Release: July 31, 2006

ROCKLAND:

Atlantic Challenge recently received a $3,000 grant from the Knox County Fund of the Maine Community Foundation to support the cataloguing of their Maritime Library. Atlantic Challenge’s library will be accessible online through the Rockland Public Library, a wonderful partnership which supports the missions of both organizations as well as the broader community. As part of the statewide library system, the public will be able to search the library online allowing students, researchers, and the community to visit one of the most extensive maritime collections in Maine. Atlantic Challenge’s Maritime Library is for reference only and the public is encouraged to visit Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

“We are proud of the Maritime Library collection that has been compiled over the last 34 years of our organization’s history” says Warren Kaericher, Executive Director of Atlantic Challenge. “This generous grant allows us to continue the cataloguing of our 3,500 volume collection, making it a resource available to our students as well as our broader community. We are grateful for the generous support of the Maine Community Foundation and everyone who supports our efforts.”

Atlantic Challenge is an educational 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization that has been serving its students for more than thirty years, using boatbuilding and seamanship as tools that allow youth and adults to challenge themselves and explore their maritime history. For further information, contact Atlantic Challenge at 207-594-1800 or visit their website at www.atlanticchallenge.com.

A statewide organization with offices in Ellsworth and Portland, the Maine Community Foundation works in partnership with donors and community groups to strengthen Maine. For more information visit the foundation’s website at www.mainecf.org or call toll free: 877-700-6800.

AC Volunteers Isabelle Davis & Judy Howlett in the Maritime Library. The two have been instrumental in getting the books and periodicals organized and shelved.

*******************************

Our maritime library has been improved with beautiful bookshelves built by the Apprenticeshop and by donations of books, charts, and periodicals by many generous supporters. The library is open to the public Monday-Friday, 9:00am -5:00pm.

The community is free to enjoy our wide array of maritime books and periodicals in the library, though at this time we are not a lending library.

Please contact us if you are interested in donating some time to helping keep things organized in the library, or if you have a maritime collection in need of a home.