The IBTTA Foundation's Annual Service Project will take place on Sunday, June 26, 2022 in Cleveland. As it is every year, the project will be held ahead of the IBTTA Maintenance, Engineering and Roadway Operations Workshop. This year the project will benefit Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeast Ohio. Here's some background on who we're helping (and who they help!).
From Many, One
The name "Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeast Ohio" is plural for a reason—the group was formed by the 2019 merger of Boys & Girls Clubs in Cleveland, Akron, Lorain County and Sandusky. The combined group is the fifth-largest Boys & Girls Club unit in the U.S. with 48 total locations. The location where the IBTTA Foundation service project is being held is known as the Broadway Club (due to its address on Broadway Avenue).
A Typical Day
On average, 170 kids come to the Broadway Club each day. There they receive homework help, play sports, enjoy a meal, occasionally go on field trips and get other assistance from adult mentors. It serves kids aged6-18, and there's no charge for them to join.
About the Neighborhood
The Broadway Club is located in Cleveland's Broadway-Slavic Village neighborhood—an area that was hit hard by the foreclosure crisis in 2008 and still bears the scars of the last recession. According to the Center for Community Solutions, 61% of the children in the Broadway-Slavic Village live below the poverty line. About 20,000 people live in the neighborhood, which is split fairly evenly down demographic lines.
Broadway aka Hollywood East
Numerous actors and professional athletes have visited the Broadway Club, including the cast of 2021's Oscar-winning film "Judas and the Black Messiah," which was filmed in Cleveland.
A Place to Sow/Sew
The Broadway Club is unique among Boys & Girls Clubs nationwide because it's one of very few that has its own urban farm, and its own sewing program for members. After June 26 the Broadway Club will also be the owner of a new outdoor VersaCourt, donated by the IBTTA Foundation and installed by IBTTA volunteers! The concrete pad for the court was poured this week, and on the day of service, volunteers will be assembling tiles for the court. Upon completion, the court will be suitable for basketball, tennis, and more! In addition, the service project includes rebuilding the baseball field and dugout, sprucing up the garden, and landscaping the grounds.
The Industry Coming Together
A special thanks to our workshop host, the Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission, for playing a critical role in the service project through their technical, logistical and financial support.
The IBTTA Foundation would also like to thank the IBTTA member sponsors: Atkins, Douglas Stuart, ETC, E-ZPass Group, Fagan, Gannett Fleming, Global Agility Solutions, HNTB, Kimley Horn, Kyra Solutions, Linebarger, Milligan Partners, Stantec, TransCore, Versilis and Wynndalco Enterprises. The Foundation also thanks our local community sponsors— DP Construction and Twin County Construction Company.
Learn more about the service project and the IBTTA Maintenance, Engineering & Roadway Operations Workshop here.