When an individual or family is ready to move into a place of their own from an area shelter, a caseworker or member of clergy contacts Welcome To Housing to arrange a time to meet at our warehouse in Old Town, Maine.
Once at the warehouse, the caseworker or clergy member works with their client to pick out items that are needed. They’re given a clipboard with a sheet to list the things that they’re taking for their client. This is done to track items going out of the warehouse in a “Reverse Inventory.”
It can be items such as a set of dishes, pans, bedding, even paper products like toilet paper and paper towels. Goods provided are based on what we have on hand at the time of the visit.
We require that people being helped have someone come with them to the warehouse, whether it’s an agency caseworker or someone from their house of worship. There are several reasons why.
To ensure that people being served by Welcome To Housing are helped on a first come-first served basis.
As Welcome To Housing is NOT an agency but rather a group of volunteers working under the auspices of the Bangor Area Homeless Shelter, an intermediary is needed for liability reasons.
Welcome To Housing also needs to keep track of agencies/houses of worship served; WTH also has to track items given out by doing what’s called a “Reverse Inventory.”
