Newsletter: June, 2025
A Note from Our Executive Director
Dear Supporters and Community Members,
Over the last several months, we have been closely watching the current administration and the changes they advise. Initially, New Hope was directly impacted by the federal funding freezes. However, after outcries from our supporters both locally and nationally, the funds were released for their intended use including providing rental support for domestic violence victims and their families.
We have been working in concert with the Maine Coalition to End Domestic Violence, our statewide coalition, to advocate for the passage of several bills in Maine. Funding these bills during the 2025 session will help to sustain our services statewide. On April 29, Domestic Violence Awareness Day at the Statehouse, all of the Regional Domestic Violence Resource Center Executive Directors met with Governor Janet Mills to express our concern regarding continuation of funding for our critical efforts.
As we seek to ensure continued funding, we want to let you know that this year's Matching Challenge was a great success! In March, three area businesses generously provided $22,500 as the base for our match. These businesses were Allen Insurance and Financial, Cold Mountain Builders, Inc., and Eastern Tire & Auto Service, Inc. In April, we asked members of our communities to match this initial donation. All of you truly showed up! We exceeded our goal and are thrilled to state that the final amount was an astounding $53,250.45! Thank you to everyone for showing your support of services.
Lastly, we look forward to celebrating our popular and fun, annual Shop for Hope sale with all of you. Please see below for further details regarding this event below. VIP tickets for the first night on Thursday, July 10 are on sale now. Community Shopping Days on July 11 and 12 offer free entrance and are open to everyone!
Do you know someone who would like to receive our newsletter and announcements? Please have them click here or they can email Joan at .
Thank you for your continued support!
With gratitude,
Rebekah
Shop for Hope is July 10-12: VIP Tickets are on Sale Now!
This community favorite annual fundraiser comes to the Flanagan Community Center in Rockland July 10-12, and features items from EILEEN FISHER, Jill McGowan, and several generous local boutiques. Community Shopping Days are Friday and Saturday, July 11 and 12 from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. with free entrance. VIP Night featuring first selection, delicate and tasty sweet and savory hors d’oeuvres and wine, a silent auction, and bags with locally-sourced treats is Thursday, July 10 from 5:00-7:00 p.m.
Click here to purchase required VIP Night tickets. Please know that there are no physical tickets. We will have a list at the door. If you are buying tickets for others, please email with their names and contacts so that we can be sure to put them on the list. Thank you.
We need many hands to make this event a success. If you would like to volunteer for a shift or two, click here for our Volunteer Form to see available shifts. Just select the shifts you'd like to work and click submit. We will be in touch with a reminder.
We thank you for your generosity and look forward to seeing everyone in July!
Community Conversations with LCTV
LCTV recently featured our Executive Director, Rebekah Paredes, in their April 25 edition of Community Conversations. Click here to listen to Rebekah speak about our services, agency history and evolution, recent and upcoming events, and the federal funding challenges that plague so many nonprofits including New Hope Midcoast.
Our Helpline and Volunteers
New Hope staff recently offered our 44-hour training for three new staff members, one intern, and four volunteers. Comprehensive Advocacy, Intervention, Response and Ethics Training (CAIRET) teaches advocates how to support and empower people who call our 24-hour helpline. Participants learn about safety planning, available resources, the extensive impact of domestic abuse, and intersecting concerns that can impact domestic abuse like substance use, homelessness, and mental health issues.
We could not maintain our 24-hour helpline without our team of volunteers. To learn more about volunteering on our helpline, please email our Residential Director, Hannah Harter-Ives at . Thank you!
Legal Advocacy
Since the start of our new fiscal year, our legal advocacy team has provided client support including court accompaniment, assistance with completing Protection From Abuse Orders (PFAs), and assisting with parental rights. The team has also:
- Hosted an Alert, Lockdown, Inform, and Evaluate (ALICE) training on responding to active shooters and critical incidents for all staff. Presenters from the Waldo County Sheriff’s Office guided staff through four hours of didactic and hands-on instruction. This training is commonly used in schools and businesses around the country.
- Provided a presentation/training on New Hope’s services and on safety planning for the Regional Sexual Assault Forensic Examiner’s (SAFE nurses) who cover Waldo County General Hospital, Penobscot Bay Medical Center, and Lincoln County: Miles Campus. Nurses found the training very helpful and felt better-equipped to support survivors.
- Held our quarterly Midcoast Coordinated Community Response/Sexual Assault Response Team meeting. More than forty attendees discussed Yellow and Red Flag Laws and the benefits of removing weapons from individuals who present a safety threat.
Education
Maine Council for Elder Abuse Prevention (MCEAP)'s 2025 Elder Abuse Summit
Community Educator Hillary Waterman along with Pen Bay SAFE Nurse, Julie LeBlanc, offered a presentation and moderated a panel on Domestic Abuse in Later Life.
Hillary reviewed common elements of domestic abuse such as coercive control, and highlighted the intersectional nature of partner abuse in later life, and the way that culturally dominant ageist and sexist attitudes work to enable and hide abuse. Julie focused on the healthcare system as a critical way by which many older adults regularly encounter professionals who are in a position to both observe private dynamics of abuse and signs of maltreatment, and potentially intervene.
Christian Behr, Investigator, Kennebec and Somerset County District Attorney’s Office, Patricia Kimball, Executive Director, Elder Abuse Institute of Maine, Quinn Gormley, Equity and Access Coordinator, Maine Coalition Against Sexual Assault, Randi Clatchey, Domestic Abuse Homicide Review Panel Coordinator, Office of the Attorney General, and Lisa Marchese, Deputy Attorney General/Domestic Abuse Homicide Review Panel Chair, Office of the Attorney General served as panelists. These experts shared the prevalence, detection, and nuanced response to domestic abuse in later life. A robust discussion and Q&A followed.
Creating Communities of Compassion:
Our Film and Panel Discussion in Damariscotta
Community of Hope Articles
Everyone Needs a Place to be Safe by Hillary Waterman, Community Prevention Educator
Domestic Abuse in the Workplace: From Vulnerable to Valuable by Joan LeMole, Development Director