PORTLAND, Maine – TD Bank, America’s Most Convenient Bank ®, announced today that Junior Achievement of Maine, Inc. has been chosen as the beneficiary of this year’s TD Bank Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race.

Junior Achievement of Maine (JA) is a non-profit organization providing economic education programs that help inspire Maine children to develop the skills, attitudes and behaviors of success in a global economy. Offered in more than 100 schools across the state, JA programs reached almost 9,000 Maine students in 2009.

Through JA classroom programs and Job Shadow experiences, JA of Maine brings volunteers from the community face to face with students to make economic concepts relevant, raise aspirations, and challenge the students to excel. For more information, visit http://maine.ja.org.

“JA of Maine makes a powerful difference in the lives of young people across Maine by showing them how business works, and how business can work for them and their community,” said Larry Wold, Market President of TD Bank in Maine. “Many bank employees have taken part in JA’s Job Shadow and other volunteer programs and continue to serve on its Board, so they have a keen awareness of the positive impact of JA. We are pleased to be able to focus on JA of Maine through the TD Bank Beach to Beacon this year.”

TD Bank, through the TD Charitable Foundation, will provide a cash donation of $30,000 to Junior Achievement of Maine. The organization also will benefit from fundraising activities and publicity through its association with one of Maine’s premiere sporting events.

The TD Bank Beach to Beacon 10K Road Race ( b2bdevelopment.wpengine.com ) is set for Saturday, August 7 along the picturesque shores of Maine’s rocky coastline in Cape Elizabeth.

This year will be the 13th running of the race, which has established itself as one of the most popular events on the U.S. road race circuit, drawing a race day field of 6,000 runners from throughout the region and the world to the small coastal community in Maine. Thousands of spectators cheer the runners, and more than 800 volunteers help ensure a smooth operation.

“Junior Achievement of Maine could not be more thrilled and excited to have been chosen as the beneficiary of the 2010 TD Bank Beach to Beacon,” said Melissa R. Bourque, President of JA of Maine. “This honor truly is a credit to the more than 350 dedicated and hard working volunteers across Maine who give of their time to make this program work by challenging and preparing these children for the real world. We thank TD Bank for believing in our mission.”

Junior Achievement is the world’s largest organization dedicated to educating students in grades K-12 about entrepreneurship, work readiness and financial literacy through experiential, hands-on programs.

JA programs help prepare young people by showing them how to generate wealth and effectively manage it, how to create jobs which make their communities more robust, and how to apply entrepreneurial thinking to the workplace. Students put these lessons into action and learn the value of contributing to their communities.

JA’s unique approach allows volunteers from the community to deliver its curriculum while sharing their experiences with students. Embodying the heart of JA, classroom volunteers transform the key concepts of lessons into a message that inspires and empowers students to believe in themselves, showing them they can make a difference in the world.

Located at 82 Elm St. in Portland, JA of Maine was founded in 1965 and today serves students in more than 100 schools from Eliot to Houlton with its sequential and integrated kindergarten through grade 12 programs. Other programs take part within the community, including the recently completed JA Job Shadow Day and the upcoming Titan Challenge, which pits teams of three high school students and one volunteer business advisor from various communities against each other to run the most profitable company.

Using JA’s high school simulation program, the Titan Challenge places high school students in the CEO’s seat to increase their understanding of the real world of business. The competition on Feb. 25 will be hosted by the University of Southern Maine in Portland, the Foster Center for Student Innovation at the University of Maine in Orono, and the USM-Lewiston Auburn College in Lewiston.

For more information on JA of Maine programs or to become a volunteer, call 207-347-4333 or visit online at http://maine.ja.org.

The TD Bank Beach to Beacon10K begins near the Crescent Beach entrance on Route 77 in Cape Elizabeth and ends at the historic Portland Head Light at Fort Williams Park. More than $60,000 in prize money is awarded to the top finishers and place winners in the various categories for men and women.

TD Bank is the title sponsor of the race founded by Joan Benoit Samuelson, the Olympic gold medalist from Cape Elizabeth who also serves as a spokesperson for TD Bank during the year to promote the race and the bank’s giving programs, which benefit Maine communities with sponsorship programs and charitable donations. For more information on TD Bank, visit www.tdbank.com.

For additional information about the race, visit b2bdevelopment.wpengine.com, and find the TD Beach to Beacon on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.