Maine Credit Unions Team Up to End Hunger

MAINE - The 18th Annual Maine Credit Unions’ Ending Hunger Walking and Awareness Tour concluded on December 19 with a stop at the Jeannette G. Morin Chapter of Credit Unions’ meeting in Brunswick. The tour, led by longtime ending hunger advocate Brenda Davis, calls attention to the severity of hunger in Maine.

Davis is the Executive Director of the BBC Opportunity Center, a hunger organization that serves eastern Maine. She has been traveling the state since October to meet with credit union representatives, food pantry personnel, and other ending hunger advocates to raise funds and awareness about food insecurity in Maine.

"Brenda is an amazing advocate for ending hunger and Maine credit unions,” said Jake Holmes, Financial Literacy Outreach Coordinator at the League. “She is very passionate about combating the hunger crisis in our state and has been a staple in our Campaign for Ending Hunger for nearly two decades."

Instead of visiting with credit union branches as she has done in the past, Davis met with credit union chapters during this year’s tour. The format change enabled Davis to have a better dialogue with credit union representatives about our combined efforts to increase access to healthy, nutritious meals.

"The new approach for the Ending Hunger Walking and Awareness Tour was a success, with much more dialogue between Davis, credit unions, and food pantries,” said Holmes. “I heard many touching stories and will be walking away from this year's tour more inspired than ever before."

To support the tour, Maine credit unions donated $9,500 to Davis’ BBC Opportunity Center. An additional $10,500 was donated to other organizations that provide access to food for those in need. Those organizations include:

• Biddeford Food Pantry - $500

• Fort Kent Ecumenical Food Pantry - $500

• Franklin Alternative School Food Pantry - $500

• Freeport Community Services - $500

• Full Plates Full Potential - $1,500

• Good Shepherd Food Bank - $1,500

• Katahdin Elementary School Food Pantry - $500

• Lisbon Area Christian Outreach Food Pantry - $500

• Mattanawcook Jr. High School Food Pantry - $500

• Morse Mini Food Pantry - $500

• Rumford Elementary School Food Pantry - $500

• Saco Food Pantry - $500

• Sanford Food Pantry - $500

• Southern Aroostook Food Pantry - $500

• St. Agatha Food Pantry - $500

• Stearns Jr./Sr. High School Food Pantry - $500

• WG Mallett School Food Pantry - $500