Expect plenty of competition for the best pitch at the Top Gun Entrepreneurship Acceleration Pitch-Off at The Center for Maine Contemporary Art in Rockland May 24. This is the third time the Midcoast has hosted this annual prestigious entrepreneurial training and acceleration program, and the first time as a partnership between the Maine Center for Entrepreneurial Development and MaineStream Finance.

Entrepreneurs from the region will be presenting their pitches before a panel of judges. The two top winners will go on to present their ideas at the statewide Top Gun Showcase in Portland June 7, competing for a $10,000 prize. Other Top Gun programs that will be represented in the Showcase have been presented in Portland, Bangor, and Lewiston/Auburn.

The evening begins at 5 p.m. with networking and socializing. When the pitching starts each entrepreneur will have exactly five minutes to show the judges that their idea is innovative, feasible, viable, and has clear growth potential. Two entrepreneurs will be selected to go on to the final competition round at Hannaford Hall at the University of Southern Maine in Portland.

There will be approximately 30 entrepreneurs across the state who have finished the Top Gun classes, an intensive five-month program that helps accelerate the development of Maine’s most promising businesses through a combination of curriculum, mentoring and community. Eight companies based in towns from Waldoboro to Belfast will be competing at CMCA.

“Competition is good,” said Ken Greenleaf, a business advisor from MaineStream Finance and coordinator of the Midcoast Top Gun program, in a news release. “But all the businesses who have been in Top Gun this year are winners, whether they go on the statewide challenge or not. It’s a strong group, businesses that will be around for the long haul.”

Judges for this event include Catherine Marin, Finance Director for TRC Companies, Inc., formerly a Senior Portfolio Manager at MTI, and the coordinator of the first Midcoast Top Gun program in 2015; Sarah Baldwin, owner of Bella Luna Toys and winner of the 2016 Top Gun contest; Gordon Page, Executive Director of Rockland Main Street, Inc.; Tom Peaco, Executive Director of the Penobscot Bay Regional Chamber of Commerce; and Lorain Francis, formerly senior program developer the Maine Development Foundation, and currently the project coordinator for RSVP at Penquis.

The Top Gun Entrepreneurship Acceleration Regional Pitch-Off is sponsored by MaineStream Finance, with generous help from the Island Institute, Café Miranda, CMCA and a long list of mentors, presenters, moral supporters and friends of Midcoast business development. The statewide program has been provided by Camden National Bank, University of Maine, and the Maine Technology Institute, and Maine Accelerates Growth. Other corporate sponsors, local businesses, partner organizations, program advisors and mentors also contribute to the success of the program.

For more information, please contact Ken Greenleaf, MaineStream Finance, at kgreenleaf@penquis.org, (207) 974-2437.www.mainestreamfinance.org

About MCED

The Maine Center for Entrepreneurial Development (MCED) is a private non-profit organization founded in 1997 to help Maine’s most promising entrepreneurs grow through innovation. MCED is a leading-edge resource for the most promising startups.

About MaineStream Finance

MaineStream Finance is a community development financial institution (CDFI) and a subsidiary of Penquis. It promotes economic development by providing credit, capital and financial services that are often unavailable from traditional financial institutions. Financial coaching, business and pre-purchase mortgage counseling, and home and business loans are provided to people in Maine who might otherwise have limited access to financing and credit.