Rines Thompson Fund

2023 Grants:

A Company of Girls, for arts-based enrichment opportunities that provide mentorship, confidence building, resiliency and leadership development: $2,500
Boys and Girls Clubs of Southern Maine, for youth development programs for al young people: $5,000
Children’s Museum & Theatre of Maine, for theater performances: $6,000
Friends of Casco Bay, to reduce stormwater pollution in Casco Bay: $10,000
Friends of Congress Square Park, for free arts programming: $5,000
Furniture Friends, to provide essential household furniture to people with low incomes in southern Maine: $5,000
Intercultural Community Center, for educational, health and social needs of immigrant and refugee youth in Westbrook: $7,500
Junior Achievement of Maine, to provide financial literacy, career exploration, work readiness and entrepreneurship training to Westbrook students from low-income households: $5,000
Kids First Center, to support children in families going through, divorce, separation and conflict: $5,000
Ladder to the Moon Network, to support employment of the full-time deputy editor: $5,000
Locker Project, to provide reliable access to healthy food for children and families in Greater Portland: $10,000
Maine Boys to Men, for its Reducing Sexism & Violence Programs: $5,000
Maine Charitable Mechanic Association, to support literary arts and performing arts programming: $5,000
Maine College of Art, for collaborative community outreach: $5,000
Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance, for Maine Lit Fest programming: $5,000
One Longfellow Square, for community live music: $5,000
Portland Ovations, for the School-Time Performance Series, high-quality performing arts experiences and arts education activities and resources for families, students, and educators: $5,000
Preble Street, to provide safe shelter and basic needs to youth experiencing homelessness: $10,000
Saltwater Classroom, to design an online ocean education platform that connects students to their communities and natural world through hands-on learning experiences: $3,000
SPACE Gallery, to invest in its physical and virtual workplaces: $2,500
The Center for Grieving Children, for bereavement and peer-support programs: $5,000
The Opportunity Alliance, for the Global Bookshelf Fund, to translate classroom materials and provide multicultural books and educational toys: $4,000
The Telling Room, for creative writing, literary arts education and youth development programs: $5,000
United Way of Southern Maine, to develop a child care entrepreneurship ecosystem and increase the number of quality child care programs: $10,000
Yellow Tulip Project, for youth-driven creative arts programming and planting Hope Gardens to face stigma around mental health: $2,500
YMCA of Southern Maine, to expand programming access for new immigrant families to foster community connections and learn water safety skills: $10,000

From donor-advised funds:

A Company of Girls, for arts-based enrichment opportunities that provide mentorship, confidence building, resiliency and leadership development: $5,000
Boys and Girls Clubs of Southern Maine, for youth development programs for all young people: $5,000

2022 Grants

Classical Uprising, for the 2023 Portland Bach Experience festival: $5,000
Cultivating Community, for general operating support: $5,000
Defend Our Health, to educate and empower recent immigrants to the Portland area: $5,000
Equality Community Center, to increase its capacity to develop and implement programming: $3,000
Friends of the St. Lawrence Church, for general operating support: $5,000
I’m Your Neighbor Books, to create a sense of belonging for new residents: $5,000
Ketcha Outdoors, for its youth internship program: $6,000
League of Women’s Voters of Maine Education Fund, to promote student civic engagement and leadership: $5,000
Mad Horse Theatre Company, to expand access to the theater: $5,000
Maine College of Art, for community outreach: $5,000
Maine Historical Society, for its “Code Red” public initiative: $10,000
Maine Pops Concert Band, to cover increased venue fees: $5,000
Mayo Street Arts, for no-cost arts programming for children, teens, and adults: $5,000
My Place Teen Center, for youth development initiatives focused on adverse childhood experiences: $10,000
Peaks Island Children’s Workshop, to improve infant, toddler, and preschool learning spaces: $3,305
Portland Chamber Music Festival, to expand development capacity: $5,000
Rippleffect, for construction of the Rippleffect Outdoor Center: $10,000
Safe Families for Children, to help families in crisis: $10,000
South Portland Historical Society, for general operating support to expand its two-person staff: $3,000
University of Southern Maine Student Senate, to replace the production facility audio mixer: $4,750
Woodfords Family Service, to ensure students with special needs have access to transportation: $10,000
Yarmouth Historical Society, to digitize past issues of Yarmouth’s newspaper: $3,000
Youth Led Justice, to divert youth from Maine’s juvenile justice system, train youth leaders in restorative justice, and connect youth with mental health support: $5,000

2021 Grants

317 Main Community Music Center, to partner with LearningWorks and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Maine to provide free weekly music education programs: $5,000
A Company of Girls, to work with girls using art to cultivate self-confidence, build resiliency, and create communities of tolerance and acceptance: $5,000
Boys and Girls Clubs of Southern Maine, to expand art, photography, music, dance, theater, poetry, and creative writing in five clubs: $6,000
Friends of Casco Bay, to recruit and train volunteer water reporters to keep watch over Casco Bay: $5,000
Friends of Congress Square Park, to support 2022 programming in the public space through concerts, films, and markets and to expand programming in colder months: $6,000
Furniture Friends, to build its volunteer program and increase the number of households that receive donated furniture in southern Maine: $5,000
Greater Portland Immigrant Welcome Center, to provide programs for immigrants in Greater Portland that increase language acquisition, economic integration, and civic engagement: $5,000
Greater Portland Landmarks, for technology that allows hybrid engagement through workshops and meetings: $5,000
Intercultural Community Center, to provide resources and outdoor experiences that support artistic expression, environmental awareness, and academic well-being of low-performing and immigrant students in third through eighth grades: $5,000
Kids First Center, to expand delivery of programs for children and their parents: $5,000
LearningWorks, to provide tutoring, mentoring, and alternative education to pre-K through adult students: $5,000
Locker Project, for school-based programs that provide fresh food and staples to children and families at risk of hunger: $5,000
Maine Audubon Society, to engage youth in learning about and restoring green spaces near their homes and schools through the “Bringing Nature Home” Portland Youth Stewardship Initiative: $5,000
Maine Boys to Men, to continue and expand access to its Reducing Sexism & Violence Program (RSVP)™ for adults and youth in Greater Portland: $5,000
Maine College of Art & Design, to provide collaborative community outreach activities on behalf of its Public Engagement Program for students working with community partners: $2,500
Maine State Ballet, to upgrade all facility lighting to LED in an effort to lower carbon dioxide emissions and reduce long-term utility expenses: $8,250
Opera Maine, to expand its development capacity to further engage underserved and underrepresented communities in the performing arts: $10,000
Portland Maine Symphony Orchestra, for support of a full season of live and virtual concerts: $6,000
Portland Ovations, to launch professional development workshops for educators focused on self-compassion and fostering resiliency through creative means: $4,000
Portland Parks Conservancy, to launch the second year of the Portland Youth Corps, which gives teens opportunities to care for the environment, gain leadership experience, and earn a stipend: $7,500
Preble Street, to provide safe shelter and meet the immediate basic needs of homeless and runaway youth in Maine and help them identify and achieve their goals: $10,000
Shalom House, for staffing costs and the purchase of tools, equipment, canvases, paints, and other art supplies to accommodate its growing number of students: $5,000
The Center for Grieving Children, to continue bereavement and Tender Living Care peer support programs: $5,500
The Cromwell Center for Disabilities Awareness, for a new curriculum that aims to foster sensitivity and empathy among children, reduce bullying and teasing, and build youth leadership that fosters inclusion: $5,000
The Telling Room, to provide creative writing, literary arts education, and youth development programs in Greater Portland: $5,000
Youth and Family Outreach, to improve the organization's effectiveness by providing dedicated space for community programs and other services: $6,000

Grants awarded through donor-advised funds:

Locker Project, for school-based programs that provide fresh food and staples to children and families at risk of hunger: $7,500
The Summer Camp, to help girls from low-income and foster homes throughout Westbrook, Portland, and South Portland develop a sense of confidence and social belonging through recreational activities: $5,000
Passion For Life, for programs designed to battle the obesity, suicide, and indoor epidemics, also cultivating future environmental stewards and increasing human connectivity: $3,000
My Place Teen Center, for daily programming initiatives, administrative costs, and unforeseen circumstances: $3,000
Restorative Justice Institute of Maine, to collaborate with young people in Cumberland County by facilitating restorative and transformative processes that build resilience, strengthen relationships, and cultivate leadership: $3,000
Intercultural Community Center: $2,000