Writer: Lee Chilcote

One of the most widely read Fresh Water features was a story on Ohio's burgeoning craft distillery trend. But it wasn't all good news: As it stood at the time of publication, only one permit was allowed in each of Cuyahoga, Franklin and Hamilton counties. What's more, those few permit holders could distill but not sell their wares on-site. A new law eliminates the restrictions on the number of permits while enabling holders to sell their products directly to consumers.

A new initiative being pioneered by Cuyahoga County, Policy Matters Ohio and a bevy of partners aims to create more energy-efficient municipal buildings and catalyze the creation of green, living wage jobs.

Now that advocacy within the green jobs movement has shifted away from the state and federal level -- where activity is slow or nonexistent -- organizers are counting on this new initiative to help create a new model for energy-efficient construction as well as stimulate good, union jobs in Cuyahoga County.

"We were pushing on the national level, but when the cap and trade legislation fell apart, we still lacked a comprehensive energy strategy," says Shanelle Smith, local organizer for the Emerald Cities Cleveland-Cuyahoga County project. "We had the economic stimulus, but now that the money is on the ground, it's about organizing locally so it benefits all of us."

Emerald Cities, which was approved last week by Cuyahoga County Council, aims to "create a clean energy economy by developing community workforce opportunities, enhancing environmentally sustainable practices and working to make government buildings more energy efficient," according to a release.

The initiative aims to make municipal buildings in Cuyahoga County 20 percent more energy-efficient by 2020. Emerald Cities will achieve this by seeking financing mechanisms to help local governments pay for projects, creating community workforce agreements to help foster union jobs, and participating in the U.S. Department of Energy's Better Buildings Challenge.

"We want to build a pipeline to unionized apprenticeships for underrepresented communities," says Smith. "Our goal is to help create family-sustaining jobs."

Now that the initiative has been approved by Cuyahoga County, Emerald Cities partners are working together to assemble a strategic plan for implementation.


Source: Shanelle Smith
Writer: Lee Chilcote

As a region we are fortunate to have NOCHE, the Northeast Ohio Council on Higher Education, leading our regional efforts to increase college attainment levels. Their efforts, called The Northeast Ohio Talent Dividend, has three primary goals: improve college readiness of high school and adult students, increase student retention through degree completion, and increase degree attainment among adults with some college experience but no degree.