Columbia Street Project

Columbia Street Project Forum

June 8, Bangor, Maine.A forum was held June 5, at the Columbia Street Project’s newly renovated facilities for about 60 community leaders and social service providers. The purpose of the Forum (facilitated by Millennia Consulting of Chicago, IL) was to define the mission, structure and sustainability of the Project in preparation for its formal launch in late summer or early fall. CSP will provide services to individuals who have experienced incarceration, intending to empower such individuals to rise above their circumstances toward productive life in society. Such initiatives as literacy training, job training, entrepreneurship training, sports, and life skill development are intended, as well as person-to-person mentoring. Presently located one block west of Penobscot County Jail and one block east of the primary Section Eight housing in the City of Bangor, it is uniquely positioned to provide both goods and services to the poor and dispossessed. Rev. Dr. Stan Moody, executive director of the Columbia Street Project and a former chaplain at the Maine State Prison, says “We want to come up with a vision for helping people rise above their circumstances,” Moody said. “We view ourselves as a resource center where we connect people to services. The Forum, has helped us find out where the missing links are for people who need them. Over the past two years, Columbia Street Baptist Church raised about $150,000 to renovate its education building, a former bakery, to help meet the goals of the Project. For more information about CSP or learn how you can become a partner or volunteer, visit our website www.columbiastreetproject.org or call 945-6616. You can support CSP at it’s fundly site fundly.com/the-columbia-street-project . The Columbia Street Project is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation serving downtown Bangor and is located at 45 Columbia Street.

Columbia Street Project to Host Community Leaders

May 22, 2015, Bangor, Maine. A year and a half after announcing its intention to create a separate 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation to serve the Bangor downtown community, Columbia Street Baptist Church (CSBC) is putting the finishing touches on the Columbia Street Project (CSP) to be housed next door to the church at 45 Columbia Street, Bangor.

A Forum for community leaders and social service providers will be held at the facility on Friday, June 5, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. The purpose of the Forum, to be facilitated by Millennia Consulting of Chicago, IL, will be further to define the mission, structure and sustainability of the Project in preparation for its formal launch in late summer or early fall.

“Our 501(c)(3) application has been IRS approved, extensive rehabilitation of the facility into a secure office complex is nearly completed, the initial consultant’s report is in hand, and social service providers are being encouraged as potential partners to the project”, says Stan Moody, Senior Pastor of CSBC and Director of the Project. While the focus of the Project will be to provide resources and assistance to those with prior experience with the criminal justice system, Moody sees the mission as a resource center for reentry of all those ready and willing to rise above their circumstances.

“We have been surprised and pleased at the community acceptance and encouragement”, Moody states. “Because of its strategic location, Columbia St. is uniquely situated to reach people and their families who have fallen on hard times. Through the Columbia Street Project as a cooperative venture, we expect to be ready to transition from the customary “hand-out” to the preferable “hand-up”.

CSBC has a long history of reaching out to those struggling to survive. It began in 1845 as a ministry to the working waterfront. Recently, it has been serving meals on Sunday afternoon and evening and on Monday evening to between 200 and 300 people. It hosts an active Celebrate Recovery program for those working to recover from addictions. Moody expects that over the next couple of years there will be a number of clients who will be ready to take their places in the community at large and to share their stories.

transportation for all

April 27, 2015, Bangor, ME. A rally by a local action group known as "Transportation for All" was held in Pickering Square Wednesday morning April 22. The group is supported by area elected officials, clergy, "Faith Linking in Action", bus drivers, University of Maine-Augusta’s Bangor campus, passengers, community groups and ATU Local. Transportation for All will survey passengers, would-be riders and community members about their transportation needs in hopes of improving service, possibly running later into the evening or adding Sunday routes. Many people use the bus for transportation to jobs and need expanded service to get to work later in the evening and on Sundays. Faith leaders encourage Sunday service, so community members can attend worship services.

“I have witnessed firsthand just how vital the bus service is to the vast array of people in the Bangor metro area,” Bus driver Sue Warner said. “The drivers need jobs, and the passengers need rides. We are all in this together.”

Other speakers included Bangor City Councilor Gibran Graham, Rev. Dr. Stan Moody (Columbia Street Project/Columbia Street Baptist Church), Angela Bickford (Faith Linking in Action), Ed Knutson (ATU), Rev.Dr. Mark Doty (Hammond Street Congregational Church) and several regular bus riders.

See photos gallery, click here

Insight conference video

Dr. Ron Sider speaking on Faith and Social Justice at an "Insight" conference for Columbia Street Project, August 2014.

The "Insight" Conference series is sponsored by the Columbia Street Baptist Church and The Columbia Street Project in an attempt to introduce ideas and discussion in our community that provide mission focus and impetus for action. Dr. Sider's presentation addresses the issue of blending the two components of the Gospel of Christ - evangelism and social justice - to help us invite the community to "rise above it's circumstances."

INTRODUCING a new venture