Blog Category: Impact of BOM

PORTLAND, Maine– Two Maine organizations, Black Owned Maine, and Good Shepherd Food Bank of Maine, are excited to announce the distribution of $306,000 in community grants to community food projects across the state. The goal of the Community Redistribution Fund , is to empower nonprofits that serve Maine’s BIPOC low-income communities to get increased and sustainable access to culturally relevant food.

“Meeting basic needs is a critical element of an individual’s ability to support themselves and become a successful entrepreneur,” says Rose Barboza, co-founder and CEO of Black Owned Maine. “BOM is proud to partner with Good Shepherd Food Bank to support food-based nonprofits doing this important work, so the BIPOC community has food not only for today but also for the future.“

Employees from the Food Bank and Black Owned Maine, as well as community partners considered leaders in their respective communities, reviewed grant applications that proposed projects aimed at making significant strides in addressing food insecurity and promoting long-term sustainability.

Implementation

La Finca

MASJID SALAAM MOSQUE

Mawita’nej Epijij First Nations Youth Group

Racial Equity and Justice

Multicultural Community and Family Support Services

Somali Bantu Community Association

Tree Street Youth

Bomazeen Land Trust

Cultivating Community

Greater Portland Family Promise

Maine Community Integration

Planning

Living With Peace International

Cumberland Islamic Center

Maine Muslim Community Center

Good Shepherd Food Bank and 600+ hunger-relief organizations, community members, staff, and supporters, are actively working toward a new bold vision: everyone in Maine is food secure. Guided by a recently completed strategic plan, which will take the organization through 2030, and in partnership with the State’s Ending Hunger Roadmap, the Food Bank and Black Owned Maine are committed to providing the nutrition people experiencing hunger need today, while partnering to address the root causes of hunger for the future.

For more information, please visit www.feedingmaine.org.

Editor’s Note: High-resolution images are available upon request.

About Good Shepherd Food Bank of Maine:

As the largest hunger-relief organization in Maine, Good Shepherd Food Bank supports Mainers facing hunger by sourcing nutritious, culturally relevant food and distributing it to 600 hunger-relief organizations across the state, including food pantries, meal sites, schools, health care centers, and senior programs.

The Food Bank also supports network partners with capacity-building and innovation grants that improve and promote equitable and dignified access to nutritious food across the state. Last year, the Food Bank distributed a record 39 million meals through the charitable food network, and strategically invested almost $1 million in grants to Maine’s hunger-relief network. The Food Bank is also partnering with the State of Maine’s Ending Hunger Roadmap and working alongside community organizations, policy makers, the public and private sectors, philanthropic leaders, and everyday people to cut food insecurity by 2030 through advocacy, nutrition education, and systemic change.

Media Contact For Black Owned Maine:

Rose Barboza

Founder, Black Owned Maine

Phone: 207-849-0008

Email: rose@blackownedmaine.com

Media Contact for Good Shepherd Food Bank:

Jessica Donahue, Director of Marketing and Communications, JDonahue@GSFB.org

Thank you to everyone that applied for the Black Owned Maine Board of Directors. We are pleased to announce that four new directors have joined us. Check out our Staff + Board page for more info.

Money will combat racism in Maine and strengthen the local Black community

Portland, ME: Today, Black Owned Maine announced its fundraising milestone of $6,200 in one week, thanks to the partnership with Bowdoin College’s Track and Field and Cross Country Team and its Bear the Torch fundraising event, securing funds for future business and personal grants for the local Black community here in Maine.

Claire Traum, Gillian King, Jada Scotland, and Women’s Track and Field Head Coach Lara Jane Que reached out to Black Owned Maine, composed of Jerry Edwards and Bowdoin Alumni, and Rose Barboza. These students and athletes had an idea to launch this fundraiser: Power the Black Owned Maine movement with movement – asking Bowdoin teammates, alumni, coaches, students, faculty, staff, family, and friends to run, bike, walk, or move across the country for Black Owned Maine. People were asked to pledge one cent per mile of movement, resulting in over $6,700 raised between July 26 – August 3, 2020.

 People can still donate to the Bear the Torch fundraiser at the GoFundMe page here: Fundraiser is now closed. If you wish to donate to BOM you may do so through our fiscal sponsorship with Creative Portland.

Black Owned Maine launched its first Black-Owned Business Grant and Black Owned Maine Family Grant in July 2020, and this fundraiser will help provide direct assistance to support and strengthen local Black businesses and local Black families in Maine. “Most importantly, when we support the overlooked Black community in our state, we help combat racism in Maine and we strengthen our overall Maine economy and our Maine community in a powerful way,” says Rose Barboza, founder of Black Owned Maine. “This movement has been a long time coming, and thanks to partners like Bowdoin College, it’s finally getting the traction we need to make a real difference.”

About Black Owned Maine: Black Owned Maine was created to fill a void within the commerce industry of Maine. Before deciding to create this project there was not a single concise source showcasing Black-owned businesses in Maine. National directories simply left our beautiful state out completely. Black Owned Maine has challenged this truth and offered a solution. Please visit https://blackownedmaine.com to check out the Black Owned Directory as well as learn how to get involved, and follow them on Instagram @blackownedmaine, as well as their personal accounts @realgeniusblack and @roseofbom.

About Bowdoin College’s Track and Field and Cross Country Team: Please visit https://athletics.bowdoin.edu/ or follow them on Instagram @bowdoin.xc.tf.