Our Summer picnic is one of the few moments in a year when our entire community gets together -- families, Dare to Dream® mentors, Love Box® volunteers, Staff and Board. In the middle of a June Cleveland heatwave, we celebrated summer with a nautical theme and were excited to welcome more than 230 people in our community. We enjoyed a magic show, a yoga/relaxation class and a scavenger hunt... We shared a picnic together, had our faces painted, made bracelets, petted a puppy and played sports. Most of all we connected with each other, shared stories and laughed...

A huge THANK YOU to our sponsor (Jinisha Patel/State Farm), to our community partners (TRG Multimedia) for bringing an awesome team of volunteers, (Subway of Chesterland) for subsidizing our picnic lunches, Willie at (Tada Magician) for entertaining us, Casey Gruden for leading the yoga class and Joanne & Dexter (UH pet pals) for being the puppy pirate star of the show!

We also welcomed high school volunteers from University School, Gilmour Academy and Bay Village to help our families and children enjoy themselves.

We are better together! Happy Summer!

If you would like to sponsor or be part of a similar event in the future please contact [email protected].

Last fall, four of the high school seniors in our Dare to Dream® program came out to Edgewater Park for individual Senior Portrait photo sessions, and now, they've come full circle! We are SO excited to share that we have FOUR High School Graduates to celebrate!!

Knowing what barriers these young women had to overcome to earn their diplomas, we wanted to find a fun and creative way to acknowledge their achievement.

We partnered with an awesome local community arts program where everyone created a collage entitled "Landscape of My Future."  Graduates, mentors, staff and members of our associate board gathered together and worked alongside each other creating, painting and chatting. The end results speak for themselves! We finished off with pizza, cupcakes and a small gift for our graduates -- it was a special day.

Less than 50% of youth in foster care graduate high school. Less than 3% graduate from college. Our Dare to Dream® mentoring program helps in providing much needed support, consistency and stability to young people in foster care who are navigating high school and beyond. This is definitely cause for celebration!

Thank you to Jacqui (@studiocatart) for guiding us, and to University School (@universityschool) whose grant from the LoPresti Foundation enabled us to recognize such an achievement.

This year for back to school season we are looking to be as intentional as possible to help the youth in our Dare to Dream® program thrive in the classroom! If you would like to support a youth who is currently in high school or beginning their college journey be best equipped to start school this fall, there are multiple ways to help!

You can purchase items off the  Amazon Wishlist  where youth has chosen what they need, OR you can Donate any amount toward fulfilling their wish! Don't forget to share this opportunity with others who might want to get involved!

THANK YOU for supporting our Cleveland Angels Dare to Dream® mentees! Each gift is not only a practical support, but an encouraging message that you believe in their future. ✨

If you are interested in sponsoring or partnering with us on future events please contact [email protected].