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United Midcoast Charities is hoping demand for a vintage sea otter T-shirt recently worn by Taylor Swift will help keep families fed in Knox and Waldo counties as food insecurity rises.

From Saturday through Nov. 13 — Swift’s favorite number — UMC will take online bids to auction off a reprint of the 1990s T-shirt that the pop superstar wore in her new film, “The Official Release Party of a Showgirl.”

UMC announced the auction fundraiser on Friday as two federal judges ruled almost simultaneously that the Trump administration cannot suspend Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, which were on track to lapse Saturday during the federal shutdown. The impact of the rulings is unclear because both are likely to be appealed.

Liberty Graphics, a screen-printing company in the Midcoast town of Liberty, is cranking out 35,000 copies of the T-shirt as thank-you gifts to donors who have already contributed $2.3 million to a separate fundraiser for the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Amanda Gallion folds a freshly screen-printed vintage otter T-shirt as she places it on a conveyer belt at Liberty Graphics. (Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer)

An anonymous local Swiftie got hold of an early reprint and donated it to UMC, said spokesperson Eileen McGuigan.

All money raised through the auction will go to UMC’s Urgent Grants Pool to help feed families through the months ahead.

“Because no parent should have to wonder how to feed their kids next week,” McGuigan said in an emailed statement. “Every bid helps provide real relief for families who are feeling the strain.”

Based in Camden, UMC provides financial and organizational support to over 40 nonprofits in Knox and Waldo Counties that address food and economic insecurity, housing needs and health and safety issues.

To enter a bid starting Nov. 1, visit unitedmidcoastcharities.org/ottertee.

Kelley writes about some of the most critical aspects of Maine’s economy and future growth, including transportation, immigration, retail and small business, commercial development and tourism, with...

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