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V O L . X X I V N O. X I M AY 2 8 , 2 0 1 8 6 grants totaling $162,613 to support volunteer programs in the state that are providing service in three focus ar- eas: aging in place, transportation ser- vices and food security and assistance. Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program in Brunswick, Southern Maine Agency on Aging in Scarborough and United Way of Eastern Maine in Bangor each received $37,500; The Window Dressers Inc. in Rockland was awarded $35,399; and Eastern Area Agency on Aging in Bangor received $14,714. NEWS CENTER Maine said it raised $160,000 through its 2018 Feed Maine Telethon. The Dollar General Literacy Foundation awarded $15,000 in literacy grants to Maine nonprofi t organizations, librar- ies and schools. Literacy Volunteers- Androscoggin in Lewiston, Regional School Unit 24 - Adult Education in Sullivan and Tri-County Literacy in Bath each received $5,000. IDEXX will invest $62M in expansion IDEXX Laboratories Inc. broke ground on its planned 2 million expansion at One IDEXX Drive in Westbrook. e Synergy East facility, expected to open in late 201, features a new multi-level, 135,000-square-foot expansion to the existing Synergy Center, which opened in 201. e new facility, which will have capacity for 00 workers, will be LEED Gold Certifi ed and contain many energy effi cient design elements, such as solar panels, highly effi cient HVAC and rainwater harvesting. Features include a 200-person conference room. Maine Crafts Association will open site in Portland e Maine Crafts Association in West Gardiner will open a second location, to be called Maine Craft Portland, at the historic Mechanics Hall in Portland's arts district. It will be a diff erent type of site for MCA, which has its fi rst location at West Gardiner Service Plaza on Interstate 25, close to where it merges with the Maine Turnpike. e July 1 opening in Portland will coincide with one of the city's biggest summer weekends. e hall is being renovated to make room for the gallery. B U S I N E S S M A I N E Business news from around the state S T A T E W I D E S O U T H E R N LaunchPad fi nalists will vie for $50,000 B y M a i n e b i z S t a f f Five small businesses will compete for $50,000 in the Gorham Savings Bank LaunchPad competition. American Roots, Bangs Island Mussels, Blue Ox Malthouse, North Spore and Wallace James Clothing Co. are the fi nalists to emerge from the original pool of 180 companies. They will go head to head in a pitch contest to be held June 5 in front of a live audience and an independent panel of judges. LaunchPad judges will be Winxnet CEO and co-founder Chris Claudio; Steve Campbell, founder and CEO of pro-voke; and Catherine Cloudman, an owner and chief fi nancial offi cer of Village Fertility Pharmacy. The event will be held at Hannaford Hall at the University of Southern Maine's Portland campus. Now in its sixth year, LaunchPad helps Maine innovators and entrepreneurs compete for early-stage capital while honing their sales skills. "Access to capital is still the main hurdle most small businesses face," said Steve deCastro, president of Gorham Savings Bank. "Seeing the wide range of applicants from small businesses statewide is truly inspiring. The excite- ment around the competition demonstrates the strength of entrepreneurship in Maine." The ve nalists: ¡ American Roots, Westbrook, is a family-run manufacturer that makes 100% American-made, union-made customized apparel using domestic raw materials. Founded in 2015, American Root's innovative workforce training program has given new Americans in need the opportunity to learn how to sew, earn good wages and ultimately enhance their lives. ¡ Bangs Island Mussels, Portland, is a family-owned and operated sustainable aquaculture company that farm- raises mussels, scallops and kelp locally in the cool, clean waters of Casco Bay. Bangs Island mussels can be found in fi ne restaurants in Maine and around the country. ¡ Blue Ox Malthouse, Lisbon Falls, a returning fi nalist from 2016, turns raw grain from local farms into malt used by craft breweries to differentiate their products and its commitment to the farmer-brewer link promotes economic sustainability too. ¡ North Spore, Westbrook, a returning fi nalist from 2017, produces specialty mushrooms, mushroom products and mushroom spawn, and is changing the way the world inter- acts with mushrooms through innovation and education. The company produces gourmet mushrooms and spawn for both retail and commercial use and is striving to be a community hub where people learn to love mushrooms and admire this often overlooked biological kingdom. ¡ Wallace James Clothing Co., Portland, provides the abil- ity to design, develop and produce garments all under one roof with a dedication to education at each phase. Wallace James' studio accommodates a full sourcing library to support independent and emerging designers. The Emerging Idea Award LaunchPad has an offshoot that started last year, the Emerging Idea Award, which is a $10,000 grant that comes with an additional $10,000 worth of in-kind marketing, busi- ness development and public relations services. This year's fi nalists, selected from LaunchPad applicants, are: ¡ Farm Drop in Cape Elizabeth ¡ Home Care Business Services in Falmouth ¡ NavigatER in Cape Elizabeth ¡ Pocket Parks in Winthrop ¡ Sofi a Fima in Lewiston. Each fi nalist will have the opportunity to submit a 60-sec- ond pitch video, which will be played at the event. The Emerging Idea Award winner will be announced just before the LaunchPad winner at the live event at Hannaford Hall. B R I E F Access to capital is still the main Access to capital is still the main Access to capital is still the main Access to capital is still the main Access to capital is still the main Access to capital is still the main Access to capital is still the main Access to capital is still the main Access to capital is still the main Access to capital is still the main Access to capital is still the main Access to capital is still the main Access to capital is still the main hurdle most small businesses hurdle most small businesses hurdle most small businesses hurdle most small businesses hurdle most small businesses hurdle most small businesses hurdle most small businesses hurdle most small businesses hurdle most small businesses hurdle most small businesses hurdle most small businesses hurdle most small businesses face. Seeing the wide range of applicants from small businesses statewide is truly inspiring. The excitement around the competition demonstrates the strength of entrepreneurship in Maine. — Steve deCastro President of Gorham Savings Bank Help wanted at Maine's parks and historic sites Maine's labor shortage is aff ecting the state's parks and visitor sites. e state Bureau of Parks and Lands, which man- ages 8 parks and historic sites, wants to fi ll the following jobs: park ranger, assis- tant park ranger, customer representative assistant, lifeguard, lifeguard supervisor and laborer. e bureau has "scores of job opportunities in some of the most picturesque settings in Maine," it said in a press release. Love of the outdoors might mitigate the pay rate, which is some cases is a notch above the state's minimum wage of 10.10 an hour. With the state's unemployment rate at its lowest level in four decades, at 2.7% through March, there is stiff competi- tion for qualifi ed workers. According to the state's job web site, a customer service representative assistant level- one position pays 10.38 an hour for a 0-hour week. Park ranger positions pay an hourly wage of 12.57 to 1.32 for a 0-hour week. Lifeguards earn 11.0. N O T E W O R T H Y S T A T E W I D E The Maine Commission for Community Service and the Corporation for National and Community Service awarded fi ve Volunteer Generation Fund

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