Welcome to Portland Old Port’s monthly blog – Community Corner the May 2022 Edition! We will be using this space to highlight ways to connect to your fellow community members through giving back, volunteer work, mutual aid, and more!
Have a fundraiser or cause you’d like us to know about? Email [email protected]
CBHS Asian Student Union AAPI Heritage Month Fundraiser
Help support this great fundraiser being put on by the Asian Student Union at Casco Bay High School! They are raising funds to purchase a copy of four books for each of their Humanities teachers and an additional copy for the school library. Local scholars and leaders recommended the titles and they will be purchasing them at Nonesuch Books in South Portland. Any funds over the goal will go towards purchasing AAPI-authored fiction books for the library!
AAPI Heritage Month – support our local AAPI Restaurants!
May is Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month! As the month wraps up and you are looking for somewhere to enjoy the beautiful weather – consider grabbing a meal at an Asian-owned restaurant in the area and supporting our Asian community members! This extensive list was compiled in March, 2021 by local food content creator Lydia, @portlandeatsme on Instagram.
Maine Cocktail Week Non-Profit Benefit
Instagram Baharat
Maine Cocktail Week has chosen Maine Needs as their non-profit partner for this year’s event! A portion of proceeds from cocktail sales at participating establishments will be donated to the organization. Head over to one of the locations listed below to grab a cocktail and some grub, and show your support for local businesses and solidarity.
Baharat / Bandaloop / Black Cow / Broken Arrow / CBG / Crispy Gai / Electric Bike Cafe / Magnus on Water / Nonesuch River Brewing / Nosh / O’Reilly’s Cure / Rathskeller / Ruby’s West End / Sonder & Dram / The King’s Head Pub / Via Vecchia
Culturally Important Menu Development
The Portland School District is working alongside Cultivating Community to create culturally-diverse dishes for school lunches! A taste test occurred on May 19 to the resounding approval of students who tried the meal prepared by Chefs Sam Gasbarro and Khadija Ahmed. The district listened after student volunteers had surveyed the class and the results showed they wanted to add foods to the menu that “more closely represented the families in a district that is 49 percent non-white and whose students speak 50 different languages.” (WCHS6) Three new dishes will be added to the menu rotation for the Fall 2022 semester! You can support the efforts of Cultivating Community by reading more about the programs they started in 2006 to train refugees and immigrants on how to adapt their native farming techniques to the Maine climate and economy and making a donation here!
Portland Wine Week Fundraiser for World Central Kitchen
Portland Wine Week’s Opening Day on June 13 kicks off with a Panel Discussion called “Women in Wine: Pushing the Boundaries.” Each year they pour a sparkling wine from the portfolio of one of the panelists to toast the start of the week. This year they’ve chosen a Ukrainian Traditional method sparkling wine for the occasion. When you purchase your ticket for the event, which features multiple women from the Maine wine industry as well, you can add a donation to World Central Kitchen’s Ukraine efforts. You are also able to make a donation if you cannot make it in person to the panel. See the full details and give here!
Aedan’s Journey to a New Kidney and a New Life
Aedan was taken to the hospital on January 7 with serious health issues and was transferred to the Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital where it was found he was in acute kidney failure. After surgery and immediately put onto dialysis, he was then added to the national registry for transplants. It was discovered that his kidneys can no longer do their job as they are too small. The family recently lost their Grandmother after an extended illness that left her more susceptible to complications from Covid. Now Aedan’s parents are experiencing additional costs for hospital visits and medications while Aedan awaits a new kidney and continues with dialysis. You can support their GoFundMe here.
Support Victims of Gun Violence
Sadly gun violence occurs consistently nation-wide, including right here in Maine. While the incidents in Irvine, CA, Buffalo, NY and Uvalde, TX were not right on our doorstep in our local community, they are a part of our national community that is currently mourning the many innocent lives lost to senseless acts of violence and hatred in recent weeks. If you head to GoFundMe, there are a number of fundraisers going on to support the families, survivors, and burials of the victims. May they all rest in power and may we finally create change in their honor, our thoughts are with the Taiwanese-American, Black, and Latinx communities impacted by these tragedies. If you want to reach Senator Collins or Senator King to express your views on H.R.8 – Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2021, click on their names to find their contact information.
Thank you! Tune back in for June!
