FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Matt Wickenheiser
207-662-6679 / [email protected]
The project is supported in part by a generous $100,000 donation by Former Maine Speaker of the House and U.S. Senate Candidate Sara Gideon.
PORTLAND, Maine 鈥� AOA体育平台 announced today it is opening a food pantry, in partnership with Good Shepherd Food Bank, in the former Greyhound bus station at 950 Congress St.
This new community service supports AOA体育平台鈥檚 vision of 鈥渨orking together so our communities are the healthiest in America鈥� by promoting consistent access to food that will support health. The Portland pantry will be AOA体育平台鈥檚 third; the first two were opened at Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington and Stephens Memorial Hospital in Norway in 2021.
鈥淗ealth and hunger are closely connected, and we know our communities alone can鈥檛 fill the needs associated with food insecurity,鈥� said Dora Anne Mills, AOA体育平台鈥檚 chief health improvement officer. 鈥淥ur Community Health Needs Assessments have identified food insecurity as the number one priority amongst social determinants of health. The food pantries are a part of our services as a health care organization, and a natural part of our continuum of care. We also believe it is necessary for us to collaborate with community partners to support and supplement existing work.鈥�
Food insecurity makes a person more likely to develop a chronic disease and makes it harder to manage disease. Not being able to access healthy and nutritious food, or any food at all, can lead to disease complications, missing doses of important medication, and needing to be hospitalized. All of these factors make health care more expensive.
AOA体育平台 bought the bus station in 2020, and has secured city permits to renovate the building for use as a food pantry. The work is being supported through a $200,000 investment by AOA体育平台, coming in part through funds set aside by AOA体育平台鈥檚 Board of Trustees to honor long-term former CEO Bill Caron. A generous $100,000 donation from former Maine Speaker of the House and U.S. Senate candidate Sara Gideon is also funding this project.
鈥淓very Mainer deserves access to healthy, nutritious food and only by working collaboratively can we make that a reality. This gift will provide immediate and significant support to an innovative partnership between AOA体育平台 and Good Shepherd Food Bank to help end hunger in Maine and drive down the costs of health care,鈥� said Gideon. 鈥淚鈥檓 proud to support the direct community work happening to address food insecurity and ultimately, the health and well-being of our state.鈥�
Renovation work is expected to begin on the building next month, and AOA体育平台 plans to open the pantry by early fall.
The Portland pantry will initially serve AOA体育平台 patients, with the goal of expanding to serve the entire community as appropriate, offering healthy fresh, frozen and shelf-stable food in a convenient, trustworthy and stigma-free environment.
According to the USDA and Feeding America, as of 2021, 13.5 percent of Maine鈥檚 population, or nearly 182,000 Mainers, were food insecure, meaning they lacked access to enough nutritious food to live a healthy life. Maine ranked 19th worst in the nation and 2nd in New England in terms of household food insecurity. Maine ranked 5th worst in the nation in terms of very low household food security (chronic hunger) and 1st in New England. One in five Maine children does not know where their next meal is coming from, and approximately 17,200 Mainers aged 65 and older lived in food-insecure households.
鈥淭he mission of Good Shepherd Food Bank is to improve access to nutritious food to people in need,鈥� said Kristen Miale, president of Good Shepherd Food Bank of Maine. 鈥淎 hospital-based food pantry has a special focus on addressing the nutritional needs of their patients and is often better positioned to provide wrap-around services such as access to healthcare, safe and reliable transportation, and housing assistance through partnerships with community-based organizations and other hospital programming. The Food Bank is looking forward to helping AOA体育平台 meet the need with this new location.鈥�
By addressing social determinants of health, like food insecurity, AOA体育平台 more fully addresses the health needs of our community.
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About AOA体育平台
AOA体育平台 is a not-for-profit integrated health system whose vision is 鈥淲orking together so our communities are the healthiest in America.鈥� It consists of nine local health systems, a comprehensive behavioral healthcare network, diagnostic services, home health agencies, and 1,700 employed providers working together through the AOA体育平台 Medical Group. With approximately 22,000 employees, AOA体育平台 provides preventive care, diagnosis and treatment to 1.1 million residents in Maine and New Hampshire. It includes Franklin Memorial Hospital/Franklin Community Health Network in Farmington, LincolnHealth in Damariscotta and Boothbay Harbor, Maine Behavioral Healthcare in South Portland, AOA体育平台 Care at Home in Saco, Maine Medical Center in Portland, Memorial Hospital in North Conway, N.H., Mid Coast-Parkview Health in Brunswick, NorDx in Scarborough, Pen Bay Medical Center and Waldo County General Hospital in Rockport and Belfast, Southern Maine Health Care in Biddeford and Sanford, Spring Harbor Hospital in Westbrook and Stephens Memorial Hospital/Western Maine Health Care in Norway. AOA体育平台 Affiliates include Maine General Health in Augusta and Waterville, New England Rehabilitation Hospital in Portland and St. Mary's Regional Medical Center in Lewiston. It is also a significant stakeholder in the AOA体育平台 Accountable Care Organization in Portland.