Cleveland's new Horseshoe Casino already giving back to community

CLEVELAND - The doors on Cleveland’s new Horseshoe Casino may not open until late March 2012, but the casino is already giving back to northeast Ohio.

Horseshoe Casino Cleveland is part of Caesars Entertainment and through their charitable arm, Caesar’s Foundation, they’ve donated a new fuel efficient van to the Golden Age Centers of Cleveland.

The van will help the center in its daily effort to deliver 1,200 meals to seniors in and around Cleveland.

“It’s an aging fleet we have,” said GAC’s CEO Mike Biedenbach. “We have six routes throughout Cleveland that we deliver food and this vehicle was very needed and we’re very appreciative of the Caesars Foundation.”

The local donation came from Caesars through Meals on Wheels of America. The van is the foundation’s 42nd donation to the Meals on Wheels. Like many organizations, the Golden Age Centers have had an increasingly difficult time in recent years. 

“We've seen decreased government funding, so we're getting less meals given to us from state and federal funding. So we've had to go to foundations and individual contributions to try to cover the difference,” explained Biedenbach.

Most of the center’s clients make less than $700 a month and for them, the meals they get through Meals on Wheels represent a lifeline.

“If we did not provide them a meal on a daily basis, they would have to choose between purchasing meals, purchasing prescriptions or even paying for the utilities," said Biedenbach.

On hand to make the official donation was Horseshoe Casino Cleveland General Manager Marcus Glover. 

"We're just happy that this enables their mission to go into the community and provide nutrition research, hunger research and provide some of the seniors in the community hot meals," said Glover. “We make several donations throughout all the communities we operate in across the country and this is just furthering our commitment to the community in which we operate here in Cleveland in making this donation to Meals on Wheels."