Arts & Cultural Alliance of Freeport Elects New Board Members


  • October 26, 2021


 

ACAF WELCOMES NEW MEMBERS TO BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Freeport, ME – October 26, 2021

Arts & Cultural Alliance of Freeport (ACAF) is excited to announce the election of Kate Werner and Kara Kaikini to its Board of Directors.

Kate Werner practiced law in Maine for several years, eventually leaving to open Azure Café, an independent restaurant in Freeport.  Over 17 years, Azure won multiple national, regional, and local culinary and community service awards.  Kate organized and ran local charitable events, tirelessly pursued the improvement of education in local schools, and oversaw the donation of tens of thousands of dollars each year from Azure to the Freeport community.  She co-founded a Freeport advocacy group supporting transparency and excellence in public education with a focus on arts and gifted arts programming.  Kate and her husband, Jonas, have raised two children in Freeport. Her entire family has a passion for theater. Her youngest is a professional actor in New York City and Jonas has performed in many Freeport Community Players productions. Kate served on the Yarmouth High School Playmakers Board and on the Marketing Committee for Freeport Merchants Association (now Visit Freeport). She and Jonas together have won the Freeport Merchants Association's Members of the Year Award, Freeport Community Service’s Carol Kaplan Community Service Award, and have been selected as Freeport’s Citizens of the Year.  Kate recently opened Balsam Realty, an independent agency, and continues to serve the local community and support local arts.

Kara Kaikini is a Freeport resident with two children in the Freeport Elementary Schools. Her work has been focused on Maternal Child Health both in the San Francisco Bay Area and, for the last decade, here in Maine. She is an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant and has worked as a home visitor, postpartum doula, and Childbirth Education and Lactation Services Program Manager. She is currently a patient educator at Maine Medical Center, teaching prenatal classes and facilitating a weekly breastfeeding group. She is the Breastfeeding Consultant for Maine’s Perinatal Outreach & Education Consultation Program and sits on the Perinatal Quality Collaborative of Maine (PQC4ME) and Paid Family & Medical Leave Coalition of Maine. Kara is also the Board President of the Maine State Breastfeeding Coalition that she helped establish as a 501c3 in 2017. She is excited to bring her nonprofit development and board experience to ACAF and further its vision to establish Greater Freeport as a vibrant center for arts and culture.

We are delighted to have these talented members of our community join the ACAF Board of Directors,” says Nancy Salmon, President of ACAF’s Board. “Each woman brings business and community development skills to our organization. We look forward to working with them as we launch our new performance, presentation, and gallery space at Meetinghouse Arts."

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 Arts & Cultural Alliance of Freeport (ACAF) is a non-profit organization formed in 2015 by residents of Freeport and representatives of local businesses and organizations. It is dedicated to fostering the Greater Freeport creative community and establishing Greater Freeport as a vibrant center for arts and culture for residents and visitors alike. For more about ACAF visit FreeportArtsAndCulturalAlliance.org. 

 

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Contact Information

Dana Legawiec

40 Main Street
Freeport  ME  04032 

(323) 428-7420
gro.erutlucdnastratropeerf@rotcerid
www.freeportartsandculture.org