"What I want you to know about Preble Street is that they have a lot of resources to help you, and they want to help you."
Providing 24-hour services, seven days a week, Preble Street Teen Services operates separate day and night shelters for homeless and runaway youth: the Preble Street Teen Center and the Joe Kreisler Teen Shelter.
Because the Teen Center and Shelter are separate facilities, youth utilizing our overnight services must leave the Teen Center every evening, taking their belongings to the overnight shelter, then go back to the day center in the morning. While the Teen Center and Shelter are conveniently located across the street from each other, this process is disruptive to youth, who need stability and safety.
Preble Street is planning to start construction soon on Joe’s Place, which will combine the Teen Center and Shelter under one roof to create an integrated day and night shelter in a state-of-the-art facility, where homeless and runaway youth will receive social work services and 24/7 support. Bringing these vital services under one roof will mean stability, increased safety, and, importantly, one less transition for homeless youth to have to navigate. “It might seem really small… but a two-minute walk across the street causes so much stress and anxiety for young people,” says Kiersten Mulcahy, the director of Teen Shelter and Outreach Services at Preble Street. “Ultimately being in one building, people can feel like they have this place in the world where they can rest and recover,” explains Kiersten.
Renderings of Joe’s Place
Joe’s Place will continue to be the only shelter serving youth in York and Cumberland counties and one of three youth shelters in the state of Maine. Youth shelters are critically important, as youth, ages 24 and under, make up 32% of people experiencing homelessness in Maine. Moreover, teens and young adults have specific needs that cannot be met in an adult shelter.
In the fall of 2022, the City of Portland’s Planning board unanimously approved the initial plans for Joe’s Place. Preble Street has completed a Design Development for this project and a Phase I Environmental Review. The estimated start date of construction for Joe’s Place is mid-to-late 2024.
Preble Street staff members, Dan Hodgkins, Erin Kelly, and Terence Miller, along with other Maine homeless advocates, including Homeless Voices for Justice’s Cheryl Harkins recently met with Senator Susan Collins during an annual conference in Washington D.C. held by the National Alliance to End Homelessness.
Senator Susan Collins, who has strongly advocated for the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act and other legislation to address youth homelessness, provided critical support for Joe’s Place.
Who does Teen Services serve?
Preble Street Teen Services provides low-barrier access to shelter, food, basic needs, housing options and more for youth 12-20 experiencing homelessness in Maine. Teen Services serves youth and young adults from 11 of 16 counties in Maine.
Teen Services works with youth forced to leave home because of physical or sexual abuse and with young adults struggling with substance use and/or mental illness. With limited access to education and crucial services and resources, some have educational deficits or learning disabilities and are at high risk for pregnancy, HIV/AIDS, and sexually transmitted infections.
Hear directly from the youth of Preble Street Teen Services: Created in partnership with TD Bank for the 2024 TD Beach to Beacon 10k, this video shows the impact of Teen Services, with the voices and stories of the youth we serve.
What services does Preble Street provide?
We're able to provide all of the services that happen both before and after a shelter stay so that we can meet the ultimate goal, which is ensuring that a young person permanently stays out of homelessness and can go into permanent, safe, stable housing while meeting their own goals for becoming an adult in a society.
More than 350 youth receive support from Preble Street Teen Services every year through several resources…
- Currently, The Preble Street Teen Center is the hub of services for homeless and runaway youth ages 12 through 24. This low-barrier, drop-in center, located in downtown Portland, ME, helps to meet immediate needs — providing warmth and safety, case management, counseling services, nutritious meals from the on-site soup kitchen, laundry and clothing, crisis intervention, education, employment services, and more.
- The Joe Kreisler Teen Shelter is Maine’s largest youth shelter with 28 beds and offers a safe place for homeless and runaway youth ages 12 through 20. The Teen Shelter offers a full range of services to assist young people in making plans to stay off the street and coordinates supports with the Preble Street Teen Center, located right across the street.
- Serving 11 out of 16 Maine counties, Preble Street Teen Outreach caseworkers provide intensive, short-term services to rapidly resolve periods of homelessness. Preble Street has traditional Street Outreach for youth in York and Cumberland counties, including walking routes through urban hubs. We also work in close partnership with local schools to ensure connections and support for students experiencing homelessness.
- Preble Street Teen Housing programs provide youth and young adults experiencing homelessness with supportive services and a safe place to live as they work toward the skills needed to independently sustain housing. We offer multiple pathways to housing, including
Transitional Living Programs, Transitional Housing, Rapid Re-Housing, and housing vouchers with supportive services. This flexibility allows us to work with youth, with varying needs, who require various levels of support.
How can you help?
- Be a safe place for the young people in your life.
- Advocate for laws and policies that address the root causes of youth homelessness, such as generational poverty and a lack of support for youth aging out of foster care.
- Volunteer with Preble Street. We have year-round opportunities at the Preble Street Teen Center. You can still be a part of the Preble Street Teen Services team at the 2024 TD Bank Beach to Beacon 10k on Saturday, August 3 in Cape Elizabeth. Visit preblestreet.org/b2b for more information.
- Sign up for here our E-Newsletter or here Advocacy alerts to stay informed on important Preble Street issues that impact the people we serve.
November is Youth Homelessness Awareness Month
“Preble Street is family to me. I don’t have family, and if I didn’t have them, where would I be?” – Teen Services Youth According to the latest data, over 30% of the people experiencing homelessness in Maine were under the age of 24. Young people in Maine experience homelessness for many different reasons… some are victims
The importance of vouchers to secure housing
For countless Mainers, housing vouchers have been a crucial steppingstone to stability. In the last decade, especially the past few years, as rents went up and the number of available apartments or houses to rent has dwindled, waiting lists for vouchers have grown and it’s become more difficult for voucher-holders to secure housing. This
Preventing youth from becoming unhoused
One of the most important things we can do for young people experiencing difficult, unsafe, or unstable situations is to find alternative options to entering emergency shelter. The impact of diverting youth from spending even just one night in a shelter bed can make a significant impact over their lifetime. “Once someone accesses emergency shelter,
