Good Shepherd Food Bank is Maine's only food bank and the backbone of the state's hunger-relief system. In 2025 it distributed 40 million meals through a network of nearly 600 partner agencies, including pantries, meal sites, shelters, senior centers, healthcare facilities, and schools across the state. Heather Paquette became President in 2023, after a 24-year career at Hannaford and its parent company; she succeeded Kristen Miale, who led the organization for more than a decade. It is a Feeding America member.
Good Shepherd Food Bank sources food at scale and distributes it statewide through nearly 600 partner agencies, plus its own programs. As Maine's only food bank, it carries the whole state's emergency food capacity, from the Portland and Lewiston-Auburn population centers to the rural reaches of northern and downeast Maine. It has invested heavily in fresh, healthy food and in food sourced from Maine farms and fishermen.
Heather Paquette became President in 2023 after a nationwide nine-month search, arriving from a 24-year career at Ahold Delhaize, the parent of Hannaford Supermarkets. She succeeded Kristen Miale, who over more than a decade roughly tripled the food bank’s distribution and sharply increased fresh-food and healthy-food sourcing. Paquette inherited an organization aiming high on ending hunger in Maine.
Good Shepherd serves all of Maine. The state has the highest food-insecurity rate in New England, driven by rural poverty, an aging population, and high heating and housing costs. As the only food bank, Good Shepherd is the source behind nearly every food pantry and meal program in Maine.
Yes. Good Shepherd Food Bank is a registered 501(c)(3) and a Feeding America member, the largest hunger-relief organization in Maine. Donors can review its financials through Charity Navigator and GuideStar. Bulk buying and donated food mean a gift produces many meals.
Donations and volunteer shifts run through gsfb.org. Volunteers sort and pack food and help at distributions, and cash gifts go furthest because of the food bank’s purchasing power.
Good Shepherd is the only food bank in Maine, so it has no in-state peer on hunger relief. It works alongside the Salvation Army and other groups on the broader safety net. For anyone in Maine, it is the lead food bank to support.
~600 agencies statewide receive food.
Sourcing fresh local food, including seafood.
School and weekend food support for kids at risk of hunger.
Food assistance for older adults on fixed incomes.
Sources: Good Shepherd Food Bank website (gsfb.org), and Press Herald, Mainebiz, and Bangor Daily News reporting on the leadership transition to Heather Paquette. We are not affiliated with Good Shepherd Food Bank and receive no compensation for this listing. Spotted an error? [email protected]
More Maine and food-bank resources