PORTLAND – The Cumberland County Committee of the Maine Community Foundation has awarded $113,174 in grants to 16 nonprofits through the Community Building Grant Program.
Grant recipients include:
• Creative Portland Corporation, to expand an arts-based community campaign to help combat COVID-19 with artistic messaging and CDC-compliant safety recommendations
• Mercy Hospital, Portland, to purchase laptops for families to allow access to substance recovery sessions, pursue undergraduate degrees remotely and assist their children in remote learning
• Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program, Brunswick, to operate a satellite food pantry for food insecure seniors.
MaineCF donors made an additional 13 grants totaling $84,690 from their donor-advised funds.
The Cumberland County Fund is a permanent endowment that supports projects and nonprofit organizations that strengthen communities in the county. Proposals are submitted through MaineCF’s Community Building Grant Program and are reviewed by a committee of local leaders.
The next proposal deadline is Feb. 15, 2022. Application, guidelines and a complete list of grants can be found at http://www.mainecf.org.
The Cumberland County Fund is built through donations from the community. If you would like more information about the fund, please contact MaineCF Program Officer John Ochira at 1-877-700-6800 or jochira@mainecf.org.
Headquartered in Ellsworth, with additional personnel in Portland, Dover-Foxcroft, Mars Hill and Rockport, the Maine Community Foundation works with donors and other partners to provide strong investments, personalized service, local expertise, and strategic giving to improve the quality of life for all Maine people. To learn more about the foundation, visit http://www.mainecf.org.
2021 Grants from the Cumberland County Committee:
Animal Refuge League of Greater Portland, to support access to affordable veterinary care: $4,000
Casco Library Association, to build and put in place kinesthetic literacy projects called StoryWalks to provide safe, socially distant family activities in public park spaces in Casco: $2,300
Creative Portland Corporation, to expand an arts-based community campaign to help combat COVID-19 with artistic messaging and CDC-compliant safety recommendations: $8,662
Cultivating Community, Portland, to pay stipends to youth who are caring for a free u-pick garden and delivering vegetables to low-income seniors: $5,000
Friends of Casco Bay, Portland, to grow its Water Reporter Program in pandemic-safe ways in order to continue to protect the health of coastal waters: $5,500
Furniture Friends, Westbrook, to continue to provide essential household furniture to low-income individuals and families throughout Southern Maine: $8,000
Gateway Community Services Maine, Portland, to expand its tutoring program with online and hybrid learning to serve more students, especially those from the immigrant/refugee community who are non-native English speakers: $6,000
Hope Acts, Portland, to grow its ability to train and support volunteers who work with asylum seekers in finding and maintaining safe and affordable housing: $5,000
Intercultural Community Center, Westbrook, to bolster and expand an existing hybrid learning support program to help at-risk immigrant youth in grades 3-8 gain confidence and succeed: $10,000
Jewish Community Alliance of Southern Maine, Portland, to purchase 65,000 diapers to be distributed to families experiencing diaper need throughout Southern Maine: $10,000
Lakes Environmental Association, Bridgton, to repair and improve trail systems to allow for greater use by the general public: $8,112
Mercy Hospital, Portland, to purchase laptops for families to allow access to substance recovery sessions, pursue undergraduate degrees remotely, and assist their children in remote learning: $8,000
Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program, Brunswick, to operate a satellite food pantry for food insecure seniors: $10,000
Portland Parks Conservancy, to hire a volunteer coordinator to engage the community in helping care for public parks, under-maintained since COVID-19 caused significant reductions in city staffing: $7,600
Presente Maine, Portland, to create COVID-19-safe space for community and recreation to foster relationship with mother earth and their bodies and to experience connection, beauty and joy: $5,000
Southern Maine Workers’ Center, Portland, to create an online training program for essential workers that will build skills for advocating for safe, healthy workplaces: $10,000
2021 Grants from Donor-Advised Funds:
Amistad, Inc., Portland, to help implement a major, new residential program for women that will create 38 apartments for previously homeless or incarcerated women: $10,000
Animal Refuge League of Greater Portland, to support access to affordable veterinary care: $6,000
Boys and Girls Clubs of Southern Maine, Portland, to re-engage members not served by in-person programming during the pandemic and to expand wellness programming for them: $10,000
The Center for Grieving Children, Portland, to provide virtual peer support groups for grieving children, including children impacted by COVID-19, to promote resiliency and lessen the likelihood of negative outcomes: $3,065
Cultivating Community, Portland, to pay stipends to youth who are caring for a free u- pick garden and delivering vegetables to low income seniors: $5,000
Friends of Casco Bay, Portland, to grow its Water Reporter Program in pandemic-safe ways in order to continue to protect the health of our coastal waters: $2,500
Gateway Community Services Maine, Portland, to expand its tutoring program with online and hybrid learning to serve more students, especially those from the immigrant/refugee community who are non-native English speakers: $4,000
Greater Portland Family Promise, to provide essential homelessness prevention and shelter diversion to help families maintain or secure permanent housing: $10,000
Little Sebago Lake Association, Gray, to expand safety and water quality programs to account for increased lake usage by day-trippers seeking a respite for COVID-19 stressors: $7,000
Milestone Recovery, Portland, to bring critical health care, transportation, and de-escalation services to Mainers experiencing homelessness during the pandemic: $10,000
Preble Street, Portland, to help meet skyrocketing food needs caused by COVID-19 by producing and distributing nutritious, culturally appropriate meals three times a day, 365 days a year: $10,000
Wayside Food Programs, Portland, to purchase 1,500 pounds of seafood from a locally owned business to supplement donations to share through our mobile food pantries: $7,125.