“If you’re talking about people needing housing, it’s a lot cheaper to help pay their utilities so they can stay in the place they already have, than to find them a new place,” said Sallie Smith.

This was the rationale behind the creation of Warm Thy Neighbor, an emergency heating assistance program Sallie launched in 2005 upon her retirement to Maine after a career as a social worker and church lay leader. Sallie ran the program for five years, partnering with local congregations to collect tens of thousands of dollars annually to spend on fuel for qualifying households.

Now in its eighteenth year and managed by Tedford Housing, WTN continues to rely on community donations and volunteer labor to take phone calls, review documents, meet with applicants, and schedule fuel deliveries. Longtime volunteer Karren Cowing’s appointment book reflects how widespread financial and housing insecurity have become: “This afternoon I’m meeting someone, and this person hasn’t gotten assistance from us before. Maybe they didn’t need it. But this year they do need it.”

Karren described the most common financial situations she encounters: “A lot of our clients are older and live on Social Security. It’s just not enough. Or it’s often a single parent and they may be working part-time, or even full-time. But if you’re making $15 an hour, it’s not enough to get by.”

Irene Martin, another longtime volunteer, says the work has broadened her awareness.  “I think people who are comfortable just don’t know about all the other people in the area,” she says. “Since I became the scheduler, I get to talk to every single person that applies to the program. And my eyes just opened up even wider knowing about how many people are struggling and have very low incomes.”

Marilyn Sinskie has also been with the team since the beginning. She says unexpected turns in her conversations, like picking up a new recipe from a WTN client, make the experience ennobling for all involved. “It’s not just about finding heating oil for people,” Marilyn said. “It’s about having a conversation with people and making a personal connection.”

So far this winter WTN has assisted 111 households from 12 towns, with heating assistance totaling over $35,000. Tedford expects to spend $45,000 by the end of the heating season in early April.

The WTN coverage area includes households in all of Sagadahoc County, northern Cumberland County (Harpswell and Brunswick) and southern Androscoggin County (Durham, Lisbon, Lisbon Falls and Lisbon Center).  Households are eligible if their income is at or below 150% of the federal poverty level.

Perhaps most of all, WTN is powerful as a reflection of local values. As Karren explains, “It’s your neighbors, and friends and local businesses who are paying for this. I try to get the message out that we’re locally funded. Should someone’s circumstances ever change who hasn’t supported the program, maybe they’d think about donating to WTN.”

Tedford is grateful that close-knit, loyal volunteers have made WTN a smooth and nimble operation. The crew was joined this year by Rosemary Anderson, and they hope to add more new faces to the lineup for next season.  Tedford Housing is also expanding its Board of Directors. If you are looking for a new role to play in our community, contact Executive Director Andrew Lardie at andrew@tedfordhousing.org.

To learn more about Warm Thy Neighbor, call (207) 729-1161, #115, or visit tedfordhousing.org.

Andrew Lardie is executive director of Tedford Housing. Giving Voice is a weekly collaboration among four local non-profit service agencies to share information and stories about their work in the community. 

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