Rising Tide Community Market in Damariscotta has donated a portion of Wednesday sales to the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) and the Newcastle Ecumenical Food Pantry, as part of its Co-ops for Community Day program.

Through this program, Rising Tide donates .5 percent of Wednesday sales to local nonprofits that have been nominated and selected by co-op member-owners.

MOFGA was the Co-ops for Community Day recipient for the month of August 2013. Based in Unity, MOFGA holds the distinction of being the oldest and largest state organic organization in the country.

They provide organic certification services and educational opportunities (including the highly popular annual Common Ground Country Fair), and advocate for organic agriculture both regionally and nationally. “We’re thrilled to once again have MOFGA as a participant in the Co-ops for Community Day program,” said Elya Markert, Rising Tide’s Outreach and Marketing Coordinator. “We’re enthusiastic supporters of locally grown, certified organic produce. Rising Tide is a business member of MOFGA, and we recognize that the robust organic community we have in Maine is largely due to MOFGA’s presence and efforts over the last four decades.”

For more information about MOFGA and its programs, visit mofga.org. MOFGA received a donation of $327.83.

In September, the Co-ops for Community Day beneficiary was the Newcastle Ecumenical Food Pantry. The Ecumenical Food Pantry is located at the Second Congregational Church in Newcastle and is open every Tuesday from 9 to 11 a.m. (9:30 to 11 a.m. beginning December 3). The food pantry was established in 1989 and serves the towns of Damariscotta, Newcastle and Nobleboro, but no one is turned away.

Rising Tide has an area inside the store all year where shoppers can drop off nonperishable food donations for the Ecumenical Food Pantry. Further information is available at newcastlefoodpantry.org. The food pantry received a donation of $240.94.

For November and December 2013, Rising Tide’s Cooperative Community Fund is the recipient of the Co-ops for Community Day donation. This fund awards grants twice a year to local groups working in the areas of community, environment, food and hunger, and cooperatives.

In spring 2013, grants were awarded to the Medomak Mobile Home Cooperative Community Garden, for purchasing materials to expand the number of raised beds in the garden; and to Ashwood Waldorf School in Rockport, to be used for purchasing chickens and supplies so that their students can gain hands-on experience raising poultry. Upcoming organizations that will receive a donation over the winter include:

January 2014: Community Energy Fund of Lincoln County

February 2014: Damariscotta River Association

March 2014: Community Housing Improvement Project, Inc.

For more information about this donation program, visit www.risingtide.coop/co-ops-for-community-day.