NEWS & PRESS

$1.5 million awarded in 2022 Direct Services Grant Program

2022 Direct Services Grants will help 90 nonprofits across the state provide food, shelter, and other essential services, including over $500,000 for programs specifically serving older Mainers

Portland – The John T. Gorman Foundation has awarded 90 grants totaling $1.5 million to provide food, shelter, and other essential services to Mainers in need through its 2022 Direct Services Grant Program. The total includes $505,000 for 31 programs specifically serving older adults.

“From gas to groceries, rising costs have made it much harder for Maine people to afford essential items and services. Older adults with low incomes have been put into especially difficult situations,” said Lauralee Raymond, John T. Gorman Foundation Manager, Special Initiatives. “The John T. Gorman Foundation is privileged to be able to boost the efforts of organizations who are helping Mainers meet vital needs in all 16 counties with this year’s Direct Services Grant Program.”

The Foundation’s annual Direct Services Grant Program supports nonprofits that are addressing basic needs for Maine people – including food security, shelter, health care/mental health, and economic supports. This year, the Foundation increased funding available for organizations that are meeting a range of needs for older adults, including companionship, transportation, home repair, and legal assistance.

Full descriptions of the grants below. *Denotes grants serving older adults.

Organization Amount Grant Description  Counties Served Organization City
Adoptive and Foster Families of Maine, Inc. $10,000 To support in-need kinship families through emergency financial assistance to include food, transportation, heating and utilities assistance, and the provision of beds or cribs. Statewide Bangor
Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders Association – Maine Chapter* $16,500 To support a 24/7 Helpline, which provides information, referrals, and in-depth care consultations for families navigating dementia with a loved one. Statewide Scarborough
Amistad $20,000 To provide general operating support. Kennebec, Cumberland, Sagadahoc, Lincoln Portland
Androscoggin Head Start and Child Care DBA Promise Early Education Center $9,000 To provide Promise Food Pantry families with needed non-food items that are not covered by state benefits, such as hygiene items, paper products, diapers, cooking utensils, etc. Androscoggin Lewiston
Aroostook Area Agency on Aging* $20,000 To support the use of the online Elder Law Risk Detector tool to screen for and prevent the abuse, neglect, and exploitation of older Aroostook County individuals, including those with disabilities. Aroostook Presque Isle
Aroostook County Action Program $15,000 To support the Family Safety Program, which works to increase safety in the homes of low-income families with young children throughout Aroostook County. Aroostook Presque Isle
Ascentria Community Services $15,000 To provide individuals with a mental health diagnosis who are served by Ascentria Community Mental Health Services in Maine, with financial assistance to meet their immediate basic needs – to include rental assistance, transportation, and help with groceries or utilities. Androscoggin, Franklin, Oxford Worcester
Augusta Food Bank $18,000 To provide general operating support. Kennebec Augusta
Bangor Area Homeless Shelter $15,000 To provide general operating support. Statewide, Penobscot Bangor
Bath Housing Development Corporation* $20,000 To support direct service programming for older residents and those with disabilities in three specific areas:  transportation, food security and digital literacy. Sagadahoc Bath
Belfast Soup Kitchen $15,000 To provide general operating support. Waldo Belfast
Boothbay Region Community Resource Council $15,000 To provide general operating support. Lincoln Boothbay Harbor
Boys And Girls Club Of Kennebec Valley* $10,000 To support programming, meals, and services for older adults in southern Kennebec County who participate in the Oldies but Goodies program. Kennebec Gardiner
Bridging the Gap – Emmanuel Lutheran Episcopal Church $15,000 To provide general operating support for the Bridging the Gap program. Kennebec, Somerset Augusta
Caring Unlimited $15,000 To provide general operating support. York Sanford
Castine Community Partners Inc. $15,000 To support the Castine Area Relief Fund, which provides weekly grocery delivery to those in need to address food insecurity in the broader Castine area. Hancock Castine
Catholic Charities Maine* $20,000 To support the Maine SEARCH (Seek Elderly Alone, Renew Courage & Hope) Program, which pairs vulnerable older Mainers with a caring volunteer who provides individualized support. Statewide Portland
Center for a Green Future dba Growing to Give $7,500 To provide general operating support to Growing to Give. Cumberland, Androscoggin, Sagadahoc Brunswick
Centre Street Congregational Church, UCC – FS to Machias Area Food Pantry $20,000 To provide general operating support to Machias Area Food Pantry. Washington Machias
CHiP, Inc.* $10,000 To provide general operating support. Lincoln Newcastle
Coastal Rivers Conservation Trust / Twin Villages Foodbank Farm $20,000 To provide general operating support to Twin Villages Foodbank Farm. Lincoln Damariscotta
Common Unity Place $8,500 To provide general operating support. Somerset Skowhegan
Community Compass – FS Downeast Community Partners $15,000 To provide general operating support for Community Compass. Hancock Ellsworth
Community Health and Counseling Services* $25,000 To purchase monitoring units and alarmed medication dispensers to allow older Mainers with chronic health needs to better monitor their conditions and remain independent in their homes. Statewide Bangor
Day One $25,000 To bring a youth-centered substance use and mental health program, currently offered at Preble Street Youth Center, to Lewiston – to be located at New Beginnings, a local shelter serving homeless youth. Androscoggin South Portland
Eastern Area Agency on Aging* $20,000 To support a nutritious meals program – including home delivery and congregate dining options – for low-income, older adults in Hancock, Penobscot, Piscataquis, and Washington counties. Hancock, Washington, Piscataquis, Penobscot Brewer
Elder Abuse Institute Of Maine* $20,000 To provide general operating support. Statewide Brunswick
Ellsworth Free Medical Clinic $15,000 To provide general operating support. Statewide Ellsworth
Family Violence Project $25,000 To support the Emergency Stabilization Program, which provides secure emergency housing, food, and transportation to those going through domestic abuse, stalking, or human trafficking situations. Kennebec, Somerset Augusta
Freeport Community Services* $15,000 To support the Age Friendly Freeport & Pownal program’s efforts to increase and expand older residents’ access to local food programs and to offer local classes to increase mobility and improve health. Cumberland Freeport
Friends in Action* $12,000 To provide general operating support. Hancock Ellsworth
Gateway Community Services Maine $15,000 To provide general operating support. Cumberland, Androscoggin Portland
Greater Portland Family Promise $10,000 To support homelessness prevention and housing stabilization programming, specifically the provision of case management and housing mentorship for the first year of participant families’ tenancy. Cumberland Portland
Habitat for Humanity/7 Rivers Maine* $10,000 To provide low-income older Mainers with critical home repairs and modifications to prevent displacement from their homes. Cumberland, Sagadahoc, Lincoln Topsham
Hand in Hand, Mano en Mano $20,000 To provide general operating support. Hancock, Washington Milbridge
Harrison Food Bank $10,000 To provide general operating support. Cumberland, Androscoggin, Oxford Harrison
Healthy Acadia $20,000 To support the Downeast Gleaning Initiative, which harvests surplus food and redistributes it to food pantries and other food security organizations across Hancock and Washington counties. Hancock, Washington Ellsworth
Healthy Peninsula* $12,000 To support the coordination of Simmering Pot Meal Delivery’s free, weekly meals – to include meal recipient sign-up, volunteer kitchens, food donations, and volunteer drivers – to food insecure, isolated community members on the Blue Hill Peninsula. Hancock Blue Hill
Hope Acts $20,000 To provide general operating support. Cumberland Portland
In Her Presence $10,000 To provide general operating support. Cumberland Westbrook
Island Commons Resource Center $10,000 To support an in-home care program for older Mainers with limited fixed incomes living on Chebeague Island, other Casco Bay islands, and adjacent mainland communities. Cumberland Chebeague Island
Jewish Community Alliance of Southern Maine $15,000 To support the purchase of diapers for the Klahr Jewish Family Services Diaper Pantry. Cumberland, Sagadahoc, York Portland
KidsPeace National Centers of New England, Inc. $5,000 To support “Mo’s Closet,” which offers essential items to families in need being served in community-based programs, to foster youth coming into care, and to families who need assistance preparing for the placement of foster youth. Cumberland, York South Portland
Knox County Homeless Coalition $15,000 To provide general operating support. Knox, Lincoln, Waldo Rockland
KVCC Foundation $15,000 To support the KVCC Food Pantry’s shift from stocking mostly dry goods to offering perishable fresh produce, meat, and dairy items and to fund a part-time, one year food pantry coordinator to grow the capacity of the program. Knox, Kennebec, Waldo, Somerset Fairfield
Lake Region Senior Service* $12,000 To support a volunteer-based transportation service in Western Maine that provides rides to medical appointments for individuals without other transportation options. Cumberland, Androscoggin, Oxford, York Bridgton
Legal Services for the Elderly* $20,000 To support the Legal Helpline, which provides aid to older Mainers facing legal problems in areas such as housing, consumer debt, public benefits, access to health care and safety. Statewide Augusta
Loaves and Fishes Food Pantry $15,000 To provide general operating support. . Hancock Ellsworth
Locker Project $15,000 To provide general operating support. Cumberland Portland
Mabel Wadsworth Women’s Health Center $25,000 To provide essential health care to low income Mainers to address immediate needs related to physical and mental health. Washington, Aroostook, Penobscot Bangor
Maine Immigrants Rights Coalition $25,000 To provide culturally appropriate foods to asylum-seeker arrivals sheltered temporarily in seven Portland-area motels. Statewide Portland
Maine Medical Center $25,000 To support a basic needs fund for in-need patients of the Women’s Health Center at Maine Medical Center, Cumberland Portland
Maine Needs $15,000 To provide general operating support. Statewide Portland
Maine Seacoast Mission $15,000 To provide healthy food through a pantry and various other food-security programs, along with coordinated wrap-around services, to low-income youth, families and seniors in Washington County. Washington Northeast Harbor
MaineGeneral Medical Center $25,000 To support the basic needs of Addiction Medicine Practice’s patients by providing emergency food bags, transportation vouchers, hygiene products, and treatment resources. Kennebec, Somerset Augusta
MaineHealth Care At Home* $25,000 To provide telehealth equipment to homebound and ill older Mainers to improve their safety and independence at home and to connect them more effectively with the health system. Statewide Saco
MCH, Inc.* $20,000 To support the Meals on Wheels ‘Home to ME’ program, which provides nutritious meals, regular personal communication, and modest practical living supports to food-insecure seniors and adults with disabilities in Knox County. Knox Rockland
Medical Care Development / Healthy Lincoln County $25,000 To support the work of the Food Security Community Connector, to increase the reach, coordination, food procurement and dissemination, and effectiveness of food security programs in Lincoln County. Lincoln Damariscotta
Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program $15,000 To provide general operating support. Cumberland, Androscoggin, Sagadahoc, Lincoln Brunswick
Milestone Foundation $25,000 To provide general operating support. Cumberland, York Portland
Neighbors Driving Neighbors* $10,000 To provide general operating support. Kennebec Mt. Vernon
New Beginnings $15,000 To provide general operating support. Kennebec, Androscoggin, Statewide, Franklin Lewiston
New England Arab American Organization $20,000 To provide New Mainer families with necessary emergency assistance – to include help with housing expenses, food, utility payments, and transportation –  along with case management to strengthen their safety net and connection to resources. Kennebec, Cumberland, York Portland
Oasis Free Clinics $15,000 To provide general operating support. Cumberland, Androscoggin, Sagadahoc Brunswick
Oxford Hills Community Gardens – Foothills Foodworks $15,000 To support Foothills Foodworks, which pays community members a fair wage to make meals which are then provided to food insecure Oxford and Cumberland County residents. Cumberland, Oxford Norway
Penobscot Community Health Care $25,000 To support the Theresa Bray Knowles Gaps in Care Fund, which covers critical items and services that can not funded through other sources for patients of 17 health care organizations. Statewide Bangor
Piscataquis Regional Food Center* $15,000 To provide general operating support. Piscataquis, Penobscot Dover Foxcroft
Portland Area Villages (PAV)* $10,000 To provide general operating support. Cumberland Portland
Rangeley Health and Wellness* $20,000 To support the Helping Elders Live in Place (HELP) program, which offers older Mainers quality supports and services that address their immediate basic needs. Franklin, Oxford Rangeley
Rockland District Nursing Association* $20,000 To provide general operating support. Knox Rockland
Rural Community Action Ministry $17,000 To provide general operating support. Kennebec, Androscoggin, Oxford Leeds
Saint Andre Home $15,000 To support the “Empowerment Pantry”, which provides healthy food, supplies, and household items – along with related housing support services – to survivors of human trafficking, exploitation, and related domestic and sexual violence and their families. Statewide Bangor
SeniorsPlus* $20,000 To support the Meals on Wheels program in Western Maine, fighting hunger and social isolation and providing a match for federal funding for the program. Androscoggin, Franklin, Oxford Lewiston
Shalom House $15,000 To provide support for an emergency fund that low-income clients may access to meet their basic housing, health, transportation and other critical needs when other payment sources have been exhausted. Cumberland, York Portland
Southern Maine Agency on Aging* $20,000 To support SMAA’s Nutrition Assistance Program, which provides free, nutritious meals to older adults in Cumberland and York Counties through both home-delivered meals and in congregate dining settings. Cumberland, York Biddeford
St. Joseph Hospital $25,000 To improve food security in adults with chronic disease who are identified while patients at St. Joseph Hospital. Piscataquis, Penobscot Bangor
Tedford Housing $20,000 To provide general operating support. Cumberland, Androscoggin, Sagadahoc, Lincoln Brunswick
The Opportunity Alliance* $20,000 To support the Senior Companion Program, which creates volunteer opportunities for older, low-income adults who make home visits and provide transportation to peers seeking assistance to remain living independently. Cumberland, York South Portland
The Root Cellar $25,000 To support Mainely Teeth’s work providing dental care to uninsured and underinsured individuals. Statewide Lewiston
The Shaw House $15,000 To provide general operating support. Statewide Bangor
Through These Doors (formerly Family Crisis Services) $15,000 To support a basic needs fund, which provides survivors of domestic violence and their children with items and resources such as food, clothing, shelter, medical expenses, transportation, diapers, formula, car seats, childcare expenses, etc. Cumberland Portland
Town of Danforth, Maine* $18,500 To provide older adults in the greater Danforth area with free and nutritious meals, increased social opportunities, and no-cost transportation options. Washington, Aroostook, Penobscot Danforth
Town of Mount Vernon Aging in Place Committee* $6,800 To support the Respite/Adult Day Program, serving older Mainers in the towns of Fayette, Mount Vernon and Vienna. Kennebec Mount Vernon
Town of Vinalhaven* $7,200 To support energy audits and air sealing in the homes of low-income older island residents. Knox Vinalhaven
Trinity Jubilee Center $15,000 To provide general operating support. Androscoggin Lewiston
Veggies to Table $10,000 To provide general operating support. Lincoln Newcastle
Volunteers of America Northern New England $25,000 To support a Community Coordinator, who helps veterans access the benefits they deserve and services they need so they may maintain and achieve health, financial, and housing independence. Kennebec, Statewide, York Brunswick
Waterville Area Soup Kitchen $15,000 To provide general operating support. Kennebec, Statewide Waterville
Western Maine Community Action* $20,000 To support direct client funding for home repairs that will allow older adults in Franklin County to age in place in homes that are warm, safe and fuel efficient. Franklin East Wilton
York County Community Action Corporation* $20,000 To support the Keeping Seniors Home program, which provides older homeowners in York County with small-to-mid-sized home modifications to allow them to safely remain living at home. York Sanford

ABOUT THE JOHN T. GORMAN FOUNDATION

John T. Gorman, known as Tom, was a grandson of L.L. Bean and established the Foundation in 1995. Based in Portland, the Foundation advances and invests in innovative ideas and opportunities that improve the lives of Maine’s most vulnerable people.

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