L. Calvin Jones Celebrates ‘Five Days of Giving’

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Every year Jim Klingensmith, president of L. Calvin Jones & Co. in Canfield, thinks of a way for him and his company to give back to the needy in the community.

One of the initiatives Klingensmith took on last year was sending seven local kids to the YMCA’s Camp Fitch in North Springfield, Pa.

This year, he decided to do “Five Days of Giving,” where he visited five organizations in Youngstown and donated $1,000 to each of them.

“We were trying to think of something different to do and we try to change it up a little bit about who we are helping in the community,” Klingensmith said. “We tried to look at places here in the community that affect the needy.”

L. Calvin Jones is an independent insurance agency specializing in business insurance, personal insurance and surety bonds.

Klingensmith visited Purple Cat, Youngstown Area Goodwill Industries, the Dorothy Day House, Salvation Army and St. Vincent De Paul Society.

The Salvation Army that services the Mahoning County area is using the donation for its Toys for Tots program, to provide children with gifts for Christmas, Klingensmith said.

The Purple Cat offers day-program alternatives for adults with disabilities by providing many vocational functions and classes to help them develop skills and reach their goals.

Pictured: Jim Klingensmith, president of L. Calvin and his partner Mark Zeidenstein present a check to Jim Sutman (third from right) owner of Purple Cat with his clients.

“Jim Sutman is incredibly wonderful with what he does with Purple Cat,” Klingensmith said.

Sutman, the owner of Purple Cat told his clients in attendance when Klingensmith presented the check that the donation is going to help the organization go on day-trips and outings to different places. “They were all happy and cheering when he told them that,” Klingensmith said.

Youngstown Area Goodwill Industries is an organization that aims to help those in need become independent citizens and has been in the Mahoning Valley for over 120 years.

“Goodwill sells clothes for a purpose to give these folks jobs and they give a lot of the clothes away” Klingensmith said. “Jim Freeze is the new CEO and director there and he does a great job.”

Pictured: Jim Klingensmith, president of L. Calvin and his partner Mark Zeidenstein present a check to Jim Freeze, CEO of Youngstown Area Goodwill Industries.

Another place Klingensmith visited and presented a check at was the Dorothy Day House.

Klingensmith volunteers at the Dorothy Day House with his church by serving dinner every other month and sees the work the house does to help others in the community.

“She serves dinners and provides the needy with the means to get a shower, then she gives them socks, underwear and clean T-shirts,” he said about Sister Ann McManamon, of Humility of Mary who runs the house.

“I about died,” joked McManamon when she found out she was receiving the donation, since Dorothy Day House runs solely on volunteers and donations, she said.

Pictured: Mark Zeidenstein, senior vice president and partner of L. Calvin presents a check to Sister Ann McManamon of the Dorothy Day House.

The money will be used to provide people with T-shirts, underwear, socks and a pouch filled with hygiene products for when they shower, McManamon said, as well as towards keeping the house running by paying for water, electric, gas bills and any repairs needed.

The Northeast Ohio Diocesan Council Society of Saint Vincent De Paul provides school supplies, a dining hall, and a food pantry to those in need in the Mahoning Valley.

“We focus on hunger and homeless outreach,” said Jessica Robinson, executive director of the Mahoning County district. “The dining hall serves about 200 people per day and the food pantry serves about 30 to 60 families per week.”

The donations will be used to purchase the products needed to cook the dining hall’s weekly meals.

Pictured: Jim Klingensmith, president of L. Calvin and his partner Mark Zeidenstein present a check to Jessica Robinson, executive director of the Saint Vincent De Paul Society’s Mahoning County district.

“It will definitely help quite a lot of people in need this holiday season,” Robinson said.

Apart from Five Days of Giving, the staff at L. Calvin Jones purchased 133 Christmas gifts for 30 children of the Sojourner House, which provides intervention, counseling and shelter for victims of domestic violence.

“I still get emotional about it because you wake up Christmas morning and think about children that not only don’t have anything but they’re hungry and cold,” Klingensmith said. “It’s not right.”

A couple weeks ago each staff member picked up at least one tag with information about who the gift was for, such as, age of the child, clothing sizes and a list of things they would want.

This week the gifts will be given to the children of the Sojourner House.

“Everybody really pitched in. It’s awesome,” Klingensmith said. “There will be thirty happy kids we know of this year, so it makes a difference.”

Pictured at top: Jim Klingensmith, president of L. Calvin Jones; Salvation Army’s Major Paul Moore and his wife Sherry; and Klingensmith’s partner Mark Zeidenstein.

Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.