Please help us for 1 day at our Catholic Charities Maine Golf Classic where you will be supporting kids in our community in a whole new way. This year, our goal is to raise $65,000 for the Put Children First Scholarship Fund – a fund that supports the cost of child care for low income working families. Without this vital program, single parents and struggling families cannot break the cycle of poverty that strains families and may create living conditions that contribute to child neglect and abuse.
In Maine, the average annual cost of child care for an infant represents over 70% of a minimum wage, full-time job for a single mother. That leaves very little left over for housing, let alone grocery shopping or gas for the car! Here’s what that looks like in numbers:
Infant care:
$245/week = $12,740/year
Full-time job:
$10.00/hr. = $20,800/year
When families of lower, even average, incomes are forced to pull their children from licensed centers they often send them to unlicensed, unregulated centers or homes. More often than not, these plan Bs are substandard.
Your generosity can make a difference. That's why we hope you’ll bring a team and enjoy the day. We hope to see you there! Please contact Catholic Charities Maine Volunteer Services at 207 245-8094 to add your name to the list to help. We will have a training session the week before. We need bag valets, car-hops to deliver bagged lunches, cold drinks and snacks to golfers in their carts, and registration and raffle ticket helpers; please consider helping out for a day, for this important cause to support.
