Greater Cleveland Volunteers

What Greater Cleveland Volunteers does

Greater Cleveland Volunteers (GCV) is a Cleveland-based 501(c)-style nonprofit founded in 1972 that operates as the principal volunteer intermediary for Cuyahoga County, connecting adults aged 18+ with service opportunities across nearly 100 partner nonprofit agencies spanning hunger, housing, education, older-adult services, environment, health, and arts/culture. Its signature programmatic portfolio includes the AARP Foundation Experience Corps (literacy tutoring by 31 trained older-adult volunteers reaching 105 students across 9 schools in 2024-2025), Chat Pals (a phone/video companionship program combating senior isolation), and the AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP program (which delivered food to over 3,900 recipients and home-delivered meals to over 350 individuals).

Operationally, GCV runs a small staff team of approximately 15-20 people led by Executive Director Kevin Gross, with a board of directors chaired by President Rosemary Rehner. Its technology stack is composed of off-the-shelf, nonprofit-grade SaaS: a secure cloud-based volunteer and donor database with role-based access and encryption, VSYSLive for volunteer sign-up and opportunity listings, DonorBox for online donations, Eventbrite for event ticketing, and Zoom and Google Forms for recruitment workflows. There is no proprietary AI or algorithmic matching layer; differentiation rests on human-mediated screening, curation, and long-standing partner-agency relationships.

Revenue and funding are diversified across individual donations, an annual fundraising campaign, planned-giving/legacy society vehicles, grants from AmeriCorps and OJJDP routed through AARP Foundation, and corporate sponsorships. The Cleveland Pickle Fest — an annual Mall C fundraiser drawing ~7,000 attendees and over 20 corporate sponsors — is the largest single revenue event. Geographic scope is regional (Northeast Ohio / Cuyahoga County), and the organization is a Candid 2025 Gold Transparency Seal recipient, with Cleveland Pickle Fest ranked the 4th best pickle festival in the U.S. by Chowhound.com.

Name

Greater Cleveland Volunteers

Legal name

Greater Cleveland Volunteers

Website

https://greaterclevelandvolunteers.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1972

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Greater Cleveland Volunteers is a Cleveland-based 501(c) nonprofit founded in 1972 that matches adult volunteers aged 18+ with service opportunities across nearly 100 partner agencies in Cuyahoga County, operating signature programs (Experience Corps literacy tutoring, Chat Pals, AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP) and the annual Cleveland Pickle Fest fundraiser.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Volunteer Coordination Services

NAICS

Civic and Social Organizations (813410), Civic and Social Organizations (8134)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Mentoring & Positive Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Civic Engagement, Volunteering & Leadership Education for Seniors (EDAAAMAK), Mental Health & Crisis Support Services (BPAGACAD)

Keywords

• Volunteer coordination services
• Nonprofit volunteer matching
• Community service programs
• Senior engagement programs
• Literacy tutoring services

Headquarters

HQ city

Cleveland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: Direct donations from individuals supporting volunteer programs and community services. Donations can be made online via credit card/PayPal or by mailing checks to the office.
2. Annual Fundraising Campaign: Annual fundraising campaign to support programs including Experience Corps, Chat Pals, and community service initiatives.
3. Cleveland Pickle Fest: Seventh annual Cleveland Pickle Fest is GCV's largest fundraiser of the year, attracting nearly 7,000 attendees. Features pickle companies, food trucks, pickle eating contests, live music, and vendor booths.
4. AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP Grants: Federal funding through AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP program supports volunteer coordination and program operations. GCV advocates for continued federal funding for AmeriCorps programs.
5. Planned Giving / Legacy Society: Estate gifts including cash, securities, IRA/retirement account beneficiaries, and life insurance policy beneficiaries.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Greater Cleveland Volunteers is a nonprofit organization that recruits adults aged 18+ and matches them with volunteer opportunities at nearly 100 nonprofit partner agencies in Cuyahoga County. The organization operates signature programs including AARP Foundation Experience Corps (literacy tutoring for grades 1-3), Chat Pals (phone/video companionship for older adults), AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP, Encore Cleveland, and Group Volunteering, with Cleveland Pickle Fest serving as the largest annual fundraising event.

Product overview

Greater Cleveland Volunteers operates as a volunteer coordination organization offering multiple interconnected programs and services. The core offerings include: Volunteer Placement Services (matching individuals with opportunities at ~100 partner agencies), three signature programs (AARP Foundation Experience Corps for literacy tutoring, Chat Pals for combating elder loneliness, and AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP for national service), plus ancillary services like Group Volunteering, Encore Cleveland for encore career seekers, and Cleveland Pickle Fest as the organization's flagship annual fundraising event. Together, these programs engage more than 2,800 people annually in volunteer service across Cuyahoga County.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Chat Pals: A phone or video-based program matching older adults (55+) with volunteers for weekly friendly calls to combat loneliness and social isolation.
• AARP Foundation Experience Corps
• AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP
• Encore Cleveland
• Cleveland Pickle Fest

Products and services

• Volunteer Placement Services Core matching service that recruits adults aged 18+ and places them with volunteer opportunities at approximately 100 nonprofit partner agencies in Cuyahoga County based on interests, skills, and availability. Available free of charge via the online volunteer portal.
• AARP Foundation Experience Corps Literacy tutoring program that matches volunteers aged 50+ with elementary students (grades 1-3) for one-on-one reading support sessions twice weekly during the school year, in partnership with AARP Foundation. Operates in Cleveland Metropolitan School District (7 schools) and Euclid Schools (2 schools).
• Chat Pals Phone or video-based (FaceTime/Zoom) friendship program that matches older adults (55+) experiencing loneliness or social isolation with volunteers for weekly calls to combat loneliness and social isolation.
• AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP Federal national service program engaging adults aged 55+ in volunteer service across focus areas including hunger, healthcare access, disaster services, economic opportunity, health education, prison visitation, services to older adults, and youth empowerment. Past year impact included food provided to 3,900+ recipients and home-delivered meals to 350+ individuals.
• Encore Cleveland Program launched by the Cleveland Foundation in 2013 that connects experienced Clevelanders (typically 50+) with meaningful volunteer and encore career opportunities in the community.
• Group Volunteering Service connecting groups of 2-50 adults from corporations or social organizations with coordinated volunteer opportunities at partner agencies in areas including hunger, housing, education, older adults, environment, health, and arts/culture.
• Cleveland Pickle Fest Annual fundraising festival celebrating pickles and volunteerism, featuring pickle eating contests, live music, vendors, and food trucks. Attracts nearly 7,000 attendees and is GCV's largest fundraiser of the year, with the Cleveland Pickle Fest® registered trademark.
• Cleveland Pickle Fest 5K Sub-event running race held alongside Cleveland Pickle Fest, with a 5K course and proceeds supporting GCV programs.

Quantifiable outcome

• 66% of Experience Corps students showed reading improvement with average 0.5 grade improvement; 92% showed improvement in reading test scores
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Nearly 100 Nonprofit Partner AgenciescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGCV partners with nearly 100 nonprofit organizations in Cuyahoga County to match volunteers with meaningful service opportunities. Partner agencies span areas including hunger, housing, education, older adults, environment, health, and arts/culture. Partner agencies include Holden Forests & Gardens, Playhouse Square, Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Centers for Dialysis Care, Judson Senior Living, and North Coast Community Homes.
• AARP FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with AARP Foundation to operate the Experience Corps program. GCV hosts 31 volunteers who tutor students in Cleveland Metropolitan School District and Euclid Schools. The program is an evidence-based intervention focused on improving reading skills for students in grades 1-3.
• AmeriCorps / AmeriCorps SeniorscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGCV operates AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP program serving Cuyahoga County. The program focuses on access to healthcare, disaster services, economic opportunity, hunger, health education, prison visitation, services to older adults, and youth empowerment through education and mentoring. RSVP volunteers provided food to 3,900+ recipients and home-delivered meals to 350+ individuals in the past year.
• Cleveland FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCleveland Foundation launched Encore Cleveland in 2013 and continues to fund and support the network of organizations providing meaningful opportunities for experienced Greater Clevelanders.
• Cleveland Pickle Fest Sponsors (2026)minorGTM or Marketing Partner2026 Pickle Fest sponsors include: Mr. Crisp Pickle Co. (presenting sponsor), The Crazy Cucumber, Cleveland Water Department, Great Lakes Brewing Company, Reserve Care, Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities, Baird, Margaret W. Wong & Associates, EITC, Cuyahoga County Public Library, Zinner & Co., Meijer, The Pickle Shot, Home Genius Exteriors, Hermes Sports and Events, Medical Mutual, Destination Cleveland, Rascal House, Barnes Wendling, Cleveland Teachers Union, Cleveland Water Pollution Control, Cleveland Public Power. Sponsorships available at various levels supporting GCV's annual major fundraiser.
• WKYC-TVminorGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal NBC affiliate featuring Chat Pals program on 'We The People' segment, highlighting volunteer opportunity connecting people with like-minded interests. Multiple episodes featured the program in 2021 and 2024.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Encore.org: National nonprofit focused on the 'encore career' movement, engaging adults 50+ in second-stage purposeful work and volunteering. Directly comparable to GCV's Encore Cleveland program, which is part of the broader encore career network launched locally with Cleveland Foundation support.
• Generations United: National nonprofit focused on intergenerational programs connecting older adults with youth, including literacy tutoring and mentoring. Directly comparable to GCV's Experience Corps intergenerational tutoring model, with analogous outcomes research and program design.
• Idealist: Nonprofit operated job and volunteer opportunity platform connecting individuals with mission-driven roles. Highly comparable to GCV's volunteer placement service in functional terms, with overlap in nonprofit partner listings and volunteer recruitment channels.
• VolunteerMatch: National online platform connecting volunteers with nonprofit opportunities. Highly comparable to GCV's volunteer placement service, with both organizations functioning as intermediaries matching individual volunteers to nonprofit organizations based on interests and skills.
• Points of Light: Nonprofit organization operating the HandsOn Network that mobilizes volunteers and supports volunteer-infrastructure nonprofits across the U.S. Directly comparable as a national volunteer engagement organization that both curates volunteer opportunities and supports local volunteer infrastructure, with HandsOn affiliates performing functions similar to GCV at the regional level.
• Catchafire: Skills-based volunteer matching platform that connects professionals with nonprofit opportunities. Comparable to GCV's volunteer placement service, with additional emphasis on skills-based pro bono engagements that complements the same volunteer-to-nonprofit matching model.

Regional players

• Cleveland Foundation: Regional community foundation serving Greater Cleveland that launched and funds the Encore Cleveland network including GCV. Comparable as a regional nonprofit ecosystem participant that both funds and partners with GCV on senior civic engagement programming.

Broad incumbents

• Senior Corps (AmeriCorps Seniors): Federal program engaging adults 55+ in volunteer service, operated locally by GCV through the RSVP grant. Comparable as the federal backbone of GCV's senior-volunteer programming and a primary funder relationship that anchors capacity.
• AARP Foundation Experience Corps: National operator of the Experience Corps literacy tutoring program for older adult volunteers, of which GCV is a local implementation partner. Comparable as the overarching sponsor of a flagship program that GCV operates locally, and relevant for understanding how the program is positioned, measured, and funded at the national level.

Emerging players

• VolunteerHub: Volunteer management software platform serving nonprofits and volunteer coordinators. Comparable as a complementary technology layer that GCV's partner agencies may use, and as an adjacent vendor in the same volunteer-management ecosystem in which GCV operates.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CLEvolunteers
• Facebookfacebook.com/greaterclevelandvolunteers
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/greater-cleveland-volunteers
• Instagraminstagram.com/greaterclevelandvolunteers

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Greater Cleveland Volunteers