LEWISTON — Charles Nero and Melissa Hue are the newest members of the Maine Community Foundation’s Androscoggin County Committee.

The foundation’s county committees are made up of community members who live or work in the county and serve as local ambassadors for the foundation, sharing their knowledge and providing on-the-ground local leadership.

The committee’s volunteer county advisers review grant proposals for the foundation’s Community Building Grant Program and recommend awards from the Androscoggin County Fund. Community Building supports a broad range of projects and organizations across the state, including arts, education, environment, economic development and human services.

Nero is the Benjamin E. Mays 2020 distinguished professor of rhetoric, film and screen studies at Bates College, where he serves on several committees. He resides in Lewiston.

Hue is the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion director for the city of Lewiston and lives in Portland. She serves on the boards of Special Olympics and New Beginnings.

Other committee members include Becky Conrad of Auburn, Joleen Bedard of Turner, and Andrea Breau, Anne Kemper, Muhidin Libah and Adilah Muhammad, all of Lewiston.

In 2022, the Androscoggin County Fund awarded seven grants totaling $52,500, with two additional grant proposals totaling $15,000 funded by donors with advised funds at Maine Community Foundation.

The Maine Community Foundation brings people and resources together to build a better Maine through strategic giving, community leadership, personalized service, local expertise and strong investments. To learn more about the foundation, visit www.mainecf.org.