Posted December 6, 202312:00 pm
The Legal Aid Society of Cleveland received a one-time $2.5 million gift from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, who has pledged to give most of her fortune to champion important causes. She announced this gift in a post on the Yield Giving website today.
Scott has donated more than $14 billion to more than 1,600 nonprofit organizations through Yield Giving, the organization she established in 2020. She assembled a team to help her identify nonprofit organizations that are making a significant impact in a variety of areas.
Legal Aid’s Board of Directors is honored by this one-time special investment in our work. The Board will take time to thoughtfully identify how the funding will be used so this one-time investment can have the highest and most sustainable impact on our client communities.
The Board will align the spend of this one-time gift with Legal Aid’s new strategic plan, inaugurated this year. Legal Aid will continue to understand the needs of our clients and client communities, and refine and focus our services to meet those needs within these four areas:
- Improve safety and health: Secure safety for survivors of domestic violence and other crimes, increase access to health care, improve health and safety of homes, and mitigate the social determinants of health.
- Promote economic security and education: Increase access to quality education, increase income and assets, reduce debt, and reduce disparities in income and wealth.
- Secure stable and decent housing: Increase availability and accessibility of affordable housing, improve housing stability, and improve housing conditions.
- Improve accountability and accessibility of the justice system and government entities: Increase meaningful access to courts and government agencies, decrease financial barriers to the courts, and increase access to justice for self-represented litigants.
Founded in 1905, Legal Aid’s mission is to secure justice, equity, and access to opportunity for and with people who have low incomes through passionate legal representation and advocacy for systemic change. Legal Aid envisions communities in which all people experience dignity and justice, free from poverty and oppression.
“This gift – the largest one-time gift in Legal Aid’s 118 year history - is an honor for our hard-working staff and volunteers,” says Colleen Cotter, executive director of Legal Aid. “We believe in the ripple effect of our efforts, and this gift bolsters our work to fight injustice, and to create ripples of hope as we ‘sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.’”
You can also click here to read Ms. Scott's piece "Helping Any of Us Can Help Us All," which details her motivation and giving to date. She writes, "Each non-profit (listed) was selected through a rigorous process, and has a strong track record of serving under-supported needs. If you are looking for a way to serve humanity’s common cause, every one of them is a great candidate. Helping any of us can help us all."