March 2022

ARTS & CULTURE | COMMUNITY | PHILANTHROPY

March 2022

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Movers&Makers March 2022

MoversMakers.org

Publishers’ Letter 4 Arts/Culture 5 Composer Andres collaborates with concert:nova 5 Taft’s Duncanson artist leads programs in April 5 Matinée Musicale presents three intriguing artists 5 Bridget Leak: ‘Queen’ of smart theater | By David Lyman 6 The A/C List: Music, theater, visual art and more 7

The Datebook 12 Mardi Gras stocks service agencies’ pantries 12 KAREfarm hosts hoops-themed fundraiser 13 Reds’ ‘Mayor’ Sean Casey headlines Scouts luncheon 13 Beechwood honors caregivers Fernandes, Neel 14

FOCUS ON: Children & Youth 16 Random click led to Fischer’s sweet calling | By Shauna Steigerwald 16 Breaking the cycle of trauma: Advocates volunteer to help kids find their path | By Julie Kemble Borths 18 Meet some volunteers 20 Cincinnati Cares: A look at organizations serving children and youth – and how you can help 22

Gifts/Grants 27 In the News 28 Furniture bank provides beds for children in need 28 Beacons of Humanity program aims to inspire 28 Names in the News 30

Snapshots 32 Kindervelt’s Jubilee raises over $93K 32

Fine art photography

Hammer & Ales nails down funds for ToolBank 33

The Last Word 34 Mercantile Library opens up to younger, more diverse public | By Polly Campbell

Tina Gutierrez Arts Photography tinagutierrezartsphotography.com tinagutierrezarts.photoshelter.com/portfolio tinagutierrez8@gmail.com | 513.446.1903

On the cover: Megan Fischer with her dog, Hans, by Tina Gutierrez for Movers & Makers, ©2022 Movers & Makers

MARCH 2022

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PUBLISHERS’ LETTER

W

ith the Super Bowl behind us (sigh), it’s time to re-focus on what’s ahead.

FOCUS ON: Children & Youth

This month we spotlight local efforts to improve the lives of kids and those who care for them.

Megan Fischer saw a need.

Rather than just complain about it, she decided to do something. The result is a fast-growing nonprofit, Sweet Cheeks Diaper Bank, and a life that has given new meaning to its founder. Shauna Steigerwald profiles Megan on Page 16.

Speaking of needs, children from troubled circumstances often struggle without someone to serve as their advocate and guide, especially within the complex legal system. We asked Julie Kemble Borths, recently retired from

ProKids, to shed light on this situation, and how and why advocates are drawn to help. Learn more on Page 18.

As part of our focus on children and youth we have created a special section in partnership with Cincinnati Cares highlighting prominent organizations in this sector (Page 22.) You will find volunteer needs and opportunities for you to get involved and make a difference. We plan to offer these sections each month, focusing on a different nonprofit sector. You can find our editorial calendar at www.moversmakers. org/editorial-calendar.

Additional highlights

According to David Lyman, opportunities for new, local stage directors at our leading theaters

Coming up in April ...

We put the FOCUS ON: Parks, Nature & the Environment.

If you want your organization to be included, reach out to Thom for details: tmariner@moversmakers.org

are hard to come by, but Bridget Leak is making inroads in a relatively short time, and has directed the current show, “Queen,” at Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati. Find out more on Page 6.

Polly Campbell spent time this Black History Month thinking about how, in our siloed worlds, we can gather insights into the lives of people whose experiences differ from ours. There is no single way, of course, but Polly shares one she has found particularly meaningful, and it involves the work of a local nonprofit. See Page 30.

Thanks, everyone, for reading M&M. If you have an opportunity to share what we do, we thank you for doing so. And if you’d like to support our work and keep local nonprofit journalism free to all, we would welcome your donations via our website.

Thom & Elizabeth Mariner Co-publishers, Movers & Makers Doug Bolton CEO, Cincinnati Cares

Elizabeth & Thom Mariner, co-publishers Digital edition & daily posts

www.MoversMakers.org Social media @moversmakerscincinnati @moversmakerscin Movers & Makers Magazine @moversmakers Advertising & distribution Thom Mariner, 513-543-0890 or tmariner@moversmakers.org

Binge Season 2 Starting March 20 Learn more: CETconnect.org/passport

Creative & accounting Elizabeth Mariner, 513-771-5088 or emariner@moversmakers.org News/calendar submissions editor@moversmakers.org Free direct mail subscriptions and email newsletter sign up:

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MARCH 2022

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Help keep nonprofit news FREE to all in Cincinnati Support comes in part from:

For their work on this issue, our gratitude to: • Ray Cooklis, managing editor • Phil Fisher, copy editor • The volunteers who helped write, edit and proofread: Tamara Behrens, Carmen Lawrence-Bille, Leah Boehner, Nyla Boney, William Dinnan and Shasta Taber • Doug Bolton, Cincinnati Cares

Publishing schedule Issue Deadline Available APRIL FEB 25 MAR 23 MAY MAR 25 APR 20 JUNE APR 29 MAY 25 JULY MAY 27 JUN 22 AUGUST JUN 24 JUL 20 SEPTEMBER JUL 29 AUG 24 OCTOBER AUG 26 SEP 21 NOVEMBER SEP 30 OCT 26 DEC ’22/JAN ’23 OCT 28 NOV 22 www.moversmakers.org/publishing-schedule © Copyright 2022 Movers & Makers Publishing We make every effort to verify information submitted for publication (print and online), but are not responsible for incorrect information or misidentified photos provided to us.

Readers are advised to confirm event dates and other important details and check for last-minute changes with the organizations or advertisers involved.

Publication of this magazine and its website (www.MoversMakers.org) does not necessarily constitute an endorsement of any information contained within, including advertisements and links.

Movers & Makers Publishing is a nonprofit with fiscal sponsorship provided by Inspiring Service.

Arts/Culture Composer Andres joins with concert:nova to aid disadvantaged youth March 21, 7 p.m., The Woodward Theater, Over-the-Rhine Cincinnati’s concert:nova has paired with composer-pianist Timo Andres for a new project called “Communal Effort.” Andres is a Pulitzer finalist whose art has been commissioned by Carnegie Hall, Takács Quartet and more.

The new work, scored for a small chamber ensemble, was designed to be performed collaboratively between professional performing artists and young Cincinnati Public School musicians who are beneficiaries of the Ben Carlson-Berne scholarship fund. Timo Andres “Communal Effort” was commissioned by concert:nova and a friend of the Ben Carlson-Berne Scholarship Fund, which provides classical musical instrument lessons by high-level professional teachers to underserved and economically disadvantaged youths.

Concertgoers can donate above their ticket price to the Ben Carlson-Berne Scholarship Fund or can donate online at www.bcbscholarship.org.  www.concertnova.com

Manifest Gallery acquires new headquarters Manifest Creative Research Gallery and Drawing Center has acquired a headquarters at 3464 Central Parkway, called Manifest at M1.

The acquisition launches a three-year plan drafted by Manifest’s staff and board of directors during which the building will be activated, renovated and reimagined.

Programs including drawing, painting,

darkroom photography, and the Scholar in Residence program will move to the new location by midyear, and new offerings are being planned.

The new location will pave the way for Manifest’s three-year transformation into the Manifest Center for the Visual Arts.  www.manifestgallery.org

Poet Dawkins welcomed as Taft’s 2022 Duncanson Artist-in-Residence Ajanae Dawkins will be the Taft Museum’s 2022 Duncanson Artist-inResidence. She will lead programs, teach workshops and visit schools across Greater Cincinnati April 10-23.

Dawkins is a writer, performer and educator. Her work has been published in the EcoTheo Review, Ebony Magazine and numerous other publications.

Dawkins also writes for the Theatre LILA in Madison, Wisconsin, and is an editor for Voicemail Poems.

Dawkins has been recognized as one of

the Midwest’s top poets, having twice been a finalist in the Rust Belt Regional Poetry Slam.

Her residency precedes Ajanae Dawkins the completion of the Bicentennial Infrastructure Project for the preservation of the Taft historic house and Robert S. Duncanson’s murals inside.

Duncanson established the Artist-inResidence program in 1986 to recognize the work of contemporary Black artists.  www.taftmuseum.org

Matinee Musicale offers full slate of stars this spring Matinee Musicale Cincinnati continues to pump out interesting concerts this season. Within the span of four weeks in March and April, Cincinnati’s century-old recital series will present three outstanding artists at different points in their careers.

Cellist Zlatomir Fung, of BulgarianChinese ancestry, was the first American in four decades and youngest musician ever to win first prize at the International Tchaikovsky Competition in 2019. Zlatomir Fung

Baritone Ryan Speedo Green grew up in a trailer park, spent time in a juvenile home, and now is singing four prominent roles at the Metropolitan Opera this season. Ryan Speedo Green Violinist Rachel Barton Pine has enjoyed a three-plus-decade career that began as soloist with the Chicago Symphony at age 10, and has ranged from chamber music to the commissioning of concertos to, yes, heavy metal.

With a storied history of showcasing emerging artists (Beverly Sills, Itzhak Perlman, Joshua Bell),

Matinee Musicale, an all-volunteer nonprofit organization, is not resting on its laurels.

• March 6, 3 p.m.

Memorial Hall: Zlatomir Fung, cello • March 27, 3 p.m.

First Unitarian Church, Avondale: Rachel Barton Pine Ryan Speedo Green, baritone • April 3, 3 p.m. Memorial Hall: Rachel Barton Pine, violin  www.matineemusicalecincinnati.org

Movers & Makers

MARCH 2022

5

ARTS/CULTURE

By David Lyman

Director finds daring spirit in Meyers, ETC and Cincinnati

I

t was inevitable that one day Bridget Leak would direct a show for D. Lynn Meyers and her Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati.

The two are kindred spirits – indefatigable, optimistic, fascinated by plays about ideas and able to turn almost anything into a memorable theatrical experience.

So it wasn’t much of a surprise when ETC announced that Leak would direct Madhuri Shekar’s “Queen,” running Feb. 19-March 19.

It’s a tale about friendship. And ethics. And issues surrounding the precipitous decline in the population of bees, so necessary for pollinating many of the world’s crops.

“It was very important to me to do a play not only about the ethics of science and academia, but also ethics in honesty,” said Meyers in a press release announcing the production. “I hope we can look at this play as a community to celebrate the important mission we need to undertake to save the bees and our world.”

Vital stuff, to be sure. But those sorts of issues are enough to drive a marketing person crazy.

Ideas are much less saleable than romance or action or comedy. But while Meyers is not averse to plays that are fun, she has built ETC as a place where audiences can find plays that revolve around important concepts.

In fact, it’s precisely the sort of show that Meyers might have opted to direct herself.

But she had been looking for a project to involve Leak for several years. And “Queen” seemed like the perfect fit.

“She deserves to work,” said Meyers. “I love so much ofMovers_7.5x3.125_March.pdf what she has done. She is so talented 1 2/14/2022 9:22:17 AM and so smart.”

And enterprising, she might have added. Leak came to Cincinnati in 2013 for a one-year gig as a Playhouse directing intern. But when she was done, she and her husband, playwright/ actor Trey Tatum, kept involving themselves with one theater project after another, each one more imaginative and challenging than the last.

“So much of my career here in Cincinnati has been making my own work,” said Leak.

“Ultimately, it’s that work that kept us here.”

There was “Andy’s House of [blank],” a show created with storytellers Erika Kate Macdonald and Paul Strickland. Initially, it was a 15-minute snippet that was part of the Know Theatre’s “Serials” series. But as the musical play grew, it became so ambitious that Know artistic director Andrew Hungerford asked them to expand it into a full-length play that premiered in 2015.

There was “Slut Shaming,” which debuted at the Cincinnati Fringe Festival and went on to be presented for incoming students at Xavier University. And the harrowing “of Monster Descent,” a 2018 Fringe show that gave birth to a podcast called “Have Monster, Will Travel.”

When Tatum wanted to write a series of plays based on all of the Tom Sawyer tales, the pair created a production company called Queen City Flash to raise money for and stage dozens of pop-up shows in area parks.

“I never expected Cincinnati to be the sort of place it has turned out to be,” said Leak. It was personal connections that initially drew her

ARONOFF CENTER JA R S O N - K A P L A N T H E AT E R C

Grammy-nominated jazz vocalist

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MARCH 2022

Movers & Makers

to the Playhouse. She had worked with Blake Robison (producing artistic director) and Timothy Douglas (artistic associate) at the Bound House Theatre in Bethesda, Maryland.

“This is the most supportive community I’ve ever lived in. We’ve been able to Bridget Leak find funding for our projects.

We’ve found an audience that is adventurous and willing to take chances. And we’ve found a community of actors and writers who make life interesting nearly all the time.”

But it didn’t just happen. They actively sought out the funding and the audience. Leak and Tatum went out of their way to involve themselves in many different groups around the city.

They teach and direct – she at Xavier University, he at Seven Hills School. And Leak has directed projects for the Playhouse and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, all while fulfilling the occasional out-of-town guest directing gig.

“Bridget is the kind of director I want involved at ETC,” said Meyers. “She is fearless.

And she has a big and genuine heart.”

And, like Meyers, she has developed a great faith in her audience.

“Whatever venture we set out on, they were ready to come with us, no matter how weird or wacky it might have been,” said Leak. “When Trey wanted to write a play attacking The Creation Museum, they were with us. I love that our audiences have a very eclectic taste. They’ll go to the Broadway in Cincinnati series. But they’ll also come to ETC. And to the Bengals.

It’s impressive. So for me to finally be here at ETC – it’s an aligning of the moons.”   www.ensemblecincinnati.org

ARTS/CULTURE | The List

Cultural Exhibits/Tours American Legacy Tours | 859-951-8560. www.americanlegacytours.com Historic tours in Cincinnati and NKY American Sign Museum | Camp Washington. 513-541-6366. www.americansignmuseum.org Permanent collection The Archaeological Research Institute | Lawrenceburg.

812-290-2966. www.exploreari.org Hands-on educational experiences in Southeast Indiana, Southwest Ohio and Northern Kentucky.

Behringer-Crawford Museum | Devou Park, Covington. 859-491-4003. www.bcmuseum.org Artifacts and history of Northern Kentucky Brewing Heritage Trail Tour Center | ​513-604-9812. www.brewingheritagetrail.com 3rd Sunday, 11 a.m. Brunch, Beer, and Breweries Tour (from Moerlein Lager House) Cincinnati Fire Museum | Downtown.

513-621-5553. www.cincyfiremuseum.com Permanent collection Cincinnati Food Tours | Findlay Market, Over-the-Rhine. 513-602-5602. www.cincinnatifoodtours.com Saturdays, 3 p.m. “The Original Findlay Market Tour.” Learn more about Findlay Market Fridays, 1 p.m. “The All-American Food Tour in Pendleton” Cincinnati Museum Center | Union Terminal, Queensgate. 513-287-7000. www.cincymuseum.org Current exhibits. “A Year on the Edge” • “An Unfinished Revolution: Women and the Vote” • “Inspired by Nature: The Art and Activism of Charley Harper” Thru April 24. “The Science Behind Pixar” Cincinnati Type & Print Museum | East Price Hill. www.cincinnatitypeprintmuseum.org Permanent collection of equipment, tools and artifacts Cincinnati Zoo | Avondale.

513-281-4700. www.cincinnatizoo.org Award-winning zoo and botanical gardens

Friends of Music Hall Tours | Music Hall, Over-the-Rhine. 513-621-2787. www.friendsofmusichall.org Indoor tours have resumed.

German Heritage Museum | White Oak. 513-598-5732. www.gacl.org Artifacts and records of contributions of German-Americans to Cincinnati Greater Cincinnati Police Museum | Pendleton. 513-300-3664. www.police-museum.org Permanent collection Harriet Beecher Stowe House | Walnut Hills. 513-751-0651. www.stowehousecincy.org Current exhibit. “Our Neighborhood Story: A Tour of this Walnut Hills Block” • “The Cause Dearer to Me Than Any Other in the World”: Isabella Beecher Hooker and Suffrage • “Votes for Women: A Portrait of Persistence” • “Who Controls the Narrative? Newspapers and Cincinnati’s Anti-Black Riots of 1829, 1836, and 1841” Heritage Village Museum | Sharonville. 513-563-9484. www.heritagevillagecincinnati.org Rural Ohio in the 1900s Holocaust & Humanity Center | Cincinnati Museum Center, Union Terminal.

513-487-3055. holocaustandhumanity.org Media, artifacts, art, and interactive exhibitions regarding the Holocaust Islamic Center of Greater Cincinnati | West Chester. www.icgc.us First Saturday, 11 a.m. “Know Your Neighbors” (KYN) Jurassic Quest | Duke Energy Convention Center. www.jurassicquest.com March 25-27 Krohn Conservatory | Eden Park. 513421-4086. www.cincinnatiparks.com/krohn Expansive collection of indoor plants from around the world.

Lloyd Library and Museum | Downtown.

513-721-3707. www.lloydlibrary.org Permanent exhibit. George Rieveschl Jr.: History of Pharmaceutical Chemistry Milford Historical Society | Milford.

513-248-0324. www.milfordhistory.net Permanent exhibit. Historical displays of art, artifacts and more.

National Underground Railroad Freedom Center | The Banks.

513-333-7500. www.freedomcenter.org Permanent collection exploring themes of individual freedom

Film The Barn / ARTFlix | Mariemont.

513-272-3700. www.artatthebarn.org March 10, 7 p.m. “Ansel Adams”

National VOA Museum of Broadcasting | West Chester.

513-777-0027. www.voamuseum.org History of Voice of America propaganda program

Cincinnati World Cinema | Garfield Theatre, Downtown. 859-957-3456. www.cincyworldcinema.org March 4-6 & 11-13. Oscar-Nominated Shorts

Rookwood Pottery | Over-the-Rhine.

513-381-2510. www.rookwood.com Select Fridays & Saturdays.

Behind-the-Scenes Tours

HorrorHound Weekend | Sharonville Convention Center. www.horrorhoundweekend.com March 25-27

Skirball Museum | Hebrew Union College, Clifton. 513-221-1875. www.csm.huc.edu Permanent exhibit: “An Eternal People: The Jewish Experience”

Dance

Literary/Lectures

Fitton Center | Hamilton.

513-863-8873. www.fittoncenter.org March 18, 7:30 p.m. Cincinnati Ballet: “Aesop’s Fables”

Barnes & Noble | Deerfield Towne Center. 513-972-5146.

March 1, 7 p.m. Discussion: Sabaa Tahir “All My Rage” (virtual) March 9, 6 p.m. Discussion: Bob Odenkirk “Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama” (virtual) March 14, 3 p.m. Discussion: Clare Mackintosh “Hostage” (virtual) March 21, 3 p.m. Discussion: Janet Evanovich “The Recovery Agent” (virtual)

Kennedy Heights Arts Center | Kennedy Heights.. 513-631-4278. www.kennedyarts.org March 19, 7:30 p.m. Cincinnati Metro Dance “Dancing for Freedom” Mutual Dance Theatre | Jarson-Kaplan Theater, Aronoff Center, Downtown.

513-494-6526. www.mutualdance.org March 25-26. CDT Series: “Sidra Bell Dance NY”

Fairs/Festivals/Markets Bockfest | Bockfest Hall, Findlay Playground, Over-the-Rhine. www.bockfest.com March 4-6 Cincinnati Zoo | Avondale.

513-281-4700. www.cincinnatizoo.org Thru March 11. Penguin Days Northminster Fine Arts Fair | Finneytown. www.facebook.com March 26, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

Northside Farmers Market | North Church, Northside. www.northsidefm.org Wednesdays, 4-7 p.m. Regional food and beverage market Renaissance Covington Farmers Market | Roebling Point. 859-261-7111. www.rcov.org Saturdays, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Covington

Mayerson JCC | Amberley Village.

513-761-7500. www.mayersonjcc.org Thru March 5. Jewish & Israeli Film Festival (virtual)

Cincinnati Zoo | Avondale.

513-281-4700. www.cincinnatizoo.org Barrows Conservation Lectures: March 16, 7 p.m. Corina Newsome “Environmental Justice and Wildlife Conservation” March 30, 7 p.m. Dr. Arnaud Desbiez “Saving South American Giants” Clifton Cultural Arts Center | Immanuel Presbyterian Church.

513-497-2860. www.cliftonculturalarts.org March 22, 6-7:30 p.m. Sunset Salons: “Art as Activism” Contemporary Arts Center | Downtown. 513-345-2941. www.contemporaryartscenter.org March 5. 10 a.m.-noon. Reflections of Home: Alison Taylor Fitton Center | Hamilton.

513-863-8873. www.fittoncenter.org March 2, 11:30 a.m. Morning Tea Party: Kathleen Kern of Churchill’s Tea

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ARTS/CULTURE | The List Harriet Beecher Stowe House | Walnut Hills. 513-751-0651. www.stowehousecincy.org March 2, 7 p.m. Harriet’s Stories within the Story (virtual) March 6, 4 p.m. Under One Roof: The African American Experience (Music Hall) Joseph-Beth Booksellers | Rookwood Commons & Pavilion, Norwood.

513-396-8960. www.josephbeth.com March 9, 7 p.m. Discussion: Sue Ludwig “Tiny Humans, Big Lessons: How the NICU Taught Me to Live With Energy, Intention, and Purpose” March 12, 2 p.m. Discussion: Dana McSwain “Roseneath” March 17, 7 p.m. Discussion: Sheila Williams “Things Past Telling” March 19, 2 p.m. Discussion: Natasha Preston w/ Jessica Goodman “The Fear” (virtual) March 21, 7 p.m. Discussion: W. Ron Adams “Coal Mine to Courtroom: A Quadriplegic’s Memoir of Relentless Faith, Courage and Eternal Success” March 22, 7 p.m. Discussion: Jessica Strawser “The Next Thing You Know” March 24, 7 p.m. Discussion: Lee Cole “Groundskeeping” (virtual)

March 29, 7 p.m. Discussion: Clint McElroy w/ Travis McElroy “Goldie’s Guide to Grandchilding” Lindner Center of HOPE | Countryside YMCA, Lebanon. www.lindnercenterofhope.org March 16, 6-7:30 p.m. Free Community Education Series: “Hoarding Disorder: Myths, Facts, and How Families Can Help” Mercantile Library | Downtown.

513-621-0717. www.mercantilelibrary.com March 1, 6 p.m. Free Thinker: An Evening with Kimberly Hamlin March 10, 2 p.m. Leaders in Light Conversation Series: Peter T. Coleman

Music Bach Ensemble of St. Thomas | St. Thomas Episcopal Church, Terrace Park.

513-831-2052. www.bachensemble.org March 6, 5 p.m. Bach Vespers: BWV 152 March 13, 3 p.m. Concert at the Cathedral Basilica, Covington Blue Ash/Montgomery Symphony | St. Barnabas Church, Montgomery.

513-549-2197. www.bamso.org

March 6, 7 p.m. Young Artists’ Concerto Competition Brady Music Center | The Banks. www.bradymusiccenter.com March 13, 6:50 p.m. Papa Roach, Hollywood Undead, Bad Wolves March 22, 7:30 p.m. Underoath, Every Time I Die, Spiritbox March 23, 8 p.m. Conan Gray, Bülow March 29, 8 p.m. Colin Hay Butler Philharmonic | Fairfield Freshman School. 513-844-5151. www.butlerphil.org March 19, 7:30 p.m. Orchestra Family Concert Caffe Vivace | Walnut Hills.

513-601-9897. www.caffevivace.com Most evenings, live jazz performances The Carnegie | Covington.

859-957-1940. www.thecarnegie.com March 12, 7:30 p.m. Torie Wiggins Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption | Covington. 859-431-2060. www.cathedralconcertseries.org March 20, 3 p.m. Bach Ensemble of St.

Thomas: “Johann Sebastian Bach’s 337th Birthday” Chamber Music Cincinnati | 513-342-6870. www.cincychamber.org March 27, 4 p.m. Diaz Trio (New Jerusalem Baptist Church, Carthage) March 29, 7:30 p.m. Encore of previous at Memorial Hall, Over-the-Rhine Chamber Music Yellow Springs | First Presbyterian Church, Yellow Springs.

937-374-8800. www.cmys.org March 27, 4 p.m. Shanghai Quartet Christ Church Cathedral | Downtown.

513-621-1817. www.cincinnaticathedral.com March 6, 5 p.m. Choral Evensong March 27, 3 p.m. A Season of Penitence Music Live@Lunch, 12:10 p.m. – March 1. Lagniappe March 8. CCM organ/harpsichord student recital March 15. The Southbank Quartet March 22. Laney and the Tramps March 29. Buffalo Ridge Jazz Band Christ Church Glendale | Glendale. 513771-1544. www.christchurchglendale.org March 6, 5 p.m. Music Live at Christ Church: OSU Men’s Glee Club, University Chorale & Christ Church Glendale Parish Choir March 20, 5 p.m. Evensong Series: Music by William Harris and others Cincinnati Arts Association | Procter & Gamble Hall, Aronoff Center, Downtown.

513-621-2787. www.cincinnatiarts.org March 28, 7 p.m. Disney Princess The Concert Cincinnati Community Orchestra | Church of the Savior United Methodist, Blue Ash. 513-317-0300. www.cincinnaticommunityorchestra.org March 5. Music inspired by Shakespeare Cincinnati Contemporary Jazz Orchestra | 513-280-8181. www.cincinnatijazz.org March 17, 7 p.m. Big Band Series: Cincinnati’s First Lady of Song: Mandy Gaines (The Redmoor, Mt. Lookout) March 20, 2 p.m. Jazz@First Series: Chick Corea’s Musical Revolution with Rusty Burge (First Unitarian Church, Avondale) Cincinnati Song Initiative | ARCO, Price Hill. www.cincinnatisonginitiative.org March 30. Spotlight: Jeanine De Bique, Gerold Huber and Theron Shaw

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MARCH 2022

Movers & Makers

ARTS/CULTURE | The List Cincinnati Symphony & Pops | Music Hall, Over-the-Rhine. 513-381-3300. www.cincinnatisymphony.org March 1, 7:30 p.m. (CSO) “Danil Trifonov in Recital” March 4-5. (CSO) “Canellakis & Elgar Concerto” Karina Canellakis, conductor; Alisa Weilerstein, cello March 5, 10:30 a.m. (Pops) “Lollipops Family Concert” March 11-12, 7:30 p.m. (CSO) “Mozart & Mazzoli Premiere” Jennifer Koh, violin March 18-20. (Pops) “Respect: A Tribute to Aretha Franklin” Tamika Lawrence, CoCo Smith, Blaine Krauss, vocalists March 25-27. (CSO) “Symphonie Fantastique” Eighth Blackbird March 29. (Pops) Cynthia Erivo Cincinnati Youth Choir | CollegeConservatory of Music, UC. 513-556-4183. www.cincinnatichoir.org March 13, 4 p.m. “We Are Not Alone” College-Conservatory of Music | University of Cincinnati. 513-556-4183. https://ccm.uc.edu March 1, 7:30 p.m. Faculty Artist Series: Dror Biran, piano March 6, 2 p.m. Faculty Artist Series: Ran Dank, piano March 6, 5 p.m. Faculty Artist Series: Jan Grüning, viola March 8, 7:30 p.m. CCM Concert Orchestra “The Russian Nationalists” March 9-11, 7 p.m. Transmigration 2022 - A Festival of Student-Created New Works March 9, 7:30 p.m. CCM Jazz Lab Band “The Music of Chick Corea” March 9, 7:30 p.m. CCM Chamber Winds “The Romantics” March 9, 7:30 p.m. The Music of Colin Matthews March 11, 7:30 p.m. CCM Philharmonia, CCM Chamber Choir and Chorale “Women Lost, Forgotten, Celebrated” March 12, 2 p.m. Faculty Artist Series: Alan Rafferty, cello (Werner Recital Hall) March 13, 2 p.m. Faculty Artist Series: Titus Underwood, oboe March 22, 7:30 p.m. “Sonic Explorations” electroacoustic and computer music March 22, 7:30 p.m. CCM Wind Ensemble “A Time and Place” March 23, 7:30 p.m. CCM Chamber Orchestra “The Sound of Brass” March 25, 7:30 p.m. CCM Wind Symphony “Come Sunday” March 26, 7:30 p.m. CCM Jazz Orchestra “Essentially Ellington Festival” March 27, 4 p.m. CCM Wind Studies Ensembles “Prism”

March 29, 7:30 p.m. UC Men’s and Women’s Choruses March 29, 7:30 p.m. Ariel Quartet “Porat and Beethoven” concert:nova | Woodward Theater, Over-the-Rhine. www.concertnova.com March 6. 5 and 7:30 p.m. Mozart and Beethoven March 21, 7 p.m. Timo Andres: world premiere Fitton Center for Creative Arts | Hamilton. 513-863-8873. www.fittoncenter.org March 12, 7:30 p.m. Miles Davis’ “Kind of Blue: Live” March 26, 7:30 p.m. The Julie James Show Hard Rock Casino | Downtown. www.hardrockcasinocincinnati.com March 20, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Kathy Wade’s Jammin’ Jazz Brunch: “Bebop to Brazil” Heritage Bank Center | Downtown. www.heritagebankcenter.com March 5, 6 p.m. Winter Jam 2022 March 12, 7 p.m. New Edition March 29, 7 p.m. Greta Van Fleet

Kennedy Heights Arts Center | 513-631-4278. kennedyarts.org March 5, 7:30 p.m. Jazz Renaissance and Deondra Means “Playing for Freedom” March 26, 7:30 p.m. Counterfeit Madison “Singing for Freedom” Kentucky Symphony Orchestra | St. Henry High School. 859-431-6216. www.kyso.org March 5, 7:30 p.m. “The Greatest Showmen” Linton Chamber Music | 513-381-6868. www.lintonmusic.org March 13, 4 p.m. The Healing Power of Music: Adam Richardson, baritone; Michael Chertock, piano; Elizabeth Freimuth, horn; Stefani Matsuo, violin; Ilya Finkelshteyn, cello (First Unitarian Church, Avondale) March 14, 7:30 p.m. Encore of previous (Congregation Beth Adam, Loveland) Madison Theater | Covington.

859-491-2444. www.madisontheater.com March 5, 7 p.m. Ministry March 19, 8 p.m. Enmy March 27, 8 p.m. Holy F***

Matinee Musicale | Memorial Hall, Over-the-Rhine. www.matineemusicalecincinnati.org March 6, 3 p.m. Zlatomir Fung, cello March 27, 3 p.m. Ryan Speedo Green, bass-baritone (First Unitarian Church, Avondale) Memorial Hall | Over-the-Rhine.

513-977-8838. www.memorialhallotr.com March 1-2, 8 p.m. We Banjo 3 March 7, 8 p.m. Dave Mason March 8, 8 p.m. Ladysmith Black Mambazo March 10, 8 p.m. YAMATO the Drummers of Japan World Tour 2022 “Tenmei-DESTINY” March 14, 7 p.m. Jazz at the Memo: The JJJ Trio March 15, 8 p.m. Sammy Rae & The Friends with Special Guest Melt March 19, 8 p.m. Martin Barre (acoustic) performing classic Jethro Tull March 21, 7 p.m. Jazz at the Memo: Queen City Cabaret March 22, 8 p.m. Graham Nash March 25, 8 p.m. Joshua Radin March 28, 7 p.m. Jazz at the Memo: Joshua Espinoza Trio

Don’t miss your shot.

Final Weeks Exhibit Closes April 24 cincymuseum.org/pixar

Produced by

The Science Behind Pixar was developed by the Museum of Science, Boston in collaboration with Pixar Animation Studios. © Disney/Pixar. All Rights Reserved. Used Under Authorization.

Movers & Makers

MARCH 2022

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ARTS/CULTURE | The List New Downbeat | www.newdownbeat.com March 8, 7:30 p.m. International Women’s Day 2022 (virtual premiere) March 26, 7:30 p.m. Women’s History Month Concert (ARCO, Price Hill) Northern Kentucky University | Greaves Concert Hall. 859-572-5464. https://music.nku.edu March 1, 7 p.m. Choir Concert (Mother of God Church, Covington) March 20, 3 p.m. Chamber Choir (St. Mary Church, Hyde Park) March 26, 8 p.m. Sistahs Who Swing: René Marie March 31. NKU Chamber Choir w/ UofL Cardinal Singers and Covington Catholic HS Chamber Choir (Cathedral Basilica, Covington) PromoWest Pavilion at Ovation | Newport. www.promowestlive.com March 2, 7 p.m. Beach House March 5, 7 p.m. Koe Wetzel March 6, 7 p.m. Coheed and Cambria March 12, 7 p.m. McGuffey Lane March 24, 6 p.m. Dark Star Orchestra The Redmoor | Mt. Lookout Square. www.theredmoor.com March 5, 6 p.m. Heartland March 12, 6:30 p.m. Frankie Mayfield Trinity Episcopal Church | Covington.

859-431-1786. www.trinitycovington.org March 16, 12:15 p.m. Midday Musical Menu: “Songs of Awakening” Elise Hyder, mezzo-soprano; John A. Deaver, piano Vocal Arts Ensemble | Wilks Studio, Music Hall. 513-381-3300. www.vaecinci.com March 4, 7 p.m. “The Song Among Us,” world premiere by Moira Smiley. Craig Hella Johnson, conductor Westwood First Presbyterian | Westwood. 513-661-6846. www.wfpc.org/music March 27, 2:30 p.m. Choral Concert Woodward Theater | Over-the-Rhine.

513-345-7981. www.woodwardtheater.com March 5, 7 p.m. David McGlynn March 11, 8 p.m. Shiner March 12, 8:30 p.m. All Them Witches Xavier Music Series | Gallagher Theater.

513-745-3161. www.xavier.edu/musicseries March 19, 2 p.m. John Smith, classical guitar (Bellarmine Chapel)

Opera College-Conservatory of Music | University of Cincinnati. 513-556-4183. https://ccm.uc.edu March 31-April 3. Phillip Glass: “Galileo Galilei”

Theater Broadway Across America | Procter & Gamble Hall, Aronoff Center, Downtown. 513-721-3344. https://cincinnati.broadway.com March 15-27. “Ain’t Too Proud” Cincinnati Arts Association | Procter & Gamble Hall, Aronoff Center, Downtown.

513-621-2787. www.cincinnatiarts.org March 4, 7:30 p.m. Alton Brown Live “Beyond The Eats” Cincinnati Landmark Productions | Covedale Center. 513-241-6550. www.cincinnatilandmarkproductions.com March 17-April 10. “On The Town” Cincinnati Playwrights Initiative | Fifth Third Bank Theater, Aronoff Center, Downtown. 513-621-ARTS. www.cincinnatiarts.org March 22, 7:30 p.m. “The Reset,”

by Ed Clark Cincinnati Shakespeare Company | Over-the-Rhine. 513-381-2273. www.cincyshakes.com Thru March 26. “Hamlet” College-Conservatory of Music | University of Cincinnati. 513-556-4183. https://ccm.uc.edu March 3-6. “Pippin” Drama Workshop | Cheviot. 513-5988303. www.thedramaworkshop.org March 4-20. “Bright Star” Ensemble Theatre | Over-the-Rhine. 513-421-3555. www.ensemblecincinnati.org Thru March 19. “Queen” Heritage Bank Center | Downtown. www. heritagebankcenter.com March 4, 8 p.m. Katt Williams March 6, 8 p.m. Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias March 13, 7 p.m. John Mulaney March 24-27. Disney on Ice presents Mickey & Friends Inspiring Arts | Parrish Auditorium, Miami University-​Hamilton.

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MARCH 2022

Movers & Makers

www.inspiringartsproductions.com March 25-27. “Romeo & Juliet: Together (and Alive!) at Last” Know Theatre | Over-the-Rhine.

513-300-5669. www.knowtheatre.com Thru March 14. Serials! 12 Thunderdome March 4-20. “Harpers Ferry 2019” Lebanon Theatre Company | Lebanon. 513-932-8300. www.ltcplays.com March 11-20. “110 in the Shade” Loveland Stage Company | Loveland. 513-443-4572. www.lovelandstagecompany.org March 4-20. “Hello Dolly!”

Mariemont Players | Mariemont.

513-684-1236. www.mariemontplayers.com March 11-27. “Ripcord” Mason Community Players | Theatre 42, Lebanon. 513-398-7804. www.masonplayers.org March 4-12. “Belles” Memorial Hall | Over-the-Rhine. www.memorialhallotr.com March 12, noon & 2 p.m. “Dog Man: The Musical” Northern Kentucky University | Corbett Theatre. 859-572-5464. http://theatre.nku.edu Thru March 6. “The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical” Playhouse in the Park | Mt. Adams.

513-421-3888. www.cincyplay.com Thru March 20. “Rooted” (Shelterhouse Theatre) March 19-April 17. “Steel Magnolias” (Marx Theatre) School for Creative & Performing Arts | Over-the-Rhine. 513-363-8100. https://scpa.cps-k12.org March 4-6. “She Kills Monsters 2022” Sunset Players | Art Center at Dunham, Price Hill. www.sunsetplayers.org Thru March 5. “Drinking Habits” March 31-April 10. “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” Taft Theatre | Downtown. www.tafttheatre.org March 24, 7:30 p.m. The Bachelor Live March 26, 7 p.m. Taylor Tomlinson, comedian Tri-County Players | Bell Tower Arts Pavilion, Evendale. 513-471-2030.

www.facebook.com Thru March 6. “The Women of Lockerbie” Village Players | Ft. Thomas.

859-392-0500. www.villageplayers.org Thru March 5. “You Can’t Take It With You” Xavier University | Gallagher Theater. 513-745-3939 www.xavier.edu/theatre-program March 25-27. “Once”

Visual Art 1628 Ltd. | Downtown. 513-320-2596. www.1628ltd.com Thru May 20. “Upon Further Reflection: A Celebration of Women Artists and Introspection” Art Academy of Cincinnati | Over-the-Rhine. 513-562-6262. www.artacademy.edu Thru March 4. “Immune Response: AAC Faculty Exhibition 2022” ArtWorks | Walnut Hills. 513-333-0388. www.artworkscincinnati.org Thru April 16. “Carving Out Your Own Path” The Barn | Mariemont. 513-272-3700. www.artatthebarn.org March 5-25. Cincinnati Brush & Palette Painters: “Hue, Chroma and Magic” Reception: March 5, 3-6 p.m.

March 18-20. “Art in Bloom at The Barn” Reception: March 18, 6-9 p.m.

Behringer-Crawford Museum | Devou Park, Covington. 859-491-4003. www.bcmuseum.org Thru April 24. “Spirit Riders” • “Abracadabra!”

The Carnegie | Covington.

859-491-2030. www.thecarnegie.com March 11-Aug. 20. “A Thought is a River” Caza Sikes | Oakley. 513-290-3127. www.cazasikes.com Thru April 9. Thomas Hieronymus Towhey: “Breaking out the Magic Monkey – a 40 Year Retrospective” Cincinnati Art Museum | Eden Park. 513-721-2787. www.cincinnatiartmuseum.org Thru May 15. “Working Together: The Photographers of the Kamoinge Workshop” • David Driskell: “Icons of Nature and History”

ARTS/CULTURE | The List Cincinnati Art Museum (cont.)

March 11-May 8. “One Each: Still Lifes

by Cézanne, Pissarro and Friends” March 25-June 19. Exhibition in development w/ Cincinnati-based Paloozanoire Clifton Cultural Arts Center | Annex Gallery, The Pendleton. 513-497-2860. www.cliftonculturalarts.org Thru March 5. “New Woman” Contemporary Arts Center | Downtown. 513-345-8400. www.contemporaryartscenter.org Thru March 20. “The Regional” DAAP Galleries | University of Cincinnati.

513-556-2839. www.daap.uc.edu On display. NCECA: National Juried Student Exhibition 2021 (Reed Gallery) • NCECA: Multicultural Fellowship Exhibition 2021 (Meyers Gallery) Fitton Center | Hamilton.

513-863-8873. www.fittoncenter.org Thru March 11. Saad Ghosn: “Human Rights: Derechos Humanos” • “Collision” Indian Hill Gallery | Indian Hill.

513-984-6024. www.indianhillgallery.com Thru March 13. “The River and the Thread: Fiber and Woven Forms”

Off Ludlow Gallery | Clifton.

513-201-7153. www.facebook.com March 4-April 8. NK Printmakers

StudioKroner | Downtown. www.studiokroner.com Thru March 19. Emily Kaelin

Pendleton Art Center | Pendleton. 513421-4339. www.pendletonartcenter.com March 25, 6-10 p.m., open studios

Studio San Giuseppe Art Gallery | Mount St. Joseph University. www.msj.edu Thru April 1. Alan deCourcy

Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park & Museum | Hamilton. 513-868-1234. www.pyramidhill.org Thru September. “Leverage” Large Scale Sculpture by Brett Price March 7-July 3. Fortified Hill and IndiGenius Exhibition

Taft Museum of Art | Lytle Park, Downtown. 513-241-0343. www.taftmuseum.org Thru May 1. “In a New Light - Treasures from the Taft”

Save Our Souls Art | Mt. Auburn Presbyterian Church. www.sosartcincinnati.com March 1-April 3. “Transgender Recognition Art Exhibit” Skirball Museum | Hebrew Union College, Clifton. https://csm.huc.edu Thru May 30. Mark Powdal: “A Collage of Customs” Thru May 8. “From Darkness to Light: Mosaics inspired by tragedy”

Visionaries & Voices | Northside. 513861-4333. www.visionariesandvoices.com March 11-May 27. “Cherished” Reception: March 11, 5-8 p.m.

Wave Pool Gallery and The Welcome Project | Camp Washington. www.wavepoolgallery.org Thru March. “Welcome (M)Art,” Art/Food Residency: Rouyi Shi: “Food Envelopes”

Tiger Lily Press | Dunham Recreation Center. 859-760-6070. www.tigerlilypress.org March 26-27. “Big Ink”

Weston Art Gallery | Aronoff Center, Downtown. 513-977-4165. http://cincinnatiarts.org/weston-art-gallery Thru April 3. Summerfair Select 

Get listed Arts/Culture listings are free.

Send event info to: editor@moversmakers.org Visit www.moversmakers.org for more

Click “EVENTS CALENDAR” for A/C listings Click “SUBSCRIBE” to sign up for weekly email with our top picks of “What to Do/Hear/See”

Iris BookCafe and Gallery | Over-the-Rhine. 513-260-8434. www.irisbookcafeotr.com Thru March. Casey LeClair: “Seven Cities” Kennedy Heights Arts Center | 513-631-4278. www.kennedyarts.org Thru March 12. “The Teachers’ Lounge: Works by Art Instructors Past & Present” Thru March 26. “Voices of Freedom” Manifest Gallery | E. Walnut Hills.

513-861-3638. www.manifestgallery.com March 4-April 1. “OH, KY, & IN” regional • “Mark” works exploring mark-making • “Ornamental” the decorative in art and design • Bonnie Ralston, ceramic sculpture & works on paper. Reception: March 4, 6-9 p.m.

Final Days!

Open through March 22

National Underground Railroad Freedom Center | The Banks.

513-333-7500. www.freedomcenter.org Thru March 22. Luba Lukova: “Designing Justice” Northern Kentucky University | Highland Heights. 859-572-5148. www.nku.edu/gallery March 4-April 1. Juried Student Exhibition. Reception: March 31, 5-7 p.m.

Movers & Makers

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12 The Datebook DATEBOOK

MARCH 1, TUESDAY

MARCH 3, THURSDAY Northern Kentucky Chamber, Intentionally Building Diverse Connections | 4-6:30 p.m. Hilton Cincinnati Airport. DETAILS: Meet representatives from a variety of businesses, cultural backgrounds and communities all in one location. Registration is required. ¼www.NKYChamber.com/ DiverseConnections MARCH 4, FRIDAY

Women Helping Women, Rock Your Beauty Runway Show | 6-9 p.m.

Woodward Theater. DETAILS: Vendor shopping, food, drinks, speakers, fashion show. Tickets start at $25. ¼www.cincyticket.com/rockyourbeauty MARCH 10, THURSDAY The Point Arc, “Straight, No Chaser” Exclusive Weller Raffle | 7 p.m. Hotel Covington. DETAILS: Chance to win complete set of Weller Bourbon, hand-crafted Kentucky state bourbon display shelf and set of four etched bourbon glasses. Tickets: $100 ¼www.thepointarc.org MARCH 12, SATURDAY

Redwood, Redwood Express | 6-11 p.m. Music Hall Ballroom. DETAILS: 40th Anniversary of signature annual fundraiser, sponsored by Heritage Bank.

Live entertainment, open bar, plated dinner, live and silent auctions, raffles and more. Valet parking. ¼www.redwoodnky.org/support/events

Annual Queen City Classic, Chess Tournament | Virtual.

DETAILS: Special guests: Maurice Ashley, Gregory Kaidonov. ¼www.ccpf.org/programs/ queen-city-classic-chess-tournament

Chatfield College, Chatfield of Dreams Celebration | 6 p.m.

1544 Central Pkwy. DETAILS: Food, music, drinks, silent and live auctions. kelly.watson@chatfield.edu or 513-875-3344, x117. ¼www.chatfield.edu/give/ chatfield-of-dreams

St. Patty’s Day Party with a Purpose | 6 p.m.-midnight. The Venue on Lake Grant, Mount Orab. DETAILS: Ages 21+. Dinner, silent auction, raffle, split the pot. Attire: green. Tickets: $25.

Benefits Brown County Peace Officers/ Shop with a Cop and Cancer Family Care. ¼www.facebook.com/ events/898389590849736

MARCH 5, SATURDAY

MARCH 16, WEDNESDAY

Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Bike for Breakthroughs | DETAILS: Virtual cycling experience for all fitness levels. Hosted by Grammy- and Tony-nominated actress – and leukemia survivor – Ashley Park, with Amy Javens of Cycling Life Studio leading the ride.

Registration is free. ¼https://pages.lls.org/events/vtnt/ bikeforbreakthroughs22 Victorian at Riverside, Great Escape Auction | 7 p.m. Virtual.  STORY, this page.

MARCH 2022

The Mardi Gras court: Former Bengal running back Giovani Bernard as Grand Marshall, Sheila Gray of WKRC as Queen and Scott Sloan of WLW as King.

MARCH 8, TUESDAY

Mardi Gras for Homeless Children | 6:30-10 p.m. Northern Kentucky Convention Center.  STORY, this page.

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12

With a Spotlight on the Movers and Makers behind Greater Cincinnati’s Fundraisers, Friend-Raisers and Community Events

Movers & Makers

Boy Scouts of America, Dan Beard Council, Annual Good Scout Award Luncheon | 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., Duke Energy Center.  STORY, Page 13.

MARCH 16, WEDNESDAY People Working Cooperatively, Annual ToolBelt Ball | Hard Rock Casino. DETAILS: Black-tie affair, cocktail reception, online and in-person auctions, entertainment, three-course gourmet dinner, raffles and Wine and Bourbon Cork Pull. Tickets: $175. ¼www.pwchomerepairs.org/toolbeltball

Mardi Gras aims to stock service agencies’ pantries Tuesday, March 1, 6:30-10:30 p.m., Mercedes-Benz of Fort Mitchell The 31st Annual Mardi Gras for Homeless Children will fund a year’s worth of food purchases for Bethany House Services, Brighton Center’s Homeward Bound, and Welcome House.

The Northern Kentucky Restaurant Association will host the event in conjunction with Mercedes-Benz of Fort Mitchell and the Wyler Family Foundation.

Special guests include Scott

Sloan of 700 WLW, Sheila Gray of Local 12 News, former Bengal Giovani Bernard, and Tiffany Potter and JonJon Curl of KISS 107.1. The evening will include food and drinks from more than 50 local restaurants and beverage purveyors, live and silent auctions, and live music by Tickled Pink and the Beechwood High School Marching Band.

All-inclusive tickets: $80. VIP tickets allowing early access: $100.  www.mardigras2022.org

World travel up for bid in Victorian’s virtual fundraiser Saturday, March 5, 7 p.m., virtual

Center, Smith Jones Consulting, Mariner Wealth Advisors, VonLehman, Earl Franks and Sons Flooring, Mach III, ProLink Staffing, Resource Graphics, Baxter Burial Vault and Central Bank.

For information on sponsorships or to donate auction items, please call 859-431-6913.  www.victorianatriverside.org

The “Great Escape,” The Victorian at Riverside’s virtual auction/fundraiser, will feature trips to France, Ireland, Italy, Alaska, Greece and other locations.

Other items and experiences include W&S Tennis Championship tickets, a private cooking class for eight at Turner Farm, lift tickets to Perfect North, a backstage tour Ron Padgett, Victorian at Riverside board vice-president and auction chair, with Carrie of WCPO and more.

VanDerzee, Victorian at Riverside CEO For 135 years, the Victorian has served vulnerable elderly women.

The event is chaired by Victorian board vice president Ron Padgett. Sponsors include presenting sponsor LYP Contact

DATEBOOK

KAREfarm hosts Hoops, Hops and Hope fundraiser

Saturday, March 26, 4-11 p.m., Legends Bar & Grill / Bock’s Billiards, Covington

Charles Hertlein

George Vincent

Sean Casey

Reds great Sean Casey headlines Good Scout Award Luncheon Wednesday, March 16, 11 a.m.-1 p.m., Duke Energy Convention Center The Dan Beard Council, Boy Scouts of America, will honor Dinsmore, represented by George Vincent and Charles Hertlein Jr., with the Good Scout Award.

Former Reds player Sean “The Mayor” Casey will be the guest speaker at the Good Scout Award Luncheon.

Dinsmore is a national law firm headquartered in Greater

Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. The Dan Beard Council recognizes Dinsmore for its efforts to develop a more inclusive and diverse workplace and bring change to the area.

Boy Scouts of America remains one of the United States’ largest youth development organizations.

More than 1,200 leaders from major companies will gather, having raised over $460,000 for local Scout groups.  www.danbeard.org/gsal

KAREfarm is hosting Hoops, Hops and Hope this March. The fundraising event includes a raffle, silent auctions, a drawing for the $1,000 grand prize and catering by Vonderhaar’s, all at a viewing party for an Elite 8 March Madness game.

The 99-acre KAREfarm is located in Brooksville, Ky. Founded by parents grieving the loss of their children, the nonprofit provides free daylong or weekend retreats, restorative services and more to help and support the bereaved in an outdoor environment.

Event and raffle tickets are available online.  www.karefarm.org Magnified Giving Executive Director Kelly Collison, Mike Pfennig and KAREfarm co-founders Stephanie Pfennig and Christa Plummer

Movers & Makers

MARCH 2022

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DATEBOOK APRIL 21, THURSDAY

MARCH 26, SATURDAY KAREfarm, Hoops, Hops and Hope | 4-11 p.m., Legends Bar & Grill / Bock’s Billiards, Covington.  STORY, Page 13.

MARCH 30, WEDNESDAY

Tristate Trauma Network, Northern Kentucky Take Back the Night | 5-9 p.m. Goebel Park, Covington.  STORY, Page 15.

APRIL 22, FRIDAY

Bethesda Foundation, Annual LYCEUM | 6 p.m. Hard Rock Casino.

DETAILS: Guest speaker: Ben Nemtin.

Dinner. Tickets start at $300. ¼www.bethesdafoundation.com/events/ bethesda-lyceum APRIL 2, SATURDAY Beechwood Home, Annual Gala | 6-10 p.m. Kenwood Country Club.  STORY, this page.

APRIL 6, WEDNESDAY Woman’s City Club, National Speaker Forum and Fundraiser | 7:30 p.m. Memorial Hall.  STORY, this page.

APRIL 7, THURSDAY UC Advancement and Transition Services, Red & Black Blast | 6-9 p.m. University of Cincinnati, Fifth Third Arena. DETAILS: TBA ¼https://cech.uc.edu/schools/ education/ats/events.html

Council on Child Abuse, Reach for the Stars | 7-10 p.m. Kenwood Country Club. DETAILS: Honoring Mt. Airy Elementary. Benefits COCA’s efforts in providing education to prevent bullying where children live, learn and play. ¼www.cocachild.org/events/ reach-for-the-stars APRIL 23, SATURDAY DePaul Cristo Rey, Rey of Light | DETAILS: Guests will gather in-person for this year’s Rey of Light, held on campus in new Student Center. ¼www.depaulcristorey.org APRIL 29, FRIDAY Family Nurturing Center, Prom for a Purpose | 7-11 p.m. PromoWest Pavilion at Ovation, Newport. DETAILS: Walk the Blue Carpet, dance, DJ Mark McFadden, appetizers, open bar, desserts, photo booth, silent auction.

Tickets: $100, VIP: $250. ¼https://e.givesmart.com/events/p6o APRIL 30, SATURDAY

APRIL 9, SATURDAY Lighthouse Youth & Family Services, The Beacon of Light Humanitarian Awards Gala | 6:30-11 p.m. Hyatt Regency.  STORY, Page 15.

Purcell Marian High School, Grand Event | 6:30 p.m. at the school.

DETAILS: Open bar, catered plated dinner, and entertainment. Tickets $150. ¼www.purcellmarian.org/events/ grand-event-2022

Jewish Hospital, A Night with Dionne Warwick | Hyatt Regency.

DETAILS: Six-time Grammy Award-winner Dionne Warwick will entertain. Honoring key figures in Jewish Hospital’s history. ¼ SMRutherford@mercy.com or 513-686-4127 Ovarian Cancer Alliance of Greater Cincinnati, Jeans and Jewels Gala | 6 p.m. Receptions of Fairfield. DETAILS: Cocktails, four food stations, dessert and wine with dinner. Also: silent and live auction, split the pot, wine pull and jewelry raffle. ¼https://OCGala2022.givesmart.com 

There is more Datebook online . . .

Make sure your fundraiser, friend-raiser or community event is listed at www.moversmakers.org/datebook Listings are free. NPOs may send event details and photos to: editor@moversmakers.org 14

MARCH 2022

Rev. Earl K. Fernandes; Robert W. Neel IV, M.D.

Movers & Makers

Beechwood celebrates caregivers of body and spirit Saturday, April 2, 6-10 p.m., Kenwood Country Club The Beechwood Home, one of only two nonprofits nationwide specializing in serving people with neurological conditions who can no longer live at home, will honor Rev. Earl K. Fernandes and neurologist Dr. Robert W. Neel IV at its annual gala.

Father Fernandes, pastor of St. Ignatius of Loyola parish, is a regular visitor to the home and celebrates mass with residents.

Dr. Neel, neurologist at the University of Cincinnati Gardner Neuroscience Institute and the

Muscular Dystrophy Association Clinic at UC Medical Center, shares his expertise in ALS and autoimmune neuromuscular disorders with Beechwood residents and staff.

Beechwood, in Hyde Park, is a long-term nursing care facility for about 80 adults, ages early 20s to 80s, with multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, ALS and effects of a stroke.

The gala will include cocktails, dinner and dancing to Soul Pocket.  www.beechwoodhome.com

Speaker forum features activist, historian Berry Wednesday, April 6, 7:30 p.m., Memorial Hall The Woman’s City Club’s annual National Speaker Forum and Fundraiser will feature civil rights activist, historian, writer, lawyer and professor Dr. Mary Frances Berry discussing “Race, Protest & Politics: Where Do We Go from Here?”

Berry has been one of the most visible and respected activists in the cause of civil rights, gender equality, and social justice over the past four decades. She was a member of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission from 1980 to 2004, during five presidential administrations, and chaired the organization for over a decade.

Founded in 1915, Woman’s City Club is a leading civic organization. A recent project involved spearheading the effort to place a statue honoring civil rights leader Marian Spencer at Smale Park – the first in Cincinnati of a named woman.  www.womanscityclub.org/ programs/national-speaker-forum Mary Frances Berry

DATEBOOK

Phillip and Gail Holloman

Moira Weir

Barbara Weyand

Nicole Dowdell

Lighthouse to celebrate 2022 Beacon of Light Humanitarians Saturday, April 9, 6:30-11 p.m., Hyatt Regency Lighthouse Youth & Family Services will host the annual Beacon of Light Humanitarian Awards Gala, a celebration of exemplary community leaders that supports services for youths who rely on Lighthouse.

The 2022 honorees are Phillip and Gail Holloman, Moira Weir and Barbara Weyand.

The award recognizes leadership, community service and a positive impact on the lives

of young people and families. Lighthouse has honored individuals in the community since 1996.

The evening includes cocktails, dinner and live music and dancing with The Ultra Sonics. Nicole Dowdell is serving as gala chair. For more information about sponsorship opportunities and the event, contact Tammy Cuevas at 513-487-6775 or tcuevas@lys.org.  www.lys.org/2022beacongala

Red & Black Blast celebrates inclusion, advocacy Thursday, April 7, 6-9 p.m., Fifth Third Bank Arena The University of Cincinnati’s Advancement & Transition Services will be hosting the fifth annual Red & Black Blast, where guests can enjoy a gourmet dinner featuring the culinary talents of Aramark’s top executive chefs.

In addition to the culinary delights, guests will hear inspiring, life-changing stories, can bid on original artwork by ATS participants, and may win prizes.

The event will also honor two award winners: Mary Boat, director of the UC School of Education, with the Chuck Altenau Outstanding Service Award; and Shelley Goering, community advocate for people with disabilities, with the Champion for Inclusion Award.

Mary Boat

Shelley Goering

Tickets are $100 each, and all proceeds from the Red & Black Blast will benefit ATS to provide more inclusive opportunities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.  https://cech.uc.edu/schools/ education/ats/events.html

Event honors victims of abuse, domestic violence Thursday, April 21, 5-9 p.m., Goebel Park, Covington Take Back the Night’s 2022 theme is “Now is the Time: Reflect, Heal, Act.” The event, which is free to the public, features keynote speaker Kim Belew, a child sex trafficking survivor, motivational speaker and rap musician.

Other programming includes a speak-out, an open mic for survivors, candlelight vigil, live music, T-shirt making and sales, local

artistry and resources. Khrys Styles is the emcee for the evening.

The event sponsors are local mental health, social service and higher education facilities.

Vendor sale items will be available.

To donate, contact Melissa Adamchik, Tristate Trauma Network executive director, at Madamchik@tristatetraumanetwork.org  www.cincynkytbtn.org, www.kimbelew.com

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Megan Fischer, founder of Sweet Cheeks Diaper Bank

By Shauna Steigerwald

A random click led to her ‘calling’ on’t randomly click links online unless you’re prepared for your whole life to change,” joked Megan Fischer, CEO and founder of Sweet Cheeks Diaper Bank.

She’s qualified to offer the advice, considering that’s exactly what happened to her. A scroll through Facebook led her to start a nonprofit, meeting a need she hadn’t even known existed.

In 2014, Fischer, a Miami University graduate with degrees in journalism and creative writing, worked in content development at Cengage, an education technology company.

On her lunch break, the Milford native came across the link to what she thought was an article about cloth diapering. Eight months pregnant with an almost 2-year-old, she clicked it to read more. The story was actually about a diaper bank in another city.

“That’s how I learned ‘diaper need’ is a thing, that diapers aren’t covered by government assistance,” she said. “If a caregiver needs help, there’s really nowhere to go.

“It was so sad,” she said. “I was in my cube at work, crying.”

Fischer immediately wanted to help. Her first instinct was to volunteer at the local diaper bank. But with a few more clicks, she learned Cincinnati didn’t have one.

More clicks led her to the National Diaper Bank Network and resources for starting one. With a toddler, a full-time job and a baby on the way, that didn’t seem like a possibility. Besides, she had zero experience in the nonprofit world, not even as a volunteer or donor.

So she dismissed the idea, rationalizing that someone else was probably already working on a solution.

Megan Fischer with Blue Heelers Ruby and Winston, and Hans, a Dachshund mix.

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The difference a year makes But a year went by, and no one had opened a diaper bank locally.

That whole time, the link to the National Diaper Bank Network stayed open in Fischer’s browser, and the idea stayed prominent in her mind.

She’d never fully understood what people meant when they talked about “a calling.” Now, she got it.

“I couldn’t stop thinking about it,” she said.

So she stopped worrying about failing and, as she puts it, “got out of my own way.”

From there, things moved fast.

Fischer is not one to do things halfway.

“I’m type A to the extreme,” she said. “I could work 24 hours a day and wish there were more hours so I could get more done.”

She devoted her evenings, weekends and vacation days to Sweet Cheeks while still working full-time. It appealed to her entrepreneurial spirit: From selling embroidery floss jewelry on the playground in third grade to selling Mary Kay or handmade cards as an adult, she often had a small side business.

“Running a nonprofit is running a business,” she said. “I had no idea you could do good in the world and fulfill that entrepreneurial drive.”

Fischer spent six months working on details. It’s a simple model: Sweet Cheeks buys diapers and accepts donated ones, then distributes

them to agencies working with families in need. In April 2016, she distributed her first 3,500 diapers to three partner agencies from her basement. She soon had a waiting list for agencies, and by the end of the year, she’d given out 156,000 diapers.

Today, the organization distributes 160,000 to 200,000 diapers per month – more than 2 million per year – to 53 partners. (Even at that, Sweet Cheeks is only meeting 20 percent of the diaper need in our area, Fischer estimated.) The nonprofit occupies a 16,000-squarefoot facility in Lower Price Hill and employs four full-time staff members, one part-timer and two contractors. Volunteers are critical; Sweet Cheeks needs hundreds of volunteer hours each month.

Fischer attributes the nonprofit’s quick success to several factors.

Its branding – a memorable name that “makes people smile” and its mascot, a diaper-wearing flying pig named Morty – didn’t hurt. But it mostly goes back to the cause.

“Babies are an easy sell,” she said. “Clean diapers are a simple concept.”

“Also, the need is so great,” she added, noting that nationally, one in three families experiences diaper need. “For agencies serving families with young kids, it’s one of the number one requested things, and they’re so expensive that agencies don’t have budget for it.”

Santa Maria Community Services partnered with Sweet Cheeks back when Fischer was distributing diapers from her home.

The agency now receives 8,000 diapers per month, noted Chief Program Officer Julie McGregor.

She isn’t surprised by Sweet Cheeks’ “exponential growth,” and cites another contributing factor: Fischer herself.

“Megan is a fantastic leader,” she said. “She’s still down to earth, she understands the families, she understands the agency partners and she’s able to use that understanding to get more resources, more funding, more of what she needs to help that trickle down to the families.

“I think her enthusiasm is contagious,” she added. “She’s passionate about the work, and you can feel that. She really cares.”

Balancing act All that passion and hard work can make it difficult to achieve work-life balance, however.

“The entrepreneur life can be really harmful to family,” Fischer said.

“It’s easy to let the business take over your life,” and Sweet Cheeks did for a time.

Photo by Tina Gutierrez

“D

FOCUS ON: Children & Youth But with a divorce and the pandemic hitting in close succession, she slowed down to put her family – son Archer, 9, and daughter Elsa, 7, plus three dogs and a cat – first.

“I want my kids to be proud of me, and I want them to know what it means to have a mom who cares about them and puts them first, but she can also have a career and be successful and do a little bit of good in the world,” she said.

The kids get to be part of that good. “As soon as they could count to 25, they were putting diapers into stacks to be wrapped,” she said.

To unplug, Fischer does puzzles and cross stitches (admittedly, “downtime” that still produces something), often while listening to audiobooks. Last year, she took the first two-week vacation of her career.

“If you don’t fill up your own cup … then you have nothing to give anybody else,” she said.

Helping now, looking ahead What Fischer hopes to give to local families is to fill the gap between the diapers they need and what they can afford.

“The families we serve love their babies,” she said. “I can’t imagine what it would feel like to love my baby and not be able to give them something as simple as a clean diaper as soon as they needed it.”

She also believes a tangible item like a diaper can make a mental difference, not just a financial one.

“The work of getting out of poverty is so difficult, and the payout from it is not immediate,” she said.

“It’s a good incentive to keep going and keep showing up at the service agency (for) services that will make a difference down the road,” such as financial counseling, addiction treatment, training or wellness checkups.

It didn’t take long for Fischer to move beyond diapers. Early on, she realized hygiene items were a “whole missing category in government assistance.” Period supplies are another example.

“Our menstruating caregivers were choosing between buying period supplies for themselves

or diapers for their babies,” she said. “Menstruaters were missing school, work and daily life because they didn’t have the supplies they needed.”

Working with the Junior League of Greater Cincinnati in 2018, she launched Tidal Babe Period Bank.

It now distributes 10,000 kits per year. Currently in the works is Fly and Dry Basic Needs Bank, which offers potty training resources and recently piloted an adult incontinence program. She’s hoping for stable funding to get that program fully off the ground this year.

“Again, nobody’s doing it, so I feel a real urgency,” she said.

All three programs are now under the parent company COVERD Greater Cincinnati – “covering that whole region of the body.”

Whatever the future holds, Fischer feels good about the work so far.

“No matter where Sweet Cheeks ends up or what happens to this organization in the future, the good that’s already been done and the impact on families we’ve already had won’t go away,” she said.

Partner organizations can attest to that.

“Megan is truly inspiring!” said Claire Pollock, senior director of community engagement at the Cincinnati Museum Center. The museum added a diaper collection barrel outside the Children’s Museum last August; it’s already been filled several times, said Whitney Owens, the museum’s chief learning officer.

“Megan and her team are making a very positive impact on our community,” Pollock said.

McGregor said the families Santa Maria serves are grateful for a little extra help.

“I think it helps families to not stress as much about diapers,” she said. “It frees up some cash resources they can use to pay rent or utilities, or buy things like detergent or toilet paper … I think it is a step up toward stabilization.

Sweet Cheeks is meeting a need in Cincinnati for sure.”   sweetcheeksdiaperbank.org

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BE A CHAMPION OF UPSTANDERS TODAY! www.holocaustandhumanity.org/business-partnership-program/ Movers & Makers

MARCH 2022

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FOCUS ON: Children & Youth

k i ng th e cycl e of tra u ma a e r B Kids need advocates who SEE them, HEAR them, SPEAK UP for them

T

he 16-year-old is missing school again today. His mother never came home last night and he is out looking for food for his little brother and sister. With no money, he knows he may need to steal something. Will anyone notice?

The 12-year-old is wearing a huge sweatshirt and her hair is hanging in her face. She wants to be invisible so that her mom’s boyfriend doesn’t see her or try to touch her again. Will anyone see her?

The 6-month-old is wailing on a tattered blanket on the floor. His mother is on the couch, passed out from a drug overdose. Will anyone hear him?

Every day in Greater Cincinnati, children like these need adults to raise them up in a world where it can seem the grownups Judge Melissa Powers have let them down.

Hamilton County Juvenile Court Judge Melissa Powers put it this way: “These children don’t have the hope they need to thrive. What these kids often need is someone to count on, to encourage them. The attentiveness of one adult in their life can make all the difference.”

Dependency and delinquency As administrative judge, Powers oversees a court that has been overwhelmed during the pandemic. As it oversees dependency cases, the court sees the pain of child abuse and neglect.

In delinquency cases, it sees the disturbing increase in violence among children, including with guns.

“The violence we are seeing shows the cycle 18

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of trauma in so many families,” said Powers.

“The parents suffered and now the children suffer. You have to build resiliency to overcome trauma. But we are seeing an acute crisis with our kids: aggression, gun violence, bullying.”

Powers noted that children have struggled with mental health issues, particularly because of isolation, during the pandemic. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there was a 31% increase in mental health-related emergency room visits for young people in 2020. That number continued to grow in 2021.

Untreated mental health issues, lack of in-person school and routine, families under stress and a growing hostility on social media added up to more cases coming before the court, Powers suggests. In 2021, there were 19,732 juvenile court cases, compared to 16,433 in 2020. About a third of the cases – which can include more than one child – were child abuse and neglect filings.

Many of those children are in the custody of Hamilton County Jobs & Family Services.

Removed from unsafe homes, these children go into the county’s care. For many of these children – more than 2,600 were in county custody in 2021 – the goal is reunification with their parents. The court oversees where they live in the meantime and ultimately decides who will raise the child.

It’s a complex and frustrating system for adults. And for children, it is even more confusing.

At the Children’s Law Center, a nonprofit advocacy agency in Northern Kentucky, attorneys supported by donations and grants represent children and young adults in areas like child welfare, juvenile justice and education. “We come in at a crucial juncture for these kids,” said Executive Director Sasha Naiman. “We want to help children get to their bright future and

By Julie Kemble Borths

make sure the systems support them.”

Some of that advocacy for kids – also done by the Legal Aid Society of Greater Cincinnati – involves making sure children get the educational services they need and are required by law. That can mean supporting a family through expulsion hearings, as well as ensuring a child gets everything required in their specialized education plan for academic assistance or behavioral support.

“We make sure to view things from the child’s perspective,” Naiman said. “There is a whole set of state and federal laws regarding … free and appropriate public education. Often, we need to advocate for that.”

Naiman said the systems in place can sometimes forget the different needs of children Sasha Naiman at different stages. While a 7-month-old is very different from a 17-year-old, the legal world lumps them all together as juveniles with certain protections. Her staff makes sure to consider the differences among the young clients they serve, enabling older children to assert more autonomy and control if they are able.

They also consider what is behind behavior that may land a child in legal trouble. Often, a child who has experienced trauma will make “decisions we don’t understand,” Naiman noted.

But because young people are “highly capable of rehabilitation and resilient,” the team – along with others in juvenile justice – focuses on opportunities for that growth and maturity, rather than punishment.

Community volunteer Patti Hogan (more on Page 20) said that, when she first saw young

FOCUS ON: Children & Youth teens on every street corner of her Price Hill neighborhood a decade ago, she focused on consequences. At meetings with the safety council of the Price Hill Community Action Team, she insisted the police step up enforcement.

“I was unforgiving,” she recalls. “But the police told me we cannot arrest ourselves out of these problems.”

The juvenile court has programs to divert young offenders from court and give them opportunities to think differently about their behavior. High school students participate in a peer-to-peer Youth Court, and diversion dockets are focused on certain neighborhoods and challenges such as substance abuse.

In these diversion programs, young, nonviolent, first-time offenders encounter alternatives like community service, essay writing or therapeutic intervention. Heather Chura Smith, director of public relations and data for the juvenile court, doubles as a hearing officer in one of these programs. She said the emphasis is on “getting to know and understand these kids.”

In one case, for example, a middle-school boy was in trouble for fighting. He’d lost an older brother to gun violence and that made him more likely to engage in risky behaviors. But in getting to know the boy, they found that he liked being outside and really enjoyed animals.

For his community service, he began working in the community gardens. There, caring adult volunteers showed him a different path … and he got to find lizards.

“His mother reported that he was always bringing home lizards in his pocket,” Chura Smith said. “That was a success: He was in a safe, healthy place where he could be a kid.”

Disrupting the cycle Just being a kid is a luxury some children just don’t have. Their family systems may include abuse and neglect going back generations. And for these children, the outlook is bleak. According to a study published in 2019 in Neuroscience News, abused and neglected children are four times more likely to develop a serious mental illness. And the National Institutes of Health noted in 2011 that abused children are nine times more likely to become

involved in criminal activity.

But most disturbing of all – abused and neglected children suffer post-traumatic stress disorder at a higher rate than returning war veterans, the Journal of Pediatric Psychology reported in 2010. This includes, the study noted, those children who live in a home filled with violence, even if they are not physically injured.

“We see the cycle of trauma a lot,” Judge Powers said. “The parents suffer and then their children suffer. We want to help build the resiliency they need to overcome that trauma.”

That’s why, on the dependency side of Juvenile Court – where magistrates and judges ultimately decide who will raise a child – the emphasis is on services for the parents as well as support for the children. While reunification is only one option for a child removed from their family, it is what most children really want.

For reunification to occur, the court and JFS use local agencies like Best Point Education and Behavioral Health (which in February changed its name from The Children’s Home) to provide counseling and education as well as a safe, therapeutic place for parents to meet with their children in JFS custody.

Karen Bankston (more on Page 21) is a board member for Best Point. She said programs like the Randall S. Bloch Family Visitation Center are part of the reason she gives her time to the agency.

“I was a teen mom myself,” Bankston said.

“And my mother was a single mom who had been raised by my grandmother who lost her own mother when she was young. They didn’t pass on the notion of mothering … of being warm.”

At the visitation center, and through other community programs, parents can learn skills – overseen by the court and JFS – and may be reunited with their children. In 2021, JFS reported that more than half of children in its custody were reunified with a parent or guardian or were living with another relative.

While children are in JFS custody, they may be living in a foster care home, a group home, a residential treatment facility or – for the oldest teens – in a supervised apartment learning how to live independently. This time can add to the trauma for a child who is suddenly moved away

from everything familiar, even though the goal is their safety.

“When we intervene, it should be the last resort,” said Margie Weaver, JFS director of children’s services. “The child protection system is reactive. Child maltreatment can be prevented when children and families have access to the right supports and resources in their communities to help them thrive.”

Opportunities to help Across the state, JFS has been moving toward more proactive strategies to keep children with their families. The pandemic, Weaver said, has complicated that work. There is a shortage of staff and of providers of therapy and other services, but there is no shortage of children who need help. The number of children coming into JFS custody dropped sharply at the start of the epidemic, but has rebounded with more than 2,600 children in 2021, including 835 who entered the system that year.

But while the numbers are “back to normal,” Weaver said the caseworkers are seeing issues that reflect the challenges of the pandemic.

The staff is training with Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center to learn more about immediate intervention when children are a danger to themselves. An uptick in older children coming into the system means redoubling efforts to help them successfully “age out” of the system, becoming adults with the support they need to cope. “Often these kids are so lost,” Weaver said. “They face so many adverse outcomes … like becoming homeless.”

Weaver said JFS relies on the community to advocate for children of all ages in ways large and small. Community members become adoptive parents as well as foster parents. They support JFS programs to provide “extras” for kids like sports fees. They can take action on policies and laws surrounding child protection and can provide support for funding through local taxes.

And they can pay attention to the children they encounter and – in Hamilton County – call 513-241-KIDS to report suspected abuse and neglect. While studies show that only one in about 10 incidents of abuse are actually confirmed, many cases are never reported.

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FOCUS ON: Children & Youth One other way that community members advocate for these children is through programs like Hamilton County’s ProKids.

Weaver said these volunteers “share the same end goal in mind” with JFS and “can get so involved in the life of a child.”

Known across the country as CASA Volunteers or Court Appointed Special Advocates, trained community members speak up for individual children, often those in foster care. ProKids has been empowering volunteers from all walks of life to do this work for 40 years.

In about 10 hours a month, each ProKids Tracy CASA Volunteer makes Cook it more likely a child will get what they need in school and the support they need from therapy, and move to a safe, permanent, nurturing home. Like the more than 93,000 CASA volunteers across 49 states, each ProKids volunteer speaks up for a single child or family of children, unlike those in the overburdened government system. These volunteers also may stay in a child’s life much longer than other adults, enabling them to gain the trust of the families and children they serve.

ProKids Executive Director Tracy Cook said these volunteers prove that a single person can make a real difference. “I’ve never been more convinced by what one person can do,” Cook said. “I’ve seen so many examples where one person was able to get children to a safe place when the systems could not” during the pandemic.

“It’s an individual getting in there and saying ‘How can we …?’ ” Cook said. “I’ve never

thought more about our volunteers being the glue that is holding everything together, the people who figure out how to make this work.”

With 331 CASA volunteers in 2021, ProKids served 1,101 children. But that’s only about 42 percent of the children who need a CASA volunteer’s advocacy.

Using virtual classrooms for its training program and encouraging socially distanced visits with children, ProKids continued its work during the pandemic, enabled by community donors who fund the staff that recruits, trains and supports each CASA volunteer. Cook said while the work of ProKids didn’t change, the circumstances for the children it serves did.

“The sad thing is that these children were already in chaos. Now there’s an extra layer,” Cook said. “Then they are thrust into a system that even before the pandemic was under strain. It’s heartbreaking.”

Hope and Possibilities But CASA volunteers are able to focus their energies on what is possible. “These kids are in desperate situations,” Cook said. “But as the pandemic wears on all of us, there’s a way out of our own stress by approaching life with gratitude and compassion. And that’s what being a CASA volunteer is.”

Weaver agrees there are rewards in coming together for children. “I marvel every day at how resilient our children and our families are,” she said. “There is a lot of room for optimism and hopefulness.”

“We need to wake up,” Cook said. “We have to stop thinking that someone else has got this. This is a community problem. It’s going to take all hands on deck.” 

What happened to you?

I

n a 2021 New York Times best seller

by Oprah Winfrey and Dr. Bruce Perry, the question “What Happened to You?” described the impact of childhood trauma on developing brains, as well as how destructive experiences can throw shadows far into adulthood.

Known as Adverse Childhood Experiences, or ACEs – events such as a parent dying or going to prison, or being abused or neglected – can add up to a “score” that impacts not only relationships and behavior, but also brain

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development and physical health.

By looking at “what happened to you” rather than “what’s wrong with you,” clinicians are finding they can unravel the cause of many issues that impact adults and children. As researchers have learned more about brain development, particularly in the very young, they’ve learned how devastating ACEs can be, as well as what interventions can help.  Learn about ACEs: www.acestoohigh.com or www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention

Meet some volunteers Tim Dierker

L

eaving a convenience store in Clifton, Tim Dierker was surprised when a young man Tim ran up to him and Dierker said he knew him.

It took a minute, but Dierker realized the teenager had lived alongside another boy Dierker had served as a ProKids CASA Volunteer. “You used to come and see him all the time and you were so nice to him,” the young man said. “And I found out later you were a volunteer! There’s not a lot of people in the world like you.”

Before he left, he gave Dierker a hug that Dierker would never forget. “You never know who you are going to impact,” he said.

By standing up for abused and neglected children in juvenile court, giving the magistrate information to decide who can keep a child safe, Dierker said, the CASA volunteer “is the expert in that whole building on that kid. You never forget that you are there on behalf of that child.”

There are tough moments and staggering stories that can take Dierker aback.

“As far as volunteer gigs go, there are easier gigs out there,” Dierker said. “But I get so much more out of it than I put in.”

Dierker became a CASA volunteer about 20 years ago. “You can complain all day long about the state of our country or the future of our children,” he said. “Or you can do something about it.”

Among the children Dierker has served, he has seen struggles he never imagined: children who had stolen dog food to eat off a neighbor’s porch, traumatized kids who caused disruptions that got them moved again and again, foster parents who are “angels on this earth.”

“I’ve met so many people I would never have met otherwise,” Dierker said. “It gave me such an appreciation for my own life, my own upbringing.”

Patti Hogan

T

en years ago, Patti Hogan had a singular goal: to get the kids she Patti saw in her neighborHogan hood off the street.

Now, she cannot go down the street without running into one of

FOCUS ON: Children & Youth “her kids,” young people who got to know her through an innovative program she began as a win/win: At-risk youth would get an allowance in exchange for cleaning up abandoned or unkept areas of Price Hill.

“I found that the kids who were getting into trouble were the pawns of adults,” she said.

“They wanted money and it was the only way they could get it.”

Her program, in collaboration with the Hamilton County Juvenile Court and the safety council of the Price Hill Community Action Team, does more than give an allowance for the sweaty summertime work. It stimulates pride in the neighborhood, teaches young people about work skills like being on time and communicating well, and even rewards them with “business lunches” at local restaurants where they are encouraged to put away their phones and “really talk” with Hogan and her fellow volunteers, who serve as role models.

“I’ve really seen the seeds have started to sprout,” Hogan said. “I ran into two of them and they were so excited to be working, to have ‘real’ jobs now.”

Hogan has learned to look far beyond what she thinks she saw on those street corners. “It breaks my heart that some of these kids have gone through what they have gone through,” she said. “This is not just about cutting grass. It’s given me hope in the future.”

Mimi Dyer

T

romping through Mount Airy Forest, Mimi Dyer was fascinated by the three children tagging along. They had Mimi Dyer never been in the woods, never gotten their sneakers dirty. But the siblings – ages 5, 7 and 9 – were fascinated by her.

“I feel sorry for you,” said the oldest. “You have to work on a Saturday.”

“No,” Mimi said. “I get to do this as a volunteer.”

The girl was shocked, knowing since they were removed from their mother that all the caseworkers and other officials who filled the children’s lives were paid. “Thank you,” she said simply.

Dyer, who has been a ProKids CASA volunteer since 2008, still considers herself fortunate to not only get to do this work, but also to have had that quiet thank you.

“These children are so innocent,” Dyer said.

“They have not done anything wrong.”

While Dyer has seen some of the abused and neglected children she serves act out in difficult ways, she knows it is because of what has happened in their young lives. And then, as their CASA volunteer, she can help make sure they get what they need to heal and to begin to thrive.

“And it’s not just the children,” she said. She thinks of the mother who still reaches out to her when the system overwhelms her and she just needs to know what to do. And an aunt who Dyer could support at a school meeting so they could make sure the child she’d agreed to raise got what he needed to be successful.

Developing those relationships, Dyer said, has shown her that it is the little things, the little moments that make a difference.

“From the moment I walked into ProKids …

I knew that these people were awesome,” Dyer said. “I’m just lucky to be able to do this.”

Mars Robinson

M

ars Robinson Mars knows she is Robinson fortunate.

“I was raised by a (former) foster kid,” she said. “My mom was in an abusive foster home, too. I know that could have been passed on so easily. But I have a wonderful mom.”

But Robinson was haunted by what could have happened, and when she found out about ProKids she could not wait to become a CASA Volunteer.

“My mom didn’t have the support of anything like ProKids,” Robinson said. “I knew I had to give something back to my community because I had been so lucky.”

Over the past five years, Robinson said she has never looked back. “It sounds like so much responsibility. And it is. But you feel the rewards, not the weight,” she said.

Whether she’s been working or completing her degree at the University of Cincinnati, Robinson said she’s been able to find the time “to make a kid’s life better.”

She said that’s because of the people from ProKids that she works alongside. “Everyone is looking out for our kids,” she said. “They are always right there with you and that changes everything when it gets dark or difficult. You get all the support you need.”

ProKids volunteers start out with a Snapshot presentation to learn more about the role.

After this hour-long presentation online, they participate in a series of classes (now offered online) to learn about the child protection

system. Participants go at their own pace and also participate in a background check and an interview.

“From when you get a case to when it is resolved, every moment with every child has been a reward,” Robinson said.

Karen Bankston

A

nurse with a Ph.D. behind her name, Karen Bankston never forgets where it all started: growing up in Karen a home where no one Bankston knew how to say “I love you.”

While she knows she represents beating the odds, Bankston has devoted time over the years to advocating for the kind of child she knows she once was.

“One of the things that is so important to me is taking the opportunity to understand what a child faces in confronting trauma,” Bankston said, adding that is why she has been a board member for Best Point (formerly The Children’s Home) over the last decade.

Best Point offers specialized services, such as for autism, as well as parenting classes, children’s therapy, educational programs and a visitation center to help parents reunite with their children after they are removed for abuse or neglect.

For these children, Bankston knows, “it is about more than being hit. It is about how they perceive themselves.”

This perception can reach back generations, as Bankston knows from her own life.

“We have to help them come up with strategies,” Bankston said, to heal and to build resilience. “There are gaps for these kids and their families that get in the way of living their best lives. We can help in breaking that cycle.” 

All photos of children accompanying this article are stock images courtesy of ProKids.

Movers & Makers

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21

CincinnatiCares.org is the only public-access search-and-discover guide to Greater Cincinnati nonprofits.

FOCUSON

Discover YOUR way to help.

Find out what these organizations NEED NOW – from products and supplies, to donations, to hands-on or skilled volunteering.

SCAN CODE

Nonprofits Serving Children & Youth 4C for Children

Children’s Law Center

MISSION: To educate and support child

care professionals and advocate for public support for quality early education and care for all children. ¼ www.cincinnaticares.org/listing-item/ 4c-for-children

St. Aloysius MISSION: St. Aloysius helps the children

and families in our community overcome their challenges by providing the education, counseling, health care and resources they need to heal and grow. ¼ cincinnaticares.org/listing-item/ st-aloysius

Beech Acres Parenting Center Featured profile, Page 23.

Best Point Featured profile, Page 24.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Cinti.

MISSION: To pair adult volunteers with

children in the Tristate who can benefit from having a positive role model, with the goal of helping these children be successful in school and in life. ¼ cincinnaticares.org/listing-item/bigbrothers-and-big-sisters-of-greater-cincinnati

Boy Scouts of America - Dan Beard Council Featured profile, Page 23.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Cincinnati MISSION: Empowering boys and girls, ages

5-18, with fun, safe and educational after school and summer programing at our seven Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky Clubs. ¼ cincinnaticares.org/listing-item/ boys-and-girls-clubs-of-greater-cincinnati 22

MARCH 2022

Movers & Makers

MISSION: To provide individual legal

advocacy to children and youths, and to improve the systems that serve them through public policy work, training and education, impact litigation, and juvenile defender support services. ¼ cincinnaticares.org/listing-item/ childrens-law-center

Cincinnati Youth Collaborative (CYC) MISSION: CYC empowers youth to overcome

obstacles and succeed in education, career, and life. ¼ cincinnaticares.org/listing-item/ cincinnati-youth-collaborative

DCCH Center for Children and Families MISSION: To express God’s love by providing

compassionate care and quality services to address the physical, spiritual and emotional needs of children and families. ¼ cincinnaticares.org/listing-item/ dcch-center-for-children-and-families-2

Every Child Succeeds MISSION: To provide an optimal start for

children by promoting positive parenting and healthy child development prenatally and during the crucial first 1,000 days of life.

Family Nurturing Center Featured profile, Page 24.

Focus on Youth MISSION: Improve the lives of children by

providing foster care, adoption and mental health services that promote the permanency, safety and well-being of youth. ¼ cincinnaticares.org/listing-item/ focus-on-youth

Girl Scouts of Western Ohio Featured profile, Page 25.

Holly Hill Child and Family Solutions MISSION: To strengthen the lives of

children through its programs and services focused on the child. ¼ cincinnaticares.org/listing-item/ holly-hill-child-and-family-solutions

Learning Grove Featured profile, Page 25.

Lighthouse Youth & Family Services Featured profile, Page 26.

New Path Featured profile, Page 26.

ProKids MISSION: ProKids mobilizes our

community to break the vicious cycle of child abuse and neglect. ¼ cincinnaticares.org/listing-item/prokids

Ronald McDonald House Charities of Greater Cincinnati MISSION: To offer a community of compassion, support and the comforts of home to families with critically ill children, steps away from the medical care they need. ¼ cincinnaticares.org/listing-item/ ronald-mcdonald-house-charitiesof-greater-cincinnati

The organizations listed on this page are a sampling of the 300+ nonprofits providing services to children and youth that can be found at CincinnatiCares.org. M&M’s FOCUS ON: Children & Youth in this issue was made possible by the organizations with featured Cincinnati Cares profiles on the following pages.

FOCUS ON: Children & Youth

Beech Acres Parenting Center

Kickin’ It For Kids

MISSION: Inspiring and equipping today's parents, families and communities to raise capable, caring, contributing children.

Soccer Golf Fundraiser

WAYS TO HELP: Become a Foster Parent – Beech Acres Parenting Center has matched children with safe, loving, well-trained foster parents for over 40 years. But we need your help. There is a child in this community waiting for someone just like you – someone who can provide a safe haven, open arms, and a loving heart. We will train you and guide you every step of your journey. Administrative Support – Help with large mailings and other tasks.

HOW YOU HELP: Beech Acres volunteers bring unique talent and expertise to our organization. Whether it’s in education, mental health, fundraising or something else, each individual’s background helps us serve the community the best way we can.

ABOUT US: At Beech Acres Parenting Center, we uncover the natural gifts of children by unleashing the power of parents and caregivers. $140as- aFamily Team Discover your power parentFoursome with tools to enhance your family $200 - Competitive Foursome Team and bring your vision for your child to life.

¼ 513-231-6630, www.beechacres.org/foster-care

Benefiting Beech Acres Parenting Center Foster Care Saturday, April 23 9 am - 5 pm Reeves Golf Course $140 - Family Foursome Team $200 - Competitive Foursome Team

To purchase tickets and for more information visit: • Pick your tee time • Family Fun Zone • Prizes PRESENTING SPONSOR

• Appearance by FC Cincinnati Mascot Gary the Lion • Food and drinks provided

Best Point (formerly The Children’s Home) MISSION: Best Point Education and Behavioral Health seeks to create lasting results that strengthen families and our community by guiding individuals – from infancy to independence – through comprehensive education, behavioral and health services.

WAYS TO HELP: Individual and group opportunities include administrative/clerical, reading to children, assisting with STEM activities, providing an activity/craft, and other oppotunities listed on our website.

HOW YOU HELP: Last year, our services and programs impacted the lives of nearly 15,000 children and their families. We follow the Teaching-Family Model, a behavior modification practice that teaches at-risk children to improve their behaviors and social skills.

ABOUT US: Founded in 1864 as The Children’s Home, our nonprofit organization provides education, behavioral health treatment and physical health support to children. Our outreach spans 307 Greater Cincinnati neighborhoods. And we’re not just counseling children, but also parents and siblings. We offer 30-plus services to our clients: education (our private schools), early childhood and school-aged programs, adult and child mental health treatment and therapy, and autism services.

¼ 513-272-2800, www.bestpoint.org

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23

FOCUS ON: Children & Youth

Boy Scouts of America - Dan Beard Council MISSION: To prepare over 20,000 young people in the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky area to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Law.

the

erence scouting diff ERSHIP,

LEAD ADVENTURE, IPS ND FRIENDSH LIFE SKILLS, A

WAYS TO HELP: Help to Support New Scouting At Home Initiatives – Scouting has launched innovative ways to support, teach, and benefit local youth while they are at home. Scouting Adult Volunteer – Direct contact leadership positions typically see volunteers leading groups of scouts in weekly or biweekly meetings and/or outings. Committee positions will see volunteers working “behind the scenes.”

HOW YOU HELP: Dan Beard Council’s programs would not be possible without the aid of volunteers. Opportunities to volunteer exist for working with young people, as well as in support roles, to help with program development, fundraising, membership, camping and training.

ABOUT US: THE SCOUTING DIFFERENCE. Adventure.

Leadership. Life Skills. Friendships. Scouting develops individuals who are continuously striving to become the best version of themselves and lead in their own way to make their communities better throughout their lifetime.

¼ 513-577-7700, www.danbeard.org/volunteer

DANBEARD.ORG

JOIN SCOUTING AT BEASCOUT.ORG

Family Nurturing Center MISSION: Ending the cycle of child abuse by promoting individual well-being and healthy family relationships.

WAYS TO HELP: Volunteers to provide curriculum assistance to children’s groups during Nurturing Parenting Programs. Individuals or groups can prepare meals for children and families of the FNC. Most of our group sessions take place in the evening hours leaving parents rushing to feed children. Simple spaghetti dinners or casserole dishes are welcome. Child care volunteers are needed to provide child care and assist in implementing children’s activities during Nurturing Parenting Programs.

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month

Be an advocate every day.

www.familynurture.org 24

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Movers & Makers

HOW YOU HELP: From a few hours a month to a few hours a day, there are many ways to help! Family Nurturing Center relies on the generous gifts of time and talent from individuals like you, because so many children and families rely on us. Myriad volunteer opportunities exist at the Family Nurturing Center.

ABOUT US: Family Nurturing Center is a nonprofit social service agency located in Northern Kentucky and Hamilton County, dedicated to ending the cycle of child abuse by promoting individual well-being and healthy family relationships. Our services and programs focus on the education, prevention, and treatment of all forms of child abuse and neglect.

¼ 859-525-3200, www.familynurture.org/support-us/volunteer

FOCUS ON: Children & Youth

Girl Scouts of Western Ohio MISSION: Girl Scouting builds girls of courage, confidence and character, who make the world a better place.

WAYS TO HELP: Troop Leader – Meet with the girls on an agreedupon, regular basis and guide them through the Girl Scout Leadership Experience. Camp Volunteer – includes roles like camp nurse, checkin day support, pre-camp training support, etc. Event Support – events cover a variety of topics and grade-levels. Guidance and support will be provided by lead event staff.

HOW YOU HELP: As a Girl Scout leader, you work with a small group of girls to guide them on their leadership journey. Hands-on activities help girls work cooperatively, make decisions, build relationships and take risks – all in a supportive and safe environment.

ABOUT US: Girl Scouts bring their dreams to life and work together to build a better world. Girl Scouts of all backgrounds and abilities can be unapologetically themselves as they discover their strengths and rise to meet new challenges – whether they want to climb to the top of a tree or the top of their class, lace up their boots for a hike or advocate for climate justice, or make their first best friends. Backed by trusted adult volunteers, mentors and millions of alums, Girl Scouts lead the way as they find their voices and make changes that affect the issues most important to them.

¼ 513-489-1025, www.gswo.org/en/for-volunteers/ways-to-volunteer.html

90% of a child's brain development happens before the age of 5.

Girl Scouts today.

Leaders tomorrow.

Partnership and volunteer opportunities available. gswo.org | 888.356.5090

Learning Grove MISSION: We develop and support innovative quality programs that empower children, youth and families across diverse communities.

WAYS TO HELP: Various projects – Help preschools and elementary schools with cleanups, gardening, projects, events or various other needs. Collect Donations and/or Donate In-Kind Supplies – Learning Grove is distributing emergency food, hygiene and household supplies, diapers and wipes, and educational materials to families in need during the Covid crisis. Our pantry supports families in need in Price Hill on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 11 a.m.-1 p.m.

HOW YOU HELP: The community can support Learning Grove by helping to share our mission and by providing financial support to nurture lifelong success for all children, youth and families, regardless of background.

Nurturing Lifelong Success Visit learning-grove.org or call (859) 4312075 to learn more about our 5-star early care and education centers.

ABOUT US: Learning Grove’s rich history started over 40 years ago when two nonprofits – Children Inc. and Cincinnati Early Learning Centers – were founded. Our goal is to nurture lifelong success for children and families through: 1) High-quality early care and education available for all; 2) Wrap-around services so all students are college- and career-ready; and 3) Innovation and advocacy to improve practice, policy and parenting.

¼ 859-431-2075, www.learning-grove.org/page/volunteer

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FOCUS ON: Children & Youth

Lighthouse Youth & Family Services MISSION: Empower young people and families to succeed through a continuum of care that promotes healing and growth.

WAYS TO HELP: Donation Drives – Collect new items for the children, youth and families in need that Lighthouse serves. Street Outreach – accompany staff as they talk to youth on the streets; distributing food, hygiene supplies, and harm-reduction supplies. Cook a Meal for a Shelter – Provide a meal for the young people living in a Lighthouse shelter. Meals can be made at home and dropped off or you can have food delivered. Direct Service Volunteers (short or long term) – work directly with our kids by assisting staff with activities, meals, and homework, play games, hang out or chat with the kids, teach a special skill such as job interview prep or a craft.

HOW YOU HELP: With your support, Lighthouse is always there when and where youth and families need help most, whether in their communities, homes, schools, or a Lighthouse location. Join us in building a community where every young person has the opportunity to thrive.

ABOUT US: Since 1969, Lighthouse Youth & Family Services has worked to help young people achieve their full potential by focusing on their individual strengths, offering unconditional support and delivering the best services. Lighthouse provides a runaway shelter, a shelter for homeless young adults, youth housing, mental and behavioral health services, foster care and adoption, and much more.

2022 Beacon of Light Humanitarian Awards Gala honoring

Phillip & Gail Holloman

Moira Weir

Barbara Weyand

Saturday, April 9 6:30 p.m. - 11:00 p.m.

Hyatt Regency Cincinnati

featuring a cocktail hour, dinner, and live music and dancing with The Ultra Sonics

For sponsorship and tickets: lys.org/2022beacongala/

¼ 513-221-3350, www.lys.org/volunteer

New Path MISSION: Igniting Hope. Changing Futures. For the individuals facing behavioral and specialty healthcare, educational treatment and child welfare needs, we ignite hope and change futures by providing access to and results from expert, specialized, and comprehensive traumainformed care.

WAYS TO HELP: Individual Volunteers – Projects include assisting with administrative tasks, creating a capstone project or organizing a donation drive. Party Hosting – Host a party for our children with your group, business, church or club. Planned parties include weeknight or dinner parties, holiday-themed parties and after-school parties. Provide healthy snacks, crafts and music. Group Volunteering – Plan a work service project of landscaping, cleaning, painting, etc.

Please begin coordinating with us at least a month in advance of your desired date of party or service.

HOW YOU HELP: At NewPath, we ignite hope by bringing people together to benefit our community, change lives and make a difference we can be proud of. To volunteer on campus, you must be at least 18 years old.

ABOUT US: NewPath Child & Family Solutions (formerly St. Joseph Orphanage) is backed by a full breadth of services. Every program offers the opportunity for change, every plan improves lives, and every person ignites hope, one success story at a time.

¼ 855-577-7284, www.newpath.org/ways-to-give/volunteer 26

MARCH 2022

Movers & Makers

Gifts/Grants TriHealth creates $14M endowment for School to Work program A $14 million endowment will fund the next generation of healthcare workers through TriHealth’s School to Work program at Good Samaritan Hospital. Both Bethesda Inc.’s grantmaking initiative, bi3, and CommonSpirit, a co-sponsor of TriHealth, provided gifts of $6 million, with TriHealth investing an additional $2 million. The money will fund the program in perpetuity. The fund goal is $15 million. School to Work aims to inspire diverse high school students to pursue careers in healthcare through work experience and mentorship.

Nippert Charitable Foundation committed $50,000 to the Parent Connext program, to provide parent coaching and support to 1,100 families. The Warren County Foundation awarded $10,000 to further expand Beyond the Classroom into two additional schools, making the program available now in eight Warren County schools.

PIE receives grants from Best Buy and Walmart

Ina and Arnold Schwartz

$2M donation endows chair at UC med school

Partnership for Innovation in Education was recently awarded two grants from the Best Buy Foundation, which supports organizations that build proficiency in technology through out-of-school programs.

PIE received $12,000 for its “Prepared to Fly: Launching DronePreneur Career Academy” program. Best Buy Foundation also awarded $10,000 to help PIE give students hands-on experience in high-demand jobs. A grant of $5,000 from Walmart supports PIE’s CaseLAB Career Academy with job shadowing, internships and apprenticeship opportunities.  www.piemedia.org

A $2 million gift from Arnold and Ina Schwartz will create a new endowed chair at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, supporting the head of Pharmacology and Systems Physiology. The endowment will dedicate funding for the research and education efforts of the department chair.

Arnold “Arnie” Schwartz is an internationally recognized heart researcher and educator credited with developing multiple cardiac drug therapies.

He came to UC in 1977 to build cardiovascular research. Ina Price Schwartz received her master’s degree in communication and social work at UC. As an instructor at UC she has been active as a lecturer on communication skills. After she completed an internship at the Cincinnati Center for Developmental Disorders, her clinical practice focused on medical geriatric care.

Elsa Heisel Sule Foundation gives boost to Assistance League

Community center earns grant for after-school program

Central Clinic Behavioral Health Adult Services division has received a $54,600 grant from the L&L Nippert Charitable Foundation to buy equipment for telehealth calls, see more patients and clients, and improve the overall experience. Central Clinic will also be able to purchase air cleaners for offices where in-person visits are held.

The Elsa Heisel Sule Foundation has committed $15,000 to Assistance League of Greater Cincinnati to help area children removed from their parents’ care and their caregivers. Assistance League’s Kinship Foster Care Program provides diapers, socks, wipes and undergarments. Over the last five years, 3,927 children have been served. The program is the work of sixteen volunteers who procure, inventory, pack and deliver items to three locations: Jack’s Closet, plus Cincinnati Children’s locations on Burnet Avenue and in Liberty Township.  To volunteer, email algc@fuse.net

North Fairmount Community Center received a grant of $18,000 from PNC Charitable Trusts dedicated to its After School Program and sports and recreational activities for children. Children ages 5 and up receive snacks, homework and academic guidance and tutoring, healthy physical activities, introduction to career paths, and more in a safe and healthy environment to assist working parents. NFCC also offers an after-school gymnastics class.  www.nfcommunitycenter.org

Beech Acres Parenting Center earns three grants totaling $110K

Retiring A’Hearn honored via grant to UC Gardner fund

Beech Acres Parenting Center has received grants totaling $110,000 for its work to strengthen Greater Cincinnati children and families. The Charles H. Dater Foundation awarded $50,000 to expand Beech Acres’ school-based mental health and parenting support services program, Beyond the Classroom, into five Catholic inner-city schools. The L&L

The DaveParker39 Foundation donated $20,000 to the UC Gardner Neuroscience Critical Care Fund in honor of Peggy A'Hearn, who is retiring as executive director of development. Parker, a Cincinnati Reds great, is a long-time supporter of the UC Gardner Center for Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders.

GCF Herriman Fund awards three area arts organizations The David C. Herriman Fund of Greater Cincinnati Foundation has awarded grants totaling $250,000 to three area arts organizations: Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra for its Extrasensory: Filmmaker and Composer Pairings; Learning Through Art Inc. for Books Alive! Family Adventure in the Park; and fullseason support of Revolution Dance Theatre for its First, Full and For concert series. The grants honor the legacy of Herriman, the late Northern Kentucky philanthropist and arts patron who established the fund.  www.gcfdn.org/herriman

Clinic receives $54,600 grant to improve telehealth services

Health Care Access Now awarded $15,000 for certification program PNC Foundation has granted $15,000 to Health Care Access Now to strengthen and expand its Community Health Worker Certification Training Program. The program prepares a specialized workforce to improve health outcomes and reduce health care inequality. The program, launched in 2018, has trained 97 community health workers and is approved by the Ohio Board of Nursing. HCAN estimates the grant will let an additional four students enroll.

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In the News Furniture bank raising money for 50 new beds for children in need

Education ‘pitch night’ produces creative policy ideas

National Sleep Awareness Week is March 13-19, and New Life Furniture Bank hopes to raise $10,000 to provide 50 new beds for children in their Beds for Sleepyheads online giving campaign. Last year the bank distributed more than 1,500 beds, and it hopes to provide more than 2,000 this year.

The latest American Community Survey estimates

School Board School and Cohear brought Cincinnati its first Education Policy Pitch Night.

More than 165 people heard ideas to improve education in Cincinnati Public Schools. The 7 pitches came from students, parents, educators and community members.

Interim Superintendent Tianay Amat, Assistant Superintendent Shauna Murphy, School Board Vice President Carolyn Jones, and School Board Policy Committee Chair Mike Moroski served as the panel of experts, providing feedback and asking questions about each pitch.

The CPS panel chose the ideas they wanted to see championed, and the audience voted. There were four winners: • A tool for creating a districtwide equity plan, presented

by Eunique Avery, Victoria Vogelgesang, Chris Lord, Ashley Cromwell and Crystal Smith.

more than 40% of children in the city of Cincinnati – about 26,000 kids – live below the federal poverty level. Hamilton County’s child poverty rate is nearly 24%. Many of the children do not have their own bed to sleep in, sharing a small bed with parents or siblings, or a sleeping bag or even on the floor.

New Life is the region’s only “furniture bank,” collecting donations of gently used beds and home furnishings and delivering them directly to families in need in Greater Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky and Dayton. Donations of clean mattresses, box springs, frames, bedding and new pillows are needed.  nlfurniture.org/sleepyheads NLFB recipients who received furniture and complete bed sets

NTERNATIONAL JIM'S I MAR GLE KET N JU

SCPA student Jordan Dean’s plan for creating equitable, inclusive dress codes was favored by the audience.

• Building a school finder that is more equitable and descriptive, presented by Jackie Wilson, Karen Kuhn, Kendra Mapp, Trish Miller and Isabelle Kalubi-Harper.

• Building a diverse teaching staff, presented by Damian Hoskins, Marché Gendrew, Brian McConnell, Abigail Wells and Emanuel Kimble.

• Creating equitable and inclusive dress codes, presented by SCPA student Jordan Dean.

Beacons of Humanity initiative inspires and educates THE COOKING SCHOOL

IS BACK

IN PERSON! REGISTER FOR A CLASS

TODAY!

JUNGLEJIMS.COM/COOKINGSCHOOL

CookingSchool@JungleJims.com · 513.674.6059 28

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Movers & Makers

The Nancy & David Wolf Holocaust & Humanity Center has launched the Beacons of Humanity Business Partnership Program, a donor society that connects businesses and stakeholders to HHC’s mission of ensuring the lessons of the Holocaust inspire action today.

Business members have a direct stake in the work of HHC while receiving donor benefits, including training programs for leadership and employees, programs for equity and inclusion strategies, private museum experiences, and exposure through HHC’s marketing efforts.

“We are honored to launch a program that connects our organization with businesses and leaders that care deeply about learning

from the lessons of the Holocaust and are committed to combating antisemitism,” said Sarah L. Weiss, CEO of the Holocaust & Humanity Center.

Businesses can learn more about the program during open houses at HHC: Sarah L. Weiss • Tuesday, March 15, 5 p.m.-6:30 p.m.

• Tuesday, April 5, 12 p.m.-1:30 p.m.

• Tuesday, April 19, 8 a.m.-9:30 a.m.  tjohnson@cincyhhc.org, www.holocaustandhumanity.org

IN THE NEWS

Cincinnati a top place for moviemakers Cincinnati again is on MovieMaker magazine’s list of the best places in North America to live and work as a moviemaker, ranking 11th overall and best in Ohio, the magazine and Film Cincinnati announced. Film Cincinnati is a nonprofit that promotes the region as a destination for film, commercial and TV production.  www.filmcincinnati.com

Impact 100 to award $404,000 in grants for 2022 Impact 100 will award four $101,000 transformational grants to area nonprofits this fall. The selection process has begun and will culminate in an evening of celebration on Sept. 20 in the Music Hall Ball Room.  www.impact100.org

Public Library named a top 10 innovator The Urban Libraries Council named the Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library as a 10 Top Innovator. CHPL won in the category of Communicating the Library’s Value.  www.cincinnatilibrary.org

Council on Aging awarded for discharge program Council on Aging received an Inspire Healthcare award from The Health Collaborative for a program developed during the pandemic to provide a safe, supportive path home for older adults being discharged from hospitals and nursing facilities, while also freeing up valuable healthcare resources. Since April 2020, more than 3,100 area older adults have been discharged under the Discharge to Home program.  www.help4seniors.org

Presented by

CONVALESCENT HOSPITAL FUND FOR CHILDREN

Open Your With heartfelt thanks to our sponsors for opening your heart to Stepping Stones!

Cherub Sponsors Dora & Charles Barrett Amy & George Joseph Dina & Chris Taylor Sweetheart Sponsors Calfee, Halter and Griswold J Cromer Mashburn Family Foundation Ryan Generational Capital Advisors of Janney Montgomery Scott Anne & Jim Shanahan Stepping Stones Executive Team SugarCreek/Julie & John Richardson Western & Southern Financial Group For More Event Details & A Complete List of Sponsors, Visit: CincyOpenYourHeart.org

Cake-baking charity opens local chapter A new chapter of For Goodness Cakes has opened in Northern Kentucky. The nonprofit organization matches volunteers to make and hand-deliver birthday cakes to children in foster care and at-risk youth. The Covington-based chapter is seeking volunteers to jumpstart this new addition to the Greater Cincinnati nonprofit scene.  www.forgoodnesscakes.org/covington

SATURDAY 6:30PM CET SUNDAY 8:30PM CET ARTS

CET, ThinkTV honored for ‘virtual camp’ series Public TV stations CET and ThinkTV have won the National Educational Telecommunications Association’s Community Engagement Award for COVID-19 Community Engagement. The award cited CET and ThinkTV’s three virtual summer camps to help fight “summer slide,” especially during the pandemic. Combined, the three camps had nearly 100,000 video views.  www.thinktv.org/camp  www.CETconnect.org/camp

Join Barbara Kellar as she showcases artists and cultural leaders from the Greater Cincinnati community.

JFS moves headquarters to Blue Ash Jewish Family Service has moved from the Mayerson JCC in Amberley Village to Kenwood Road in Blue Ash. JFS provides counseling for youths, teens and young adults; help for older adults through AgeWell Cincinnati; and non-medical, in-home care with StarPoint. The new location is 9395 Kenwood Road.  www.jfscinti.org

www.CETconnect.org www.CETconnect.org

Emmy Award Winner Regional - Interview/Discussion Program

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NAMES IN THE NEWS

Rick Hinds

Rick Lofgren

Lee Bower

Angel Beets

Elizabeth Stock

Robert Fohl

Lorena Garcia Cruz

Tom MacDonald

David Sparks

Max Williams

Ashleigh DuBois

Meghan Cummings

Rasheda Cromwell

Jennifer Roth

Greg Hartley

David McPherson

Sara Pattison

Susan Whaley

Allison Kropp

Kellan Grant

Maureen Bickley

Sue Erhart

Tamie Sullivan

Bobby Cave



Rick Hinds, chief financial officer of UC Health, assumes the role of interim president & CEO in mid-March as Richard P. Lofgren, M.D., becomes president & CEO of OU Health in Oklahoma. Lofgren joined UC Health as president & CEO in December 2013.

Hinds joined the academic health system in 2008.



Habitat for Humanity of Greater Cincinnati has chosen Lee Bower as chief financial officer, advancing the organization’s efforts to create affordable homeownership opportunities in Greater Cincinnati. He brings 16 years of financial management experience to the organization, including nonprofit finance leadership, entrepreneurship and CPA auditing.



Crayons to Computers has appointed Angel Beets to its board of trustees. Beets is a co-managing partner at Gilman Partners.



Clovernook Center for the Blind & Visually Impaired has appointed Elizabeth Stock to its board of trustees. Stock, senior counsel at Bricker & Eckler LLP, represents health care and a variety of other businesses in employment-related litigation.



Santa Maria Community Services, entering its 125th year of service in 2022, has named five new board members: Robert Fohl, a CPA working as an accounting manager at Metcut Research Inc.; Lorena Garcia Cruz, a longtime volunteer and leader in the Hispanic community who has been involved with All Children Thrive, 4C for Children and the Early

30

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Movers & Makers

Childhood Collaborative; Tom MacDonald, president of Axis Healthcare Consulting and former COO at Ultimate Rehab; David Sparks, senior wealth adviser with Mariner Wealth Advisors in Cincinnati; Max Williams, an associate attorney with Frost Brown Todd who has a juris doctorate from the Ohio State University Moritz College of Law.



The Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce has hired Ashleigh DuBois as its new talent strategies specialist/director of diversity, equity and inclusion. A Cincinnati native who grew up in Avondale, DuBois has worked in higher education at several universities and was project director and DEI coordinator at Northern Kentucky Cooperative for Educational Services.



Greater Cincinnati Foundation is making two promotions to help bring focus to its mission. Meghan Cummings becomes vice president, civic advancement. Cummings spent a decade with the Women’s Fund, six years as its executive director. Rasheda Cromwell becomes vice president, community strategies. Cromwell has been senior director, community strategies, at GCF and has over 15 years of experience in directing nonprofits.



55 North, which serves older adults in Cincinnati’s east-side neighborhoods, has elected three new board members: Jennifer Roth, who has been director of case management with Trinity Aging Life Advisors; Greg Hartley, who has a background in accounting

and financial services with New Mexico First Financial Inc.; David McPherson, retired from a career as a retirement planning advisor with Fidelity Investments.



Sara Pattison, former event planner with a background in data management and congressional support, has been named executive director of the Rotary Club of Cincinnati.

Pattison has been operations coordinator for the U.S. Department of the Treasury, a deputy district director for former U.S. Rep. Jean Schmidt, and client relations and sales professional for data management and software design companies.



Pro Bono Partnership of Ohio has selected Susan Whaley, senior vice president and general counsel at Procter & Gamble, as its board chair. Allison H. Kropp has been selected as vice chair, and Kellan Grant, general counsel, Commercial Engines & Services at GE Aviation, has been selected as treasurer. PBPO also has added two board members: Maureen Bickley, vice office member-in-charge at Frost Brown Todd, and Sue Erhart, general counsel at Great American Insurance Group.



Lighthouse Youth & Family Services has announced Tamie Sullivan as its new board chair. Sullivan, who has been involved with Lighthouse for almost a decade, is president of Sullivan Communications Inc. Bobby Cave has joined Lighthouse’s board of trustees as assistant treasurer. He is a CPA and senior manager with Deloitte.

NAMES IN THE NEWS

Sergio Aguillón-Mata

Caren Laverty

René Cheatham

William Hite

Matt Buddenberg

Irene Hamrick



The Carnegie has added Sergio Aguillón-Mata as its new deputy director, a co-leader of The Carnegie and responsible for several aspects of its operation.

Author of three books, AguillónMata has a background in Hispanic philology and literature, and worked for the Freestore Foodbank before joining The Carnegie.



Caren Laverty has been appointed president of the board of park commissioners for Great Parks of Hamilton County. Laverty has over 13 years’ experience in the investment business and is now focused on teaching women the fundamentals of financial investing. Author of two books, Laverty volunteers at NewPath Child & Family Solutions, working with young adults in the Independent Living program.



Learning Grove has promoted René J. Cheatham III to chief financial officer for the regional nonprofit. Cheatham previously was its senior director of finance. He also has served as director of finance at Findlay Market, chief financial officer for Hamilton County Clerk of Courts and international tax senior director at GE.



Union Institute & University has named Edgar L. Smith Jr. as chair of its board of trustees. Smith, a prominent

Edgar Smith

Cincinnati business and civic leader, was elected to the board in 2013 and has served as vice chair since 2020.



William Hite Jr., superintendent of schools for the School District of Philadelphia, will become CEO and president of KnowledgeWorks effective July 1.

Hite, who has more than 30 years of experience as a leader in public education, was selected after a nationwide search. Hite holds a Ph.D. in educational administration and a bachelor’s in education from Virginia Tech, as well as a master’s in educational administration from the University of Virginia. He was named the 2020 National School Foundation Superintendent of the Year.



People Working Cooperatively has named Matt Buddenberg as board vicechairperson and added Dr. Irene Hamrick to its board of directors..

Buddenberg, preconstruction executive at Messer Construction Co., was first elected to the PWC board in April 2018. He is a graduate of Northern Kentucky University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in construction management.

Hamrick, professor of family medicine at University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, became chair of the Office of Geriatrics at UC and chief of geriatrics and palliative care at the Cincinnati VA Medical Center in 2019. 

Movers & Makers

MARCH 2022

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Snapshots

Who, what, where & why

Kindervelt’s 50th Jubilee raises over $93K

50th Jubilee Chair Mary Beth Young and emcee Tanya O’Rourke, WCPO news anchor

Kindervelt, the largest auxiliary of Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, marked its 50th year with a celebratory Jubilee. More than $93,000 was raised for the Division of Critical Care Medicine and the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. The occasion brought together members from across Greater Cincinnati to commemorate the history of the all-volunteer organization and to honor the dedication of the ladies of Kindervelt.

Cece Kohlman received the Barbara Fitch Award, which recognizes a member who exhibits an enthusiasm and positive attitude toward the goals of Kindervelt. The award was presented by its namesake, Barbara Fitch. Tanya O’Rourke from WCPO News served as guest emcee.

Since Kindervelt began in 1971, the auxiliary has raised more than $20 million for patients of Cincinnati Children’s.  www.kindervelt.org Dr. Hector Wong of Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, professor of pediatrics at the UC College of Medicine

Sharry Addison, Barbara Havlovic, Barbara Fitch, Nancy Hancher, Cynthia Albl and Caroline Richards

Award committee chair Bonnie Finn and Barbara Fitch, founding Kindervelt member, open the envelope to announce the award winner.

Al Wolf, Lin Wolf, Doug Kohlman, Cece Kohlman, Adele Beiting, Jeff Keller, Mark Beiting and Kris Beiting

From presenting sponsor Bahl & Gaynor: Matt Carroll, Jessica Meyer, Derrick Kihembo, Kate Bagorogoza, Kit Andrews, Maddie Staubitz, Dave Armstrong and Jen Armstrong

Sara Houk, Steve Houk, Ginny Myer, Kelly Anderson and Eric Anderson (Standing) Lin Wolf, John Stenger, Sherry Weckenbrock, Jim Weckenbrock, Melanie Gallagher, Bob Gallagher, Chris Toth and Steve Toth; (seated) Mary Anne Stenger, Gail Keating, Tom Keating, Randy Potts and Janet Potts 32

MARCH 2022

Movers & Makers

SNAPSHOTS

Hammer & Ales raises $16,000 for ToolBank

Kat Pepmeyer, Stephanie Barnes, Nick Jackson and Nisha Barnes

More than 150 guests enjoyed food trucks, drinks, games and a DJ at Cincinnati ToolBank’s annual fundraiser, Hammer & Ales. The event raised more than $16,000 for ToolBank’s Tool Lending Program.

The 2021 Brewers Philanthropy Award was presented to Third Eye Brewing Company for its work with the Live Like Maya Foundation, which funds pediatric cancer research, provides financial assistance to families of children battling cancer and continues Mason pediatric cancer patient Maya Collins’ legacy of fostering kindness and goodwill within the community. The award, now in its sixth year, recognizes Tristate breweries that give back to the community.

The ToolBank provides nonprofit agencies in Greater Cincinnati with access to an inventory of high-quality tools and equipment. Since 2012, the ToolBank has Tim Martin, Melanie helped more than 500 nonprofits complete 19,500 Martin, Becca Walker, Julie Italinao, Chad projects.

Cutter, Amy Cutter,  www.cincinnatitoolbank.org Photos courtesy Framester Photo Booth

Mandi Rassel, Heather Richardson, Linda Rassel, Kaitlin Morey and Maya Pilla

Zach Scheid, Megan Knight, Cameron Copper, Abby Copper, Haley Wood and Ryan Wood

Mark Grayson and Amber Grayson

Candi Michel, Rob Michel, Heather Davenport and Doug Stacy

(Back row) Jeff Raser, Lori Raser, Mandi Rassel, John Faver, Alex Johns, Jill Johns, Amy Black, Erin Hahn and Jill Gorley; (front row) Kirsten Puckett, Kaitlin Morey, Maya Pillai, Michelle de la Vega, Heather Richardson, Linda Rassel and Monica Enzweiler

Brewer Philanthropy Award, Third Eye Brewing: Julie Italiano (ToolBank board member), Kat Pepmeyer (ToolBank executive director) Kelly Montgomery (brewer, Third Eye Brewing), Tom Collins (owner, Third Eye Brewing), Bonnie Collins (Live Like Maya Foundation), Kristin Goecke (Third Eye Brewing) and (front bottom) emcee Amanda Orlando (Warm 98)

Julie Italiano, Becca Walker, Melanie Martin, Amber Grayson and Amy Cutter

Heather Richardson and Linda Rassel

Movers & Makers

MARCH 2022

33

THE LAST WORD | Guest editorial by Polly Campbell

At Mercantile Library, diverse voices matter

I

grew up, like many Americans – probably most Americans – surrounded only by members of my own race. My elementary school was completely white, there was one Black kid at my middle school, and there were no Black kids in my high school classes. Not until after college did I count Black folks as neighbors, co-workers, friends.

So I had very little personally observed knowledge of the life experience of people of races and ethnicities different from mine.

However, and fortunately, there were books.

When I was younger, I gathered impressions and grappled with things I didn’t understand when I read books such as “Go Tell it on the Mountain” and “The Color Purple” and “The Bluest Eye,” “Cane” and “Passing” and “Manchild in the Promised Land.” I found “Their Eyes Were

Watching God” and “Kindred.”

I picked up autobiographies by Sammy Davis Jr. and Chuck Berry and Shirley Chisholm and Charles Mingus and Malcolm X. I walked alongside people I didn’t know for a few hours. At some point, I probably thought I had figured it all out.

Of course I hadn’t. Each book I read gave me one window into a huge house where a lot is going on.

But, and this is what books do, I encountered some truths different than my own, and I unavoidably increased my capacity for empathy.

Now, every Black-authored book I read – whether it’s “The Warmth of Other Suns” or “Nickel Boys” or “Between the World and Me” – makes me understand how much more complex and tangled race and racism is, shows me some new slice of experience to assimilate. And in the summer of 2020, I began to

The Baking Journal New episodes of The Baking Journal are available to stream and they are all about pies! Watch the series on YouTube or the PBS Video App.

www.CETconnect.org/baking/

34

MARCH 2022

Movers & Makers

feel a new obligation to keep reading, even if I’d rather switch to a different, less-upsetting subject.

That, I noticed, is exactly what The Mercantile Library has been doing for the last four or five years.

They have hosted a non-token number of Black writers, not to mention more women, more Asian, more queer writers. The membership library, founded in Cincinnati in 1835 by young business strivers, was originally open only to white men (Women were allowed by 1859.). In more recent years, its antique atmosphere could seem hushed and literary, and the membership was definitely aging. But in the last few years, the library’s roster of events has started to look a lot different.

Zadie Smith was the first Black writer featured at their biggest event, the Niehoff Lecture, in 2017. Since then, novelists Colson Whitehead, Tayari Jones, Leesa Crosse-Smith and Brit Bennett, memoirist Kiese Laymon, Pulitzer Prize winners Marcia Chatelain and Wesley Lowery, non-fiction writers Wil Haygood and Jema Tisby, poet Marcus Wicker, and rapper and writer Chuck D. have been among the people who have taken the little elevator up to the 11th floor at 414 Walnut St. Obviously, it hasn’t been accidental. When John Faherty, a former Cincinnati Enquirer reporter, became executive director six years ago, he was given a mandate of change from the board of directors: Open the library to new, younger, more diverse users.

“Every cultural institution has a mission to have a more diverse membership and audience,” he said. “For us, it wasn’t even hard to know where to start. It’s no harder than doing it the wrong way. Bring in great Black writers. If you’re ignoring Black writers, you aren’t getting the best of who’s writing today.”

Chuck D was a big get in 2019.

“I thought we’d really made it when we got Chuck D.” said

​​Polly Campbell

Faherty. So many people bought tickets the talk had to be moved to the Underground Railroad Freedom Center. “But the audience was largely white,” he said. Not the sudden attraction of new faces he might have hoped for. “So we just do it and keep doing it. Keep telling people about it. You can’t just have one event and think you’ve done your job. You can’t trick people,” he said.

Faherty describes increasing Black programming as “selfish” because it is calculated to strengthen the institution. But it’s not just about that. It’s not just about white people having a chance to listen to what’s on the mind of Black writers, though that’s worth a lot.

It offers the Black community the same things that have been offered to their white counterparts since 1835: the chance to hear directly from their literary representatives.

“I kept hearing this thing when I got here,” said Faherty. “We’re the best-kept secret in Cincinnati. Why would we want that? A library is for the whole community. The whole community should benefit.”

The events announced for this year’s season include more notable Black authors, including James McBride, author of “Deacon King Kong”; Ibram X. Kendi, who wrote “How to Be An Antiracist”; and Dr. Nisha Botchwey, who will present the Albert Pyle Urban lecture.   www.mercantilelibrary.com Polly Campbell covered restaurants and food for The Cincinnati Enquirer from 1996 until 2020. She lives in Pleasant Ridge with her husband and since retiring does a lot of reading, cooking and gardening, if that’s what you call pulling up weeds. During the pandemic, she has missed the theater, live music and, most especially, going to parties.

CINCINNATI’S BEST

Are Getting Even Better!

2022 will be a monumental year of progress for the Sharonville Convention Center and the Northern Lights District. With our upcoming $21 million expansion set to begin this year, the City of Sharonville continues to grow our amenities. The new Todd Portune Hall will accommodate up to 2,000 people for our large galas while our Northern Lights Ballroom will continue to accommodate events up to 700. With the new Delta by Marriott Hotel, our connected Hyatt Place hotel and the award winning Third Eye Brewery all just steps away, your guests will truly enjoy a one-of-a kind experience.

Get Inspired. To learn more contact us at 513.771.7744 or at sccinfo@cityofsharonville.com sharonvilleconventioncenter.com

Matinée Musicale Cincinnati Sounds Grand This Spring!

Presenting Three Dynamic Recitals

Sunday, March 6, 2022 • 3 PM Memorial Hall OTR

Zlatomir Fung CELLO

2019 International Tchaikovsky Cello Competition First Prize Winner — the first American in four decades and youngest musician ever to win this prestigious event Selected as a 2016 U.S. Presidential Scholar for the Arts Featured on NPR’s Performance Today and has appeared on From the Top six times “[Fung] showed a mastery of his instrument that was truly a thing to behold…”

—Benicia Herald

Dina Vainshtein • PIANO

Sunday, March 27, 2022 • 3 PM First Unitarian Church • 536 Linton Street

2021 Beverly Sills Artist Award 2018 Marian Anderson Vocal Award Winner Received both the Richard and Sara Tucker Grants from the Richard Tucker Foundation “The real showstopper was Mr. Green.” —The New York Times

Ryan Speedo Green

“Fully ready for a big career.” —Anne Midgette, Washington Post

BASS-BARITONE

Bradley Moore • PIANO

Sunday, April 3, 2022 • 3 PM Memorial Hall OTR

Rachel Barton Pine

Gold Medalist 1992 J.S. Bach International Violin Competition Leading interpreter of the great classical masterworks Recitalist as part of Lincoln Center’s Great Performers Series “An exciting, boundary-defying performer—Pine displays a power and confidence that puts her in the top echelon.”

—The Washington Post “Striking and charismatic.” —The New York Times

VIOLIN

Matthew Hagle • PIANO Memorial Hall requires masking AND either proof of COVID vaccination OR a negative COVID test within the past 72 hours.

Ticket information and purchase: Memorial Hall Box Office: 513-977-8838

www.matineemusicalecincinnati.org Visit us on Facebook.