TD Banknorth Awards $20,000 Grant to Rumford Group Homes, Inc.

"Housing for Everyone" program supports creation and preservation of transitional housing and homeless shelter units

TD Banknorth, through the TD Banknorth Charitable Foundation, awarded a $20,000 grant to Rumford Group Homes as part of the bank's "Housing for Everyone" grant competition, which supports affordable housing initiatives in communities where TD Banknorth does business. This grant will assist the agency in taking over the ownership and management of the Galilee House, an emergency shelter for homeless women and children in crisis in Norway, Maine.

“This is very exciting news for us,” said Alan J. Monier, Executive Director of RGH, Inc. ”Support from the TD Banknorth Charitable Foundation will help us achieve our goal of re-opening the shelter this winter, ideally in January of 2008.”
Monier added, “The need for support for this shelter is great and this gift will help us with the costs for maintenance, repairs, hiring a House Manager, needed supplies, etc. We are pleased to have been selected by TD Banknorth for this important grant award.”

The shelter opened in 1999 and has helped more than 650 women and children find permanent housing and put their lives back on track. Over the summer months, the Galilee House approached Rumford Group Homes, Inc. about the possibility of taking over the shelter so that it would not close. The Board of Directors voted to have Rumford Group Homes, Inc. acquire this program so that services for homeless women and children could continue in Oxford County.

"TD Banknorth is proud to support Rumford Group Homes, Inc. as well as other organizations that work tirelessly to increase the availability of affordable housing in our communities," said Larry Wold, President, TD Banknorth in Maine.

In the second year of its successful Housing for Everyone grant competition, TD Banknorth focused on transitional housing and homeless shelter space programs. TD Banknorth's total donation of $1 million will support the creation and preservation of nearly 1,000 affordable housing units across Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Vermont.

Monier said the TD Banknorth program “is a natural fit with our agency mission of serving children, youth and families in need. We want to preserve crucial shelter space here in Oxford County.”

He added, “We will continue to serve homeless women and children in crisis and provide not only emergency shelter, but also essential services so that they can end the cycle of homelessness. We believe that it is imperative to keep the shelter open so that they will receive services in their community and not have to travel miles and sometimes hours away.”

For more information on TD Banknorth in the community, visit www.TDBanknorth.com, click on “About Us,” then “Our Community.”

About the TD Banknorth Charitable Foundation
The TD Banknorth Charitable Foundation is the charitable giving arm of TD Banknorth Inc., a leading banking and financial services company headquartered in Portland, Maine. The Foundation’s mission is to serve the individuals, families and businesses in all the communities where TD Banknorth operates, having made over $22 million in charitable donations since its inception in 2002. The efforts of the Foundation are coordinated locally through TD Banknorth’s community development department and are focused on the areas of economic empowerment, youth development and community support. More information on the TD Banknorth Charitable Foundation including an online grant application is available at www.TDBanknorth.com.

About TD Banknorth Inc.
TD Banknorth Inc. is a leading banking and financial services company headquartered in Portland, Maine and a wholly-owned subsidiary of TD Bank Financial Group headquartered in Toronto, Canada. TD Banknorth is one of the 25 largest commercial banking organizations in the United States, with over $40 billion in assets. TD Banknorth's banking subsidiary, TD Banknorth, N.A., operates banking divisions in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Vermont. TD Banknorth and TD Banknorth, N.A. also operate subsidiaries and divisions in insurance, wealth management, merchant services, mortgage banking, government banking, private label credit cards, insurance premium financing and other financial services and offers investment products in association with PrimeVest Financial Services, Inc. For more information, visit www.TDBanknorth.com.

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Cutline info: From left, Alan J. Monier, Executive Director of Rumford Group Homes, Inc.; Bob Fletcher, VP, Business Development & Sales Manager at TD Banknorth branch in Farmington; Michael L. Rayder, Jr., TD Banknorth Charitable Foundation Manager; and Paula Paladino, Rumford Group Homes, Inc.