CMP community mitten drive exceeds goal

AUGUSTA, Maine - Central Maine Power Company, a subsidiary of Iberdrola USA, distributed more than 9,500 winter clothing items to 180 schools during its tenth annual Community Mitten Drive, completed last month.

The utility partnered with WMTW Channel 8, Tim Hortons restaurants, and Marden’s and Reny’s retail stores in the effort to collect mittens, hats, and scarves for local children in need.

More than 10,000 winter clothing items were collected over the course of the project, exceeding the goal CMP set when the drive began last November.

“A donation of 500 pairs of mittens from Marden’s toward the end of the drive put us over the top, and we couldn’t be more pleased,” said CMP spokesperson Gail Rice. “There has always been a tremendous need for these items, so by exceeding our goal, we should have enough on hand next fall to distribute to children in need at the start of the cold weather season.”

CMP corresponds with schools throughout its service area to gauge the need for children’s mittens, hats, and scarves. Once received, the items are distributed to where they’re needed most. Employees from across the Company — from the corporate headquarters to personnel in Service Centers — are involved in the project.

CMP’s Community Mitten Drive traces its roots to a local effort started by a group of employees at the utility’s Portland Service Center. In 2004, the company decided to launch a larger program to cover children throughout its 11,000-square-mile service area in central and southern Maine.

The Mitten Drive is one of several community-service projects at CMP. Every year, the utility donates copies of award-winning books to more than 600 schools and libraries around the state. CMP and Iberdrola USA also support young people and learning through sponsorship of the Powerhouse program at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute, donations to Kennebec Valley Community College, and scholarship programs at the University of Maine.

“We have always felt that our responsibilities go beyond providing safe, reliable electric delivery service to our customers,” said CMP President Sara Burns. “We have a long tradition of being a good neighbor, and that begins with the people in the company. The Mitten Drive is just another way we all work together helping families and communities.”