PORTLAND – Maine Foodie Tours, the company that has brought culinary walking tours to Portland, Kennebunkport, Bar Harbor and Rockland, has announced its new “12 Months of Giving” campaign. Each month, a portion of ticket sales purchased for Maine Foodie Tours will be donated to a different Maine charity or organization.

“We want to take advantage of our position as a popular tour provider to elevate awareness of charities and organizations in Maine among our tour guests,” said Pamela Laskey, owner of Maine Foodie Tours. “Our company mission is to showcase the Maine entrepreneurial spirit, hard working habits and culinary talent in Maine, and with this new campaign, guests will learn how Mainers also help one another working with some amazing organizations and charities.”

The charities and organizations that Maine Foodie Tours has chosen to support in 2016 are statewide or located within the four communities in which they currently operate. Charities and organizations included in the 12 Months of Giving are: Gulf of Maine Research Institute; Preble Street; Cultivating Community – South, “Let’s Go” Nutrition Program – Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital; Making Communities Happen (Meals on Wheels); American Lung Association – Maine Chapter; Good Shepherd Food Bank; Share our Strength – No Kid Hungry – Maine Chapter; Hardy Girls, Healthy Women; Maine Lobstermen’s Association; American Diabetes Association – Maine Chapter; Friends of Acadia.

Additionally, the Animal Welfare Society of West Kennebunk is the recipient of all profits from the “Doggie and Me” six-legged tours offered each season in Kennebunkport, offering eats for the owners and treats for the furry friends.

“It’s no surprise that Maine is home to so many world class restaurants. Some of the best and most nutritious food is grown, raised, or fished here. What is surprising and distressing, though, is the fact that, despite this bounty, our state has the third highest rate of hunger in the nation,” said Mark R. Swann, executive director for Preble Street. “We depend on donations from businesses, like Maine Foodie Tours, whose generosity enables us to serve more than 1,200 meals each day to hungry people at three soup kitchens and a weekly food pantry, and work to improve food access across the state through the Preble Street Maine Hunger Initiative.”

For additional information about the 12 Months of Giving, or to schedule an interview with Pamela Laskey, please contact Kate McCann at 412-952-0633 or thekatemccann@gmail.com.