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Friday, January 01, 2010
12:00 AM
Zachary Ball of Farmington, Maine is the 2,500th Alfond Baby
Augusta, ME – On July 17, 2009, Zachary Ball was born at Maine Medical Center in Portland, ME. On December 28, 2009, at only 5 months old, Zachary received a head start on his college education when he became the 2,500th Maine baby to receive the $500 Harold Alfond College Challenge Grant. As with all of Maine’s resident babies under one year of age, Zachary was eligible for a $500 grant from the Alfond Scholarship Foundation to start a NextGen College Investing Plan® (NextGen®) account. His parents, Nicole and Isaac Ball of Farmington, learned of the program through publicity earlier in the year while Nicole was expecting Zachary. Nicole thought it was too good an idea to pass up and completed the application to receive the grant because she was already thinking about saving for college; she wasn’t sure she could start so soon with her own resources, however. Mrs. Ball said, “It’s never too early to start saving. I think if you don’t start right away, you forget how quickly time passes and, the next thing you know, they are off to school.”
Zachary’s mom, Nicole, is a kindergarten teacher and his dad, Isaac, is a physician’s assistant at Franklin Memorial Hospital. “We are just getting on our feet from our own school loans and we would like Zachary to have a better experience paying for college; we hope to add to these savings in the future,” says Nicole.
Nicole thinks about her son growing up and says, “When Zachary turns 18 and is considering his own future plans, we’ll be able to say, ‘When you were young, we enrolled you in this program so you could have college savings.’”
Beloved, late Maine philanthropist Harold Alfond, former owner of Dexter Shoe Company, established the program before he passed away in November 2007 to ensure access to higher education for all Maine’s children. There is no income limit or need for families to contribute their own money to receive the grant. A NextGen account must be opened for the baby by the baby’s first birthday to receive the Alfond Grant.
Elizabeth Vanderweide, Program Manager for the Harold Alfond College Challenge, says the number of families enrolling their babies in the program is meeting program goals. “About 15% of 2009 Maine babies born are already enrolled, but each baby has until their first birthday to enroll – so many more are expected to take the opportunity. Although no initial or subsequent contributions are required to receive the Alfond Grant, what is really impressive is that 25% of families have already made the investment in their child by making further contributions.”
Mr. Alfond’s legacy gift to Maine is extraordinary, the only one of its kind in the nation. The Harold Alfond College Challenge is a program sponsored by the Alfond Scholarship Foundation and is administered by the Finance Authority of Maine (FAME). Vanderweide says, “The success of the program is attributable not only to Mr. Alfond’s generosity and love for Maine, but to the help from the champion hospitals, physicians, child care providers, employers and parents who spread the word that this program is real and not too good to be true.”
FAME staff is available and happy to answer questions and help people complete the necessary paperwork to receive the $500 Alfond grant. “Most people complete the paperwork in about 15 minutes or less,” says Vanderweide.
The Alfond Grant, including any earnings on the funds, may only be used for qualified higher education expenses at any accredited postsecondary school or program; including certificate programs, trade schools, associate, bachelor and master degrees, and some foreign institutions that participate in certain federal financial aid programs.1 For more information on the Harold Alfond College Challenge, please call (800) 228-3734 or visit www.500forbaby.org.
1 To be eligible for the favorable tax treatment afforded to any earnings portion of withdrawals from Section 529 accounts, withdrawals must be for “qualified higher education expenses,” as defined in the Internal Revenue Code.
About the Alfond Scholarship Foundation
The Alfond Scholarship Foundation is a nonprofit corporation established specifically to sponsor and support the Harold Alfond College Challenge. This new foundation is a partnership of organizations and individuals who truly embrace Mr. Alfond’s philosophy, and includes representatives from the Maine Compact for Higher Education, FAME, the University of Maine System, the Maine Community College System, the Maine Community Foundation, the Mitchell Institute, and at-large members that include representatives from MaineGeneral Health and the Maine Hospital Association. To learn more about the Harold Alfond College Challenge, please visit www.500forbaby.org.
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Thursday, October 01, 2009
12:00 AM
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Tuesday, September 01, 2009
12:00 AM
2009 - 2010 HAROLD ALFOND COLLEGE CHALLENGE FACT SHEET
What is the Harold Alfond College Challenge?
The Harold Alfond College Challenge is an unprecedented higher education grant program that provides a $500 grant to start a NextGen® College Investing Plan account for all Maine resident babies (see restriction below). The Harold Alfond College Challenge is the nation’s first statewide philanthropic scholarship grant program,
launched right here in Maine!
What is the goal of the Harold Alfond College Challenge?
The goal of the Harold Alfond College Challenge is to give every Maine resident baby a start toward a promising future. With the $500 grant, parents can begin to help their children pursue education beyond high school. Starting an account now, with the ability to contribute as the child grows, is a great way to help put him on the road to success.
Who can receive the $500 grants?
Maine resident babies born on or after January 1, 2009, including babies who are adopted by Maine parents or whose parents move to Maine before the baby’s first birthday are eligible to receive the Harold Alfond College Challenge grant. Also, Maine babies born at MaineGeneral Medical Center in 2008 who are under 1 year of age are eligible. There are no income limits and, while there is no requirement to add to the accounts, it was Mr.
Alfond’s hope that families and businesses and possibly even communities would continue contributing to children’s NextGen® college savings accounts.
Who Administers the Harold Alfond College Challenge?
The Harold Alfond College Challenge is administered by the Finance Authority of Maine (FAME) which is also the program administrator of NextGen, Maine’s Section 529 plan. FAME is a quasiindependent state agency that provides innovative financial solutions to help Maine people and businesses pursue educational and business opportunities. To learn more about FAME, please visit www.famemaine.com.
What is the Alfond Scholarship Foundation?
The Alfond Scholarship Foundation is a nonprofit foundation established specifically to sponsor and support the Harold Alfond College Challenge. The foundation is a partnership of organizations and individuals who truly embrace Mr. Alfond’s philosophy, and includes representatives from the Maine Compact for Higher Education, FAME, the University of Maine System, the Maine Community College System, the Maine Community Foundation, the Mitchell Institute, and at large representatives from MaineGeneral Health and the Maine Hospital Association.
Who was Harold Alfond?
Harold Alfond is the late business entrepreneur, founder of Dexter Shoe Company, and Maine philanthropist who established the Harold Alfond Foundation, the first private foundation in Maine, in 1950. Mr. Alfond had a lifelong commitment to the people of Maine and was deeply committed to his charitable causes. He brought a business mindset to his philanthropy by partnering with organizations he felt were well run and had important missions, and by fostering teamwork and partnerships through his matching challenge grants. His giving focused on education and health care, especially programs for youth. He had a personal practice to open college funds for his grandchildren upon their birth, providing the impetus for the Harold Alfond College Challenge, his legacy gift to every Maine baby.
How can parents get more information about the Harold Alfond College Challenge?
Parents may request NextGen® enrollment materials be mailed to them directly or they may download the materials by going to www.500forbaby.org. Families may also call FAME at (800)228-3734 or email FAME at info@500forbaby.org. Information sessions to assist people in completing the NextGen account enrollment form are also regularly scheduled throughout the State.
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Tuesday, September 01, 2009
12:00 AM
2009-2010
HAROLD ALFOND COLLEGE CHALLENGE: BACKGROUNDER
Launched in Maine in 2008, the Harold Alfond College Challenge is the nation’s first statewide philanthropic scholarship grant program. Continuing the late philanthropist Harold Alfond’s lifelong commitment to education, the Harold Alfond College Challenge provides all Maine resident babies with a $500 grant to start a NextGen College Investing Plan ® account for education beyond high school.
The Harold Alfond College Challenge is sponsored by the Alfond Scholarship Foundation, a partnership of organizations and individuals which truly embraces Mr. Alfond’s support of higher education, and includes representatives from the Maine Compact for Higher Education, the Finance Authority of Maine (FAME), the University of Maine System, the Maine Community Foundation, the Mitchell Institute, and atlarge representatives from MaineGeneral Health and the Maine Hospital Association.
The Harold Alfond College Challenge was piloted in 2008 at MaineGeneral Medical Center in partnership with FAME, reaching out to the more than 1,200 babies born at the Augusta and Waterville hospitals in 2008. Nearly 60% of those babies are already enrolled. In 2009, with the assistance of the Maine Hospital Association, the Challenge was extended statewide to all Maine resident babies born on or after January 1, 2009 who are enrolled by their first birthdays. FAME provides ongoing administration of the Harold Alfond College Challenge. Over 1,400 babies are already enrolled.
To help families prepare for higher education, Alfond Grant recipients will receive quarterly communications with information about the value of aspiring to higher education, college savings and other related topics. For more information on the Harold Alfond College Challenge please call (800) 228-3734 or visit www.500forbaby.org.
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Saturday, August 01, 2009
12:00 AM
BIOGRAPHY:
HAROLD ALFOND
Most describe him as having been modest, easygoing and affable. He considered himself a regular, hardworking guy and was usually seen wearing a ball-cap and casual clothing. Looking at his cheerful, smiling face, you would never have guessed he was one of the wealthiest and most generous people in Maine.Born to Russian immigrants in 1914, Harold Alfond grew up in the small town of Swampscott, Massachusetts. After high school, he turned down an athletic scholarship to Dartmouth College, instead following his father into the working world. He got a job at Kesslen Shoe Company in Kennebunk, Maine and, in short time, rose from odd shoe boy to factory superintendent. According to legend, Harold’s big break came in 1940 when a hitchhiker told him about a vacant shoe factory in Norridgewock, Maine. With help from his father, he purchased it for $1,000. Four years later, Harold sold the company for $1.1 million.
In 1956, Harold Alfond purchased an old woolen mill in Dexter, Maine and began the Dexter Shoe Company. During the next 37 years, Dexter Shoe became one of the nation’s largest shoe manufacturers. With his nephew and business partner, Peter Lunder, Harold grew his business by investing in technology and developing innovative ways to sell shoes. In the mid-1960s, Harold opened a store at one of his factories and started selling factory-damaged and outdated inventory shoes to the general public. By the 1990s, the Dexter Factory Outlet chain had expanded to more than 80 stores. In 1993, at age 79, Harold sold Dexter Shoe to Berkshire Hathaway in an unprecedented deal with billionaire investor Warren Buffet.
Although he had a long and illustrious business career, Harold Alfond’s name is synonymous with generosity in Maine. Harold began his charitable endeavors early in his career. In 1950, he established the Harold Alfond Foundation, the first private foundation in Maine. Harold is credited with bringing a business mindset to the world of philanthropy; choosing only organizations he felt were well run and had important missions. He was deeply committed to his charitable causes and, because of his love for sports and strong belief in education and health care, he tended to support athletic facilities, academic buildings and hospitals, including his long-standing and intimate relationship with MaineGeneral Medical Center. While building his business, Harold Alfond was also busy building his family. He married Dorothy “Bibby” Levine in 1943. Together they raised four children, Ted, Susan, Bill and Peter, and passed on their strong sense of family unity to their many grandchildren and great grandchildren. The whole family often gathers for extended summer holidays in Belgrade Lakes, Maine. Throughout their life together, Bibby was a partner in all of Harold’s charitable giving. Their works influenced the entire family, who continue to support their own cases as a tribute to the lessons they learned from Harold and Bibby.
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Tuesday, July 21, 2009
12:00 AM
Caitlyn Ann Doucette of Avon, Maine is the 1,000th Alfond Baby
Augusta, ME – On February 21, 2009 Caitlyn Ann Doucette was born at Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington, Maine. On July 21, 2009, Caitlyn got a head start on her college education when she became the 1,000th baby to receive the Harold Alfond College Challenge $500 grant.
As with all of Maine’s babies born in 2009, Caitlyn was eligible for a $500 grant through the Harold Alfond College Challenge to start a NextGen College Investing Plan® account. Her parents, Melissa Cook and Christopher Doucette, learned of the program through news reports and the hospital. They completed the application to receive the grant because they want to give Caitlyn every opportunity to succeed. “I think it is very important to go to college,” said Caitlyn’s mother, Melissa Cook. “I went to college and I want her to go. With the support of the Alfond Grant, I had the motivation to get started.”
Caitlyn’s parents are hoping that she will grow up happy and able to do what she wants in the future, and they are hoping to continue to add to Caitlyn’s college savings account.
Beloved, late Maine philanthropist Harold Alfond, former owner of Dexter Shoe Company, established the program before he passed away in November 2007 to ensure access to higher education for all Maine’s children. There is no income limit or need for families to contribute their own money to receive the grant. Babies’ families must open a NextGen® account before the baby’s first birthday to receive the Alfond Grant. The Harold Alfond College Challenge is administered by the Finance Authority of Maine (FAME).
Elizabeth Vanderweide, Program Manager for the Harold Alfond College Challenge at FAME, is encouraged by the growing number of babies receiving the Alfond Grant. “The number of families completing the form to receive the Alfond Grant is growing fast – the program is becoming well known thanks to the great outreach work by hospitals, physician practices and community partners”, said Ms. Vanderweide. “Our challenge continues to be informing parents and families of this truly wonderful opportunity for their child’s future. Although people don’t have to contribute money to the account, many are eagerly adding to their child’s accounts, better preparing them for the future. FAME staff is ready and eager to help individuals complete the form should anyone need such assistance.”
The Alfond Grant, including all earnings on the funds, may only be used for qualified higher education expenses at any accredited postsecondary school; including graduate schools, trade schools, and some foreign institutions that participate in certain federal financial aid programs. Alfond Grant beneficiaries can pursue certificate programs, as well as associate, bachelor, master, doctoral and professional degrees beyond high school. The grant and its earnings must be used prior to the account beneficiary turning 28 years old. For more information on the Harold Alfond College Challenge, please call 800-228-3734 or visit www.500forbaby.org.
About the Alfond Scholarship Foundation
The Alfond Scholarship Foundation is a nonprofit corporation established specifically to sponsor and support the Harold Alfond College Challenge. This new foundation is a partnership of organizations and individuals who truly embrace Mr. Alfond’s philosophy, and includes representatives from the Maine Compact for Higher Education, FAME, the University of Maine System, the Maine Community College System, the Maine Community Foundation, the Mitchell Institute, and at-large members that include representatives from MaineGeneral Health and the Maine Hospital Association. To learn more about the Harold Alfond College Challenge, please visit www.500forbaby.org.
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Sunday, March 01, 2009
12:00 AM
OVER 1,000 MAINE FAMILIES HAVE REQUESTED
HAROLD ALFOND COLLEGE CHALLENGE GRANT INFORMATION
Occasion of Harold Alfond’s Birthday on March 6th is an opportunity
to give thanks and celebrate
Augusta, ME – FAME announced that over 1,000 Maine families have requested information to open a NextGen® College Investing Plan Account and receive their $500 Harold Alfond College Challenge grant for their newborns. The unprecedented college savings grant program awards a $500 grant to all Maine babies born on or after January 1, 2009 as long as an account is opened by the baby’s first birthday. The Harold Alfond College Challenge is administered by the Finance Authority of Maine (FAME) and is funded by the Harold Alfond Foundation.
“In the first two months over 1,000 parents have shown their commitment to their child’s future by submitting a request to receive the enrollment kits needed to open an account, and hundreds are filling out applications for their new arrivals,” said Elizabeth Vanderweide, Harold Alfond College Challenge Program Manager. “We’re delighted at the initial response. We owe much of the success to the support and assistance of our hospital partners who help by telling new parents about the program when they review paperwork while mom is still in the hospital.” FAME has been partnering with all of Maine’s hospitals and many physician practices and social service organizations to inform new parents of the Alfond Grant. The partners have taken the initiative of placing posters and brochures in their offices, mentioning the program to each individual patient and even hosting workshops.
“We’re so grateful for Mr. Alfond’s generosity and the commitment of each Maine hospital to help get the word out,” said Trish Malloy, Outreach Representative at FAME. “Mr. Alfond wanted to challenge communities and businesses to also help ensure that all Maine families aspire and invest in their children’s future, and Maine’s hospitals have been integral in transforming his vision into reality.” The Harold Alfond College Challenge made a special delivery to the maternity units of all of Maine’s hospitals on Friday, March 6th as a modest thank you for their efforts to date. “Mr. Alfond’s Birthday is a great time to honor this legacy gift, and remind families of the significance of their child’s first birthday which is the deadline by which the NextGen account must be opened in order to receive the Alfond Grant,” says Vanderweide. Hospitals and FAME are hosting workshops to help families around the state complete the application, for a calendar of these events go to www.500forbaby.org. For more information on the Harold Alfond College Challenge please call 800-228-3734 or visit www.500forbaby.org.
About the Alfond Scholarship Foundation
The Alfond Scholarship Foundation is a nonprofit corporation established specifically to sponsor and support the Harold Alfond College Challenge. This new foundation is a partnership of organizations and individuals who truly embrace Mr. Alfond’s philosophy, and includes representatives from the Maine Compact for Higher Education, FAME, the University of Maine System, the Maine Community College System, the Maine Community Foundation, the Mitchell Institute, and at-large members that include representatives from MaineGeneral Health and the Maine Hospital Association. To learn more about the Harold Alfond College Challenge, please visit www.500forbaby.org.
About the Finance Authority of Maine (FAME)
FAME is a quasi-independent state agency that provides innovative financial solutions to help Maine people and businesses pursue educational and business opportunities. Established in 1983, FAME is committed to innovative, flexible financial solutions that address the needs of Maine individuals and companies in a changing economic landscape. FAME is the administrator of the Harold Alfond College Challenge. To learn more about FAME, please visit www.famemaine.com
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Thursday, January 01, 2009
12:00 AM