Joseph M. Bruening was a classic American success story. He began his Cleveland business career in 1922 as branch manager of a small company that he built into Bearings, Inc., a nationally prominent distributor of anti-friction bearings, which continues today under its new name, Applied Industrial Technologies. Mr. Bruening retired as president of the company in 1980 and became its honorary chairman in 1983. During his career, Mr. Bruening acquired significant personal wealth. He and his wife, Eva L. Bruening, were committed to charitable, community and philanthropic endeavors throughout their long and productive lives. They strongly believed in the importance of education for youth, in providing comfort for the elderly and disabled, and in programs that provided hope for the poor. Their support for numerous Catholic, educational, health care and social service organizations during their lives reflected these beliefs. The Bruening Foundation, set up from the proceeds of their estates after their deaths in 1987, carries forward their vision of a better society.

 

 
The Eva L. and Joseph M. Bruening Foundation is a private, nonprofit philanthropic organization established as an ongoing financial resource for charitable organizations in Cuyahoga County, Ohio.

The Foundation supports programs that enhance the quality of community life by educating youth, comforting the aged and encouraging the disabled and disadvantaged.

 

 
Eva and Joe Bruening never sought public recognition when they made many large and generous charitable gifts during their lifetimes to causes in which they believed. When they both died in 1987, within one month of each other, the Foundation they had carefully crafted was able to begin awarding grants almost immediately, so that their pattern of giving was uninterrupted and those charities that looked to them for support continued to benefit.

They entrusted the work of carrying on their philanthropy to the Distribution Committee members and we take that charge very seriously. In 2006, we continued to experience a huge increase in grant requests. Our challenge was to honor the Bruenings’ charitable intent, stay true to our current mission, and select for funding the most promising among a wide range of worthy programs. Fifty-eight percent of all grant funds was directed toward health and human services, to meet the needs of the elderly, the disabled and the disenfranchised that the Bruenings cared about so deeply. Another 32% was awarded for education, both traditional pre-collegiate and higher education, and for arts education, which we believe contributes significantly to students’ ability to learn. Our policy of distributing above the minimum required by law allows us to meet many urgent needs within these priority program areas, and also to award a small number of grants, 10% of the total, to other causes including the environment and economic development, that make our community a better place to live.

Thank you for your interest in our Foundation. As you look through this website, we hope you will be inspired, as we are every day, by the breadth and depth of organizations that make up our nonprofit sector and by the talented and dedicated people who lead them.

 

 
Marilyn A. Cunin, Chair
Douglas Bannerman
Karen R. Nestor
Robert J. Kane
Jane M. Harris