A $100,000 donation from Central Maine Power to Portland-based nonprofit Full Plates Full Potential will help provide students across the state with access to meals while schools are closed.

Many Maine schools are entering their fifth week of closures to stop the spread of the coronavirus and have set up meal sites to distribute food students would normally be getting through their school districts.

In normal times, more than 80,000 Maine students rely on school meals as their primary nutrition, according to a news release Thursday from Full Plates Full Potential.

“Our guiding principle is that no child should go hungry,” said Justin Alfond, co-founder of the organization in the release. “During this crisis, more than ever, school meals are the first and best safety net for kids.”

CMP’s donation will help cover the cost of food as well as equipment like coolers and packaging materials to ensure proper food safety. It is estimated the funding will support 125 schools in providing access to more than 51,000 students.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has uprooted the daily routines and meal security of school children across our state,” said David Flanagan, executive chairman of CMP. “We are grateful that we are able to join forces with Full Plates Full Potential, an organization that knows how to work with existing childhood nutrition programs to get food to the kids.”

 

 

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