Rally CLE 2025

A One-Day Event Part of a Much Bigger Picture

September 6, 2025

“Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.”
Isaiah 58:12

 

What is Rally CLE?

Rally CLE exists to unite and engage residents around the ideas they have for improving their communities by supporting projects & grassroots programs that promote connection, equity, and grassroots leadership.

“Rally CLE allows for the opportunity to listen to a resident leader and then surround them with resources and support. And what a great way to reconcile them to their own purpose and dignity and let them know that they matter.”

—Vatreisha Nyemba, BHITC’s Director of Leader and
Community Development

 

 2019–2023 Rally CLE Impact Snapshot

 
 

51

Resident-Led Projects

1,100+

Registered Volunteers, Neighbors and Partners

$94K

Invested in Grant Funded Projects

$185K

Total Neighborhood Investment

 
 

 Rally CLE Grant Application

Building Hope in the City supports residents in the Clark-Fulton, Stockyards and Brooklyn Centre communities through small grants (up to $2,000 per project of program), project planning support, neighbor engagement assistance, as well as volunteer and/or professional support needed for resident-led projects to succeed.

What are some examples of past resident-led projects?

  • Block parties

  • Storytelling initiatives

  • Community Garden installations

  • Pocket-park improvements

  • Cooking classes

  • Art classes for youth

  • Greenspace or alley-clean up

 

 Past Projects with Purpose

 

Meet Paris and Amanda

“Gardening is a healing, therapeutic space for me and connects me with God. There's a joy in being willing to step into a space that looks badly damaged and broken, even dead on the surface. But as you get close and care for the earth and the plants, you realize how much life and vitality are in store," says Paris Eble (pictured right), a community leader and a recipient of a Rally CLE grant this year.

In the early morning hours on September 10, over thirty volunteers from Royal Redeemer Lutheran Church and Credit First National Association (CFNA) gathered in the Refuge Garden in Clark-Fulton to turn soil, assemble garden boxes, build watersheds and pull weeds as a part of Building Hope in the City’s (BHITC’s) fourth annual Rally CLE, which also received significant support from Key Bank Foundation… Read More

Meet Betty Jo

While passing through Cleveland’s Clark-Fulton Stockyards (CFSY) neighborhood, it may be easy to overlook the beauty and resilience of the residents who call it home. Oftentimes, neglect and scarcity can overshadow the true essence of what exists in a community. However, if we peer beneath the surface narratives of brokenness in city neighborhoods, we'll see the hand of God at work through the neighbors, friends and families.

As God has called Building Hope in the City (BHITC) to the diverse neighborhoods of CFSY, we are intentional about walking alongside the residents and empowering their community visions of restoration and purpose. BHITC has a physical presence in the neighborhood with our main office on West 58th Street, and beyond that the Community Development team has woven a tapestry of connections with many of the families and individuals that reside in CFSY. A much- loved name and face that comes to mind is resident leader Betty Jo Palmer… Read More

Meet Art and Ericka 

“The young people, the kids, the babies—is why I want to do this,” said Ericka Stewart, a Brooklyn Centre resident who shared her inspiration for leading one of 11 community improvement projects for Rally CLE this September. “Being able to create a safe space [for them] gets me closer to God. I'm grateful that I'm able to do it, and I give all glory to Him.”

Rally CLE, BHITC’s one-day community event, brought together residents of the Clark-Fulton, Stockyards, and Brooklyn Centre neighborhoods on a lovely September Saturday. After months of collaboration with a core BHITC staff team planning details, guidance from local leaders, and support from church partners across Cleveland area, the sixth annual Rally CLE highlighted the creativity, tenacity and talent of neighborhood residents. Stewart, along with another long-time resident and Rally CLE project leader, Art Ledger, stood out for their shared purpose of empowering the youth… Read More