Sari Greene, left, founder of the South Portland Community of Kindness, and Eric Boutiette accept donations of requested food items at Kaler School. The donations were provided by the South Portland Food Cupboard. Sari Greene courtesy photo
SOUTH PORTLAND — A local charitable resource that allows people to receive and offer assistance in the same place has been expanding and shifting through the entirety of the COVID-19 pandemic in Maine.
The South Portland Community of Kindness Facebook page, created last year on March 14, was the brainchild of Sari Greene, a South Portland resident, said Betsy Wakefield, Facebook page administrator. The page has grown to more than 2,000 members.
With a focus on neighbor-to-neighbor assistance, the South Portland Community of Kindness offers people ways to both give and receive help without creating a huge distinction between the two, Greene said. The page has also become a resource hub for local organizations.
“We’ve all been in a place where we’ve needed something and we’ve all been in a place when we can give something,” Greene said. “Everybody really gets to fill both those roles very comfortably, where they can be a giver and a receiver.”
Greene created the page right as the pandemic was beginning to impact Mainers, she said. As the months have passed, so have the needs being met through the page members.
“When I’m thinking about the past year of the group, I think about how much it also tracks to the pandemic,” Greene said. “That’s why we started, to be a resource as we navigate the pandemic, but also early on, it’s a lot about doing errands for each other and dealing with isolation and finding housing for medical workers that were coming to our community.”
Later on, people began sharing resources, items like books, materials, pet food or even ideas for homeschooling, Greene said.
“And then tracking with the pandemic, as we saw more of an economic impact, it became more about helping each other out, celebrating birthdays or holidays, gifts, meals cakes, and we’re still seeing that because obviously there’s an economic impact that’s continuing,” she said.
People now have been helping one another with vaccination registration, she said.
Wakefield, who reached out the Greene about a month after the page was created with interest in administrating, said she likes being able to feel like she can help others even when she’s busy.
“What’s great about the group is that there’s no pressure,” Wakefield said. “We all have things going on in our lives, and maybe right now you don’t have time to give, but the great thing about the group is there’s always opportunity. It’s never-ending.
“Even if right now you feel overwhelmed or busy, you may see a (Facebook) post and think, ‘Oh, I can do that. That’s 10 mins or 15 minutes.’ We’ve had community members offering to mow people’s lawns where they were in a situation where they couldn’t do it themselves.”
A birthday cake baked by Bella Durost, 11, and her family for a 7-year-old boy she had never met. The activity was coordinated through South Portland Community of Kindness. Sari Greene courtesy photo
The group allows people to do kind deeds for others, even something as simple as helping with a birthday celebration.
“We had a family who was going through a rough time and they had a 7-year-old who had a birthday coming up and they put out a request for a cake,” she said. “I ended up getting cake and gifts, and I had so many requests within the first 20 minutes, including a wonderful 11-year-old girl who baked a fantastic cake for the 7-year-old boy. It was really beautiful. She did a great job.”
Winter coats that a member of South Portland Community of Kindness who works in retail had been quietly purchasing as they go on sale. The group connected her with a community partner who serves homeless and home insecure families for distribution. Courtesy photo Sari Greene
South Portland Community of Kindness has filled a void in the community, said Councilor April Caricchio. One of the most important needs that the page meets is food assistance and spreading information about the food pantry.
“It takes a little bit of the stigma away to say, ‘OK, this is available as a resource for people, and people are encouraged to utilize it,” she said. “It plays a big role in getting the word out that way.”
The message of neighborly love has spread across the city border as well, Greene said.
Cape Kindness, a page for Cape Elizabeth residents to provide or receive assistance, started in October and has surpassed 300 members, Elise Bridge, one of the page’s creators said.
Amy Lombardo, Cape Elizabeth resident, was the impetus for the page’s creation, and Terri Patterson, resident, was also a founder, Bridge said.
Bridge likes the diversity and expansion of the South Portland Community of Kindness page, she said.
South Portland Community of Kindness has also organized three different local initiatives, the South Portland Food Cupboard Delivery Brigade, SoPo Cooks! and Hi Neighbor Door Hangers, Greene said.
Twice a month, the South Portland Food Cupboard Delivery Brigade, a group of volunteers from the South Portland Community of Kindness page, delivers groceries from the South Portland Food Cupboard to homebound residents of the South Portland Housing Authority, Greene said.
“We started this in March when the (housing authority) stopped running their van due to COVID-19,” Greene said. “We serve residents who are either without transportation or are concerned about venturing out during the pandemic. The commitment is about an hour. You arrive at the South Portland Food Cupboard. We load your car with groceries for one or two households who are expecting you – and you deliver it to their doors.”
SoPo Cooks!, an initiative started by Greene, has grown into a volunteer group of over 60 people, said Joanna Love, SoPo Cooks! team leader.
The program was launched in December and is in partnership with Maine Meal Assistance.
“Once a week, we are delivering home cooked meals to South Portland and Cape Elizabeth residents who are either food insecure, without adequate cooking facilities or are unable to cook for themselves due to age, disability or illness,” Greene said. “We currently have 60-plus volunteer cooks, bakers and deliverers serving 32 households, 80 plus meals, each week and our request list keeps growing.”
Love said someone interested in volunteering doesn’t need to be an experienced cook or baker. The team makes nutritious homecooked meals with food donations from the South Portland Food Cupboard.
Food can be a great way for people to heal, Love said.
“Personally, I found the pandemic to be very isolating, I think many of us did and still do,” Love said. “And while the work in the kitchen is done individually, there is great camaraderie through photo, recipe and idea sharing and encouragement for volunteers who are trying a new role they may not be totally comfortable with.”
People are also welcome to reach out to SoPo Cooks! if they need assistance or want to volunteer, Love said. They can navigate to the program through the Maine Meal Assistance Facebook page or South Portland Community of Kindness page.
The Hi Neighbor Door Hangers program was a response to the overwhelming feelings of isolation and loneliness brought on by the pandemic, Greene said.
“(W)e printed 2,000 Hi Neighbor Door Hangers that invite neighbors to be in touch if they need assistance with errands and/or just want to have a chat,” she said. “This is a hyper-neighborhood local initiative with neighbors providing their contact info to their neighbors.”
In South Portland, there are a great number of people who are interested in helping others, Wakefield said. The page is a resource for not only those who need help, but those who are looking to assist others.
“What’s nice about (the page) is that it’s really become neighbor-to-neighbor,” Wakefield said. “Facebook and all social media, it can feel both like you know people really well, but it can also feel like a barrier of getting to know people. What’s great about this is it gives you the chance to maybe get out of your comfort zone a little bit and go and interact with your neighbors.”
When asked what the future holds for the South Portland Community of Kindness, Greene said the answer is simple.
“We will continue to be there for one other,” Greene said.
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