In preparation for the upcoming full release of the next Foundation Giving in Maine report, Maine Philanthropy Center (MPC) is excited to offer previews over the coming weeks. This upcoming report will include data from both 2020 and 2021, giving crucial insights into how foundations responded to the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, historically high inflation, and the racial reckoning after the murder of George Floyd.
Following our release of the Top 25 Maine Funders list for 2020 and 2021, our next preview shows where Maine’s top funders* are giving geographically throughout the state. This dataset uses the funding from our Top 25 Maine Funders list to explore funding by county, providing insight into where resources are distributed in our communities.
What stands out in the geographic breakdown?
- In both years, Cumberland and Kennebec counties received the most funding, a continuation of what we have observed in past years. There was a notable increase in 2021 to Penobscot County (>100%), primarily due to Harold Alfond Foundation grants to the University of Maine. Waldo County saw the biggest declines in funding from Top 25 Funders (~$8M 2019 to $4M 2020 to $1M 2021).
- The following funders gave to all sixteen counties in the listed year:
Sixteen county funders in 2020: Maine Community Foundation, Maine Health Access Fund, Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation, Onion Foundation, The Betterment Fund, Davis Family Foundation, and MELMAC Education Foundation.
Sixteen county funders in 2021: Maine Community Foundation, John T. Gorman Foundation, Libra Foundation, Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation, Davis Family Foundation, MELMAC Education Foundation, and Bangor Savings Bank Foundation.
This reflects an increase from the 6 sixteen county funders in 2019 and the 5 in 2018 and the first time since we started tracking in 2018 that a corporate foundation has appeared on this list.
2020 Top 25 Funding by County
| Recipient County | Total Grants | # Funders | # Recipients |
|---|---|---|---|
| Androscoggin | $7.6M | 21 | 87 |
| Aroostook | $1.9M | 12 | 95 |
| Cumberland | $50.5M | 24 | 460 |
| Franklin | $1.5M | 9 | 63 |
| Hancock | $7.9M | 17 | 253 |
| Kennebec | $46.0M | 20 | 181 |
| Knox | $2.6M | 14 | 116 |
| Lincoln | $3.5M | 12 | 77 |
| Oxford | $2.4M | 13 | 69 |
| Penobscot | $9.3M | 19 | 152 |
| Piscataquis | $1.0M | 11 | 36 |
| Sagadahoc | $2.0M | 14 | 41 |
| Somerset | $0.9M | 11 | 43 |
| Waldo | $4.3M | 15 | 91 |
| Washington | $4.4M | 13 | 88 |
| York | $2.5M | 15 | 119 |
2021 Top 25 Funding by County
| Recipient County | Total Grants | # Funders | # Recipients |
|---|---|---|---|
| Androscoggin | $5.3M | 21 | 87 |
| Aroostook | $1.9M | 15 | 85 |
| Cumberland | $50.6M | 24 | 484 |
| Franklin | $1.1M | 14 | 58 |
| Hancock | $8.8M | 19 | 207 |
| Kennebec | $57.7M | 22 | 165 |
| Knox | $3.1M | 18 | 125 |
| Lincoln | $2.1M | 16 | 72 |
| Oxford | $1.6M | 16 | 69 |
| Penobscot | $20.9M | 20 | 158 |
| Piscataquis | $1.2M | 10 | 37 |
| Sagadahoc | $1.0M | 16 | 46 |
| Somerset | $0.9M | 15 | 39 |
| Waldo | $1.8M | 14 | 86 |
| Washington | $4.1M | 15 | 79 |
| York | $3.0M | 17 | 129 |
As we continue to release information from the newest edition of the Foundation Giving in Maine report, we are excited to give the Maine nonprofit and philanthropic community access to data around how our communities are being funded. If you have questions about how we create these data products or have ideas of other datasets you’d like to see, please reach out at mpc@mainephilanthropy.org.
Maine Philanthropy Center would like to thank the Onion Foundation for supporting the creation of this year's Foundation Giving in Maine report.
* In this report, a Maine funder is a grantmaker incorporated or registered with the state of Maine or subject to the jurisdiction of a Maine municipality. Included are private and community foundations, as well as grantmaking public charities. Notable exclusions include certain operating foundations and other entities whose charitable giving is exclusive to one or more supported organizations or affiliates; public charities largely supported by government funds; and public charities whose grantmaking is a minority of their charitable expenses. United Ways of Maine are addressed separately in the Foundation Giving in Maine report.