Each year, the Center for Nonprofit Resources (C4NPR) recognizes local nonprofits through the Nonprofit Innovation & Excellence Awards. This year, the following nonprofit organizations were recognized:

Midstory – 2020 Innovation Award

Baby University – 2020 Excellence Award, small organization

Bittersweet Farms – 2020 Excellence Award, large organization

Black Swamp Conservancy – 10th Anniversary unrestricted grant for $10,000

Family & Child Abuse Prevention Center – 10th Anniversary unrestricted grant for $5,000

The winner of the Nonprofit Innovation Award is Midstory. According to its website, “Midstory is a registered 501c(3) nonprofit dedicated to retain, cultivate, and attract young people through solutions-oriented projects and creative storytelling of post-industrial cities in the Midwest.”

Midstory’s website is visually stunning and packed with information about the nonprofit. The nonprofit is dedicated to sharing the stories of cities throughout the Midwest, including Toledo, Ohio, in order to bring new talent into our cities.

Cofounders include Samuel Chang, Logan Sander, Ruth Chang, and Alex Lim.

The winner of the Nonprofit Excellence Award (small organization) is the Toledo, Ohio, nonprofit Baby University. Baby University was created to help parents raise healthy, happy children. The mission of Baby University is, “To equip parents for the vital role they play in their child’s development and education, empowering their journey to self-sufficiency from cradle to purpose.”

The hope at Baby University is to improve local neighborhoods, develop strong families, and break the cycle of poverty in our poorest communities.

The impact created by Baby University is impressive: over 600 adult parents have finished the education program. After one year, 92% of graduates report that they still use the skills they learned at Baby U. Skills include reading to their children and preparing their little ones for school.

The winner of the Nonprofit Excellence Award (large organization) is the Toledo, Ohio, nonprofit Bittersweet Farms. Bittersweet Farms serves people with autism through a farm model for adults with autism on “eighty acres of fields, gardens, and woods in a rural area of northwest Ohio.”

At Bittersweet Farms, adults with autism take part in several activities , including:

Working on the farm and seeing their contributions imbues adults with autism a greater sense of purpose, dignity, and value.

Black Swamp Conservancy was the recipient of the 10th Anniversary unrestricted grant for $10,000.

About Black Swamp Conservancy : “We are a land trust dedicated to protecting agricultural land and natural areas, now and for future generations, through land conservation agreements. We do this to preserve the rural heritage, unique natural habitats, and lakes and streams of northwest Ohio.”

Black Swamp Conservancy strives to protect valuable land and water resources in NW Ohio, preserving them for generations to come.

The Family & Child Abuse Prevention Center was the recipient of the 10th Anniversary unrestricted grant for $5,000.

The Center offers programs in education, prevention, and intervention of family violence, hoping to break the cycle of abuse in families in Ohio.

The Center serves over 50,000 people annually and has locations in Lucas and Ottawa counties.

Most notably on their website is their local resources for domestic violence. They list support groups, support services, counseling, and emergency shelters to serve those who are survivors of domestic abuse.

For our current and future Participants, the need for comprehensive services continues to grow. To meet that need, we have big plans. And big plans call for big dollars. We need your help. Will you partner with us to meet the needs of our community? You can give by PayPal , or by mailing a check to Leading Families Home, 2283 Ashland Ave., Toledo, OH 43620.

Thank you for always being faithful partners in our mission — helping families transition from homelessness to permanent housing. Together we’ve got this.

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Leading Families Home is based in Toledo, Ohio. We are dedicated to fighting homelessness in our community – and we’d love your help! Please consider supporting our organization in one of the following ways:

Donate Online

Leading Families Home partners with PayPal for secure online payments. Click Donate Now to be taken to the secure donation page.

To donate by check, please make the check out to Leading Families Home.

Mail your check to the following address:

Leading Families Home

2283 Ashland Ave.

Toledo, OH 43620

Other Ways to Donate

When you shop on AmazonSmile (smile.amazon.com) the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the price of eligible purchases to the charitable organization of your choice. Learn more about AmazonSmile .

It’s easy to donate with Kroger Community Rewards – just shop at Kroger, and swipe your Plus Card! Join Kroger Community Rewards .

Every year we have a Match Campaign – an exciting way for you to double your impact. During this campaign, our match partners will match your monetary donation to Leading Families Home.

Match partners also include corporate sponsors who match their employees’ donations. If you’d like to participate, find out if your employer matches employee donations to 501(c)(3) organizations and contact us .

Do you love to plan events? You can raise donations for LFH by hosting your own event! Have fun and make an impact on our community. Ask for donations instead of birthday gifts or baby shower presents.

A Planned Gift allows you to donate in a very meaningful way. Contact your financial advisor or estate planner to learn more.