News from nonprofits

The Portland Conservatory of Music announced an addition to the new season of choral music for young women who love to sing: Jaye Churchill will be joining Girl Singers of Maine Director Maria Belva as accompanist. Churchill is known in the area as a piano/voice instructor, performer and choral director. She is the founder/director of Musica de Filia Girls’ and Women’s Choirs from 1997- 2015 and conducted the Boy Singers of Maine from 1994-2002. Churchill has also served on the music faculty of Waynflete and The University of Southern Maine Summer Choral Institute. 

The Robbie Foundation, a Scarborough-based group that provides adaptive equipment, and services to children and young people in Maine with developmental disabilities, is treating a deserving parent to a day of rest and relaxation. Dahira Ibrahim, a single mother from Portland, has a 5-year-old daughter with quadriplegic cerebral palsy. Her little girl needs constant care and requires a feeding tube. Ibrahim and a friend will be spending a spa day at the Inn By the Sea in Cape Elizabeth, where they will enjoy lunch, massages and facials. The Robbie Foundation will provide two more getaways to deserving families this summer. To nominate a person, go to www.robbiefoundation.com and click on Parent Getaway.

Jessamyn Norton and Eben Jose of city-based Spinnaker Trust have been elected to the board of directors at LearningWorks, which provides free community-based education programs for children, adults and families throughout Southern Maine. Spinnaker is a Maine bank chartered as a non-depository trust company.

The Cumberland County Committee of the Maine Community Foundation has awarded more than $68,000 in grants to 13 nonprofits, including ProsperityME: The Center for Financial Education in Portland. The center works to provide equitable housing access for asylum seekers and refugees. Other grant recipients include Harpswell Heritage Land Trust, to expand its capacity to utilize volunteers for preserve and trail maintenance; and Pine Tree Legal Assistance, to support an initiative in Portland to reduce lead hazards and address issues that arise from lead poisoning.

Portland Community Squash received a $5,000 grant on July 16 from the Frances Hollis Brain Foundation Fund at the Maine Community Foundation to support students in Rally Portland, the college pathway afterschool program at PCS.

The Rally Portland program enables Portland Community Squash to offer squash, wellness, academic support, travel, mentorship, and character development from elementary school through college graduation. Portland Community Squash opened its doors in January 2017, and, since then, has served hundreds of students from fourth grade through high school, representing 26 countries with 17 languages spoken. 

Hires, promotions, appointments

Anna Polko Clark of Falmouth has joined Lambert Coffin in Portland as an associate attorney. Clark earned her law degree at the University of Maine School of Law, where she was a staff member of the Maine Law Review. After graduating from law school in 2014, Clark clerked for the Hon. Justice Jeffrey L. Hjelm of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court. 

Norway Savings Bank has hired Shawn Baldwin to manage its Special Assets department in Portland. Baldwin, who has 18 years of banking experience, graduated from Plymouth State University with a degree in business management.

Portside Real Estate Group announced the addition of Jeremy Lock and Jacqueline Nedwell to their growing team. Lock, of Portland, is a new broker at the firm, but has 15 years of experience in real estate and home building. Nedwell, of Cape Elizabeth, is an associate broker who previously renovated and designed homes.

RE/MAX Shoreline welcomes Cricket Grobe, a residential agent with a strong professional background in home staging, to its Portland office.

New Ventures

Bob’s Clam Hut has officially opened its second location in Portland, at 111 Cumberland Ave. It marks the first expansion in the restaurant’s 60-plus year history in Kittery. For the opening of the Portland location, Bob’s has rolled out menu updates, including seafood tacos (clam, fish, oyster) topped with taco slaw, smoked paprika aioli and pickled onions, along with a fried lobster tail basket. The Portland menu also features a rotating selection of Portland-area craft brews, wine and cider. As a finish to a satisfying fried seafood meal, there’s milkshakes made with Bob’s ice cream partner, Rococo Artisan Ice Cream.

Baldwin

Frannie Peabody Center was presented with a check for $3,500 as the beneficiary of Portland Downtown’s most recent Shop For A Cause Day in June. The funds will help provide compassionate care to those affected by HIV/AIDS in Maine.

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