Cleveland company organizes volunteer day in Ohio City

CLEVELAND - Employees of one of Cleveland's oldest companies spend a day giving back to a community.

Last week, we showed you NewsChannel5 employees volunteering each day on Cleveland’s west side. Friday, other companies joined in the effort.

An army of employees from Cliffs Natural Resources spent Friday volunteering in Cleveland’s Ohio City. More than 120 volunteers participated in the efforts, building planters along Fulton Avenue, painting the Kentucky Gardens fence and sprucing up Fairview Park.

Cliffs organized “Cliffs Cares Day” in an effort to give back to the community. Volunteering fits with the company’s mission, according to Jim Bartolomucci, Cliffs Vice President and Chief Risk Officer.

“At Cliffs we have some pretty strong core values. Those are bias for action, commitment to give back to the community, and teamwork,” said Bartolomucci.

The Quinones family was appreciative of the company’s efforts, as volunteers painted their West 50th Street home.

"It's great, I’m very thankful for you guys coming out and volunteering and helping out,” said homeowner Dennis Quinones. “I really appreciate that.”

Members of the Cliffs team even brought box lunches to the family.

Bartolomucci invited other businesses to join in and volunteer.

“I would challenge other Cleveland-based companies to consider doing the same thing, because there are a lot of truly needy people and needy communities around the Cleveland area.”

For information on NewsChannel5’s Building Better Neighborhoods initiative and how you can get involved, visit:  http://newsnet5.com/bbn