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SoPo radio host headlines annual food drive

SOUTH PORTLAND – The annual 100.9 Stuff the Bus Food Drive, which is headlined by local radio host Chuck Igo, kicks off this week. Between Nov. 21 and Nov. 26, hundreds of students from schools in South Portland, Cape Elizabeth and Scarborough, along with community volunteers, will help radio station stuff a bus to feed

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Maine faces federal penalty over photo policy for food benefit cards

… Representatives of the Food and Nutrition Service – a division of the USDA – visited Maine the week of Aug. 18. During the visit, they met with state officials, SNAP recipients, retailers and advocacy groups in Portland, Ellsworth and Bangor. One of those meetings was held at the Preble Street Resource Center in Portland.

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Housing for homeless planned near Morrill’s Corner

Avesta Housing is looking to build a 30-unit apartment building near Morrill’s Corner in Portland for chronically homeless people with chronic medical conditions … … Jon Bradley, associate director at Preble Street, which staffs Florence House and Logan Place, said between two and five staffers would be at the Bishop Street facility 24 hours a

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Picketers Protest Portland DHHS Move One Last Time

PORTLAND, Maine – For one final time, protestors picketed outside the Department of Health and Human Services building in Portland. They object to plans to move the facility to a new structure in South Portland. John Monahan, an advocate for the group Homeless Voices for Justice, says it’s still a bad idea, but given last

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New program gives homeless teens second chance

PORTLAND, Maine (NEWS CENTER) — Nate Labrecque has called the Preble Street Shelters in Portland home for the past three years. After losing his mom as a young child and other family living situations failing him, he ended up on the streets. He had no money for a place of his own so a fold

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Portland council gives library staffers power to expel unruly patrons

… Homeless advocates, however, argued that homeless people and minorities would become the targets. Jim Devine, an advocate for Homeless Voices for Justice, said the library is part of the "safety triangle," which also includes the Preble Street Resource Center and the Oxford Street Shelter. "Even if this policy change is not intended to target

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Maine Calling: Maine Veteran Services

A look at some of the many services available to returning service men and women. Guests: Rob Liscord, Veteran Legal Services Outreach Coordinator, Paralegal, Pine Tree Legal Assistance John Ripley, Director, Military & Veterans Services, Easter Seals Maine Phil Allen, Preble Street Veterans Housing Services Coordinator Also, by phone, Peter Ogden with the Maine Bureau

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Security changes may be coming to the Portland Public Library

PORTLAND (WGME) — The director of the Portland Public Library wants the city council to grant its security guards the power to ban people. Executive director Steve Podgajny says with at least 400,000 people coming in and out of the doors each year, issues pop up. If an issue escalates to a point where more

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Portland council cool to idea of ‘constables’ at public library

… Amy Gallant, advocacy coordinator at the nonprofit Preble Street, which provides services to the city’s homeless, said the constable request was "worrisome." She said police officers are better trained to handle potential trespassing cases, and they have oversight from Portland Police Chief Michael Sauschuck, whom Gallant praised for his work with the homeless population.

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Shawn McLaughlin: Gratitude in Action

One of the requirements for staying at the Congress Street house was meaningful activity, including regular volunteer work. McLaughlin began helping out at Preble Street. Preble Street assists area residents who are experiencing homelessness, hunger, and poverty. After a month at Preble Street, kitchen manager Sue Ellen Sevigny suggested that McLaughlin work there full time.

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