2013 Nonprofit Innovation & Excellence Awards

About the Awards

The Blade and Toledo Community Foundation, in partnership with The Center for Nonprofit Resources, are pleased to announce the Annual Nonprofit Innovation & Excellence Awards which are designed to honor and recognize outstanding nonprofit organizations and their achievements in our community.

Awards will be given to three nonprofit organizations, one in each of the following categories:

Nonprofit Innovation Award
Nonprofit Excellence Award – Small Organization (Budget under $500,000)
Nonprofit Excellence Award – Large Organization (Budget over $500,000)

Awards Selection Process & Timeline

The award application deadline is May 24, 2013.

Click here to view the application guidelines.

Click here if you are ready to begin a Toledo Community Foundation online application for the:

Click here if you would like to return to an application already in progress.

Selection Committee

The selection committee will review the applications and select award winners in each category. All applicants will be notified in writing by July 15, 2013 of the selection committee’s decision.

Recipient Prizes

All Award Recipients will receive:

The honor and distinction of being recognized as a leader among Northwest Ohio and Southeast Michigan’s nonprofits;
A one-of-a-kind glass art award engraved with the organization’s name;
An unrestricted grant from Toledo Community Foundation in the amount of $5,000;
A full page advertorial in The Blade;
A video capturing the organization’s work for which it is receiving the award;
A feature article of the organization in The Center for Nonprofit Resources and Toledo Community Foundation e-newsletter and website; and
One table (8 tickets) to the recognition event to be held Friday, September 27^th.

Awards Ceremony Information

Awards will be presented to selected organizations at the Annual Northwest Ohio Nonprofit Innovation & Excellence Awards breakfast on Friday, September 27, 2013.

2012 Award Winners

Photo Credit: Joanne Olnhausen

Winners (back - left to right): Joe Tafelski, Executive Director ABLE; Kevin Mulder, Executive Director LAWO; David Coyle, Board President of ABLE/LAWO, (front - left to right): Tammy Holder, Executive Director, Beach House Family Shelter and Vicki Obee-Hilty, Executive Director, Bittersweet Farms

Congratulations to the winners of the 2012 Nonprofit Innovation & Excellence Awards!

The Blade, Toledo Community Foundation and The Center for Nonprofit Resources would like to congratulate the winners. Over 250 nonprofit professionals, volunteers and supporters attended the awards breakfast on Thursday, September 27, 2012 at the Toledo Club to help celebrate the accomplishments of each of the winners below.

Thank you to all the nonprofit organizations who applied in 2012.

About the Winners...

Beach House Family Shelter and Advocates for Basic Legal Equality, Inc. and Legal Aid of Western Ohio, Inc.’s awards of excellence were earned for noteworthy achievements in mission/program, governance, financial management, fundraising, evaluation and community impact.

Excellence Award (Small Organization) Recipient: Beach House Family Shelter

The mission of Beach House Family Shelter is to help homeless women and families regain independence. They fulfill it by fostering positive changes through structured programs focused on goal setting, employment, education and life management. Beach House operates at capacity regularly and differs from other local shelters because they are the only shelter in Toledo that provides shelter to single women and families in a Goal Directed living environment. The strong balance of compassion and accountability encompasses an empowerment approach to service delivery. Actionable data is continually captured and used to strategically engage individuals in activities that address obstacles to housing, employment and education and meet the diverse needs of families and children. Beach House has had a positive impact on our community since 1921, helping thousands of people regain independence by providing critical services to our areas most vulnerable.

Excellence Award (Large Organization) Recipient: Advocates for Basic Legal Equality, Inc. & Legal Aid of Western Ohio, Inc.

LAWO and ABLE work together to improve the lives low-income people in western Ohio by helping them obtain and maintain the basic necessities of life -- housing, safety, health care, food, basic income, access to education---that are essential for family stability and security. As law firms for the poor, they work to resolve a full range of legal problems involving domestic violence, housing, consumer issues, government benefits, immigration, civil rights, employment, and other matters. Their shared mission is to provide high quality legal assistance in civil matters to help eligible low-income individuals and groups in western Ohio achieve self reliance, and equal justice and economic opportunity.

Innovation Award Recipient: Bittersweet Farms

Bittersweet Farms, situated on 80 acres in western Lucas County in Whitehouse, was the first farmstead in North America to focus on serving adults with autism and their families. Bittersweet Farms opened almost 30 years ago with an emphasis on providing vocational, residential, and supported living programs for adults with autism. Bittersweet Farms created their Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Program in an effort to creatively replace decreased financial support from government grants, including federal, state and county sources. Bittersweet is providing meaningful work, therapeutic programming, and life skills training for the residents, as well as creating a new source of revenue for the organization. Even the community benefits by having the ability to buy healthy, locally grown food from a known source.

2011 Nonprofit Innovation & Excellence Award Information

Click here to read more about the first annual awards and the winners in each category.