About COS

Our Mission

For over 30 years, our mission has been to extend a helping hand to our neighbors who face challenges with food, fuel or specific needs. As a 501c3, non-profit organization, we serve the individuals and families in the towns of Kennebunk, Kennebunkport, and Arundel, Maine.

Our History: Reaching Out to Feed the Hungry

With the initial sole desire to help feed the hungry of Kennebunk, Kennebunkport, and Arundel, Community Outreach Services (COS) was organized in November 1990 as a once-a-week food pantry. COS began with the vision of folks from local area churches reaching out to neighbors in need of food. In March of 1991, realizing the best way to organize was to collectively have the churches work together, the group asked other local churches to join as a 501(c)3 organization. The mission then expanded to include not only food assistance, but also fuel and specific needs assistance.

In 2020, significant increases in demand due to the COVID pandemic compelled COS to expand our food pantry services. We doubled distributions and moved to a larger temporary location generously loaned to COS – Vinegar Hill in Arundel. We then collaborated with the town of Kennebunk to move the pantry to a leased permanent location at 19 Park St in Kennebunk. This location serves as the central “hub” of the three towns.

In September 2020, COS opened our new needs-based food pantry, which provides fresh groceries including produce, meats, dairy items, non-perishable food items – and even pet food and household items – to families in Arundel, Kennebunk, and Kennebunkport. The pantry is set up as a small grocery store where our neighbors shop with our volunteer assistant shoppers, who often build encouraging relationships with neighbors who visit with us. The pantry is open four days a week at different hours to meet the needs and schedules of our neighbors who shop here.

Keeping Up to Meet the Growing Needs

In order to meet the growing needs of our community, COS streamlined operations to be more efficient and effective. We encourage our neighbors to reach out directly to the General Assistance (GA) offices of the communities we serve on programs we work with these towns to support:

1. Food: In addition to the Food Pantry, COS supports additional food programs through our GA partners including holiday food baskets, a mobile food pantry, emergency home delivery, and other special events.

2. Fuel: COS partners with our local town GA offices to support their heating fuel assistance programs. 

3. Specific Needs: COS supports town GA programs targeting basic specific needs such as auto repairs, rent/mortgage, or utility bills to name a few.