Mainebiz

V O L . X X X N O. X X S E P T E M B E R 2 , 2 0 2 4 8 B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S N E W S F RO M A RO U N D T H E S TAT E two years after Gifford's had estab- lished its first shop in Skowhegan. Gifford's made the announcement on its Facebook page. e company said it was forced to make the difficult decision as it has struggled to recover from two floods in 2023 and a fire that damaged the Gifford's factory in Skowhegan. e Main Street property will go up for sale. N O T E W O R T H Y C E N T R A L & W E S T E R N MaineHealth announced NorthStar EMS in Farmington and Paramedic Alliance for Community Emergencies in Norway will be renamed MaineHealth Emergency Medical Services. Norway Savings Bank said it donated $10,000 to the Mitchell Institute, a nonprofit in Portland that works to increase the likelihood that young people from every community in Maine will aspire to, pursue and achieve a college education. Rockland readies port for cruise ships Rockland is looking to a model called PortShare Promise to help the city and the midcoast region cope with the industry's impact in the busy fall season. Cruise Portland launched PortShare Promise as a pilot program in Portland last September. On Aug. 26, the Penobscot Bay Regional Chamber of Commerce said it would pilot the PortShare Promise for Rockland and the midcoast region this month and run through the final large ship call on Oct. 1. Cruise ship calls to Rockland are up 142% this year, with 50 port calls throughout the season. September is particularly heavy; when Rockland is scheduled to host a record num- ber of large cruise ships to its harbor. Beginning Sept. 7, there will be visits from American Cruise Lines, which operates a fleet of smaller U.S.-flag vessels certified to carry fewer than 250 people. e city is also slated to receive seven visits from larger ships, some car- rying as many as 3,000 passengers. N O T E W O R T H Y M I D C O A S T & D O W N E A S T Island Institute in Rockport celebrated the 25th anniversary of its Fellows Program. The program pairs early-career professionals with local town govern- ments and nonprofits in Maine's coastal and year-round island communities. The Maine Community Foundation in Ellsworth said its Frances Hollis Brain Foundation Fund awarded $194,216 to 34 Greater Portland nonprofit organiza- tions. The program supports organiza- tions and projects that serve disadvan- taged, underserved and/or vulnerable communities in Auburn, Bath, Biddeford, Brunswick, Greater Portland, Lewiston, Saco and/or Sanford. Machias Savings Bank announced that it awarded a total of $100,000 to 23 organizations around the state through its 2024 Community Development Grants program. Bar Harbor Bank & Trust announced that its employees presented a total of $23,000 in donations collected through the bank's employee-driven charitable giving program, Casual for a Cause, in the second quarter of 2024 to nine nonprofit organizations in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. Fidium Fiber said it expanded its multi- gig speed internet network to more than 2,700 additional homes and busi- nesses in the town of Harpswell. Growing to Give, a nonprofit farm opera- tion in Brunswick, said it has donated 100,000 pounds of organic produce, equivalent to an estimated 83,333 meals, to Mainers experiencing food in- security since its founding in 2017. Bangor private school gets OK for expansion A private, religious school in Bangor got the city's OK Aug. 20 to build a 22,500-square-foot addition — enough room to double enroll- ment — and hopes to break ground in September. Penobscot Christian School teaches about 200 students from pre-K through grade 12, occu- pying 9,500 square feet of space on a main campus at 1423 Ohio St., just north of Bangor International Airport. But for the past several years, as the school has grown, junior high and high school students have been attending class a couple of miles away. With the unanimous site plan approval from the Bangor Planning IFOB and BNI Members - FREE, Non-members - $15 Hosted by the Institute for Family-Owned Business, this year, we bring back an IFOB favorite with the "Family Business Spotlight", business after hours at Warren's Office Supplies in Sanford, ME! Join us to learn more about this Maine family business, enjoy door prizes, yummy hors d'oeuvres, drinks, plenty of networking and office olympics with GREAT prize options! Register today at: www.fambusiness.org Thank you to our Event Sponsors: Family Business Spotlight Mon. Sept. 30 - 5-7PM 329 Jagger Mill Rd, Sanford, ME 04073 MEET OUR PANELISTS SP ONSORED BY Six Maine CEOs will each share 10 ideas on their keys to success in business and life covering everything from how to successfully run and operate a business, to effective ways to motivate and manage people. 7:30–10:30AM / DOUBLETREE BY HILTON HOTEL, SOUTH PORTLAND OCTOBER 9 Register today at mainebiz.biz/60in60Portland MEET OUR PANELISTS MODERATOR Drew Dumsch Adam Platz Kerem Durdag Gretchen Johnson Kevin Schohl Tabitha Swanson Linda Varrell M I D C O A S T & D O W N E A S T N O R T H E R N & E A S T E R N

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