“And to whomever much is given, much shall be required.” – Luke 12:48

This verse from the Gospel of Luke was always a favorite of Jim and Joan Gardner. Lifelong Cincinnatians, the Gardners cherished the community where they spent a lifetime together and raised their family. Jim was one of the driving forces behind the global success of Cintas Corporation, retiring as Vice President in 1988 and serving on the Board of Directors until 2004. Through its success, the couple would find the means to give generously to the causes that were making a difference in their community. In 1994, they started the James J. and Joan A. Gardner Family Foundation, driven by their faith to make a life-giving and life-changing impact across the region.

From establishing Mary Magdalen House in Over-the-Rhine to building the Gardner Family Center for Parkinson’s Disease at the University of Cincinnati, Jim and Joan have left an indelible mark and a legacy of selfless philanthropy, and always with quiet dignity and humility. That legacy continues to grow and prosper as the Foundation works to fulfill Jim and Joan’s vision.

Timeline

1988

Mary Magdalen House was originally opened in Cincinnati, Ohio led by Rev. Byers of Old St. Mary’s Church, Jim and Joan Gardner and several other parishioners when it became clear to them people living in the neighborhood needed a bath house. Jim felt passionate that everyone deserved to be treated with dignity for their basic human needs. The Mary Magdalen House provides a safe and pleasant place to shower, shave, use a toliet, have clothes laundered, use a phone and receive mail. During his lifetime, Jim provided critical financial support and guidance to the House and the family continues their legacy of devotion with several family members serving on the Board. In 2017, the House opened a new location at St. Anthony Center in Over-the-Rhine in order to accommodate more guests.

1988

While driving home from a Boys Hope event one night, Joan asks Jim, “What about the girls?”. Shortly after, Jim and Joan purchased the Gardner House in Clifton to provide a nurturing home and first-class academic opportunities for disadvantaged girls in Cincinnati. Hope Ignites, formally known as Boys Hope Girls Hope, works to graduate high school students who are physically, emotionally, and academically prepared for post-secondary education and productive life, breaking barriers so they can become community-minded leaders. Gardner family members continue to serve on the Board.

1994

Jim and Joan formally establish the James J. and Joan A. Gardner Family Foundation

2007

The care of the poor in the most abandoned places is at the heart of the mission of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur. It’s also at the heart of the Gardner Family. Year after year, Jim and Joan Gardner lived this care for the poor in their own lives and through their work in the community. Their quiet, faith-based generosity improved the lives of thousands of people and has become the heritage they’ve passed on to their children and grandchildren. Jim and Joan’s support of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, in the inner-city and as a congregation, allowed the Sisters to accomplish work that otherwise could not have been accomplished. This partnership – and friendship – have been, and continue to be rooted in deep personal faith, in faith put into action, and in God’s unconditional love.

2008

In 2005, Joan Gardner was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, and Jim made it his life’s mission to eradicate the disease. A few years after Joan’s diagnosis, the Foundation named the James J. and Joan A. Gardner Family Center for Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders. Jim challenged the University of Cincinnati Neuroscience Institute when he said “Thank you for telling me what you have done but tell me where you are going. How are you going to be the best?” Jim passed away in 2013, but his work lives on.

2016

The UC Neuroscience Institute is officially named the University of Cincinnati Gardner Neuroscience Institute (UCGNI) in honor of the James J. and Joan A. Gardner Family Foundation. Today the Gardner family continues Jim Gardner’s dream and devotion by providing financial support to UCGNI to provide neurologic and psychiatric patients with the best care, the best people, all in the best place.

Today

Three decades later, the James J. and Joan A. Gardner Family Foundation continues to enrich the lives of our fellow citizens and has done so through awarding over $109 million in grant funds to nearly 300 non-profit organizations. Jim and Joan’s legacy of selfless philanthropy lives on.