The Franklin County Animal Shelter was the top vote-getter from western Maine for the Bangor Savings Bank Foundation’s 2010 Community Matters More campaign, with  a number of other western Maine groups also receiving donations. As the top vote-getter in the Western Maine category, the shelter was presented with a check for $5,000.

Starting in mid-January of this year, Maine residents cast nearly 82,000 votes for 1,900 nonprofit organizations in the Community Matters More Campaign. The foundation announced it was giving a total of $100,000 to local nonprofits chosen by the community-wide vote, with the eight top vote-getters receiving $5,000 grants each and 60 additional organizations each receiving $1,000 grants.

Other $1,000 grants awarded in the western Maine area included the River Valley Healthy Community Coalition in Rumford; the Abused Women’s Advocacy Project in Auburn and the Tri-County Mental Health service in Lewiston. Also, one of the write-in winners in the area was the Chisholm Ski Club, Rumford

The statewide Community Matters More program was a partnership of the Bangor Savings Bank Foundation, WLBZ-TV 2, WCSH-TV 6, WGAN 560 News radio and Blueberry Broadcasting.