In addition to a cash award of $5,000, Friends of Casco Bay also received a hand-carved award created by Burnham woodworker James Macdonald of the nonprofit Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport.

A Blue Ribbon panel, comprised of Maine funders, business leaders and members of the nonprofit community, selected Friends of Casco Bay based on its on-going organizational learning and sound and innovative management practices that contributed to positive, tangible outcomes related to its mission to protect the Bay.

“The selection committee was very impressed with the sound management practices coupled with ingenuity and creativity demonstrated by the winners,” said Scott Schnapp, MANP Executive Director. “The nonprofit sector plays a significant economic, social and cultural role in Maine. The scarcity of resources facing Maine nonprofits is real, but despite those limitations, MANP is continually impressed by the adaptability, creativity and ingenuity demonstrated by  Maine’s nonprofit sector.”

The Awards for Nonprofit Excellence program, launched for the first time this year, is built upon a new series of assessment and capacity building tools, called the Guiding Principles and Practices of Nonprofit Excellence in Maine that were created by MANP and underwritten by the Maine Community Foundation.

“We created these tools and this awards program to support the nonprofits in our state, and to address issues of capacity and accountability,” explains Schnapp. “We encourage all nonprofits to utilize these practices to identify areas where they need to focus their efforts to meet mission-related goals.”

Wiscasset-based Coastal Enterprises Inc., and Winter Harbor-based Schoodic Arts for All were recipients of the second and third cash awards of $3,000 and $2,000 respectively. Bangor-based Eastern Area Agency on Aging, Portland based Winter Kids and the Portland Symphony received Honorable Mentions.

The Maine Association of Nonprofits advances, connects, and strengthens Maine nonprofits by providing training and educational programs, services, and resources, and advocating for the sector overall. To find out more about the Annual Award for Nonprofit Excellence at www.nonprofitmaine.org.