Westbrook, Maine – February 4, 2022 – To help keep young people safe and on a path to success, The Biddeford and Mechanics Savings Charitable Foundation delivered a donation of $10,000 to My Place Teen Center, an after-school program where kids receive help, love, food, and programming that addresses their unique needs. The Teen Center’s Restaurant Job Training Program is one of many programs offered at the center. The program provides a unique opportunity for local teens to learn new skills that will prepare them for future employment in the restaurant industry. Preparing youth with the foundational skills and experiences they need as they graduate from high school is important to their success. “We believe in building stronger communities by investing in our youth and therefore, we want to support their success any way we can. This generation is our future – these kids will be our employees, our customers, and our partners one day,” says Jeanne Hulit, President and CEO of Maine Community Bank.
The Foundation recently presented Donna Dwyer, Executive Director at My Place Teen Center with a check for $10,000 which will be used to support their Westbrook center and their temporary location in Saco, as they raise funds for a permanent facility in Biddeford. “Our centers are where we nurture, inspire, and safeguard at-risk teens, many of whom have nowhere else to go. With help from organizations such as The Biddeford and Mechanic Savings Foundation, we are able to keep kids ages 10-18 safe, fed, and loved. We are a year-round, free, out of school time program for all youth, from any locale,” says Donna Dwyer, My Place Teen Center’s Executive Director. “Just as we are a haven for kids at high risk, we feel our community partners like Maine Community Bank, are our lifeline.”
Together, Maine Community Bank and the Biddeford and Mechanics Savings Charitable Foundation contributed over $327,000 to several local non-profit organization in 2021 and continues to support the local community through donations, volunteerism and on-kind donations each year.
About Maine Community Bank
Biddeford Savings and Mechanics Savings have been financial partners with the people of Central and Southern Maine for the past 150 years. To help carry out their commitment to the communities they serve, the two banks merged on January 1, 2020, becoming divisions of Maine Community Bank. The merger expands the lending capacity, product offerings, and branch service areas, while keeping all decision-making at the local level. They have branches in Auburn, Biddeford, Brunswick, Kennebunk, Lewiston, Scarborough, Waterboro, and Windham, with a new branch and operations center in Westbrook.
About the Biddeford and Mechanics Charitable Savings Foundation
The Biddeford and Mechanics Savings Charitable Foundation was created in July of 2020 and is structured to give back to the communities in a larger, more enduring way. The Foundation’s mission is to help individuals and families in the bank’s local communities meet their basic needs and achieve financial empowerment.