Rochester Chamber of Commerce seeks nominations: Seacoast business news
Nominations sought - Business, Nonprofit, and Citizen of the Year
ROCHESTER — The Greater Rochester Chamber of Commerce invites you to submit a nomination for 2023 Business of the Year, 2023 Nonprofit of the Year and 2023 Citizen of the Year. The deadline to submit nominations and required material is March 10.
Submit a nomination for your company, organization and/or for a deserving individual. The selected recipients of these awards will be announced at the 2023 Annual Awards Celebration on May 24.
To access the nomination forms click on the links below:
39 local nonprofit organizations receive grants from MVSB Fund
SEACOAST — The MVSB (Meredith Village Savings Bank) Fund at the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation has awarded $124,500 in grant funding to 39 local nonprofit organizations. This includes $108,500 donated to 23 local agencies and $16,000 to 16 area food pantries. The grants are in addition to MVSB’s contributions throughout the year in the form of donations, sponsorships, scholarships and volunteer efforts by employees.
This year’s MVSB Fund grant recipients in your area include:
Annie's Angels Memorial Fund, Stratham
Awarded $5,000 to help families and individuals who are facing challenging circumstances heat their homes this winter. The mission of Annie’s Angels Memorial Fund is to help local families struggling financially through a life threatening disease, illness or disability. They have various programs that serve the diverse needs of the community.
Arts In Reach, Portsmouth
Awarded $5,000 to support after-school and artists programs for underserved and at-risk teens. Arts In Reach is an out-of-school program committed to closing opportunity gaps for teens who face inequities and lack access to high-quality programming based on gender identity, health, neurodiversity, race, religion, sexual orientation and socioeconomic status.
Child Advocacy Center of Rockingham County, Portsmouth
Awarded $5,000 to expand its prevention and wrap around services to families impacted by abuse and violence and keep children safe and healthy. The Child Advocacy Center of Rockingham County works to provide a safe environment for the evaluation of alleged abuse of children 3 to 18 years of age.
SHARE Fund, Rochester
Awarded $7,500 to support the fresh dairy program for food pantry participants. SHARE Fund’s mission is to provide material and financial assistance to address emergency basic needs and inspire people to become financially self-sufficient.
SOS Recovery Community Organization, Rochester
Awarded $5,000 to provide scholarship opportunities for the Peer Assisted Recovery curriculum. The curriculum is an extensive multiday boot camp that focuses on providing peer-based supports, suicide prevention, ethical considerations, HIV and Hepatitis C awareness and motivational interviewing. The mission of SOS Recovery Community Organization is to support all people affected by substance use with peer-based solutions and advocacy to reduce the harm and stigma of drugs.
Transportation Assistance for Seacoast Citizens, Hampton
Awarded $3,000 to defray the cost of marketing and volunteer mileage reimbursement for transportation services. Transportation Assistance for Seacoast Citizens helps people maintain their health, independence and dignity by mobilizing volunteer drivers to provide rides to eligible residents of the Seacoast communities they serve.
Food Pantries
Sixteen local food pantries that serve the same communities as MVSB will also share a donation of $16,000.
Kennebunk Savings donations total 1.8 million in 2022
KENNEBUNK, Maine – The Kennebunk Savings Community Promise annual giving program is looking back on the year in donations to local nonprofit organizations; in 2022, contributions totaled $1.8 million, with 362 groups receiving funds. The Community Promise is a source of pride for the mutually-owned Bank and its employees. “We see our communities as our stockholders,” said Bradford C. Paige, President and CEO. “The Community Promise is central to our purpose and it is part of our identity to be as involved as we are.”
Among the Bank’s donations this year was a season-long sponsorship of the New Hampshire Theatre Project (NHTP), a community-minded arts nonprofit in Portsmouth, N.H.’s West End. “The Kennebunk Savings Season Sponsorship is invaluable to New Hampshire Theatre Project,” said Genevieve Aichele, the theatre group’s Executive Director. “Ticket fees only cover 30% of a production's cost, even less now with audiences slow to return after COVID. Without sponsors like Kennebunk Savings, we could never produce the high-quality, thought-provoking performances for which NHTP is known.” The Bank’s donation also underwrites NHTP’s “Community Connectors” series, which encourages community dialogue around issues and themes explored in their shows.
A grant from the Bank went to further expanding the Sanford Community Garden managed by the Sanford-Springvale Mousam Way Land Trust. “The support of Kennebunk Savings allowed us to serve more gardeners and three social service agencies along with a summer gardening program for 20 pre-teens,” said Bud Johnston, the Trust’s Director. The Sanford Head Start Program also received almost 400 pounds of produce from the gardens. In 2023, the Land Trust plans on augmenting the gardens with a greenhouse, and elevated garden beds for increased accessibility.
Kennebunk Savings helped fund the preservation and protection of the Barkley Property in Hampton – a project that Hampton Conservation Commission Chair Jay Diener called “an extraordinary achievement.” The land encompasses 22 acres of pristine wetland and upland in an already highly-developed area of Hampton. “The property has many great qualities about it related to storm water management, water quality, wildlife habitat, and wildlife corridors. It will also give people a chance to step off the roads and away from the community bustle to settle among the trees and by the flowing water for a few moments of peace and quiet. That is as important to the success of a community as is a vibrant economy and great schools,” Diener said.
The Bank also supported the work of longtime educational partner, Junior Achievement of Maine. The group’s Development Director, Abby Rioux, notes that the Bank’s grant “is projected to empower over 1,400 students in York County during the 2022-2023 school year.” The group’s school programs teach skills like budgeting and career planning, as part of their “Financial Education and Work Readiness for York County Kids” initiative. “After two difficult years that created severe academic barriers for Maine kids, Kennebunk Savings’ support continues to help inspire students to dream big and reach their potential,” Rioux continued.
The Bank’s Spotlight Fund – a proactive arm of their giving program – made targeted donations in support of three signature causes – substance use disorder prevention and recovery, alleviating food insecurity, and supporting early childhood development. Spotlight grants included helping to purchase a car for the Maine Recovery Fund to provide rides to work for their clients, and a contribution toward the construction of the new Families First medical center in Portsmouth, N.H.
The $1.8 million in total donations represents the Bank’s highest-ever community commitment, but Paige emphasized one of the Bank’s informal, internal mottos: “We like to say that it’s not just about what we give, it’s also what we do, and I really believe that,” he said. Kennebunk Savings employees logged 8,950 hours of volunteer time in 2022. Liz Torrance, VP, Social Responsibility Manager at the Bank, observed that “our coworkers are everywhere in the community. Serving on boards, helping to organize fundraisers, pitching in with yardwork and caring for animals at shelters.”
Volunteering even took some employees into the ocean, where they assisted with Special Surfers, a nonprofit that provides surfing lessons to individuals with disabilities. Kennebunk Savings has been a longtime sponsor and provider of volunteer assistance. “This summer was my first time volunteering with Special Surfers, and I will make sure not to miss it moving forward,” said Jess Owens, Manager at the Bank’s Lower Village branch in Kennebunk. “Seeing the smiles on the faces of the participants, and tears of joy from the parents was so incredible. You would have to experience it for yourself to truly understand. Having a family member with a physical disability gives me such an appreciation for what this program contributes to our community. I am counting down the days till the next event!”
The Bank’s Community Relations team, which administers annual giving, has been working responsively since the beginning of the pandemic. “The circumstances of COVID-19 prompted our nonprofit partners to get creative—expanding access and creating new channels for services,” Torrance explained. “Two years later, the scope of their work has permanently expanded – and yet many of them are operating with lower levels of funding. It was gratifying to be able to show up for them.”
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Rochester Chamber of Commerce seeks nominations: Seacoast business news
