This past weekend, Camden National Bank provided donations to six Maine high schools, located in the communities where it has banking centers, that competed in the 2019 Boys and Girls Basketball State Championships. The support made it possible for nearly 1,000 students to attend this year’s games in Portland, Bangor and Augusta and cheer on their friends and classmates. Camden National Bank has now carried on this community tradition for 10 years, donating approximately $50,000 total to Maine high schools and enabling over 10,000 students to attend over 70 championship games for free.

This unique sponsorship originally started when a Camden National Bank employee recalled that many of her fellow high school students didn’t have the funds to buy tickets and see their team play in the championships. Those students not only missed out on seeing the game but, more importantly, they felt left out of the high school community. The employee brought her concern and idea to the attention of the bank, and they committed to supporting the students with tickets, free of charge.

“This has become one of our favorite annual sponsorships,” said Greg Dufour, president and CEO of Camden National Bank. “It started with an empowered employee leading a grassroots community effort, and it has resulted in hundreds of Camden National Bank employees getting involved and thousands of students directly benefitting.”

Towns supported by Camden National Bank in the 2019 State Championship games were Bangor, Winthrop, Hampden, Mt. Desert Island, Boothbay Harbor and Greenville. For a full list of Camden National Bank’s 60 banking center locations and to learn more about community giving efforts, visit www.camdennational.com.