A Cleveland campus that has cared for children in crisis for more than a century is about to give its young residents a gym worthy of them: The Centers announced it will transform the gymnasium at its H.O.P.E. Campus on Lorain Avenue into a state-of-the-art field house, backed by the Cleveland-Cliffs Foundation, the Cleveland Cavaliers and SERVPRO.
The Centers announced the project Oct. 27 in its own release. The campus, at 11401 Lorain Ave. in Cleveland, serves youth confronting severe challenges, and the renovation is designed to turn an outdated gym into what the organization calls a premier, high-energy wellness hub supporting physical activity and emotional regulation.
The Cleveland-Cliffs Foundation is the presenting sponsor. “The Cleveland-Cliffs Foundation is proud to partner with The Centers to serve as the presenting sponsor of the renovated gymnasium on the H.O.P.E. Campus in Cleveland,” Celso Goncalves, president and chief financial officer of Cleveland-Cliffs Inc., said in The Centers’ release. “The H.O.P.E. Campus provides critical assistance to children in Northeast Ohio who are confronting severe challenges and in need of support.”
The court itself carries a joint sponsorship from the Cleveland Cavaliers and SERVPRO. “Transforming neighborhood spaces into vibrant, modern basketball courts provides safe, high-quality environments that inspire teamwork, active living and neighborhood pride,” Brandon Jirousek, the Cavaliers’ senior vice president of digital experience, said in The Centers’ release. “Joining forces with SERVPRO to bring this vision to life at the H.O.P.E. Campus aligns with our mission to uplift the Northeast Ohio youth and community.”
“We are honored to be part of this amazing project with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Cleveland-Cliffs, and The Centers,” Dennis Fosdick of SERVPRO Team Fosdick said in The Centers’ release. “We’re confident the field house will give young adults a place to build their skills and grow into tomorrow’s mentors and leaders.”
Total expenses for the renovation are projected at $615,000, according to The Centers. Funding has been advanced through corporate partners and community stakeholders, including the lead gift from the Cleveland-Cliffs Foundation, but a gap of $186,000 remains. The Centers’ “Game Changer Campaign” — chaired by board members Shelly Grisik-Coury and Jirousek — is asking Northeast Ohio businesses, schools and philanthropic leaders to help close it.
The campus carries a long history. Formerly Cleveland Christian Home, it traces its youth advocacy to 1900, when the Rev. Henry Timme founded it as a safe haven for orphaned children, according to The Centers. Today it operates as a public-private collaboration with Cuyahoga County providing intensive, trauma-responsive care close to home — a model The Centers says directly inspired Ohio House Bill 96 and a $20 million state investment in regional child wellness campuses, and the campus received $3.2 million of state funding this year to expand its youth stabilization and aftercare work.
“Our vision is to build a space that feels exciting, energizing, and designed specifically to meet the therapeutic and recreational needs of our youth,” Dawnya Underwood, executive director of the H.O.P.E. Campus, said in The Centers’ release. “Movement is a critical element of healing and trauma recovery, but it’s also an opportunity for young people to simply be kids, have fun, and build positive memories.”
The project joins a season of investment in Northeast Ohio youth — including the Village Network’s new 10-bed youth group home in Wooster — and backing from a Cavaliers organization whose team is in the thick of its season, most recently seeing its win streak end in Atlanta.
What happens next: renovations are slated to begin this winter, with completion expected in summer 2027, when the community will be invited to a grand-opening ribbon-cutting. The finished field house will feature premium sports flooring, multi-sport markings and specialized lighting and sound — and between now and then, the Game Changer Campaign’s job is to close the last $186,000.