WEN Featured Nonprofit March 2019
ProsperityME empowers, through education and counseling, members of refugee and immigrant communities to invest in themselves to build financial stability, careers, businesses, and wealth.
We envision that all of Maine’s refugees and immigrants, their families, and communities, reach financial stability and improve their quality of life.
Founded in 2008 by Claude Rwaganje — a refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo — ProsperityME is a non-profit service organization dedicated to helping Maine’s immigrants and refugees build successful, rewarding lives in their new homeland. Our services are open to all refugees, immigrants, asylees, and low-income individuals in Greater Portland and Lewiston-Auburn, Maine.
Many New Mainers come from cash-based societies and are unfamiliar with how money and credit work in America, our banking system, and how to save for the future. By providing basic money management knowledge and skills, ProsperityME enables them to attain financial stability — the first step to fully integrating and participating in our communities, joining our workforce, and planning for the future.
In the last 10 years, ProsperityME has conducted over 800 one-on-one financial counseling sessions and taught more than 175 courses at our Portland and Lewiston/Auburn learning centers. We also offer IDA savings accounts, interest-free loans for security deposits, and academic scholarships. All told, we have helped more than 3,000 immigrants plan for the future and achieve their dreams!
One of our students, Daniella from Burundi, writes, “The class is very crucial to refugees and immigrants because it educates them in money management in America, but it also opens up their minds to think beyond ‘just survival’ since a new start can be very hard and intimidating. It motivates them to surpass their limits.”
How to Help
Our work is made possible by corporate partnerships and sponsorships, private donations, and grants. We are also grateful to the many volunteers who donate their valuable time and expertise to our programs and students. We are currently looking for housing coaches to help asylum seekers manage a lease, and professional mentors to support and inspire our scholarship recipients.
Please email prosperityme@prosperityme.org or call 207-797-7890 to learn more.
11th Annual Community Block Party
Our 11th Annual Community Block Party will be held at the Ocean Gateway, 14 Ocean Gateway Pier, Portland, on Tuesday, May 7th, 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Early Bird tickets are available now on Eventbrite. Snag yours today for a discount: https://prosperityme-11th-annual-block-party.eventbrite.com
Check out our Facebook page to stay up-to-date with the latest classes and events!
The WEN Featured Nonprofit is brought to readers with support from Benchmark Residential & Investment Real Estate.
