A community coalition in Bath has received funding to help its push to provide stable housing for young adults who have aged out of the state’s foster care program.

Last month, the Midcoast Community Alliance, a grassroots coalition that runs the Midcoast Youth Center and Skate Park, received $15,000 from the John T. Gorman Foundation to support the Midcoast Youth Center’s transitional Step-Up Housing program.

According to Kirstie Truluck, development director at Midcoast Youth Center and Skate Park, the money will be used to maintain the building for the Step-Up transitional housing program and provide supportive services to residents, such as food insecurity, group therapy and job and workforce development.

“We received money from the state for some of this [transitional housing] program and staff support, but it is a significant area of need,” Truluck said.

Another portion of the John T. Gorman grant supports positions, such as the community navigator, who helps residents schedule and get to medical appointments.

The Step-Up Housing program is just over a year old, and Midcoast Youth Center operates a space for 12 young adults between 18 and 24 years old. Midcoast Youth Center hopes to tackle the limitations of traditional housing space regarding capacity.

Truluck said the transitional housing program offers dorm-style living for young adults aging out of foster care who have experienced family instability or homelessness. The building for the transitional housing program sits adjacent to Midcoast Youth Center’s location. The community navigators also hold inspections and dorm meetings to teach the residents how to live in the community.

More recently, the Midcoast Youth Center expanded its McKinney-Vento outreach efforts to better support families and unaccompanied minors experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

Midcoast Youth Center’s Merrymeeting Support Collaborative for Youth Experiencing Homelessness works with outreach coordinators in compliance with McKinney-Vento, a state law helping students whose housing situations impact their education, for youth experiencing homelessness. In 2024, schools identified 150 students in the Brunswick school system eligible for the McKinney-Vento program, 70 in Regional School Unit 1, 40 in Maine School Administrative District 75 and 40 in Richmond.

According to a copy of the proposal submitted to the John T. Gorman Foundation, Midcoast Youth Center is a unique resource in our community that provides a lifeline for these young people to help them stay in school, find stable housing and navigate the complex medical, legal and governmental assistance systems of the state and nation.