Deadline for LGBTQ project, Maine rural arts grants is Sept. 15

PORTLAND — The deadlines for two separate grants for nonprofits administered by the Maine Community Foundation is Sept. 15.

The foundation’s Equity Fund is accepting applications from nonprofit organizations for project and capacity-building grants that address lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) issues and needs.
The Maine Expansion Arts Fund is accepting applications from nonprofits for grants of up to $5,000 that support indigenous, ethnic or rural arts programs or projects, particularly those that serve areas with limited access to arts events.
The Equity Fund helps strengthen LGBTQ organizations in Maine and supports initiatives that work toward inclusive, diverse, prejudice-free communities for the LGBTQ population and all people in Maine. Grant awards of up to $7,500 are available with priority given to projects and organizations that increase access to health care or reduce health disparities; reduce race-based disparities or barriers to opportunities; reduce violence and/or harassment; promote respect and understanding; and involve people who identify as LGTBQ. Recent Equity Fund grants were awarded to:
* Portland Outright, to advocate for, empower and support LGBTQ+ youth in contact with the juvenile justice system to improve their well-being and address the issue of LGBTQ+ criminalization;
* Health Equity Alliance, to support programming at a community center without walls for LGBTQ+ youth and adults in northern and Downeast Maine;
* Mabel Wadsworth Women’s Health Center, to increase and strengthen access to safe health care for LGBTQ people in rural Maine with an emphasis on transgender care for the uninsured.

The Maine Expansion Arts Fund is a collaborative effort of the National Endowment for the Arts, Lillian M. Berliawsky Charitable Trust, Maine Community Foundation, and Maine Arts Commission to strengthen and ensure the future of these artistic traditions. Additional funding is provided through the Elizabeth Laughlin Anderson Memorial Fund at the Maine Community Foundation.Recent grants were awarded to:
* Celebration Barn Theater, to collaborate with Norway Downtown to create an interactive performance;
* Gateway Milbridge, for free weekly musical performances at Gateway Theatre;
* The Committee to Restore the Abyssinian Meeting House, Portland, to research period clothing, create costumes, and develop a script for a one-act play about the Underground Railroad.
Online applications for both grand programs are available at www.mainecf.org.