Downeast Community Partners Names Maine Seacoast Mission Partner of the Year

Downeast Community Partners Names Maine Seacoast Mission Partner of the Year

Downeast Community Partners (DCP) presents award for Partner of the Year to Maine Seacoast Mission staff. L to R: Megan Burgess, Mission President Scott Planting, Wendy Harrington, Betsy Fitzgerald, DCP Board President, Maurice Tenney, MSM, Scott Shaw, MSM

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Date: December 11, 2018
CONTACT: Sarah Nugent
207-664-2424 ext 5944 [email protected]
Scott K Fish
Maine Seacoast Mission
207-458-7185 [email protected]

Downeast Community Partners Holds First Annual Meeting, Names Partner of the Year

Cherryfield, ME — On December 4 at the Cherryfield Academy Community Center, Downeast Community Partners (DCP) held its first annual board meeting.

Prior to the regular business meeting, there was a presentation by DCP staff Bobbi Ann Harris and Craig Smith, and Maine Seacoast Mission staff Wendy Harrington and Scott Shaw on the Home Repair and Weatherization 2018 program. This program is a partnership between the Maine Seacoast Mission and DCP which brings together federal and state funded programs, with a grant from the C. F. Adams Charitable Trust, and volunteer labor to repair and weatherize homes in Washington County and the Schoodic Peninsula area of Hancock County.

This program is a wonderful way to blend the work of Maine Seacoast Mission with that of DCP for maximum positive impact on the homeowners and their families.

Because weatherization dollars are federally-sourced, there are limits to how they can be spent. When the Weatherization work is complete, a house must meet certain federal standards. The available dollars are often not enough to get some homes to those standards. In the past, DCP staff regretfully would have to walk away from such projects.

With this partnership and the foundation funding, the Maine Seacoast Mission is able to go in with volunteers, and materials paid for by the CF Adams Charitable Trust funds, and complete enough of the repairs for DCP to weatherize the home, possibly replace the heating system, and work on the roof, among other things.

By the time both groups are finished, the house meets the federal guidelines. More importantly, the house is weather-tight, and a Maine family is warm, safe, and dry.

Thanks to this program, its partners, and volunteers, 26 houses are now in much better repair in Washington County and the Schoodic Peninsula.

It is no surprise the Board of Downeast Community Partners named the Maine Seacoast Mission as its first partner of the year.

“The staff at Maine Seacoast Mission have been great to work with. There is no question in my mind that this is one of those times when a partnership goes beyond just a good working relationship to a place where people are totally invested resulting in quality repairs and more homes getting done.” said Mark Green, DCP Executive Director.

For more information about Downeast Community Partners and the opportunities provided, call Mark Green at 610-5904 or email him at [email protected]

Original DCP Press Release

DETOP Celebrates 8th Anniversary with Food, Fellowship, Good Cheer

DETOP Celebrates 8th Anniversary with Food, Fellowship, Good Cheer

Pat Sharp with Wendy Harrington, holding Pat’s painting donated to DETOP.

CHERRYFIELD, ME — More than 75 people celebrated the 8th anniversary of the Downeast Table of Plenty (DETOP).

We enjoyed a roast beef dinner with lots of potatoes and vegetables, and finished with a birthday cake made by Laureena and Maeve.

The Table of Plenty is a joyful space where people come to listen to music, enjoy a meal, visit with new and old friends.  It is a place where all are welcome and all find a place to belong.

Pat Sharp (see photo) was at the very first Table of Plenty on December 5, 2010 and has supported the dinner with food, fellowship and good cheer for eight years.

She donated one of her one of her tidal pool series paintings to the Community Center, a gift in celebration for the 8th anniversary.

Learn more about DETOP

Loreena and her DETOP 8th Anniversary Cake

Good Shepherd Food Bank Display Units Improve Mission Food Pantry Shopping

Good Shepherd Food Bank Display Units Improve Mission Food Pantry Shopping

CHERRYFIELD, ME — In the latter part of October 2018, Mission Service Program Director Wendy Harrington sent word of new display units, courtesy Good Shepherd Food Bank, at our Downeast Campus Food Pantry.

Mission Community Resource Director Megan Burgess followed up Director Harrington’s message with photos and backgrounder.

“Thanks to Good Shepherd Food Bank for providing funding for the display units through their Capacity Building Grant program,” said Megan Burgess. Good Shepherd describes this grant program as “a competitive grant process that awards funds to partner agencies of the Food Bank that seek to make improvements to their program, allowing them to more effectively serve the individuals in their communities.”

“The display units have helped the Food Pantry better highlight baked goods and fresh produce, and they enhance the shopping experience of our food pantry patrons,” said Burgess

Learn more about the Mission’s Food Programs.

 

 

 

PBS News Hour Features Mission’s Food Security Programs

https://www.facebook.com/newshour/videos/10156449238713675/

 

PBS News Hour recently visited the Mission’s Downeast to learn about our work with food security. PBS’s interview and filming at the Downeast Campus informed a longer tv segment airing this past weekend, “How work requirements for social security programs impact people in need.”

Mission Attends Counties Public Health Improvement Meeting

Mission Attends Counties Public Health Improvement Meeting

CHERRYFIELD, ME — Sunbeam and Downeast Campus staff attended Healthy Acadia Advisory Council’s April 11, 2018 meeting in Machias addressing public health improvements in Washington and Hancock counties.

This photo taken at the Advisory Council meeting shows (L to R) Shoshona Smith (HAAC Development Coordinator), Elsie Flemings (HAAC Executive Director), Wendy Harrington (Mission Service Program Director), Margaret Snell (Assistant to Mission Director of Island Health) and Gabe O’Brian (HAAC Community Health Coordinator).

Learn more about the Mission’s Downeast Campus Community, and more about the Sunbeam‘s Island Services.

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