October Conference Will Highlight Progress And Challenges In Work On Homelessness In Maine

Preble Street to host Second, Biennial Conference on Homelessness October 17, 2024

PORTLAND, Maine — There are a wide range of complex factors contributing to the homelessness crisis in Maine: a lack of affordable housing and accessible emergency shelter, inconsistent shelter funding, an increase in unsheltered individuals, and rising numbers of people needing support for substance use disorders and behavioral health issues.

Preble Street and the Atlantic Charitable Fund are partnering to host the Conference on Homelessness: Solutions Start with ME, bringing together more than 250 leaders in local and state government, nonprofit agencies, municipalities, faith organizations, business, and people with lived experience to focus on the critically needed solutions and strategies that will help.

Maine end homelessness. The conference will be held on Thursday, October 17, 2024, at the Holiday Inn by the Bay in Portland, ME.

Jeff Olivet, executive director of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH), is this year’s keynote speaker and will facilitate a discussion between panelists from around the country, including Dallas, TX; Seattle, WA; Rockford, IL; and Richmond, VA, who will outline what has and has not worked in their communities and how these strategies can be applied in Maine.

The day will begin with a keynote presentation from Olivet, followed by the facilitated guest panel. Workshops on unsheltered homelessness, Continuum of Care funding, Housing First, and sustainable business models for shelters will occur in the afternoon. Attendees will learn from speakers with Avesta Housing, the City of Portland, City of Rockford Human Services Department (IL), the Downtown Emergency Services Center (WA), Homeward (VA), Housing Forward (TX), Housing Narrative Lab (D.C.), Maine Community Foundation, MaineHealth, MaineHousing, Penobscot Community Health Center, Tedford Housing, the State of Maine, and York County Shelter.

"This conference will be a unique opportunity to learn from both national leaders and local subject matter experts about strategies and best practices we can apply to ending homelessness here in Maine,” said Dean Klein, strategic sustainability project manager at Preble Street. “The discussions that will happen at this conference will help build momentum to achieve strong outcomes for some of our most vulnerable citizens. We already have more than 100 people registered from across the state and hope that organizations working to solve homelessness from Aroostook to York County will be able to join us and be part of the conversation."

Sponsors and exhibitors at the 2024 conference include: The Atlantic Charitable Fund, Genesis Community Loan Fund, MaineHousing, Avesta Housing, and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, a Point32Health company.

Preble Street is a nonprofit social service agency, committed to serving the most vulnerable people in Maine since 1975 through innovative, best-practice, client-centered programs. In addition to the largest direct service emergency food program in northern New England, Preble Street operates low-barrier programs throughout Maine, providing 24/365 services for individuals and families, including homeless youth, women, veterans, and survivors of human trafficking, driven by its mission to meet urgent needs, empower people to move beyond the crises in their lives, and advocate for solutions to homelessness, hunger, and poverty.