- POWER's World Health Day Movie,
- Poor Voices United's Health Care Crisis USA,
- The Media College's Copy This Tape,

Katrina: Listening with Our Hearts [webpage]
An Immersion Experience in the Gulf Coast; published by the Poverty Initiative, cost - $20 donation
 
Resources on unjust child removal / child protective issues [webpage]
From the National Coalition for Child Protection Reform website: includes lots of resources, includingbooks, articles, reports, & websites.

Battle For Broad Educational Supplement [PDF]
Educational supplement designed by the University of the Poor to accompany the documentary Battle For Broad, produced by Skylight Pictures & the Media College of the University of the Poor. Visit the new video section of our Arts & Culture Page to watch the trailer for Battle for Broad

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 Statistics & facts (also see Reports, above)
 
2008 Federal Poverty Guidelines [webpage]

Computations for the 2008 Federal Poverty Guidelines [webpage]

Poverty Guidelines: Research & Measurement [webpage]
From US Department of Health & Human Services website. Contains (some) information about how the federal poverty guidelines were developed and continue to be used today, and generally how poverty is measured by the federal government.

U.S. Hunger Fact Sheets [webpage]
From America's Second Harvest website.

***NEW! POVERTY PULSE SURVEY
Catholic Campaign for Human Development Poverty Pulse, Wave II [PDF]
- January, 2007 Catholic Campaign for Human Development survey on American attitudes toward poverty; Also see Poverty Pulse, Wave IV [PDF] Low-Income Poverty Pulse, Wave IV [PDF]
Also: Take the POVERTY PULSE TOUR [htm]

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Resources for basic needs (Maine)
Includes resources for education, food, housing, healthcare, childcare, employment, legal help, etc
Education
 
Opportunity Maine
163 Lancaster St., Suite B, Portland, Maine 04101
Phone: (207) 699-5880, Fax: (207) 699-5885
http://opportunitymaine.org/

Parents As Scholars
The Parents as Scholars (PaS) program is a student aid program that helps low-income parents in two or four-year college programs. It was created by the Maine Legislature in 1997 as part our state's welfare reform plan. PaS is run by the Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) through the ASPIRE Program. Only parents who are eligible for, but not necessarily receiving, Temporary Assistance to Needy Families with Children (TANF, formerly AFDC) are eligible for PaS.
guidelines & information: http://www.mejp.org/pas_guide.htm
how to apply: http://www.mejp.org/pas_guide.htm#anchor1535108
 
 
Fuel Assistance

Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) 
If you live in Cumberland County, Maine:
People's Regional Opportunity Program: (207) 553-5800
510 Cumberland Ave, Portland, ME 04101
http://www.propeople.org/

Citizen's Energy 
88 Black Falcon Avenue, Suite 342, Boston, Massachusetts 02210
Phone: (617) 338-6300
http://www.citizensenergy.com/main/Home.html

Campaign for Home Energy Assistance (202) 429-8855
1615 L Street NW, Suite 520, Washington, DC 20036



Food Pantries

Emergency Food Assistance Resources, Maine Department of Agriculture
Lists various food pantries and soup kitchens by county

First Baptist Church Portland Food Pantry (Portland, ME)
360 Canco Rd, Portland, ME; Phone: 773-3123; Website: www.firstbaptistportland.org
Wednesdays from 1:00-2:00pm, at 360 Canco Rd, Porltand, ME
Serves all Portland residents, once a month limit up to 12 total visits, photo id required.

First Congregational Church UCC Emergency Food Pantry (South Portland, ME)
301 Cottage Road, South Portland, ME; Phone: 799-3361; Website: www.fccucc.org
Monday - Friday 8:00am - 4:00pm, at 301 Cottage Rd, South Portland, ME;
Serving residents of South Portland and Cape Elizabeth; limit of one visit every 2 months.
Call church office in the morning & pick up food that afternoon (in Winter) or the next day (in Summer).

Front Street Community Pantry (Portland, ME)
34 West Presumpscot St, Portland, ME;
Fridays from 11:00-11:45am & Sundays from 10:00-10:45am
Serves all residents who meet Federal Poverty Guidelines, id & proof of income required.

Food Center at the Root Cellar (Portland, ME)
94 Washington Ave, Portland, ME; Phone: (207) 774-3197; Website: www.therootcellar.org
Every Friday from 11am-12:30pm, 94 Washington Ave, Portland, ME
Serves residents of Portland's Munjoy Hill & Kennedy Park areas only (more about eligibility)

Preble Street Food Pantry (Portland, ME)
252 Oxford St, Portland, ME; Phone: (207) 775-0026; Website: www.preblestreet.org
Every Thursday from 1:00pm - 2:30pm, at 252 Oxford St in Portland, ME.
Serves all residents of Portland, Maine.

Project Feed, Woodfords Congregational Church (Portland, ME)
202 Woodford St, Portland, ME; Phone: 761-3920; Website: http://www.woodfordschurch.org/
Tuesday-Friday 1:00-3:00pm, at 202 Woodford St in Portland, ME.
Provides up to 7 days worth of food & non-food items once every four months;
Serves residents of Portland, Falmouth, carborough, South Portland, & Westbrook; each visit requires a referral from a social service agency (such as PROP), school, church, or synagogue (call 761-3920 for referral form); referrals must be used within 5 days of receipt. For more information: http://www.woodfordschurch.org/default.asp?contentID=661&toplevel=590

South Portland Food Cupboard (South Portland, ME)
Mailing address: 29 Aspen Ave, South Portland, ME 04106; Phone: 874-0379
Thursdays: 9:00am - 12:00pm, at 611 Main St, South Portland, ME
Serves residents of Cumberland County who meet 150% Federal Poverty Guidelines, application required, limit of one visit per month;



Housing & Shelter

Maine State Housing Authority 
353 Water Street, Augusta, ME 04330
Phone: (800) 452-4668 or (207) 626-4600, Fax (207) 626-4678, TTY (800) 452-4603
Website: http://www.mainehousing.org/


Oxford Street Shelter (Portland, ME)
Location: 203 Oxford Street, Portland, ME; Phone: 761-2072
Hours: Mon-Sun, 7:45pm - 7:45am
Run by the City of Portland; Open to male residents only;

Preble Street Resource Center (Portland, ME)
Location: 18 Portland Street, Portland, ME
Mailing Address: P.O. Box 1459, Portland, ME 04104
Phone: (207) 775-0026, Fax: (207) 842-3614
Website: http://www.preblestreet.org 
 

 

Section 8 Housing - general information from the Technical Assistance Collaborative:
The Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program (Section 8 HCVP) is one of the most successful federal housing programs funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The program assists low-income families, the elderly, and people with disabilities so that they may live in decent, safe, and sanitary housing in the community. Eligible participants receive a subsidy, which they can use in the private rental market, provided the unit meets the standards set by HUD.
http://www.tacinc.org/HH/Program_Policy/Section8HCVP.htm

Legal

HelpMELaw: Your Maine Legal Help Resource
Use HelpMELaw to find people who may be able to help you with a specific legal problem and/or information about laws that affect you. website: http://www.helpmelaw.org/

Maine Equal Justice Partners 
126 Sewall Street, Augusta ME 04330
Phone: (207) 626-7058 or Toll free: (866) 626-7059, Fax (207) 621-8148
website: http://www.mejp.org/

Pine Tree Legal Assistance


Volunteer Lawyers Project
VLP, P.O. Box 547, Portland, ME 04112
Phone: 1-800-442-4293 or 774-4348

Maine Community Action Association
Association of all Community Action Projects (CAP agencies) in Maine.
PO Box 200, East Wilton, ME 04234-0200
Phone: (207)645-4287, ext. 5300
http://www.mainecommunityaction.org/

List of all of Maine's CAP agencies, including locations & contact information:
http://www.mainecommunityaction.org/members.htm

List of all DHHS offices in the state of Maine, including locations & contact information.
http://www.maine.gov/dhhs/DHSaddresses.htm

*A work in progress: more coming soon!*

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VOTING INFORMATION & RESOURCES [webpage]
for Maine & Portland

- Links: Portland, Maine
- Links: other Maine towns/cities

- Links: other U.S. states