Rines Thompson Fund

2024 Grants:

Avesta Housing Development Corporation, to expand the Multicultural Children's Books Lending Library to an additional Avesta property in Portland that is home to many immigrant families: $4,100
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Maine, for community events that provide crucial opportunities for shared experiences, skill-building and network expansion: $10,000
Falmouth Conservation Trust, for ongoing place-based environmental education opportunities for children and students in Portland and Falmouth: $5,000
Friend of the Presumpscot River, for outreach and education programming related to the Presumpscot River: $5,000
Friends of the St. Lawrence Church, to maintain a state-of-the-art, 106-seat theater in the St. Lawrence Church: $7,500
Good Shepherd Food Bank, to reduce childhood hunger in Greater Portland by increasing access to nutritious and culturally relevant foods through welcoming, low-barrier youth and family programs: $5,000
Ketcha Outdoors, to provide community members in need of transportation with bicycles, locks, lights and helmets: $5,000
Khmer Maine, to support the preservation of Khmer Dance through youth education and development and our public festival: $3,000
Kino, to collect, conserve and screen significant motion pictures in their original film format to preserve the analog cinema experience: $10,000
LearningWorks, to support educational needs of children and youth in our community: $5,000
Maine Academy of Modern Music, for music education, youth development programming and community concerts by young musicians: $2,500
Maine College of Art, to assist with our collaborative community outreach activities: $5,000
Mainely Smiles, to assist with clinic expansion in Portland to make oral health care more accessible: $5,000
My Place Teen Center, to ensure every child feels safe, well-fed and is encouraged to thrive: $5,000
Opera Maine, for general operating support for its 2025 season of opera performances and opera education: $5,000
Our Place Portland, for our core resilience-building programs: $5,000
Palaver Strings Incorporated, to bolster low-income students’ skills through one-on-one mentoring, and ensure program participation by providing transportation to Palaver’s afterschool music education program: $5,000
Peregrine, for new technology to support a photography program at STRIVE Studios’ art program: $2,500
Portland Chamber Music Festival, for Winter Warmer Festival concerts and related community and educational activities: $5,000
Portland Housing Services Corporation, to empower marginalized youth to enact positive change in their communities while developing leadership and life skills ensuring future success: $10,000
Portland Lyric Theater, to improve the safety, reliability and effectiveness of the electrical circuitry in the theater: $5,000
Portland Parks Conservancy, for Portland Youth Corps, a work-service program that engages teens in environmental stewardship and professional development: $5,000
Portland School of Ballet, to improve the methods and systems used to store and maintain Portland Ballet’s 400+ costumes: $5,000
South Portland Historical Society, to assist with expanding the role and hours of a part-time cataloger/museum assistant position: $5,000
TEMPOart, to distribute art kits and curricula to schools and community organizations: $2,500
Victoria Mansion, to offer free admission days to expand museum access for students and their families: $5,000
Women United Around The World, to provide vocational education to immigrant women to pursue careers in fashion and textile arts at the Maine Stitching Academy: $5,000
Woodfords Family Services, to develop and implement a therapeutically-informed arts, music, and movement program for students with developmental disabilities: $5,000

From donor-advised funds:

Rainbows for All Children, to provide 20 free trainings to community leaders throughout Maine to provide free youth peer support groups: $3,600

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