Greater Bangor Houseless Collective

12/21/2025

Today is National Homeless Persons Memorial Day, the first day of winter, and the longest night of the year. Today we honor those we have lost while unhoused and remind ourselves of why we fight for our community. No one should die due to a lack of housing.

Tonight will be 15 hours and 29 minutes of darkness. As the sun sets, the cold sets in alongside it. The temperature will eventually feel like 3 degrees. Bitter cold on salted streets. Eventually, the night will end. The sun will rise. We will too.

We remember, we rage, we rise.

We encourage community members to share stories of those they have lost to the streets, and to honor them however feels appropriate here.

12/16/2025

We’re just one week away from the Hope House Health & Living Center Candlelight Vigil. Please join us on Thursday, December 18th from 4:00–6:00 PM as we come together to honor the lives of those we’ve lost to homelessness.

🕯 Hope House Health & Living Center, 179 Corporate Drive, Bangor

This special outdoor gathering is open to all—staff, community members, and supporters. Music and refreshments will be available. Please dress warmly and for the weather.

We hope to see you there.

- Reposted from PCHC - Penobscot Community Health Center

12/16/2025

We’re just one week away from the Hope House Health & Living Center Candlelight Vigil. Please join us on Thursday, December 18th from 4:00–6:00 PM as we come together to honor the lives of those we’ve lost to homelessness.

🕯 Hope House Health & Living Center, 179 Corporate Drive, Bangor

This special outdoor gathering is open to all—staff, community members, and supporters. Music and refreshments will be available. Please dress warmly and for the weather.

We hope to see you there.

12/16/2025

All are welcome to join us next Friday, December 19, for Portland's Annual Homeless Persons' Memorial Vigil.

Every year on or around the Winter Solstice — the longest night of homelessness — a candlelight procession proceeds to Monument Square in Portland for a ceremony dedicated to those persons who have died in our community.

The life expectancy of our friends who endure chronic homelessness is, on average 28, years shorter than that of people who are housed. The human toll of allowing these vulnerable neighbors to slip through the cracks is devastating.

These deaths are the result of a broken system. As a community, we must come together to provide affordable housing and more housing first programs, dignified low-barrier shelter, and expanded services for physical and mental health and substance use disorders.

Together, we will mourn the lives that were cut short and reaffirm our commitment to ensuring that everyone who needs a home finds one.

12/16/2025

We compiled a "Know Your Rights' flyer for houseless Bangor residents that can be printed off and shared with anyone who needs it. It covers rights during sweeps, reasonable accommodations for people with disabilities, photographing/videotaping police, Bangor Police Depts 'Homelessness Crisis Protocol', Police encounters, loitering, overnight tenting, dumpster diving, public bathing/swimming, sleeping in vehicles, and panhandling.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Jrf6WtPNYJuK9ztBxFkd8zirSz4kZouF18v_DqjE-p4/edit?usp=sharing

If passing out to folks who are currently homeless, please print off and include this reasonable accommodation request form for folks - they are essential during sweeps.https://drme.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/RA-Request-Form-07.15.2020-Fillable.pdf

All information included is also available on our website at https://bangorhouselesscollective.wordpress.com

Know Your Rights: Houseless Residents in Bangor Encampment Sweeps From the Maine ACLU https://bit.ly/SweepsRights : Most cities in Maine have laws that ban loitering and camping in public spaces. Despite these bans, cities must provide advance notice of any sweep or removal of a campsite from pub...

12/11/2025

More stability for shelter staff means more stability for shelter guests! Congratulations on the union win!

Congratulations to the staff at the Hope House Shelter in Bangor who just won a hard-fought union election with Maine Service Employees Association, SEIU Local 1989!

10/22/2025

Sam needs our help!

Currently, Sam is being evicted from her home, and while there's almost no resources for situations like this, they're still applying to everything she qualifies for. These programs are difficult to get onto in the best of times, and there's no guarantee of housing anytime soon. The housing crisis in Bangor is critical, and finding housing that's safe should be a right, not a luxury.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/urgent-support-for-sams-winter-survival-as-a-disabled-homie

10/22/2025

Today, we want to share the story of our community member, Sam. She’s currently being evicted from her home and needs our help.

Sam has faced far too much hardship in her lifetime, from navigating complex chronic health conditions and disabilities, to lifelong housing insecurity, to mental health struggles, to fleeing abuse. This most recent risk to her housing could put her back into homelessness, which is even more dangerous due to her health issues.

There’s almost no resources for situations like hers, but she’s still applying to everything she qualifies for. These programs are difficult to get onto in the best of times, and there’s no guarantee of housing anytime soon. The housing crisis in Bangor is critical, and finding housing that’s safe and accessible should be a right, not a luxury.

We’re sharing Sam’s story in hopes you will feel inspired to donate to her fundraiser to help ensure her safety through the winter as she fights to secure housing.

A huge thank you to for hosting this fundraiser!

https://www.gofundme.com/f/urgent-support-for-sams-winter-survival-as-a-disabled-homie

10/22/2025

Today, we want to share the story of our community member, Sam. She's currently being evicted from her home and needs our help.

Sam has faced far too much hardship in her lifetime, from navigating complex chronic health conditions and disabilities, to lifelong housing insecurity, to mental health struggles, to fleeing abuse. This most recent risk to her housing could put her back into homelessness, which is even more dangerous due to her health issues.

There's almost no resources for situations like hers, but she's still applying to everything she qualifies for. These programs are difficult to get onto in the best of times, and there's no guarantee of housing anytime soon. The housing crisis in Bangor is critical, and finding housing that's safe and accessible should be a right, not a luxury.

We're sharing Sam's story in hopes you will feel inspired to donate to her fundraiser to help ensure her safety through the winter as she fights to secure housing.

Hi everyone- I am setting this fund up for my soul sister Sam… Chrysanthemum Gates needs your support for Urgent Support for Sam's Winter Survival as a disabled homie

08/24/2025

Brenna Jones worked incredibly hard on this study, which was conducted alongside GBHC organizing, to give academic evidence of the effects of stigmatization of homeless people in the Bangor area.

We've discussed it extensively in our "Let's Talk About It" series, we know the effects firsthand, and now we have something with solid evidence to bring to the broader community. We couldn't be more proud of Brenna for this! Also a huge thank you to Brian Pittman, also a former GBHC member!

Housing is increasingly a market exploited by corporations and what Samuel Stein calls the Real Estate State. Consequently, the state continues to target those impacted by these policy choices with removal and further stigmatization to clear the way for profit-making, which is tied to the housing ma...

07/25/2025

Regarding recent news— GBHC will be doing what we’ve been doing for the last 5 years: caring for our community (and ourselves) and showing up as best we can.

As an organization, we don’t have federal funds or large scale grants— it means we’re not nearly as impacted by federal or state legislative changes as places like shelters, harm reduction services, and similar organizations. There’s downsides, such as always needing to do fundraising, being completely reliant on volunteer capacity, not having any staff, no brick and mortar building, etc. But for us, it’s also meant safety.

Our leadership team is made up of folks with lived or active experience of homelessness. The executive order calling for the criminalization and institutionalization of us and our community is of course a concern, and at the same time, something that has always existed for us.

Sweeps have shown us that our existence is criminalized. Funding not being used for housing first models shows that institutions for us are their priority. Shelter beds being nearly constantly full, no housing to move people into, anti homeless architecture and laws— we hear the message loud and clear: they don’t want us here.

But we will keep existing, we will support each other, we will fight for our community.

Are you looking to join us? Come to our volunteer training next weekend on August 2nd at 4 pm at Coe Park

07/23/2025

Have you wanted to become a volunteer for Greater Bangor Houseless Collective? Now’s the time!

We’re offering a free volunteer training and potluck dinner on Saturday, August 2nd at 4 pm - 6:30 pm at Coe Park in Bangor (Court Street side).

Volunteer training will start at 4:30 pm. Bring your favorite dish and come learn about how you can join us in supporting our unhoused neighbors directly on the ground. All are welcome!