Dear Friends,


Events season is in full swing. My calendar is filling up with member events, visits to member groups, and events focused on my own professional learning. This week, I enjoyed running into colleagues from member groups at the Maine Philanthropy Center conference. Last week, the Maine Initiatives team attended the GEO (Grantmakers for Effective Organizations) conference in Washington, DC. And earlier this month, I learned much from nationwide colleagues who work with other community shares organizations (like MaineShare!) during the Community Shares USA conference. There is one (of many) takeaways I gleaned from recent learning experiences that I wanted to share-- Maurice Mitchell, GEO Plenary speaker, spoke about the importance of framing our work in joy and possibility. I see those tenets in the work of MaineShare and our members, and am committed to upholding those values.


Whether you prefer to learn via attending events, virtual webinars, reading articles, or just being in the presence of someone with different life experiences, learning nourishes us and sparks curiosity. It can be a motivator, provide a different lens to see the world, or even reinforce the path you have chosen. I encourage you all to seek opportunities to continue learning, and an easy way to start is to read on for news and updates from our member groups.


With appreciation,





Amanda Langley (she/her/hers), Director of the MaineShare Program
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Exciting Member Updates and Events!

CAHC helps Mainers Access the Health Coverage and Care They Need

For 35 years, Consumers for Affordable Health Care (CAHC) has been at the forefront of improving access to health care in Maine through consumer assistance and advocacy.  Today, CAHC’s statewide, toll-free HelpLine Advocates help Mainers determine eligibility for, enroll in, and navigate various health insurance and safety net programs, including ACA Marketplace plans, MaineCare, and Hospital Free Care.

 

CAHC partners with the Department of Health and Human Services, CoverME.gov, and the Office of Population Health Equity to help MaineCare members keep their coverage or transition to other health insurance during the Federal Public Health Emergency Unwinding. People with MaineCare coverage have been able to keep their MaineCare throughout the pandemic. Starting this month, members will start receiving notices from MaineCare letting them know they need to update their information and complete a renewal to see if they are still eligible for MaineCare. MaineCare Members should respond to those notices as soon as possible so they don’t needlessly lose their health coverage.  If you or someone you know needs help with a health insurance-related issue, including understanding what is happening with their MaineCare or help enrolling in coverage, call CAHC at 1-800-965-7476.

New Ventures Maine is Hiring!

New Ventures Maine (NVME) is hiring three full-time microenterprise specialists–in Bangor, Lewiston, and Presque Isle to join our team. This is an opportunity to work with a team that creates an empowering

environment for Maine people to define and achieve their small business goals.

All three positions offer a flexible work schedule with office hours, some travel, and weekend, evening, and work-from-home hours.

To learn more about New Ventures Maine and these job openings, visit us online!

New Summer Ride Series with Bicycle Coalition of Maine!

The Bicycle Coalition of Maine is excited to announce the 2023 Women, Femmes, and Thems summer ride series! These rides, centering femme, transgender, women, and non-binary riders are welcoming, no-drop rides, and are open to beginners and riders of all levels. Come join us for some scenic, casual riding in the greater Portland area! Rides are every other Wednesday through September. Rides are free but registration is required. Click here for more info and to sign up!

Maine Audubon Annual Native Plants Sale and Festival!

Maine Audubon continues to expand our programming about the critical value of wildlife-friendly plants to our state. We are committed to helping everyone restore and rebuild Maine’s natural biodiversity by planting the native wildflowers, shrubs, and trees that support the widest array of wildlife. Our annual Native Plants Sale & Festival at Gilsland Farm in Falmouth features thousands of native plants we sourced ourselves and which are perfect for your yards and gardens.


Native Plants Festival & Sale: Featuring more than 75 species of native wildflowers, shrubs, and tree seedlings. Workshops, info tables, expert advice, books, and more!

When: Saturday, June 17, 9 am to 3 pm

Where: Gilsland Farm Audubon Center, Falmouth


Can’t make it June 17? Order online for pick-up in Falmouth and Holden, starting June 23. Click here for more info!

Maine Alliance for Arts Education Arts Residency Program

Maine Alliance for Arts Education (MAAE) recently completed the twenty-third year of its teaching artist residency program, Building Community Through the Arts (BCTA), with students from Brewer High School. Initially established in 2000 in response to the Columbine tragedy, this innovative arts program brings professional theater and dance artists into academic classrooms to facilitate and create collaborative, devised performances with high school students on issues identified by the students. This year’s cohort explored themes of betrayal,  financial anxiety, and desperate choices, viewed through a satiric lens and ending on notes of hopeful uplift. In one student’s words: “There are some people that I barely interact with outside of the classroom who I had to interact with a lot. I really liked that aspect of this project, getting to know someone in a different way. It really helped to build trust.”


Building Community Through the Arts has consistently delivered residencies in Maine’s rural schools, adapting its programming to virtual and hybrid models during the pandemic. Senator King recently announced that this program made his office’s list of Congressionally Directed Spending Requests for FY 2024, to support the expansion of our programming to schools in Washington, Penobscot, Piscataquis, and Aroostook counties. For more information and updates please visit our website. If you know of an educator or school administrator who would be interested in hosting a residency during the 2023-24 academic year, please contact hello@maineartsed.org.

News and seminars from Holocaust and Human Rights Center

The beautiful Michael Klahr Center is open for rentals. The space offers a large classroom for presentations and meetings, a sun-filled atrium, a 75-seat auditorium, and both rotating and permanent exhibits. We can recommend quality local food service and assist with equipment set-up and tours. This is a wonderful venue for classes, presentations, gatherings, film screenings, or celebrations. If you would like more information, or want to reserve the space, reach out!


The 2023 Summer Seminars are filling up fast, so if you would like to attend one of these 2-day professional training seminars, in person at the Michael Klahr Center, click here to learn more and register. Teaching the Holocaust will be held on July 11th and 12th, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The seminar will include sessions on antisemitism, the rise of the Nazis, and the Holocaust itself. Addressing Bias and Hate at School will be held on July 19th and 20th, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. After learning about the nature of bias, we’ll reflect on ways to teach this complex subject and create welcoming classrooms and school communities. Reach out if you would like to be added to the waitlist!

Free occupational safety and health training classes with Maine Labor Group on Health!

Maine Labor Group on Health, now in our 46th year, is happy to announce that we have been funded by OSHA to provide FREE occupational safety and health training classes to workers and employers. These one to two hour sessions can be stand alone or be linked together to form a more substantial class. Topics include: workplace violence, job hazard analysis, asbestos awareness, excavation awareness, blood-borne pathogens, kitchen/restaurant hazards, silica awareness, chemical safety, lead awareness, personal protective equipment (including respiratory protection), confined spaces (non-rescue), young worker safety and more. All classes are free and can be done in-person or virtually, depending on preference of the group.

To learn more or ask questions about a training course, reach out to Peter Crockett at 446-5762 or pgc139@yahoo.com.

Stay up to date with NRCM!

Want to stay up to date on environmental issues in Maine without overwhelming your inbox? Then sign up for the Natural Resources Council of Maine’s monthly enews. Each month, you will receive an email with upcoming events, actions, and ways to get involved as well as links to our latest news, blogs, podcasts, and more. Click here to sign up today!!

Sierra Club supports youth organizers in rural Maine

Thanks to the support from MaineShare, Sierra Club Maine is partnering with JustME for JustUS to provide fellowships this summer to youth organizers in rural Maine. Fellows will be working in their communities on environmental justice projects most of interest to them including building electrification, community cleanups, climate change education, and more. These fellows will be trained and supported by both Sierra Club Maine and JustME for JustUs and will be paid thanks to the donations through MaineShare to Sierra Club Maine! Our goal is to both expand our reach in more rural areas and inspire the next generation of climate activists. Thank you MaineShare participants for making this possible!

WERU Community Radio Partners with StoryCorps to Foster Connection Across America’s Political Divides

WERU Community Radio has partnered with StoryCorps, the national nonprofit dedicated to recording, preserving, and sharing the stories of Americans of all backgrounds and beliefs, as part of StoryCorps’ One Small Step Radio Station Hubs project. WERU is one of five public radio stations across the country selected to receive training and production assistance to collaborate on StoryCorps’ One Small Step initiative, an effort to bring strangers with different political beliefs together for a conversation-- not to debate politics, but to get to know each other as people.

Learn about WERU and One Small Step here!

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 Support MaineShare and our members!

This is just a small sampling of the critical work MaineShare members do to build a better Maine. Please join us in supporting and learning from the great work of ALL our member groups.
MaineShare | 207-622-0105| giving@maineshare.org | www.maineshare.org
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