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Our Focus

Because every child is a partner in the future of our city.

The Bruening Foundation aims to improve quality of life in Cuyahoga County by investing proactively in early childhood development.

We know that economic adversity experienced early in life compromises brain development, health and earnings over a lifetime. The ages between 0-3 are the critical years. This short window of time is our opportunity to disrupt the consequences of poverty, both for the potential of the child and the continued success of our city. We support efforts targeted to young children with the understanding that the benefits of social and educational interventions are strongest in the earliest years.

Inspired by a compassionate civic vision. Informed by our legacy.

Our focus is a modern interpretation of our founding couple’s vision and voice.

With no children of their own, Eva and Joseph Bruening viewed the children of Cleveland as their legacy and felt they had a responsibility to care for those in need. They strongly believed in the importance of building hope in their community by alleviating the roots of poverty.

That mission continues to influence the Bruening Foundation’s focus today. We invest in efforts to improve overall quality of life by empowering economically disadvantaged individuals to navigate through life with dignity and to gain greater personal and economic security and self sufficiency. Our grantmaking priorities reflect an interest in helping families out of poverty through improved education, access to long-term benefits and connections to employment.

Thinking. Learning. Changing. Doing. Bruening.

At the Bruening Foundation, we are thinking about how to address poverty in our community. We are part of the community conversation and learning about best practices to lift families out of poverty. We support grantees that are doing important programming and changing the course for families living in poverty. That is the Bruening way.