Biddeford and Mechanics Savings
Auburn, ME · EIN 85-1674412. Reported 134 grants totalling $742,139 to 66 organizations across tax years 2020-2024. This foundation did not tell the IRS it funds only preselected organizations.
Does this foundation accept applications?
Yes -- on its own tax return. Form 990-PF asks every private foundation whether it makes grants only to organizations it selects itself. Of the 91,758 foundations in our data that made a grant and answered, 78% said yes -- and applying to those is wasted effort. Biddeford and Mechanics Savings did not check that box on its most recent filing, which puts it in the minority that is at least open to being approached.
How big are its grants?
The median grant is $4,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $2,500 and $5,000; the smallest was $500 and the largest $42,437. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong foundation.
Every organization it funded
This is the complete list from its filings, largest first. Years funded is the number of separate tax years in which the organization received money -- more than one means a real relationship rather than a one-off.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Way of Southern Maine | Portland, ME | $72,437 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| My Place Teen Center | Westbrook, ME | $72,001 | 5 | 5 | 2024 |
| Safe Voices | Auburn, ME | $41,666 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Trinity Jubilee Center | Lewiston, ME | $40,000 | 5 | 5 | 2024 |
| United Way of Androscoggin County | Lewiston, ME | $34,136 | 2 | 2 | 2021 |
| Sweetser | Saco, ME | $30,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Good Shepherd Food Bank | Auburn, ME | $23,000 | 5 | 5 | 2024 |
| Mainely Character | Portland, ME | $22,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| St Mary's Health System | Lewiston, ME | $21,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Tedford Housing | Brunswick, ME | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| United Way of York County | Kennebunk, ME | $16,699 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Biddeford Food Pantry | Biddeford, ME | $15,000 | 5 | 5 | 2024 |
| Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program Inc | Brunswick, ME | $15,000 | 5 | 5 | 2024 |
| Saco Food Pantry | Saco, ME | $15,000 | 5 | 5 | 2024 |
| Tree Street Youth | Lewiston, ME | $15,000 | 2 | 2 | 2021 |
| University of Southern Maine Foundation | Portland, ME | $15,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Church Community Outreach Services | Kennebunk, ME | $14,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Community Dental | Portland, ME | $14,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| First Congregational Church of Scarborough (food Pantry) | Scarborough, ME | $13,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| High Street Congregational Church (food Pantry) | Auburn, ME | $13,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Waterboro Community Pantry | East Waterboro, ME | $13,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Westbrook Community Food and Resource Center | Westbrook, ME | $13,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Opportunity Alliance | South Portland, ME | $12,500 | 2 | 2 | 2021 |
| Seeds of Hope Neighborhood Center | Biddeford, ME | $12,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Avesta Housing Management Corporation | Portland, ME | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Ecology Education Inc (aka the Ecology School) | Saco, ME | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Pleasant Street Drop-in | Portland, ME | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| The Drop-in Center | Poland, ME | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| University of New England | Biddeford, ME | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Stroudwater Christian Food Pantry | Portland, ME | $9,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Windham Food Pantry and Clothes Closet | Windham, ME | $9,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Androscoggin Home Healthcare & Hospice | Lewiston, ME | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Brunswick Housing Authority | Brunswick, ME | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Pine Tree Society | Auburn, ME | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Prosperityme | Portland, ME | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Southern Maine Agency on Aging | Biddeford, ME | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| The Locker Project | Portland, ME | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| The Rotary Foundation | Sherman Avenue, IL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Thornton Academy | Saco, ME | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Unitersity of New England | Biddeford, ME | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| City of Windham Food Pantry and Clothes Closet | Windham, ME | $4,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Community Outreach Services | Kennebunk, ME | $4,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| United Way of Greater Portland | Portland, ME | $3,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| York County Community College Foundation | Wells, ME | $2,700 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Boys & Girls Club of Southern Maine | Portland, ME | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| City Theater | Biddeford, ME | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| City of Lewiston School Departments | Lewiston, ME | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Heart of Biddeford | Biddeford, ME | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Bon Appetit Community Meal Program | Biddeford, ME | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Central Maine Community College Foundation (aka Cm Education Foundation) | Auburn, ME | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| City of Windham | Windham, ME | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Community Concepts | Lewiston, ME | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| First Congregational Church of Scarborough | Scarborough, ME | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Habitat for Humanity International Inc (ein 01-0460969) | Topsham, ME | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Habitat for Humanity York County | Kennebunk, ME | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| High Street Congregational Church | Auburn, ME | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Junior Achievement of Maine | Portland, ME | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Project Grace | Scarborough, ME | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Tedford Housingwarm Thy Neighbor | Brunswick, ME | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| United Way of Mid Coast Maine | Bath, ME | $2,000 | 2 | 2 | 2021 |
| Waterboro Food Pantry (aka Waterboro Community Pantry) | East Waterboro, ME | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Windham Neighbors Helping Neighbors | Windham, ME | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| York County Community Action | Biddeford, ME | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Friends of Waterboro Public Library | East Waterboro, ME | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Salvation Army National Corp | Alexandria, VA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Scarborough Economic Development Corporation | Scarborough, ME | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
29 of 66 (44%) received money in more than one year over the 5 years we hold.
Measured the way we measure every foundation -- what share of one year's grantees are funded again the next -- this one retains 70%, across 4 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is about typical. A high number means its list is close to settled and a newcomer has to displace someone; a low one means it is still moving money around, which is where an opening is.
What the money was for
Taken verbatim from the purpose field of its filings. This is the closest thing to a statement of what this foundation cares about, in its own words.
- United Way of Southern Maine
$17,437 support for local initiatives; $25,000 Keep ME Warm heating program - United Way of Androscoggin County
Support for local initiatives - Ecology Education Inc (aka the Ecology School)
Support for youth initiatives - St Mary's Health System
$5,000 to support health initiatives; $4,000 support for food and hunger issues - Opportunity Alliance
To support health, housing, hunger, and youth programs - Good Shepherd Food Bank
$5,000 for Paws for a Cause; $2,000 for the Stone Soup Food Pantry
What kind of organizations it funds
By the recipient's own IRS classification, for the 77 grants where we could identify the organization. These are assigned categories, not our guesses.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 37 | $118,098 | $2,000 |
| 2021 | 26 | $185,707 | $4,500 |
| 2022 | 22 | $120,000 | $4,500 |
| 2023 | 23 | $135,834 | $5,000 |
| 2024 | 26 | $182,500 | $5,000 |
Tax years, not calendar years, and the most recent year is usually incomplete -- filings arrive about a year late, so a low final year means late paperwork rather than a foundation winding down.
Where its money goes
Foundations concentrate geographically far more than their mission statements suggest. 99% of this one's giving went to organizations in Maine. If you are outside its footprint, that matters more than how well your programme fits.
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Funders that support the same organizations
These funders gave to organizations this one also funded -- some private foundations, some community foundations and other grantmaking charities. Shared grantees are the strongest available signal that two funders have overlapping priorities, and a funder already backing your peers is a far warmer prospect than one that merely lists your cause.
How to approach this foundation
- Check you are its size. The median grant is $4,000. Asking for ten times that is the most common way small organizations waste a submission.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving is concentrated in Maine.
- Read the recipient list above for organizations like yours. If nothing on it resembles your work, that is a real answer, and a cheap one to get.
- Look up the current filing before writing. The 990-PF names the foundation's officers and, where one exists, its application procedure. We link it below.
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from Biddeford and Mechanics Savings's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 5 returns (tax years 2020-2024). Nothing here is scraped, inferred, or estimated.
Address of record on the latest return: Po Box 400, Auburn, ME, 04212. This is the address the foundation gave the IRS; many small foundations file through an accountant or a bank trust department, so it may not be where post to a programme officer should go.
EIN 85-1674412 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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