Good Shepherd Food Bank of Maine announces $100,000 to combat hunger in Piscataquis County
DOVER-FOXCROFT — Piscataquis Regional Food Center and Good Shepherd Food Bank of Maine announce the launch of the Community-Driven Strategies to End Hunger initiative in Piscataquis County.
“In 2018, the Food Bank built upon existing work to divide Maine into 27 regions,” Shannon Coffin, Good Shepherd Food Bank’s vice president of community partnerships, stated. “We then used town-level food insecurity data and determined community-level meal gaps. Local experts come together with Good Shepherd Food Bank team members to identify solutions to the area’s unique food access challenges.”
VOLUNTEER WORK – A volunteer at a Piscataquis Regional Food Center distribution in Dover-Foxcroft.
The Food Bank focuses on two to three of the 27 regions each year. Cohort four is beginning this fall and includes Piscataquis County. Each region will develop its own environmental scans, identify key stakeholders, assess strengths and opportunities, host focus groups with those experiencing food insecurity, and create work plans for ending hunger in their communities.
“This investment by Good Shepherd Food Bank in our county means that our agencies, thought leaders, and patrons can work together to find solutions tailored to combat hunger in our communities,” said Kelly Sirimoglu, Piscataquis Regional Food Center’s executive director. “Piscataquis County has challenges that may not exist in other parts of the state, and when we approach the problem with local knowledge, we are much more likely to be successful. It is a wonderful program.”
The Food Bank’s Community-Driven Strategies to End Hunger initiative has supported projects/objectives in Lewiston, Portland suburbs, Northern Penobscot County, Washington County, and Lincoln County. Cohort three is currently in progress and supports projects in Northern Kennebec County and Somerset County. Cohort four will begin this fall and will be supporting projects in Piscataquis County and the Biddeford area.
If you are interested in volunteering to be part of the solution to end hunger in Piscataquis County and Maine, please contact PRFC at info@prfoodcenter.org.
For more information and a complete list of Community-Driven Strategies supported projects, please visit www.FeedingMaine.org.
Piscataquis Regional Food Center, founded in 2017 is a 501c3 nonprofit in Dover Foxcroft, and is an equal opportunity employer. PRFC’s mission is connecting people with sources of healthy food and stimulating the regional agricultural economy.
As the largest hunger-relief organization in Maine, Good Shepherd Food Bank supports Mainers facing hunger by sourcing nutritious food and distributing it to nearly 600 partner organizations across the state, including food pantries, meal sites, schools, health care centers, and senior programs. The Food Bank also supports its partners with capacity-building and innovation grants that improve and promote equitable and dignified access to nutritious food across the state. In 2021, the Food Bank distributed more than 31.6 million meals through its network of partners, and strategically invested $4.4 million in grants to its network of partners. The Food Bank leads a statewide effort to combat the root causes of hunger by engaging in advocacy, nutrition education, and strategic partnerships and is currently leading a $250 million Campaign to End Hunger in Maine.