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April 29, 2010 Bangorbiz

Tribe group, health clinic net federal funds

By The Mainebiz News Staff

An Orono nonprofit that helps members of Maine's Native American community who want to pursue opportunities for economic development has received nearly $650,000 in federal grant funds.

U.S. Sens. Olympia J. Snowe and Susan Collins announced the Four Directions Development Corp. in Orono has been awarded $649,907 from the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Community Development Financial Institutions fund. The money will support Four Directions' work to enhance economic opportunities and community development within Maine's Native American community, which includes the Penobscot and Passamaquoddy tribes. Four Directions Development Corp. is a nonprofit certified CDFI established in 2002 that provides housing-related lending and developmental services to the four Native American tribes in Maine.

"Four Directions is a valuable resource to Maine's Native American community, and this funding will help support vital programs and services," said Snowe and Collins in a joint statement. "This funding is especially welcome news given the current economic climate in Maine and across the nation, and it will allow Four Directions to strengthen its loan delivery and increase developmental services."

The CDFI fund's Native American Assistance initiative is designed to encourage the creation and strengthening of CDFIs that serve primarily American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian communities.

Snowe and Collins also this week announced a $500,000 loan for the Penobscot Community Health Center in Bangor. The loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Development program will fund medical equipment for the clinic, according to a press release.

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