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Donations may be sent to us: The Game Loft
Please feel free to call us at 207-338-6447 or email us at gameloft@midcoast.com
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A (Very) Brief History of The Game Loft In 1996, Ray and Patricia Estabrook opened their store, All About Games, in Belfast. Shortly after All About Games opened, the Estabrooks found their shop filled to bursting with youth of all ages who wanted to play (or learn how to play) non-electronic games. They tried to incorporate the game playing into the running of their store, but they eventually realized their store could not be a business and a youth center at the same time. Instead of just kicking the kids out and going on with their lives, they saw that there was a serious need for a place for the youth of Belfast to go and decided to do something about it. Together with a group of youth and adults, they organized The Game Loft, a volunteer-run community center located in the heart of Belfast. With an almost nonexistent budget, on a wish and a prayer, the doors of The Game Loft opened on February 1, 1998. By the summer of 1999, the Loft had reached a crisis point. Funds had run out, and the people who were running the Loft were exhausted. Fortunately, the Loft received help from Communities for Children, a statewide organization offering services for Maine youth, in the form of an AmeriCorps*VISTA volunteer. The A*VISTA volunteer researched and wrote grants and took on a number of daily administrative responsibilities, taking some of the load off the core group of volunteers and restoring the Loft's financial solvency. The Game Loft received its first MBNA Foundation Excellence in Education grant, allowing it to offer a year-round program of educational and cultural experiences for its members and the community at large. AmeriCorps*VISTA volunteers have been a vital part of the Loft's functioning for the last two years, helping The Game Loft to build its capacity to run itself. In 2000, four high school students who were Game Loft members decided to take part in the 4-H AmeriCorps volunteer program. They donated hundreds of hours of labor to The Game Loft, running games and serving as mentors for younger students, helping out with mailings and other administrative duties, participating in fund-raising activities, and serving as ambassadors to other communities who wanted to start a program like the Loft. In the spring of that year, Game Loft mentors Patricia and Ray Estabrook won a Jefferson Award for their outstanding volunteer service to The Game Loft. They were invited to attend the national Jefferson Awards ceremony in Washington, D.C., as Maine's nominee for the national award. In the fall of 2001, Game Loft mentors Patricia and Ray Estabrook were nominated for a Toady award, given to people in the toy and game business who perform outstanding community service for youth. Throughout the years The Game Loft has continued to strive to reach the goals of the program, creating a safe and healthy place for intergenerational gaming. We have had a very productive and wonderful life. The strength of our program, as it always has been, is with our members. The youth who have chosen to support The Game Loft because of a strong belief in what it does for them continue to keep the drive of this program going. Currently, we have two Executive Directors, who are none-other than Ray and Patricia Estabrook. Leah Watson is the Executive Coordinator. We also have two Host positions, Barry Feero and Rick Rogalla and Martin Long and Max Delaney are the Games Coordinators. If you ever have any questions, please feel free to contact any staff member at 207-338-6447 or email us at gameloft@midcoast.com . The Game Loft will be celebrating its 10th Anniversary in early February! Please join us!
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Send mail to
gameloft@midcoast.com with questions or comments about this website |
