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Maine’s First Lady, Karen Baldacci, devotes her time and energy to help enhance cultural and literacy activities across the state. Below is a listing of several organizations and initiatives that she leads or lends her expertise to.

Mrs. Baldacci serves as the Honorary Chair of Maine Reads, a non-profit organization that promotes literacy through public policy, fundraises for literacy projects statewide, and provides the opportunity for people of all ages to access quality literacy programs. She also heads the Maine Reads Community Literacy Project, a state-wide, community-based project to strengthen families and communities through libraries and literacy projects. She also serves as Honorary Chair of Read with Me, a literacy program sponsored by the Verizon Foundation that seeks to improve literacy through community-based programs and online reading tools.

Mrs. Baldacci serves as a board member of raising readers, a program for all children in Maine, birth to age five, regardless of means that allows each child to receive a beautiful new book each time they go for a well child checkup with their doctor or healthcare provider.

	Mrs. Baldacci hosts a reception at the Blaine House to celebrate the success of the Maine Print Project.

Additional literacy projects that the First Lady contributes her energy to include the Adult Family Literacy Project which encourages all family members to read via a collection of statewide programs and resources. She also is active in One Book, One Community and A Capital Read, both which involve communities and their local libraries coordinating a book selection and encouraging people to read and discuss the text with their local friends and neighbors.

Mrs. Baldacci extends her dedication to Maine’s children and families via her work in the arts. She serves as Honorary Chair of the Maine Alliance for Arts in Education that encourages and strengthens educational excellence in visual art, music, theater, dance, and writing in all Maine schools and communities. She also leads the Maine Youth Excellence In Art project that celebrates the work of student artists from Maine schools by exhibiting student art in several venues in the state Capitol complex.

Furthermore, Mrs. Baldacci lends her presence and support to many additional cultural events across the state of Maine on a regular basis: hosting Maine’s Annual Poets’ Coffee at the Blaine House, hosting a reception for the Maine Print Project, speaking at the Maine Alliance for Arts Education Advocacy Day, and appearing as guest of honor at the Maine state finals of the Poetry Out Loud competition, a national initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts that exposes students across the nation to the richness of quality poetry.

You can find out more about the work of Maine’s First Lady, and her many initiatives, by visiting her website.

	Mrs. Baldacci, seen here with Felicia Knight of the National Endowment for the Arts, presents first place award to Riva Dumont for the Poetry Out Loud Maine state final.