100% of UMC’s donations are applied to our Grant Program. UMC’s grants are funded through individual and private foundation contributions. Click here to donate so we can award more dollars to local agencies.
UMC offers an open competitive grants process which supports nonprofit agencies in Knox and Waldo counties working in the areas of food, housing, health & safety and economic security. For more information about our grant program, click here.
In 2019, we awarded grants for the following proposals from organizations making an impact in UMC’s focus areas:
FOOD
- Area Interfaith Outreach, Rockland – Meeting the rising demand for emergency assistance while respectfully and compassionately providing food to Knox county adults and children who are food insecure.
- Belfast Area Childcare Services – Fresh and healthy food experiences and garden-based meal kits for children and families.
- Belfast Soup Kitchen – Providing nutritious meals as well as hope, comfort, and access to necessary services to hungry people of Waldo County
- MCH Inc., Rockland: Meals on Wheels -Providing hot, nutritious meals to homebound Knox County seniors and disabled adults.
- Penquis, Rockland: R.S.V.P. – Developing a system for delivering fresh food to Penobscot Bay island communities through collaboration and training of existing community organizations.
- St. Bernard’s Soup Kitchen, Rockland – Providing nourishing meals to the needy five days a week.
- Waldo CAP, Belfast: Heroes 4 Hunger – Nutrition education, healthy-cooking meal kits and positive food experiences for Waldo County children and adults in need.
HOUSING
- Habitat for Humanity of Waldo County – Building strength, stability, self-reliance, and quality affordable housing for Waldo County residents living in unsafe, crowded, or unaffordable housing.
- Knox County Homeless Coalition, Rockport – Assisting the chronically poor and homeless to achieve and maintain self-sufficient lives through comprehensive care models and programs.
- Midcoast Habitat for Humanity, Rockport – Constructing safe, affordable, efficient homes for low to moderate income singles, couples, and small families.
HEALTH & SAFETY
- Belfast Public Health Nursing Association – Disease prevention, health education, early intervention and emergency services to low income, uninsured people who lack access to regular medical care.
- Maine Family Planning – Providing a full range of reproductive healthcare services to Knox and Waldo County residents
- Hospice Volunteers of Waldo County – Free, confidential, nonmedical support to those at the end of life including direct care, bereavement support and end of life planning.
- Knox County Health Clinic, Rockland – Low cost preventative, restorative, and prosthodontic dental care for uninsured adults and for children with MaineCare who cannot otherwise access a provider.
- Maine Coastal Regional Reentry Center, Belfast -Reducing recidivism, preventing overdose deaths, and improving release and recovery outcomes for people with a history of substance use disorder as they leave incarceration.
- New Hope for Women, Rockland – Providing support, advocacy, and prevention for domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking services in Knox and Waldo Counties.
- OUT Maine, Rockland – Improving safety, health and mental health of Knox and Waldo counties’ at-risk, vulnerable LGBTQ youth.
- Parent Program of Mid-Coast Maine, Knox County – FImproving health of parents and children though in-home screening, education, and referral for postpartum depression, domestic violence, safe sleep, and home safety.
- Rockland District Nursing Association – In-home nursing services for seniors living independently in Rockland and nearby communities.
- Waldo County Dental Care – Improving health, wellbeing, and employability through critical preventative and restorative dental care and patient education for those who cannot access other care.
ECONOMIC SECURITY
- Big Brothers Big Sisters of Mid-Maine – Recruiting, training and supporting school-based mentors for youth in the UMC service area.
- Penobscot Bay YMCA, Rockport & Rockland – Stimulating economic security for working families by providing childcare at an increasing number of accessible locations around Knox County.
- Restorative Justice Project, Belfast – Helping offenders regain or retain employability through restorative conferencing to achieve meaningful accountability.
- Trekkers, Thomaston – Preparing students for success in college and trade school through professional development coaching, education planning support, and career exploration opportunities.
- UMA Rockland Center – Scholarship funding for new or continuing university students to help them on a path to success, with a degree completion rate of 75%.
- University of Maine Hutchinson Center, Belfast – Undergraduate, graduate and professional development needs-based scholarships
- Waldo County Woodshed – Providing supplemental emergency firewood for heating homes.
- Waldo County YMCA – Providing year round affordable preschool, Childcare and Summer Day Camp program options for working families.
- Waterman’s Community Center, North Haven – Academic-year child care including preschool, vacation camps, and after school care for island families.
- Wayfinder Schools: Passages Program – High school completion, life skills, career planning and parenting support provided to teen parents in the stability of their home.