ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Governor Wes Moore today announced the official launch of the Engaging Neighborhoods, Organizations, Unions, Governments and Households (ENOUGH) Initiative, a first-of-its-kind, community-based strategy to address concentrated child poverty in Maryland. A $20 million investment, ENOUGH offers both funding and technical support for communities most in need to develop solutions to deeply rooted challenges.
“Those closest to the problems are closest to the solutions. By moving in partnership with local leaders and village elders, Maryland is writing a new chapter in our work to end child poverty,” said Gov. Moore. “ENOUGH will be a rallying cry all throughout the State of Maryland; it’s time for us to invest enough, partner enough, and do enough, for all Marylanders – from the western mountains to the eastern shore and everywhere in between.”
Eligible communities can visit goc.maryland.gov to learn more and to apply for competitive funding. ENOUGH will create poverty fighting opportunities driven by our very own Marylanders’ lived experience and expertise through targeted grants to eligible communities.
“Far too many of our state’s children have been burdened with much more than the typical coming-of-age stresses—they are fighting day to day to simply survive,” said Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller. “We are a state more than capable of being a leader nationwide in the fight against child poverty, addressing the systemic issues that have plagued our communities, and providing the necessary wraparound services to ensure every Maryland child gets every resource and opportunity to not just survive, but thrive. We do that by partnering with the experts themselves —the community—and creating a village of support with the ENOUGH initiative.”
The Governor’s Office for Children, Maryland agencies, and a network of local, state and national organizations will partner with applicants and grantees in understanding, developing and implementing community-focused solutions to end child poverty.
“We are bringing every state agency that impacts child poverty to the table and building a collective, statewide support system for our children and families,” said Governor’s Office for Children Special Secretary Carmel Martin. “We are committed to making sure that state government works for and with the people it serves. And the Governor’s Office for Children is here to ensure that the tools, systems, and resources we are building now will remain accessible and sustainable to Marylanders over time.”
The ENOUGH Initiative is authorized by the ENOUGH Act, a landmark piece of legislation the Moore-Miller Administration passed in the spring of 2024 to address historic inequities in the state and tackle the root causes of poverty.
“The ENOUGH Act presents us with a unique opportunity for collaboration between national, state, and local philanthropic partners to think and act intentionally about combating child poverty in Maryland,” said Maryland Philanthropy Network President and Chief Executive Officer Danista E. Hunte. “Governor Moore’s vision with the ENOUGH Act will build upon existing philanthropic efforts with a cross-sector approach to addressing an interdisciplinary problem. Furthermore, children in Maryland will surely benefit from implementation of this hallmark legislation which will increase opportunities for them, set the stage for learning and best practices that will impact the field and be a model for change in this country.”
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For more information about ENOUGH, visit www.goc.maryland.gov.
