Mission Statement of the Canton Black
Assistance Foundation
The mission of the Canton Black Assistance Foundation is to help
children improve their reading and comprehension skills.
However, we have secondary concerns as well.
Canton is a city where a crisis can happen at any time and in any
place.
The community’s response to a crisis has always been anger,
rage, marches, protests, prayers and a few and far between
lawsuits. Rarely are the victims helped financially to get back on
their feet. There has never been a black foundation in Canton to
help our community. Cleveland has three black foundations,
Akron developed one in 2023, and many of Ohio’s major cities
such as Columbus and Cincinnati have black foundations.
Initially, the Canton Black Assistance Foundation {CBAF) was
created to address a crisis. However, as we developed a Board
and our Recommendation Committee, the foundation decided to
narrow our vision.
Our mission:
The FRESH START program: we would help pay some or all
court fines of first-time single parent offenders. We have
partnered with the City of Canton’s, Phil Giavasis, clerk of court to
create the program. By eliminating court fines, it will help single
parents get their driver licenses reinstated. However, due to the
passage of House bill 29 it stopped the courts revoking driver
licenses, the program was terminated.
The Breakfast & Books Program: This program is designed to
feed children from 3 rd to 8 th graders breakfast once a month. The
children will also be involved in a mentoring program to improve
their reading and comprehension skills. Parents are also engaged
in discussion groups ranging from parenting skills to health &
wellness. Our goal is to have four sites in all four quadrants of the
city.
Currently:
The Total Living Center, located at 2221 9 th St SW
Union Baptist Church 413 Cornelia Ave NE.
Zion’s Temple located at 1103 7 th ST NE.
St. Paul’s AME at 1800 East Tusc. SE
Jesus Speaks Ministries 1103 McKinley Ave NW
Mt. Zion Church of God in Christ 1208 Sherrick Rd SE
1-5 Year Action Plan
Become fiscally solvent. We need to generate $100,000 in
revenue within 1-5 years.
Solidify our Board and Recommendation committee.
Develop partnerships in the community who share our
mission.
Increase our visibility in the community through branding and
promotional events.
Get involved in the community by supporting other
nonprofits.
We want to award 25- 50 grants of various amounts to our
FRESH START program and individuals who need
immediate help over a 3 year span. Suspended
Secondary mission: Pending