Volunteer Maine, the Maine Commission for Community Service, has received a three-year grant with an annual award amount of $308,436 from AmeriCorps, the federal agency for national service and volunteerism. The highly competitive grant, funded through the Volunteer Generation Fund, will expand Volunteer Maine’s volunteer engagement practices and fortify the recruitment and training of volunteers across Maine, according to Volunteer Maine, in a news release.  

AmeriCorps provides support to organizations to help them alleviate poverty, expand capacity in organizations and build economic opportunities through community-driven efforts across the country. The Volunteer Generation Fund grants will be used to strengthen Maine nonprofit and community organizations’ ability to recruit, engage and support volunteers.   

“For more than three decades, Volunteer Maine has harnessed our state’s proud spirit of community service to improve the lives of people across Maine,” said Governor Janet Mills. “This exciting award from AmeriCorps will enable Volunteer Maine to recruit and train more people to serve their communities, expanding the impact of volunteerism throughout our state.” 

The project will strengthen the capacity of nonprofit organizations across Maine to recruit, train, and retain volunteers through the development of regional volunteer collaboratives. While designed to build volunteer capacity across a range of organizations and community partners, the project will place an initial emphasis on supporting food access organizations serving rural and underserved communities experiencing high rates of food insecurity.  

“These collaboratives will strengthen coordination, build local capacity, and promote effective volunteer engagement and management practices across regions,” said Brittany Gleixner-Hayat, executive director of Volunteer Maine.