Cincinnati nonprofit
Social Circus Foundation Collecting Unicycles For Kids
The Social Circus Foundation, Inc.(SCF) in Ludlow, Kentucky – the Greater Cincinnati region’s most unique foundation focused on supporting programs that use 
circus acts to strengthen and enhance lives, is partnering with Reser Bicycle Outfitters and Circus Mojo to collect 100 unicycles for social circuses that are helping underserved children succeed in the Tri-State and across the globe. The drive goes through August 31, 2013. Drop off locations are below.
Social circuses are organizations that utilize circus skills such as juggling, balancing, spinning plates and riding unicycles as to teach kids of all abilities lessons in determination, focus, self-esteem, teamwork, coordination, creativity, and values. Social circuses provide educational help, nourishment and enrichment.
How will the unicycles be used?
This summer, through Ludlow’s Circus Mojo, the SCF wants to give Greater Cincinnati urban youth who are attending camp with scholarships funded by the Kicks for Kids Foundation, each a unicycle to continue practicing their skills. Additionally, the SCF will send unicycles to Kenya’s Kiberia Social Circus and Indonesia’s Hidung Merah Youth Circus.
Meshu Tamrat, the founder of the Kiberia Social Circus, and Wawan Kuriawan, a student of the Hidung Merah Youth Circus, are both artists in residence this summer at Circus Mojo. Kuriawan, 18, is from an impoverished village in North Jakarta, Indonesia. He dropped out of school in the 6th grade when his family was unable to pay for his education; and in 2009 joined the Red Nose Foundation. Circus Mojo is sponsoring his visa to study here.
“Before beginning Circus Mojo, I toured the world teaching performing and teaching. One of my former students was a refugee from the Sudan and a great unicycle performer who was tragically killed by gang violence,” said Circus Mojo Founder, Paul Miller. “Remembering him, we want to give other youth opportunities to grow. We know that the fun, enriching type of environment social circuses provide can channel young energy in a productive way and change lives. We have a theory that on every street within the I-275 loop is a unicycle collecting dust in a basement attic or garage, and we want to put those unicycles to great use.”
Drop-off locations for unicycle donation:
Reser Bicycle Outfitters
648 Monmoth Street
Newport, Ky 41071
Reser Bicycle Outfitters
1419 Vine Street
Over-the-Rhine, Oh 45202
Circus Mojo
326 Elm Street
Ludlow, Ky 41016
Unicycles can also be brought to the Devou Park Amphitheatre on August 31, 2013 for Cirque Devou Deux, a joint performance from the Kentucky Symphony Orchestra and Circus Mojo. Show begins at 7:30PM.
The Social Circus Foundation is also accepting monetary donations to help offset the shipping expense to Kenya and Indonesia. To make a donation, please visit www.socialcircus.wordpress.com.
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About the Social Circus Foundation
The Social Circus Foundation INC supports programs using circus to enhance the lives of people with disabilities and hospitalized children at the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, for vocational training, and to study the impact of social circus.
About Circus Mojo
Founded in 2009 by former Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey clown Paul Miller, Circus Mojo engages people of all ages to focus on abilities in hospitals, boardrooms, events, workshops, and other venues. With three focus areas – entertainment, education and community development – its programs and performances are designed to unlock personal talent, confidence, drive and spirit.
About Jason Reser
Jason has been involved in the bicycle industry since he was a very, very young guy. He’s a former Ohio and Kentucky state mountain biking champion and spent all of high school employed at Bishop’s Bicycles. Since the beginning Jason has been seriously committed to bicycle advocacy. He spends as much time in the shop as he does lobbying for mountain bike trails and improvements for bicycling across the region.
Cincinnati Students Learn About Volunteerism In Summer Program
“What I learned about myself this week was that I love people and care about people. It’s a great feeling from helping people and that I’m not too small of a person to make a big difference.”
“What I learned about myself this week was to not judge others and to look deeper than what is on the surface. Everyone has their own stories and is going through various things, so even things like smiling can change someone’s day.”
“What I learned about myself this week was that conversations can serve a larger purpose in breaking down cultural barriers. I can be someone who initiates that conversation in the future.”
These are just some of the many reflections Cincinnati area students have expressed after a week this summer immersed in helping others through the Mayerson High School Service Learning Program. Seventy teens from Mt. Dotre Dame, Moeller, Aiken, Withrow, Reading, Dater and Finneytown High Schools, as well as Starfire University participated.
Through my work with area nonprofits I get to see so many generous acts of young people, and so many incredible programs aimed at instilling in them these powerful character values. I don’t remember having those opportunities when I was a teen and I think it is a beautiful gift. The lessons these students are learning will impact the rest of their lives, and will 
no doubt lead them on a path of lifelong philanthropy.
The Mayerson Foundation’s program is year round and includes high schools from throughout Northern Kentucky and Greater Cincinnati. In the summer urban immersion learning week, students volunteered at 30 area nonprofits and invested $1000 in one of those organizations each week through a grant review process.
Clare Blankemeyer, coordinator for the program, told me there was a strong emphasis on story telling because ‘stories make us human.’ One group interviewed students at the Drop Inn Center. “What the students learned is that many people experiencing homelessness have jobs, are hard working and came upon difficult times,” she said.
Mayerson particpants painted a symbol representing the life and stories of each guest. Those symbols were shared with the Drop Inn guests, and will be incorporated into a greeting card collage that will be sold to offset costs of the Center’s meal program.
Other participants worked alongside Homeless Coalition Streetvibes Distributors and City Gospel Mission’s Exodus Program members to explore their community through photography in the New Voices Program. Some of those pictures will be chosen for a calendar benefitting the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless.
Great work by great people making a great impact. That’s what I call a Good Thing!
St. Vincent de Paul Is Collecting For Oklahoma Tornado Victims
The Society of St. Vincent de Paul is asking for help in bringing relief to the residents of Moore, Okla. following the devastation of Monday’s tornado. St. Vincent de Paul volunteers living in the affected area are already on the ground giving relief to their neighbors who have been impacted by the storm. We are asking for financial donations to directly support those local volunteers in their efforts.
St. Vincent de Paul is also collecting personal care items and toiletries, cleaning supplies, first aid supplies, blankets and baby care products. We are partnering with Matthew 25 Ministries to deliver these items to the affected area. 
Here’s how you can help:
- Make a financial donation online at www.SVDPcincinnati.org or by calling 513-421-HOPE (4673).
- Donate personal care items, cleaning supplies, first aid supplies, blankets and baby care products at any St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store location or at our West End Outreach Center. Visit www.SVDPcincinnati.org for locations.
- Spread the word to friends and family who are looking for ways to help volunteers working on the ground in the affected area.
For more information on St. Vincent de Paul-Cincinnati’s relief efforts contact Eric Young, community relations manager, at 513-614-1943.
Students Donated Nearly $50,000 Through Magnified Giving
Last fall it was so wonderful to have been given the opportunity to learn about one of our region’s truly great philanthropists – Roger Grein when I helped raise awareness of his contributions. Roger has given to local nonprofits with his resources and his heart. However, his greatest legacy is in the hearts of thousands of young people in whom he and his Magnified Giving team of staff and volunteers have instilled long lasting generosity.
Magnified Giving is a nonprofit organization whose mission it is to educate, inspire, and engage students in philanthropy. Its vision of Magnified Giving is for every high school student in America, starting with the Greater 
Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky area, to someday have the opportunity to learn first-hand how to be generous and wise philanthropists.
Each year, participating school groups are challenged to determine how they want to invest up to $2000 in a nonprofit. They research, evaluate nonprofit grant applications, fundraise to earn matching dollars – gaining leadership, communication, and teamwork skills as part of the process. This spring in a packed auditorium of over 600 students, teachers, nonprofits, donors, parents, and community leaders, nearly $50,000 was presented to causes doing great work.
“The most rewarding aspect of Magnified Giving is when what we do in the classroom reaches beyond the walls of the school in a tangible way. I see students ‘get it’ when they come back from a site visit,” said Julie Vehorn, director of curriculum and instruction at Roger Bacon High School overseeing her school’s Magnified Giving program.
Participating Schools
Aiken College & Career
Arlington Heights
Bethel-Tate
Bishop Brossart
Chaminade Julienne
Cincinnati Country Day
Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy
Covington Catholic
Dater
Elder
Holmes
Indian Hill
Kings
Loveland
McAuley
McNicholas
Miami Valley Christian Academy
Mother of Mercy
Mt. Notre Dame
Notre Dame Academy
Perry High School
Reading
Roger Bacon
St. Henry
St. Xavier
School for the Creative and Performing Arts
Seton
Shroder
Starfire University
Summit Country Day
Taylor
Ursuline Academy
Wyoming
Pilot Programs
Madeira Middle School
Northern KY Youth Advisory Board
Kennedy Heights Arts Center Needs Help To Earn $35,000
The Kennedy Heights Arts Center is one of 14 semi-finalists in the ArtsFwd Business Unusual Challenge. They are the ONLY Cincinnati organization from a national pool of applicants – and if they win, it could earn them a $35,000 innovation grant.
How can you help? Vote for them once a day through May 31, 2013 at this link.
About the Kennedy Heights Arts Center
Kennedy Heights Arts Center strives to be the anchor of an increasingly vibrant, diverse, inclusive and creative 
community. It serves more than 3,500 people annually with its rotating art exhibitions, arts education programs for youth and adults, outreach programs in public schools and libraries, and community events from art festivals to poetry readings to concerts on the lawn. The majority of its programming is free and its “pay what you can” policy for art classes ensures that everyone can participate. Its inclusive, welcoming environment attracts many folks who might not venture downtown or to traditional arts institutions. As a community-based art center, KHAC has a special focus on Kennedy Heights and the surrounding neighborhoods.
Why is the funding important?
“In the past, we have assumed that we could provide free programming for all and support our total operating expenses through grants and contributions. Kennedy Heights Arts Center was very fortunate to receive substantial support from one individual donor in the early years of the organization, but that donor recently passed away. Our relationship with 
this “angel” has been both a blessing and a curse – it enabled us to grow quickly and develop a full range of programs, but caused a certain amount of reliance on one source of income which is not sustainable for the long-term.” ~ from the description on Arts Fwd
