08/12/11 Robert and Mary's Place Receives Bar Harbor Bank & Trust 'Community Commitment' Donation

Left to right: Bar Harbor Bank & Trust Ellsworth branch employees Chris Young, Jenn Tucker, Jody McFadden and Theresa Ellis present a Community Commitment donation to Ida Page, Executive Director at Robert and Mary’s Place. Other Ellsworth branch employees unavailable for the photo include Marlene Lloyd, Jennifer Norton, Anna Minctons, Lacy Linscott and Gabriella Magee.

Ellsworth, Maine August 15, 2011 — Each week, Bar Harbor Bank & Trust directors and employees, in exchange for being able to dress casually on Fridays, voluntarily contribute to a charitable fund that disburses gifts monthly to local non-profit organizations. This employee-driven donation program is called Community Commitment. The Bank matches the employee donations, doubling the amount given to the chosen non-profit organization. Each month employees at a different bank location get to choose the recipient of these contributions.

For the month of July, employees at the Bar Harbor Bank & Trust's Ellsworth branch chose to donate their Community Commitment funds to Robert and Mary's Place.

"When I received Jody's call with the news I was very excited and honored," said Ida Page, Founder and Executive Director of Robert and Mary's Place. "With the Board's approval, this generous gift from Bar Harbor Bank & Trust and its employees will go into our building fund." Founded in 2001, Robert and Mary's Place has served 150 area families with a licensed adult day program for people with memory loss. For the last ten years they have been operating at Meadow View Apartments in Ellsworth, five days a week from 9:00-4:00. Current enrolment is 17 "friends" with capacity for 33 and a 5:1 friend to staff/volunteer ratio. Friends enjoy two snacks and lunch each day, which Ida likes to call "aroma therapy," along with other activities. "What I have learned over the years is not to underestimate someone with dementia and to listen to their body language," said Ida.

In celebration of their 10th anniversary, Robert and Mary's Place is launching a Capital Campaign to raise $3 million to build a free-standing, day and residential "living center" in Ellsworth for people with memory loss. Thirty-two percent of people who reach age 85 will have some form of dementia. "Our friends with memory loss deserve to maintain their individuality, independence, dignity and our respect," said Ida when explaining their operating philosophy. Robert and Mary's Place is a tax exempt 501(c)3 non-profit and does charge a fee for service. Often long-term care insurance, Maine Care or the Veterans Administration will cover program costs for those enrolled. For more information about Robert and Mary's Place, please call Ida Page at 667-5449 or go to their website: www.robertandmarysplace.org. If you would like to make a gift, checks can be made payable to Robert and Mary's Place and sent to Bar Harbor Bank & Trust, P.O. Box 1089, Ellsworth, ME 04605. Please note in the memo line to direct your gift to either the building fund or endowment.

Founded in 1887, Bar Harbor Bank & Trust is a community bank with 12 locations along the coast of Maine. They offer a full range of financial services and products for families, businesses, and non-profit organizations. Bar Harbor Bank & Trust is a subsidiary of Bar Harbor Bankshares (AMEX:BHB). For more information call 207-288-3314 or go to www.bhbt.com.