Welcome to What's More in Maine: Giving more to help feed Maine's hungry

Welcome to the What's More in Maine Blog. Please return weekly to find posts that describe why Maine is a great place to live, work and play -- why there's more in our state! We will cover happenings, events and news that make a difference ... from what organizations do in their communities to the people and places that make Maine a great state. From time to time, we will touch on how credit unions make a difference in Maine because credit unions were founded on the principle of "Maine People Helping Maine People" and have played a large part in our state's history and continue now and in the future helping Mainers with their financial needs. We believe your comments add to our blog. Hopefully, you'll learn some new things about Maine too!


Nearly 20,000 of Maine kids are hungry ...

The statistics:

- More than 40% of Maine kids under the age of 12 show some evidence of hunger.

- An additional 64,087 children are at risk of hunger.

- 12% of Maine households, representing 165,000 people, experience food insecurity.

- Hunger and the risk of hunger are widespread among Maine’s low-income families with children.

- Several groups are found to be at greater risk of hunger in Maine; children, adults in low-income families, disabled persons, persons with special needs, the elderly, those living in rural regions and the inner cities of Maine’s largest urban places.

There is help, and an example of Mainers helping Mainers.
At the end of January, credit unions came together for "thawing" out hunger in Maine at the January Thaw to End Hunger Celebration Event. At this annual event, the Maine Credit Unions' Campaign for Ending Hunger announced that it had raised a record-setting $375,296.59 in 2008, an increase of nearly $10,000 over last year's record.

On hand to acknowledge this accomplishment and to present the distribution of funds was Maine's First Lady, Karen Baldacci. Mrs. Baldacci applauded credit unions for their efforts and assisted in the distribution of checks to representatives from credit unions from across the state. The checks, in turn, will be distributed by each credit union to their local area food pantries and hunger organizations. 100% of the funds raised go to help end hunger in Maine.

The 2008 Maine Credit Unions' Campaign for Ending Hunger not only had a record setting year but it formed new relationships with food pantries across the state. These enhanced efforts are extremely important, as food pantries are seeing a significant increase in requests during these difficult times. Since 1990, the Maine Credit Unions' Campaign for Ending Hunger has raised over $3.1 million to help end hunger in Maine.

Special thanks to Maine credit union members who helped raised donations to help end hunger -- so less children can go to bed with empty stomaches at night ... and are not another statistic.