PCHC Receives Grant to Battle Substance Use Disorder
BANGOR – Penobscot Community Health Care (PCHC), the largest Federally Qualified Health Center in Maine, has been awarded a grant by the United Way of Eastern Maine for efforts to prevent, treat, and support recovery from Substance Use Disorder. The grant was awarded specifically to PCHC’s Hope House Health and Living Center’s homeless shelter in order to help those most vulnerable in the community. The grant is for $33,000 annually for the next three years.
“Thanks to the support from United Way, Hope House is able to continue to provide Substance Use Disorder treatment and recovery services, as well as providing safe shelter, food, medical and mental health care, case management services, and housing navigation assistance,” said Lori Dwyer, President & CEO of PCHC. “These services are critically important to our community, especially to community members who otherwise would be unable to access them if not for help from organizations like the United Way.”
United Way of Eastern Maine has identified a set of goals and objectives specific to this region through its Opportunity 2028 initiative. One such goal is to increase access to the full spectrum of accessible and affordable treatment and recovery resources. PCHC is one of the 30 programs in the United Way of Eastern Maine’s 5-county service area that received this award.
“The community told us what they see as the greatest needs and how United Way can support them,” said United Way of Eastern Maine President and CEO Shirar Patterson in a letter. “We are answering that call through our funding and initiatives, our focus on capacity building and bringing additional resources to bare to support these critical needs and the aspirational vision.”
Hope House Health and Living Center has a 66-bed low-barrier homeless shelter, a fully integrated health center, and a 49-bed transitional housing unit. The Hope House is one of two low barrier shelters in the state and, as such, seeks to be a welcoming, soft landing spot for those with the most severe biological, psychological and social challenges like severe chronic addiction, adult victims of childhood abuse, schizophrenia and other severe brain conditions. More details about Hope House can be found at https://pchc.com/locations/
For more information about United Way of Eastern Maine and Opportunity 2028, visit https://www.unitedwayem.org/