By Taikein Cooper, Jesús Gerena, Valaryee Mitchell and Tyonka Perkins Rimawi
How many times can we say that 2020 has been a year unlike any other? We remain fearful of the pandemic. Uneasiness about a bleak economic outlook due to declining employment and consumer spending persists. Many of our neighbors have been left wondering if they can put food on the table or if they will have a place to live.
Imagine if none of us had to worry about our hunger, homeless or recessions because we were guaranteed a minimum income? When millions of Americans suddenly were thrust into poverty at the onset of the pandemic, many more families and children were vulnerable to conditions we typically only associate with low income. In other words, the pandemic reinforced that these issues only are symptoms of the real disease â poverty.
The Maine Community Foundation has awarded $95,000 in grants to 11 recipients in Hancock and Washington counties through its Downeast Innovation Fund, the foundation said.
Launched in 2018, the fund supports nonprofits that provide programs to improve or increase entrepreneurship and innovation in business and the local economies in Hancock and Washington counties.
Recipients in the latest funding round include the Maine Aquaculture Innovation Center Inc. in Walpole, which will receive $10,000 to study the feasibility of farming sea scallops in the two Downeast counties.
New Ventures Maine in Bangor will also receive $10,000, to boost partnerships within the Downeast entrepreneurial ecosystem and expand access to micro-enterprise training advising and resources.
Second $1,200 Stimulus Checks Are Not in the New $908 Billion Relief Proposal Some Are Calling for That to Change nbcnewyork.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from nbcnewyork.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.