COLUMBUS, Ohio, Oct. 1, 2020 – KeyBank has announced $300,000 in KeyBank Foundation grants in the third quarter to local nonprofits across Central and Southwestern Ohio for COVID-19 relief and social justice efforts. The funding provides $240,000 in grants for COVID-related support to local organizations serving our community’s most vulnerable populations across Key’s markets in greater Columbus, Cincinnati and Dayton. It also includes $60,000 directed toward grassroots racial equity and social justice initiatives. The grants are incremental to Key’s substantial ongoing community support to the region as directed through the bank’s five-year, $16.5 billion National Community Benefits Plan.
“KeyBank’s purpose is to help our clients and our communities thrive. That is true in good times and in challenging times,” said Corporate Responsibility Officer Stacy Thompson. “COVID-19 hasn’t revealed new issues; rather it has shown us the depths of issues we continue to work to address with our community partners, and just how much further we have to go.” Thompson went on to explain that along with committing additional funds at the beginning of the pandemic, Key shifted some of its 2020 planned philanthropic resources to meet more immediate needs. “We realized early on that many of our community partners needed to pivot in response to the pandemic’s impact on their vulnerable populations, so we worked with them to reallocate our planned support to help them.”
Organizations receiving COVID-19 relief support from KeyBank Foundation are:
“Not only has KeyBank generously contributed financially, but they have also provided critical volunteer support by allowing associates to deliver Meals-on-Wheels as one of our Adopt-a-Route partners. Thanks to support like theirs, we continue to serve all eligible clients in need.”
-Charles W. Gehring,
President & CEO,
LifeCare Alliance
Columbus & Central Ohio
- Columbus Foundation
- Central Ohio United Way
- Richland County United Way
- YWCA Columbus
- Columbus Urban League
- LifeCare Alliance Meals-on-Wheels
- Per Scholas – Columbus
- Move to Prosper
Dayton
- Dayton Foundation
- United Way of Dayton
- Wesley Community Center
- Miami Valley Foodbank
- Miami Valley Fair Housing Center
Cincinnati
- Cincinnati United Way
- YWCA Cincinnati
- Cincinnati Youth Collaborative
- Freestore Foodbank
- YMCA of Greater Cincinnati
“Per Scholas Columbus appreciates the support of KeyBank as we moved to remote training as a result of COVID-19,” said Managing Director, Toni Cunningham. “Workforce training is critical to getting our community back to work during these challenging times. KeyBank’s investment supports continuation of our high impact technology training through our remote classrooms, as well as to ensure that no learner is turned away due to lack of equipment or access to broadband services.”
LifeCare Alliance President & CEO Chuck Gehring is also grateful for KeyBank’s partnership. “Not only has KeyBank generously contributed financially, but they have also provided critical volunteer support by allowing associates to deliver Meals-on-Wheels as one of our Adopt-a-Route partners,” he said. “Thanks to support like theirs, we continue to serve all eligible clients in need.”
As a company recognized for its commitment to and advancement of diversity, equity, and inclusion practices, KeyBank reaffirms its strong stand for social justice and racial equity with social change grants in all its markets, and has committed to a comprehensive community response plan to accelerate outcomes and create meaningful and lasting advancement toward racial equity and social justice across its footprint.
Local organizations receiving grants from KeyBank Foundation to support racial equity and social justice initiatives are:
Columbus & Central Ohio
- The Center for Employment Opportunities (C.E.O)
- Ohio Black Expo
- Columbus Urban League
- UNCF Columbus
Dayton
- YWCA Dayton
- West Dayton Caravan (Dayton Scholars Program)
- Neighborhoods Over Politics
- Dayton Young Black Professionals
- McKinley UM Church (John Moore Center)
Cincinnati
- The Center for Employment Opportunities (C.E.O)
- DAD Initiative
- Urban League of Greater SW Ohio
“C.E.O. Columbus would like to extend our sincerest appreciation to our newest partner, KeyBank, for awarding us the Social Justice and Equity grant,” said Program Director Teresa Gary. “This mission-aligned funding will help to support our local economic opportunity work, providing participants with ancillary resources to participate in gainful employment skills training that will elevate both their hiring and salary potential. We are so grateful for partners like KeyBank who make it possible for communities of color to thrive on their journey to excellence.”
In addition to the above grants, KeyBank teammates donated more than $2 million through KeyBank Foundation’s 2:1 Response Employee Matching Gifts program, supporting COVID-19 relief and social change efforts through more than 1,200 nonprofits across the country, including many in Central and Southwestern Ohio. KeyBank’s employees also participated in the bank’s Virtual Neighbor’s Make a Difference initiative during the months of June and July, which, due to the pandemic, replaced the bank’s traditional annual day of caring with volunteering projects with non-profits that employees completed remotely.
“I am deeply proud of KeyBank’s community spirit and the way our teammates have come together to support our clients and our community,” said KeyBank Market President Melissa Ingwersen. “Key’s long and strong history of support has helped our customers and communities prevail through many challenging times, and together we will get through today’s challenges as well.”