Parishioners at St. John Paul II Parish (St. Maximilian Kolbe Church, Scarborough; Holy Cross Church, South Portland; St. Bartholomew Church, Cape Elizabeth) set out to help neighbors in need during Lent, and help them they did.

In total 6,208 pounds of canned goods and packaged food were donated during “40 Cans for Lent,” which was conducted by Knights of Columbus Councils 2344, 8144, and 11747.

All the proceeds from the “40 Cans for Lent” were donated to the South Portland Food Cupboard, which was started in 1997. Students at Holy Cross School in South Portland often assist the volunteers with organizing donations and stocking shelves.

For more information on how to help the food cupboard or for distribution schedules, visit www.southportlandfoodcupboard.org or call 207-874-0379.

The “40 Cans for Lent” project originated in 2011 in Helotes, Texas. Dennis Chaput, a financial secretary for a local Knights council there, said the idea of a simple, straightforward one-can-per-day donation, inspired by Christ’s 40 days of fasting in the desert, came to him in the middle of the night in September of 2010. The program has now spread to councils and parishes across the country.

Library announces programs, hours

South Portland Public Library has announced the return of Destination Story Time.

Join the library in the coming months for outdoor story time, an event for all ages. Story time will be held weekly and run all summer, and they will be weather permitting. Cancellations will be posted on the library’s Facebook page.

Destination Story Time begins in May for the Redbank Story Time on Tuesdays at 10:30 a.m. The Redbank Pavilion is located at 95 MacArthur Circle West, South Portland. The library will also host story time on Thursday’s at 10:30 a.m. at Bug Light. Bug Light Park is found on Madison Street, South Portland.

Starting in June, there will be library story time on Fridays at 10:30 a.m. The event will be held on the lawn at the Main Library.

South Portland Public Library is hosting a Mother’s Day craft-making event. Make a gift for a mom, grandmother or aunt at the library’s Mother’s Day Story Time and Craft Day on Saturday, May 7 at 10:30 a.m. The event will be held outside,  therefore this is a weather-permitted event. For more information, call Youth Services at 767-7660.

For more information on library events, visit the South Portland Public Library website.

Expanded hours

South Portland Public Library announced expanded hours of operation.  The library is adding six hours a week of access to the Main Library and 10 hours a week of access to the branch.

The Main Library open days will remain the same, but rather than closing at 6 p.m. the Main Library will remain open until 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings. At the Branch, the library will add new Wednesday and Friday hours open from noon until 5 p.m. The new hours are added to the existing schedule of noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday.

According to a library news release, “Due to the pandemic, city reducing costs, retirement, relocations, the library lost five employees and had delays on filling positions. The library is now working to fill the vacancies and once fully staffed, the library will increase hours once again.”

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