Conrad Geis
The Geis Foundation’s story and mission is intrinsically intertwined with the story of the Geis Family. German immigrants, Mr. and Mrs. Geis came to Northeast Ohio with little in their pockets and the dream of a better life in America. Though hard work, perseverance, and some help from new friends along the way, they formed the Geis Companies in 1967, a small design build company. The more successful their endeavors became, the more they felt the need to give back. As they became involved in numerous charitable efforts, it was their employees that established the first scholarship in their names as a Christmas gift in 2001.
It is in their honor that The Erwin & Katherine Geis Charitable Foundation promotes education to underprivileged youth, assists in the development of the design/build industry, and encourages the philanthropic efforts of Geis employees.
“Geis exemplifies the tenet of turning passion into purpose through charity, employee volunteerism, and projects that are laying the groundwork for success for the next generation of Clevelanders.”
-Ronald B. Richard, president and CEO of the Cleveland Foundation.
Combatting and addressing human trafficking of children through simultaneous systemic change, rescue missions, awareness building, and survivor empowerment.
What We Do:
PREVENTION: Omphalos, often working under the state specific Child Rescue designation, provides educational and skills building trainings for law enforcement, teachers, parents, and students. These trainings are focused on awareness building and red flags of potential trafficking situations. The more our youth, their caretakers, and our law enforcement officers know how traffickers lure children and adolescents, the better chance we, as a society, have in preventing such events from occurring.
PROTECTION: In collaboration with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies, we are able to operate alongside our nations Human Exploitation and Trafficking officers or HEAT teams. Through the provision of cyber security and investigation and intelligence gathering capabilities, we buffer budgetary restraints often experienced by our law enforcement partners. We supply a bridge of information, allowing the partnering agency to develop the case while maintaining a proper chain of custody to ensure not just prosecution, but conviction.
NURTURING: Through the Resiliency and Empowerment aftercare framework, created specifically for Omphalos, child survivors of human trafficking are given wrap around advocacy services at no cost to them or their caregivers. Each of these youth is then engaged in a thorough biopsychosocial evaluation in which their unique needs pattern is identified. A Resiliency and Empowerment (R&E) plan is then created focused on all of the systems at play for that individual, as well as individualized goals and needs within each system. The youth is then assigned an R&E advocate who is responsible for both meeting the goals outlined in the R&E plan and maintaining active and thorough communication within and among these systems (schools, family, housing, mental health providers, etc.) The R&E aftercare framework is funded solely through generous donations and each advocate has a cap of no more than six survivors with whom they work, to ensure effective and successful implementation of the individualized R&E plans.
INNOVATION: In addition to the creation of the aftercare framework, we are also in the beginning stages of creating and piloting a digital framework to aid in efficient and seamless communication amongst the many systems at play in the lives of child trafficking survivors.