We would like to thank everyone who
attended MDF’s 30th Annual Meeting!
It was a
great day spent celebrating! We celebrated Maine – our history, our present,
our future; we celebrated and honored some dynamic individuals and
organizations that are instrumental in Championing economic development and
reinventing Maine; and we celebrated the 30-year contribution of a small
non-profit to the mighty cause of making Maine the best place in the world to
live, work and play! Here are some highlights of the meeting. For more
information on any of the following, please click on the heading.
The Awards
The
Ken Curtis Leadership Award is given annually to one exceptional Leadership Maine
alumni who has given selflessly of themselves and epitomizes leadership in
action in realizing extraordinary achievements. Leadership Maine was created
in 1993 by the Maine Development Foundation to broaden the pool of talented
individuals in our state. The award is named for former Governor Kenneth M.
Curtis who modeled the way in influencing change in the face of conflict. He
served as the Dean of Leadership Maine in 1993, and has provided inspiration
through his work.
The Main Street Hero Award is given annually to an entity who
has demonstrated leadership in promoting downtown revitalization across the
state of Maine. Past recipients include Bath business owner, former board
member of Main Street Bath and Maine Downtown Center Advisory Council member
Bill King; Commissioner John Richardson of the Maine Department of Economic and
Community Development and GrowSmart Maine.
The
REALIZE!Maine Champion Award acknowledges an outstanding organization that has excelled
in advancing the cause of young people in Maine.
The Yellow Light Breen
Visionary Award acknowledges an individual whose vision and dedication has made Maine an even better place for young people to live, work and play.
The Champion for Economic Development Award was created by the Maine
Development Foundation to recognize the exceptional work of private and public
entities that have gone above and beyond in their efforts to spark Maine’s
economy – by their:
- Demonstrated
commitment to economic growth
- Demonstrated
ability to collaborate and create partnerships
- High
professional standard that serves as a model and inspiration to others,
and
- Innovativeness
of ideas and approach to economic development.
This year,
MDF received nominations for 48 different entities – which makes this one of
the most highly competitive years yet. We would like to thank everyone who
took the time to prepare very thoughtful and compelling nominations. While
each of the nominees is certainly deserving, we have chosen two
public/non-profit sector Champions and two private sector Champions.
Keynote by Dr. Jack Shonkoff
Jack P. Shonkoff, M.D., is the Julius B. Richmond FAMRI
Professor of Child Health and Development at the Harvard School of Public
Health and Harvard Graduate School of Education, and Founding Director of the
university-wide Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. He also
chairs the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child, a
multi-university collaboration comprising leading scholars in neuroscience, psychology,
pediatrics, and economics, whose mission is to bring credible science to bear
on policy affecting young children.
Congressional Candidates Forum
Chellie
Pingree is the Democratic candidate for the First Congressional District seat
in Congress.
Charlie
Summers is the Republican candidate for the First Congressional District seat
in Congress.
Our Annual Meeting Sponsors
