Maine Children’s Home Newsletter

JANUARY 2020

We recently opened the 120th Annual Meeting of The Maine Children’s Home for Little Wanderers with the opening lyrics from Mister Roger’s Neighborhood:

It's a beautiful day in this neighborhood,
A beautiful day for a neighbor,
Would you be mine?
Could you be mine?
It's a neighborly day in this beautywood,
A neighborly day for a beauty,
Would you be mine?
Could you be mine?
I have always wanted to have a neighbor just like you,
I've always wanted to live in a neighborhood with you.

The mission of MCH is, "to build and strengthen families and their children, instilling hope for the future and a better quality of life.” Thanks to your support, we carry out this work through 6 distinct programs: the George J. & Mary S. Mitchell Adoption Unit, the Harland A. Turner Family Counseling Center, the Summer Camp Scholarship Program, the Christmas Program, the Sharon Abrams Teen Parent School Program, and The Children's Place Early Care & Education Center. We are so very proud of the work we have been able to accomplish for and with the children and families, we have served over the past year. At the heart of our work are the staff members from each of our programs, who go above and beyond each and every day to help make life better for Maine children and families in need. Please join me in thanking our staff when you see them.

 We have reached out to over 3,000 children, youth and families to be happier, healthier and safer in their homes.

Sincere regards,


Richard Dorian, Executive Director
2019 Report Card


Annual Report
 
Check out our 2019 Year in Review video to celebrate our accomplishments in 2019!
Check out our full Annual Report on our website!
Turner Family Counseling Center:
Welcome, Amy!
The Turner Family Counseling Center is excited to welcome our newest Child & Family Therapist to the team, Amy Scholl, LMSW-cc!

Amy graduated from the Art Institute of Boston at Lesley University (now the Lunder Arts Center at Lesley University) in 2005 with a bachelor's of fine art in Photography. She graduated from UNE in December 2017 with a master's of social work with an integrated concentration in clinical and community based social work. Prior to The Maine Children's Home, Amy worked with children and families in Home and Community Treatment.
Amy has served on the Western Maine Community Action (WMCA) board of directors since 2016, the Jahmekya Project board of directors as treasurer since 2017 and has volunteered with the Central Maine CA$H coalition since 2016 as their Asset Organizer. Amy lives in New Sharon with her son, Brandon and enjoys traveling with her partner, Zaviar. In her spare time Amy enjoys creating art, yoga, hiking, spending time with friends and family, and volunteering in her community.
Clinical Director Wins Patriot Award
Congratulations to our Clinical Director, Deb Levenseller, for earning the Patriot Award! The Patriot Award is given to supervisors who support a Guardsman or Reservist employee or their spouse. Deb was nominated by our Administrative Assistant in the Counseling Center, Jodi Goodie, because of her "compassion and flexibility she had when my husband was on active duty in Germany for a month. It’s not often that supervisors and/or employers are recognized for what they do for military families. I wanted to be sure that Deb was aware of how much her support meant to me."
Board Member Recognition
Board President, Daniel Booth and Executive Director, Richard Dorian presenting the award for Board service to Bart Stevens.

We recently recognized two of our outgoing Board Members of The Maine Children’s Home for Little Wanderers at the Annual Celebration Meeting.

Bart Stevens was recognized for completing his most recent second 3-year term of service on the Board of Directors, after having served on the Board a number of times over the past twenty years. Bart is a realtor, owner, and operator of Century 21 Nason Realty in Winslow and is an active member of the community. Bart has been a dedicated volunteer, supporter, and donor to The Maine Children’s Home.

Fred Rovillard was recognized for serving on the Board of Directors for nearly 3 years of service. Fred is the retired former Executive Director of Ken-A-Set, now Skills, Inc., who served there for more than 34 years. Fred has also shared many stories with us of being in the last class of Thomas College while it was on our campus at 93 Silver Street.

We greatly appreciate their time and commitment to children and service to our community. They have helped to make The Maine Children’s Home a stronger organization.
Board of Directors

Daniel J. Booth, President
Vice President, Northern Light Inland Hospital

Melissa A. Higgins, 1st Vice President
VP/CFO, Northeast Laboratory Services, Inc.

Kirstin McQuillan, 2nd Vice President
Real Estate Broker, Century 21 Nason Realty

Leo H. Berube, Treasurer
Director of Maintenance and Engineering, SAPPI

Jean S. Sawyer, Secretary/Clerk
Retired

Linette E. Gamache, Immediate Past President
Owner, Mane Management Salon

Rachel Card
Family Nurse Practitioner, Northern Light Inland Hospital

Ellen Crocker
Retired

Ronda Ducret
Retired

Leah Foti
Behavior Health Professional, KidsPeace

Angela Gibbs
VP, Quality, Risk, and Compliance, Northern Light Inland Hospital

Paul Goodof
Private Trustee and Fiduciary

Darrell Kent
Charge Nurse, Harold Alfond Center for Cancer Care

Meghan D. Loubier
VP & Senior Relationship Manager, Bangor Savings Bank

Cheryl Mercier
Special Services Administrator, RSU 18

Michelle Nadeau
Customer Service Manager, Fortin's Home Furnishings

Dan Santos
Membership Development Manager, Portland Regional Chamber of Commerce
Annual Celebration 2020
On Thursday, January 23rd, we held our Annual Celebration to highlight our accomplishments of 2019, share our goals for 2020 and kick off our Red Stocking Annual Appeal! We would like to thank all of our supporters and donors who have helped us build and strengthen over 3,000 families across the state of Maine in 2019. We would not be able to do this amazing work without the help of our valuable staff members, our amazing volunteers, and our faithful donors. We also want to recognize our retiring board members, Bart Stevens and Fred Rovillard. Their support of The Maine Children's Home and our mission has been a great asset to our organization. Special thank you to our sponsor, SAPPI and to O'Brien's Event Center at the Best Western Waterville Grand Hotel for allowing us to use their space.
Volunteers of the Year
JMG
Volunteer recognition for raising $12,000 through a Coins for Camp campaign that also inspired a matching grant from UNUM to help us to send 70 youth to summer camp.
Volunteers of the Year
Friends of the Maine Children's Home
This dedicated group of volunteers provides support, resources, time, and commitment to children throughout the year to assist our 6 programs.
Business of the Year
New Balance
Recognized for a continued strong commitment to both cover significant expenses for the Christmas Program, as well as provide New Balance staff for 6 weeks during the Christmas season.
To help contribute to our goals for 2020, please consider making a donation on our website or by mail at 93 Silver Street in Waterville.
Upcoming Events
 
The Friends of the Maine Children's Home are goodwill ambassadors that have helped promote fundraising activities and provide resources to support our six programs for over 60 years. Meetings are held the first Tuesday of every month at 6pm in the Eskelund Community Center on our Waterville campus.
 
Are you interested in learning about whether adoption is an option for your family? Our Adoption Program hosts FREE adoption informational meetings the last Wednesday of each month at our Waterville office & the 2nd Monday of each month at the Albin, Randall & Bennett office in Portland at 6pm. If you are interested in attending, please complete this form.
 
Save the Date for our Wine & Beer Tasting featuring local Maine breweries and wineries on Friday, May 15, 2020! We will be at a brand new venue: Enchanted Gables in Oakland and will be from 5:30 pm - 8:30 pm!


DONATE
www.mainechildrenshome.org
Our mailing address is:

The Maine Children's Home for Little Wanderers

93 Silver St

Waterville, ME 04901-5923
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