CHERRYFIELD, ME — As Downeast Campus Director of Service Programs Wendy Harrington tells the story, there was a moment last year when the Downeast Campus crew saw the Campus indoor and outdoor faciliites as an opportunity to offer community families winter fun activities on Saturdays, when the Campus was usually quiet. So, the EdGE Family Celebration of Winter Fun Days were born offering local families the ice skating rink, woods trails, scavenger hunts, and plenty more indoor/outdoor activities.
The Fun Days were such a hit last year, they have returned in 2019 as EdGE Family Winter Fun days. Saturdays, from January 12 through February 15th, the EdGE Building will be open from 10 am to 2 pm. Depending on the weather, families will be able to enjoy the Maine winter outdoors, come inside to warm themselves and grab a bite to eat, and then head back out.
Find directions to the Mission’s Downeast Campus and EdGE Building here.
CHERRYFIELD, ME — In April 2017, Portland-based Lerner Foundation chose the Mission’s EdGE program to partner with the Foundation in its $7M Aspirations Incubator Program (AIP).
In November 2018, the Mission hosted Learner Foundation’s AIP meeting with Incubator grantees. Learn more in Lerner Foundation’s blog post.
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https://www.lernerfoundation.com Convening 3 in Cherryfield: What We Learned, and What We’re Counting On
On a cold morning in November, we met with our Aspirations Incubator grantees, including program managers and senior staff from their organizations. Maine Seacoast Mission hosted our gathering, including a sleepover at their community center for some of the participants, and we’re grateful for their hospitality.
This was the third convening of grantees we’ve held since 2017. Don Carpenter, our senior program officer, says, “What excited me was the general sense of commitment to our collective efforts that we’re all making toward loving young people growing up in Maine and helping to raise their aspirations. The power of relationships was on full display, and the programmatic ideas being introduced and discussed was really inspiring.”
Mission Christmas Program Coordinator Marilyn Nickson. on behalf of everyone at Maine Seacoast Mission, sends a warm thank you to “everyone…who helped make this a good Christmas for so many of our neighbors.”
The Maine Seacoast Mission offers a sincere thank you to the numerous volunteers, donors, and local businesses who helped with our Christmas Program this year.
Without these helpers we would not have a successful program.
This Christmas, the Mission provided gifts for 1,524 area children and seniors, who each received an average fifteen presents. From donor to wrapper, each gift represents a lot of time and thought.
Thank you also to the other area Christmas programs who worked with us to make sure all families in need were served.
Many of our neighbors took tags hung on trees in Marden’s, Renys and other area businesses and purchased needed items. Others knit hats, mittens and lap robes for children and seniors, or gave their time to wrap gifts.
Thanks again to everyone in the community who helped make this a good Christmas for so many of our neighbors.
CHERRYFIELD, ME — Maine Seacoast Mission’s Scott Shaw forwarded this slideshow produced by Scott’s friend, Justin Thompson. Scott said, “Thanks to [EdGE Director] Charlie Harrington for hosting this Team Building experience for the Narraguagus Knights Varsity Basketball Team.
The team worked on planning, preparing and execution. They also climbed on the adventure course with only headlamps. It was a cold crisp night but the weather did not slow down their enthusiasm. Go Knights!
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
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 mark.green@downeastcommunitypartners.org
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.
