File photo / Jim Neuger
Chip Kelley, Maine market president of KeyBank.
Updated: August 10, 2020
Giving Notebook: Habitat home repairs, KeyBank funding for nonprofits
Courtesy / Habitat for Humanity of Greater Portland
Habitat for Humanity of Greater Portland said it will use a $90,000 grant from the Cumberland County Community Block Development Program to expand a service that helps low-income homeowners make needed repairs to their homes. Habibat for Humanity also builds homes, as this worker is doing.
Habitat for Humanity of Greater Portland said it will use a $90,000 grant from the Cumberland County Community Block Development Program to expand a service that helps low-income homeowners make needed repairs to their homes.
Expansion plans for the Critical Home Repair service include hiring a new employee to oversee the program, according to the nonprofit, which announced the funding award Friday.
“We are so thankful to Cumberland county for providing us with this grant that will have a long-lasting impact on our community,” said Godfrey Wood, executive director of Habitat for Humanity of Greater Portland, in a news release.
"This program is part of our mission to transform and strengthen communities," he added. "It not only addresses the health, safety and affordability of the individual residences in neighborhoods, it also strengthens connections within the community and helps preserve affordable housing stock.”
Habitat recently completed a Critical Home Repair job for a homeowner in Cumberland. She is a low-income senior with limited mobility and was unable to safely get in and out of her home without assistance. The Habitat team installed an accessibility ramp to her side door that allows her safe entry and exit to her home without risk of injury.
The Critical Home Repair program, which is also sponsored by Town and Country Federal Credit Union and Gorham Savings Bank, addresses repair needs including roof leaks, accessibility issues, stair repairs, and structural work.
Homeowners wishing to apply are required to demonstrate household income at or below 80% of median income as defined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, among other qualifying guidelines.
More information about the program and applications are available online.
KeyBank grants
KeyBank, a Cleveland-based bank with 43 branches in Maine, announced $160,000 in KeyBank Foundation grants to local nonprofits for COVID-19 relief and social justice funding.
The grants, part of the bank's annual planned philanthropic giving for 2020,provide emergency COVID-related support to local organizations such as Avesta Housing, Preble Street and several other organizations serving vulnerable populations impacted by the pandemic.
The funding also includes $25,000 to United Way of Greater Portland’s Social Justice Racial Equity Fund to support local efforts to drive social change. It joins a growing number of organizations that have launched funds with a similar purpose.
“KeyBank's purpose is to help our clients and our communities thrive. That is true in good times and in challenging times," said Chip Kelley, KeyBank's Maine market president, in a news release.
He added that COVID-19 "has shown us the depths of issues we continue to work with our community partners to address, and just how much further we have to go."
In addition to the grants, KeyBank employees have personally donated more than $2 million through KeyBank Foundation’s 2:1 Response Employee Matching Gifts program, supporting 1,200 nonprofits nationwide including many in Maine.
KeyBank also partnered with the Portland Sea Dogs minor league baseball team on #KeyBank Assists, a community engagement effort that surprised local families and essential workers with $16,000 in restaurant gift cards to support for local small businesses and residents.
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