More than 75 teams came out to Bowl for Kids’ Sake May 9-16 in Hallowell and Skowhegan to support local youth mentoring programs in Kennebec and Somerset counties. The annual event, sponsored by Hannaford Supermarkets and Camden National Bank, raised more than $70,000 for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Mid-Maine. Proceeds from Bowl for Kids’ Sake will directly support the agency’s school, site and community-based, 1-to-1 mentoring programs that serve more than 260 children facing adversity in the Kennebec Valley region, according to a news release from BBBS of Mid-Maine.

Little Sister Katie Maxwell took part in the Kennebec Valley Bowl for Kids’ Sake May 9-16 in Hallowell and Skowhegan. Photo courtesy of Bi Brothers Big Sisters of Mid-Maine

The local bowling fundraiser is among four regional Bowl for Kids’ Sake events held in the Midcoast, Androscoggin County and a final event slated for early November in Penobscot County. The event is Big Brothers Big Sisters’ largest annual fundraising effort, expected to raise $260,000 to support 700 children in coastal, eastern and central Maine.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Mid-Maine’s Executive Director Gwendolyn Hudson said funds raised at Bowl for Kids’ Sake are critical in the agency’s work to create and support strong and enduring relationships between children facing adversity (littles) and their teen and adult mentors (bigs).

“We are very grateful for the generosity of our sponsors, volunteers and the many teams who came out to support local kids through Bowl for Kids’ Sake,” Hudson said, according to the release. “When you support Big Brothers Big Sisters, you help clear the path to a child’s greatest possible future. We couldn’t do it without our community.”

Bowl for Kids’ Sake helps fund local site and school-based programs pairing children with high school mentors from Skowhegan, Messalonskee, Waterville Senior, Winslow, Lawrence, Cony and Gardiner Area high schools. The program also supports community-based matches between children and adults throughout Kennebec and Somerset counties.

2019 Kennebec Valley Bowl for Kids’ Sake Top Fundraisers

Top three individual fundraisers and single teams:
• Nate Cotnoir — $1,030.36 (team total $2,000.16);
• Terry Spenard-Church — $1,124 (team total $1,164.80); and
• Kate Weymouth — $655 (team total $766.66).

Top three fundraising businesses (multiple teams):
• Hannaford Supermarkets — $11,443.32;
• New Balance — $8,923.96; and
• Camden National Bank — $5,559.42.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Mid-Maine changes the lives of 700 children facing adversity in Androscoggin, Kennebec, Knox, Lincoln, Penobscot, Somerset, and Waldo counties for the better, forever by providing strong and enduring, professionally supported, one-to-one relationships. By partnering with parents, volunteers and organizations, children in the program have higher aspirations, greater confidence, develop better relationships, avoid risky behaviors and achieve educational success.