Written by Mackenzie Manley, Content Specialist, Downtown Main Library
We insist on being a Library for all. All minds. All modes. All needs. More than 2.4 million visits are made to the Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library each year from customers living in and working in our diverse, vibrant, and unique neighborhoods. Our series “Meet a Library Customer” shares the stories that minds of all kinds have each day at CHPL.
The Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library is one of two Greater Cincinnati organizations equipped to assist nonprofits with grant research. Through empowering customers to use the Library’s grant research databases, countless seeds of ideas have sprouted into reality, one of those being Pones, Inc.’s Deaf Republic.
Deaf Republic premiered in early 2024 at the Cincinnati State Technical & Community College. Featuring poems by Ilya Kaminsky, the performance blended spoken word, dance, and sign language with shadow interpretation (ASL interpreters who stand by the actor throughout the show). At the helm was director Gina Kleesattel, who used the Library’s resources to help secure grants for the production.
“I really can only speak from the viewpoint of the arts, but everybody needs money,” said Gina. “It’s so hard to come by. The reassuring thing about the [Foundation Directory] is that there is money out there that you don’t even know about.... But you have to know how to look for it.”
At the time, Gina connected with CHPL’s Reference Librarian Kent Mulcahy at the Downton Main Library. (At the time, he specifically worked with nonprofit grants research.)
“This is one of the best illustrations of what libraries do. Period. We are not going to write the grant for you... What we do is give you the resources for free. We give you the introduction and training for free,” said Kent. “When you come away, you don’t need to pay anybody else to do this. We’re teaching you to use [the Library’s] resources for free.”
Get Started with Nonprofit Grants Research
Tessa Grindle-de Graaf, CHPL’s current grants reference librarian, said that many of the services and resources the Library offers are similar to years past. Aimed at helping both new and experienced grant writers research, find, write, and win grants for nonprofits, offerings include virtual and in-person classes, physical and digital books, and the Foundation Directory, which is accessible in the Genealogy & Research Department on the second floor of our Downtown Main Library’s South Building.
“The Foundation Directory is now digital, as well as another database: GuideStar. Both of those come from our nonprofit partner, Candid,” said Tessa, adding that CHPL is heading toward 50 years of working with them.
“I think that speaks to a couple of things. It speaks to the longevity of these resources,” said Tessa. “It speaks to how this has been a need, is a need, and will continue to be a need.”
Candid partners not only with CHPL, but libraries across the country to ensure that such resources are free and accessible to people in need of valuable grants-related information.
Classes range from an introduction to proposal writing to how to navigate the Foundation Directory, among other topics.
“We try to give you at least a little bit of a foundation that’s solid. You know that the information is good. You know that you have resources and support to get started,” said Tessa.
Empowering Library Customers with Knowledge
When speaking about connecting with the Library to learn how to navigate databases and begin grant writing, Gina used the word “empowering.” Kent nodded to the Foundation Directory, citing that one click of a search button can save users months of work.
"One tax form from a large nonprofit foundation can be hundreds and hundreds of pages. This database condenses it all and gets rid of everything you don’t need to know,” said Kent, citing that users are instead given a two to three-page PDF.
“And in that PDF, you have in-depth information,” added Tessa. “Not just information about the organization or the foundation, but targeted information about how they fund, what you do, where you do it, and who you do it for.”
Grant resources help bring ideas to life throughout Hamilton County and beyond. Through grant money, Gina was able to show Deaf Republic for free while still paying everyone involved well. Deaf Republic, described by Gina as “heartbreaking, but beautiful poems” explores what happened to the deaf community during the Ukrainian War.
“That’s what grants can do,” said Kleesattel. “...We removed the language barrier [of seeing a show], and now we’ve removed the financial barrier.”
To learn more about how to access the Library’s nonprofit grant resources, visit CHPL.org/grants where you can find upcoming classes, forms that will get you in touch with the Downtown Main Library’s nonprofit grants librarian, and access to a wealth of resources.
“[Grant money] opens opportunities; barriers get thrown to the sides in many ways. There is more flexibility and access to funding,” said Tessa. “Without access to funding, you can’t do what you’re trying to do. [The Library] can help you get that piece you need.”
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