Recent college grads living in Washington County may be eligible for up to $15,000 over three years to help repay college loans!
The Gracie Fund at the Maine Community Foundation offers student loan reimbursement incentives to encourage natives of Washington County, or those who consider Washington County home, to establish roots in the community following college graduation.
A key component of this unique fund community service. Participants will receive loan reimbursements in exchange for volunteering in their community with goals based on their interests and skills with support from @Sunrise County Ecnomic Council.
Washington County offers a multitude of volunteer opportunities. This could include working with a local development group on attracting businesses to the area, assisting in designing a comprehensive plan for a town, volunteering with a local arts or human services agency or serving on a town board.
The Gracie Fund fosters community development by helping recipients connect to Washington County through their commitment to a career and community service.
Healthy HomeWorks is empowering Lewiston-Auburn residents to pursue first-time homeownership through its programs.
The MaineCF Community Building grantee offers free homeownership courses in several languages and partners with employers that want to support their employees along the path to homeownership.
“It is a privilege to present this information and encourage dialogue in Portuguese with renters in this community to help unlock the knowledge and skills about how to become a successful homeowner.”- Portuguese interpreter and Healthy HomeWorks graduate
MaineCF President & CEO Deborah Ellwood was among 250 volunteers who worked together to clear 514 bags of trash from the roadsides of Mount Desert Island and Trenton during Friends of Acadia's Earth Day Roadside Cleanup!
This annual community effort shows that little actions can make a big impact as we work together to build a better Maine.
(Photo courtesy Friends of Acadia)
As we honor Earth Day here in Maine, we have the rare opportunity to celebrate nature in many forms - from Aroostook County's rolling farmlands to the rugged western mountains and serene lakes, down to the craggy coastline.
May MaineCF inspire you to pause, appreciate and cherish the beauty that surrounds us in every corner of this incredible state.🌎
MaineCF grantee Main Street Skowhegan is dedicated to the ongoing revitalization of Skowhegan, including economic development and outdoor recreation projects.
The Skowhegan River Park, which breaks ground this spring, will be a vibrant outdoor recreation hub along Skowhegan's Kennebec River Gorge, connecting the river to the downtown commercial district. The whitewater park will become the Northeast's only adjustable river surf and kayak wave and Maine's first whitewater park. (Skowhegan River Park rendering courtesy Main Street Skowhegan)
The deadline to submit applications for most MaineCF scholarships is Friday, May 1! (Check the descriptions for each scholarship fund to which you are applying for any exceptions.) Applications submitted after the deadline will not be considered.
Visit mainecf.org/scholarships to find a scholarship that's right for you!
MaineCF has more than 700 scholarship funds and awards more than 2,300 scholarships annually totaling $4.9 million.
Strong communities start with strong local news.
That's why MaineCF and Press Forward Maine are celebrating Local News Day today, April 9. Thank you to the vibrant local news outlets throughout all corners of the Maine that inform, entertain and connect us all.
Tune into "Maine Calling" today at 11 a.m. EST on Maine Public Radio to catch Press Forward Maine's Lisa DeSisto and Maine's news leaders who will discuss the role local news outlets play in communities, and how they are adapting to a changing world.
Learn more about MaineCF's efforts to build a better Maine by supporting trustworthy local news at /pressforward.
MaineCF Community Building grantee Beth Brunswick Memorial Fund for Children completed construction of the Rangeley Child Care Center, a new state-of-the art facility. The center provides an affordable, curriculum-based, developmentally appropriate program for children six weeks through school age.
Affordable child care allows local parents to return to work, which benefits the local economy while supporting cognitive development for children. (Rangeley Child Care Center photo)
During Women’s History Month, we’re highlighting grantees of the MaineCF's Maine Women’s Fund, which makes bold investments in the lives of women and girls throughout the state. In 2025, the Maine Women’s Fund awarded 10, two-year grants totaling $300,000. Learn more about the grant program at /mwf.
Maine Women’s Fund grantee Women for Healthy Rural Living in Milbridge promotes health and wellbeing of women, families and communities in Washington County. The Bone Builders movement class is for people over age 50 interested in maintaining good bone health and balance. It includes an educational component emphasizing calcium needs, fall prevention healthy aging and more.
The Maine Community Foundation is committed to Lewiston-Auburn’s healing and long-term prosperity and we endorse the Maine Resiliency Center’s assessment of the 2023 Lewiston shootings survivors’ continuing hardships as an important next step.
Learn more here: /2026/03/19/lewiston-maine-resiliency-center-to-assess-mass-shooting-victims-ongoing-needs/
During Women’s History Month, we’re highlighting grantees of the MaineCF's Maine Women’s Fund, which makes bold investments in the lives of women and girls throughout the state. In 2025, the Maine Women’s Fund awarded 10, two-year grants totaling $300,000. Learn more about the grant program at /mwf.
Maine Women’s Fund grantee Reentry Sisters hosts support groups and provides career services, scholarships and housing for formerly incarcerated women, ensuring they have the opportunity to thrive.
Do you have a knack for numbers and translating them into insightful analyses of impact? MaineCF is looking for a director of learning and impact to lead and coordinate data collection and analysis, learning and assessment, data translation and interpretation of the foundation’s grantmaking and strategic initiatives.
Interested? To apply, please email a cover letter and resume that explain how your skills and experience fit this position to [email protected] by Friday, April 3. Learn more at /employment.
