Goodwill and Sisters of Charity Health System explore new Opportunity Center in Cleveland’s Central neighborhood

Thursday, July 10, 2025

Tags: Sisters of Charity Health System , St. Vincent Charity Health and Healing Hub

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Goodwill Industries of Greater Cleveland and East Central Ohio and the Sisters of Charity Health System (SCHS) are exploring an exciting new collaboration aimed at further uplifting Cleveland’s Central Neighborhood. The centerpiece of this potential partnership is a proposed Goodwill Opportunity Center, to be located on the former grounds of St. Vincent Charity Medical Center at 2351 East 22nd Street.

The new Goodwill Opportunity Center would be part of the growing St. Vincent Charity Health and
Healing Hub, located along East 22nd Street and Community College Avenue. The Hub represents
SCHS’s evolution from a hospital-based model of care to one focused on addressing root causes of poor
health through coordinated community partnerships.

The proposed Center will serve as a dynamic resource—not only for Goodwill’s mission-based programs—but also for additional community agencies, creating greater access to vital social services for the residents of Central and the broader Cleveland community. The specific services to be offered will be shaped through ongoing conversations with community members, partners, and stakeholders to ensure they align with local needs and priorities. Based upon those exploratory conversations, the opportunity center could include workforce development programs, access to health and social services and a grocery store, addressing an urgent food access need in Central and further supporting community health and stability.

“Central is a neighborhood rich in history, resilience, and potential,” said Anne Richards, President and CEO of Goodwill Industries of Greater Cleveland and East Central Ohio. “We are honored to be part of these early discussions and remain committed to partnering in ways that advance community-driven solutions and expand access to resources, training, and opportunity.”

This concept of an opportunity center closely aligns with the missions of both organizations. Goodwill’s work to empower individuals through employment and training matches the Sisters of Charity Health System’s holistic commitment to improving mental and physical healthcare, education, nutrition, housing, and financial stability. Both organizations are encouraged by the early conversations around what could be a meaningful and impactful initiative.

Michael Goar, President and CEO of the Sisters of Charity Health System, emphasized the strategic nature of the partnership. “Our commitment to our neighbors in Central is to help them become healthier, better supported, well-nourished, safer, and more financially secure. This collaboration with Goodwill is a powerful step towards addressing the social drivers of health.”

In addition to Goodwill, the St. Vincent Charity Health and Healing Hub is already home to several key
collaborators:

• The Centers – which will provide behavioral health services and detox center
• Neighborhood Family Practice – which will offer primary healthcare
• Women Religious Archive Collaborative (WRAC) – preparing to break ground on a heritage center celebrating and remembering the rich history of women religious.
• Marion-Sterling School Partnership – supporting school attendance and learning outcomes.
• Additionally, the Health System’s own ministries in the Hub include:
  • Mission Kitchen—providing meals and nutrition access
  • Joseph and Mary’s Home—providing medical respite to the unhoused; renovation to
    Joseph’s Home has just been completed.
  • Rosary Hall—addiction treatment services, currently available on the 4th floor of the
    Sisters of Charity Health System building, 2475 E. 22nd Street, and will be expanded in
    2026 with the addition of the Sr. Ignatia Gavin Center for Addiction Medicine on the
    second floor of the building.
  • Cleveland Central Promise Neighborhood-working to influence the social drivers of
    health in the Central Neighborhood through partnerships and programs that align with
    the mission of the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine.
  • Pharmacy services
  • Outpatient mental health services
  • Primary care

Together, these partners form a hub-and-spoke model with the Sisters of Charity Health System at the center—convening mission-aligned organizations dedicated to uplifting Cleveland’s Central Neighborhood and beyond.

Sister Judith Ann Karam, CSA, Congregational Leader of the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine, expressed her enthusiasm for the developing partnership. “We are thrilled about the possibility of working with Goodwill. This collaboration will amplify our commitment to healing the whole person, and our stated mission of extending the healing ministry of Jesus to God’s people. For nearly 175 years, the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine have adapted to meet the needs of our communities—and this effort is a continuation of that legacy. Since 1865, the Sisters of Charity have served the Central neighborhood and never left it.”

While plans are still evolving, both organizations are excited about working alongside dedicated community partners to help create spaces that foster connection, opportunity, and well-being for all. “Goodwill looks forward to continuing this dialogue and are grateful to be part of a community that is deeply committed to its residents and lasting positive change,” Ms. Richards noted.

ABOUT GOODWILL INDUSTRIES OF GREATER CLEVELAND AND EAST CENTRAL OHIO
Goodwill Industries of Greater Cleveland and East Central Ohio, Inc., (“Goodwill”) is a proven social enterprise that works closely with other nonprofit agencies as well as community businesses to prepare people for a variety of stable career options and in turn, a more productive and sustainable way of life. Revenue from its retail stores helps Goodwill provide people with the life-changing, skill building programs and services needed to remove common barriers to good jobs and independence. Goodwill impacts the lives of thousands of residents in the 10 counties it serves: Cuyahoga, Geauga, part of Lake, Stark, Tuscarawas, Carroll, Jefferson and Harrison in Ohio, and Brooke and Hancock in West Virginia. Learn more at goodwillgoodskills.org.

ABOUT THE SISTERS OF CHARITY HEALTH SYSTEM
The Sisters of Charity Health System (SCHS) was established in 1982 as the parent corporation for the sponsored faith-based ministries of the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine in Northeast Ohio and South Carolina. Today, over 1.3 million people are affected by the work of the ministries and grants awarded by its foundations. The Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine is a congregation of women religious that, since founding in 1851, continues a faith-based legacy of high-quality, compassionate care in partnership with its ministries. The ministries, which include in Northeast Ohio: Joseph & Mary’s Home; Light of Hearts Villa; Regina Health Center; Early Childhood Resource Center; services of the St. Vincent Charity Health and Healing Hub, such as Mission Kitchen, Rosary Hall, pharmacy services, outpatient mental health services, and Cleveland Central Promise Neighborhood; and the Sisters of Charity Foundation of Cleveland and Sisters of Charity Foundation of Canton. Ministries located in South Carolina are Healthy Learners, South Carolina Center for Fathers and Families, and the Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina. The ministries are the heart and hands of the Sisters of Charity Health System, whose mission is to extend the healing ministry of Jesus to God’s people.

With the closing and demolition of St. Vincent Charity Medical Center, SCHS pivoted its focus away from a hospital model to a comprehensive approach of addressing the root causes of poor health. The East 22nd Street campus is known as the St. Vincent Charity Health and Healing Hub. Services delivered by SCHS ministries and partners already include or will include: addiction medicine, primary care, behavioral health, medical respite care for people experiencing homelessness, and educational and family support to residents in the Central Neighborhood of Cleveland.