Neighborhood News

Neighborhood Alliance is more than halfway to its $10 million funding goal for upgrades and renovations to its buildings and programs, thanks to a $1 million pledge from the Stocker Foundation.

O’Brien spoke to the decades-long partnership between the two organizations, and noted that the time was right for the Stocker Foundation’s next gift to the Neighborhood Alliance.

The $3.2 million, 9,262-square-foot expansion will bring the facility closer to the curb on East 30th Street, and will include a central courtyard and more rooms for families in need of housing, according to CEO Alicia Foss.

The Morning Journal

The expansion will include new dorm rooms, each with its own bathroom and shower. The shelter will be expanded from four family bedrooms to nine, which will adjoin when needed to accommodate larger families, the agency said.

“This aging building houses the only 24 hours, 365 days emergency shelter for men, women and intact families in Lorain County. With the need of shelter services growing the improvements made to this building, will allow us to better serve our neighbors who are experiencing a crisis.

“Thank you to 100 Women Who Care About Lorain County for your continued support.”

The Morning Journal

Neighborhood Alliance received a donation of $8,458 on Wednesday in support of the Haven Center emergency shelter renovation project.

“Since its founding in 1927, the leaders, volunteers and committed staff of Neighborhood Alliance have established four core areas of service that exist to empower individuals and families. Today our services include Child Enrichment, Family Support, Senior Enrichment and Shelter & Emergency Services. Neighborhood Alliance’s history and its future are rooted in working within our local community to assist with meeting basic needs and to empower individuals and families, sparking change in the lives of those we serve and in our community,” the organization wrote.

To celebrate this occasion, the agency is hosting a friendly chefs’ competition featuring three local chefs and a panel of guest judges who will serve up dishes with items selected by Second Harvest Food Bank of North Central Ohio in a combination of canned, frozen and dry goods.

Alicia Foss, president and CEO of Neighborhood Alliance, said the alliance was in touch with people living in the area through the PATH Program, the outreach team for unsheltered homeless.

“At this time, I have not heard of others reaching out to us for help, but we stand ready to assist if we can,” Foss said.

Kevin Martin, The Chronicle-Telegram

Neighborhood Alliance Executive Director Alicia Foss said the alliance is still looking for host families and landlords willing to donate units, including utilities, to bring more displaced people to the county.

Alicia Foss, president, and CEO of the nonprofit that helps out the hungry and homeless in the county, slammed a sledgehammer into a white brick wall April 14 in what used to be women’s locker room at the former Elyria YMCA, 265 Washington Ave., to kick off construction of a new senior nutrition kitchen.

Michael Fitzpatrick, The Morning Journal

The Neighborhood Nutrition Kitchen will house not only the Home Delivered Meals kitchen for Senior Nutrition but also allow Neighborhood Alliance to cook for our other programs in a centralized kitchen, using economies of scale to drive food costs down, and maximize each meal we make to ensure high nutritional value for every participant of our programs. That’s right! Haven Center, both Child Enrichment Centers, the Mobile Senior Center, and Senior Nutrition will all benefit from this new kitchen at Washington Ave.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Alicia Foss, President & CEO, and Chef Sonya Thomas, Food Service Coordinator at Neighborhood Alliance. We discussed the Neighborhood Nutrition Kitchen and what it will mean to the community and those served by Neighborhood Alliance programming. Chef Sonya chatted about her roots in Lorain County and how she is excited to see this program grow and serve her hometown. We also announce an update for the 7-Day Match Campaign.

Neighborhood Alliance celebrated 95 years of serving the community on Thursday with its “Come Together” event at Lorain County Community College’s Spitzer Conference Center one week before the organization breaks ground on its new Neighborhood Nutrition Kitchen at the former YMCA building at 265 Washington Ave. in Elyria.

Kevin Martin, The Chronicle-Telegram

The agency, which provides child and senior enrichment, family support, shelter and emergency service programs, plans to spend up to $4.4 million in three phases to expand the shelter on East 30th Street in Lorain from 68 to 88 beds.

Dave O’Brien, The Chronicle-Telegram

With food access growing scarcer for seniors between the ages of 65 and 84 in Lorain County, a local retiree decided to use his free time and help a local program deliver meals directly to those in need.

Neighborhood Alliance President and CEO Alicia Foss has released a letter of updates to supporters of the nonprofit agency that helps communities grow stronger by meeting critical needs and empowering individuals and families.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Alicia Foss, President & CEO of Neighborhood Alliance. We discussed some of the excitement of 2021 as we wrap up Christmas for Caring and look at all the accomplishments of the year.

Foss said the waitlist for home-delivered meals in Lorain County has exceeded 550 seniors, and the number of older adults is only projected to grow. Her team proposed an initiative that would use creative scheduling to make the best use of a full-service kitchen Neighborhood Alliance is planning as a combination of its four existing kitchens, helping get meals to underserved populations.

The Ohio Department of Aging this week awarded more than $5.3 million in Coronavirus Relief Funds to 53 senior centers and 22 adult day services providers to support nutrition services, including home-delivered and congregate meals.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Andrew Stith Sr. regarding the housing shortages in Lorain County. Andrew talks about the need for landlords in Lorain County that are willing to work with the Haven Center to house our residents. We have several families with section 8 vouchers waiting for housing. If you are a landlord or know a landlord willing to work with the Haven Center to house individuals and families please reach out directly to Andrew at 440.387.1474

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Amy Anderson, Director of Senior Enrichment Services, and Denise Szabo-Ortiz, Senior Nutrition Program Coordinator. These two lovely ladies spent yesterday with a few of our senior friends in Oberlin. Neighborhood Alliance began a pilot Mobile Senior program. This special program will run for 90 days and is open to ALL seniors. Denise and Amy chat about how their first day went and how excited they are to see the program grow.

Neighborhood Alliance is closer to its goal of building a new kitchen to prepare and serve meals to senior citizens, people facing homelessness, and children in Lorain County after Lorain County commissioners voted unanimously to give the $500,000 in American Rescue Plan money to the agency’s new kitchen project.

Dave O’Brien, The Chronicle-Telegram

Neighborhood Alliance presented the Neighborhood Nutrition Kitchen to the Lorain County Ohio Government. We are forever grateful for the support of this beautiful community as we grow to meet the needs of those who need help here in Lorain County. Thank you!!!

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview board member Rich General. Rich nominated Neighborhood Alliance for a $25k grant from the State Farm Neighborhood Assist program. State Farm Neighborhood Assist® is a program that awards $25,000 grants to 40 causes across the United States. The program has three phases. First, users submit causes they think deserve a $25,000 grant. Next, the State Farm Review Committee narrows down the submissions to the top 200. Finally, the public votes to select the top 40. Each winning cause that meets all of the entry criteria will receive a $25,000 grant. Neighborhood Alliance has made it to the 2nd phase. WE NEED YOUR VOTES!!! Voting now until August 27th, 2021.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview board members Gina Carlson from Moen Inc. Gina talks about the Neighborhood Alliance FIRST annual Mum Sale fundraiser. Proceeds from this event will go to support Neighborhood Alliance programming throughout Lorain County. Pre-orders will be accepted from now until Monday, September 13th, 2021. To order visit: https://myneighborhoodalliance.org/index.php/mum-sale/

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Andrew Stith Sr. , Director of Shelter and Emergency Services at Neighborhood Alliance. Andrew shares with us how his passion for service brought him to Neighborhood Alliance and how his first few weeks have gone as director. We are so happy to have Andrew on board and looking forward to seeing him grow in this role.

This is one small step in helping our facilities be a little bit better and support the needs of the community and what we do,” said Alicia Foss, president and CEO. “So, that was a step in the right direction, and we’re excited that that was approved.”

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Gloria Olivencia, Shelter Advocate at Neighborhood Alliance Shelter & Emergency Services. Gloria share the importance of having an advocate for homeless in our community. She explains how she is able to help give individual the best chance at not only finding but maintaining sustainable housing.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Lori Magyar, Grants Manager at Neighborhood Alliance. Lori share details about the 2021 Christmas for Caring program and why it’s important to sign up early. The Neighborhood Alliance Christmas for Caring program; which is entirely donor-driven, touched nearly 2000 participants last year. We could not do this without the generous support and participation from our community and corporate partners. Donors are able to select from a variety of different holiday options such as Family Care Baskets, Senior Care Boxes, Adopt A Child and other collection opportunities.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Roger Le. Roger is supporting the mission and vision of Neighborhood Alliance through his 2nd Annual Ruck for Resiliency event on Saturday, August 14th 2021. This 12 mile “Ruck” aims to help spread awareness and compassion for seniors that struggle with food insecurities.

Kick off will be held at Lakeview Park in Lorain at 8am running eastbound along Lake Rd for 12 miles. Community members can participate in this event by joining the run for a mile or two, run for the entire 12 miles, make signs and cheer on runners along the route or pledge a donation to the Neighborhood Alliance Senior Nutrition program.

Every action, no matter how small, can make a difference. We’d like to cordially invite you to view our VIRTUAL Annual Meeting that highlights the successes of 2020 while looking forward to 2021 and what amazing changes it will bring.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Joe Szlempa, Neighborhood Alliance Board Member. Joe has been volunteering with Neighborhood Alliance for many years. He explains how his work and personal life have driven him to help and give back to his community. Sharing experiences of hands-on giving by building cabinets for the Haven Center and also helping give financial education to our participants. Joe is such a valuable part of our organization and we are excited to share a little of his story.

Neighborhood Alliance Senior Enrichment Services is the largest provider of Home Delivered Meals in Lorain County. Funding received from The Community Foundation of Lorain County kicked off our Senior Nutrition HotShot Delivery Vehicle Replacement Campaign, with Nord Family Foundation, Meals on Wheels America, and the Eric and Jane Nord Family Fund, each providing funding for a new HotShot home-delivered meals vehicle. This generous support enabled the program expansion thanks to the purchase of 4 new dependable vehicles.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Tausha Coker, Family Service Worker with Salvation Army Lorain. Tausha works alongside our Shelter & Emergency Services staff and other community partners for the UCAN (United Community Assistance Network) Collaborative. She goes over what has changed since the pandemic hit and how this program helps working families in Lorain County. Learn more about UCAN and how this program helps our community grow stronger.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Help Me Grow Early Intervention Evaluator/Service Coordinator, Isaac Young. In this interview, Isaac explains what the Early Intervention program is and what a typical family looks like. He also goes over how COVID has changed how the program functions and how parents with concerns can get help.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Sarah Bishop, Director of Child Enrichment Services. Sarah explains how quality ratings work for childcare and early learning centers. A system called Step Up To Quality has been used in Ohio for years to recognize and promote learning and development programs that exceed health and safety regulations. The Ohio Senate recently released its state budget proposal. The Senate’s proposal is a devastating blow to Ohio’s child care system and the classroom teachers who are the unsung heroes of our fragile system.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Paul Knott, Senior Enrichment Services, Senior Nutrition Driver. Paul has worked for Neighborhood Alliance as a driver for many years. He often goes out of his way to make the days of his clients just a little easier. That may be just bringing up the trash cans from the curb, getting the mail, or even just changing a light bulb. This program is so much more than just a meal!

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview our new board member and long-time volunteer Rich General. Rich explains why volunteering is important to him and his family. He shares how he has been able to support projects he is passionate about and how others could get involved. Thank you for your continued support and passion to help those in need.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Help Me Grow Home Visitor, June Tracey. Miss. June explains what the Home Visiting program is and why it’s so important to families in our community and how visits have changed during the COVID-19 pandemic. We were also joined by one of the moms in the Home Visiting program and her beautiful baby girl.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Child Enrichment Services Administrator, Isabelle Velez. Miss. Izzy discusses why she loves working with Neighborhood Alliance and why programs like this are needed. She discusses how important this service is to the whole family and how COVID-19 has impacted programming.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview our Chief Financial Officer, Mark Charvat. Mark has a wealth of knowledge in nonprofit accounting. He shares how Neighborhood Alliance is funded and why your support is needed now more than ever. Mark also tells us why supporting fundraising events is so important.

Thank you to Tricia Nejman from Grace & Heart Jewelry for putting on this wonderful fundraiser for Neighborhood Alliance.  20% of all the sales will be donated to Neighborhood Alliance by Tricia Nejman at Grace&Heart Jewelry. This fundraiser will not close until the end of 2021. To shop or learn more click the button below.

YOU CAN BE A REAL HERO IN LORAIN COUNTY BY DONATING ITEMS TO Neighborhood Alliance FOR A SUPPLY DRIVE for a ‘WARMING CENTER’! Please consider dropping off the items starting February 22nd through May 1st, to help people who are vulnerable during the winter months and pandemic. Super Heroes to Kids in Ohio is proudly teaming up with Galaxy United, a local Star Wars charity, to collect as many items as possible for this ‘warming drive’.

As temperatures drop in Northeast Ohio, the Neighborhood Alliance is ramping up to help the homeless in Lorain County by supplying them with warming centers.

The centers are located at Sacred Heart Chapel, 4301 Pearl Ave. in Lorain, and the Salvation Army, 716 Broad St. in Elyria, which started emergency housing over the weekend.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Rising Titans Kindergarten Readiness Collaborative, Katelyn Gonzalez. Katelyn shares exactly what Rising Titans is and how things have changed during COVID-19 and what they are doing differently. This program is so much more than what you think with some pretty amazing community partners involved.

Warming center locations now open are Sacred Heart Chapel, 4301 Pearl Ave. in Lorain and The Salvation Army, 716 Broad St. in Elyria.

Many locations were unable to open this year due to COVID-19 restrictions, meaning the unsheltered homeless had nowhere to go. Agencies who support those without a home have partnered over the past several weeks to open the two shelters.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Neighborhood Alliance Director of Senior Enrichment Services, Amy Anderson, and Senior Nutrition Coordinator, Denise Szabo-Ortiz. Amy and Denise share how the need to help feed older adults has grown during COVID-19. They explain what their typical client looks like and how funding is the biggest challenge for helping our seniors in need.

In August of 2020 Neighborhood Alliance received a $5,000 Meals on Wheels Loves Pets grant through Meals on Wheels America. The funding was used to provide food, supplies, and improved access to care for the pets of our Home Delivered Meals clients, which can often be a financial and physical challenge for older adults to manage on their own. Our summer intern Katie Magyar from Miami University recaps her experience applying for the grant to getting creative about how to deliver pet food during COVID-19.

In this Neighborhood News segment, we interview Neighborhood Alliance Director of Child Enrichment Services, Sarah Bishop. Sarah shares how child enrichment policies have changed during the COVID-19 pandemic. She also explains what Step Up To Quality ratings mean and why it’s important. Please take a few minutes and watch this interview to gain insight into our early learning centers in Elyria and Lorain.