A fifth-generation Clevelander, Bob Gries spent 30 years as a venture capitalist and 50 years involved with the Cleveland Browns. His family first came to the city in 1837 and has steadfastly participated in its philanthropic and civic life. Gries, a graduate of Yale, has served on more than three dozen nonprofit boards, including the national board of the Council on Foundations. He helped to establish and was the first chair of the Grantmakers Forum of Northeast Ohio (Philanthropy Ohio). He has worked closely with the municipal school district twice, most recently as chair of the civic committee that recommended and then helped raise a bond issue providing more than $1 billion for repair of the city’s schools. For the past 30 years Gries’s avocation has been endurance adventures; he has completed 100 events in running, mountain climbing, high-altitude hiking and biking on all continents. His wife, Sally, currently serves on the board of the Cleveland Foundation and chairs its investment committee.