Staff Writer 

Scarborough’s non-profit organization Project G.R.A.C.E. (Granting Resources and Assistance through Community Effort) has a new project: the Neighbors Helping Neighbors program. 

Project G.R.A.C.E. Executive Director Mary Rollo said the new program is intended to enhance the organization’s outreach efforts without adding a “double duty” for volunteers anticipating a tough winter ahead.

“We’re going to identify what resources are available in the town and bring everyone together to address the needs,” Rollo said.  

Rollo said Project G.R.A.C.E. began “feeling the need” for a specific food and fuel assistance program this past summer when fuel prices reached $4 a gallon. Rather than putting an additional burden on the minimal staff at Project G.R.A.C.E., Rollo said she hoped the problem could be addressed by a different, more diverse group of volunteers. 

“We’re hoping for a lot of new faces,” Project G.R.A.C.E. Board of Directors President Sam Kelley said. “There are a lot of programs out there. Maybe together, we can help meet the needs of the community better.”

Although gas and heating oil prices have recently dropped, Rollo said the Neighbors Helping Neighbors program expects there will be many families in Scarborough requiring assistance this winter – whether it be direct financial support or a point in the right direction – some for the first time.

Rollo said as a Project G.R.A.C.E. initiative, the Neighbors Helping Neighbors program won’t look beyond the town lines for funding. Rather than depending on donations from out-of-town programs or state aid, the program will rely on local businesses and individuals to help their neighbors get through what could possibly be the toughest winter Mainers have ever seen, Rollo said.

“Project G.R.A.C.E. has always assumed that the resources are here,” she said. “It’s just finding out what’s accessible. It’s about relationship building.”

Residents who assume the need for assistance is minimal in a flourishing community such as Scarborough are incorrect, Rollo said. She said representatives from the town, which allocates several thousand dollars for home heating assistance programs each year, are hoping the Neighbors Helping Neighbors Program to fill in the gaps where municipal dollars cannot. 

“The [state] income average is pretty low, but Scarborough’s isn’t,” Town Councilor Judy Roy said. “There’s not a lot of low-income housing [in Scarborough]. I think a lot of times there are more people of need in Scarborough than we realize.”

Kelley said the Neighbors Helping Neighbors program has already formed a finance committee and was scheduled to nominate members from other non-profit groups such as the People’s Regional Opportunity Program (PROP) and the Scarborough Economic Development Corporation (SEDCO) to form a steering committee earlier this week. Kelley said he hopes the steering committee can determine how the new Neighbors Helping Neighbors program can most benefit those in need before winter is in full swing. 

“We want to bring in other group to be a part of this,” he said. “It’s still developing.”

However the new effort is organized, Kelley said it’s success will depend largely on those willing to “give back to the community,” as he has done by allowing Project G.R.A.C.E. to operate in an office adjacent to his business, rent free.

“They provide me with an ongoing supply of M&M’s,” Kelley said. “That’s enough.”

For more information on Project G.R.A.C.E. or the Neighbors Helping Neighbors initiative call 883-5111 or visit their Web site www.projectgracemaine.org.