Dear Editor:

I have been a member of St. Philips Episcopal Church for over 30 years. Our little church has always been a giving member to the residents of Wiscasset and beyond. For many years our church housed the Head Start program. The Wiscasset Flower Club used to meet here. We have had AA meetings in our building for over 30 years. We have made sure that people in our community could get food from our “Help Yourself Shelf.” We have had so many "chowder suppers" and "Strawberry Festivals" where we have invited the greater community to come into our buildings and hopefully get a feeling of what we are all about. We have had our "Bargain Basement" where we have often given clothes and small household goods and furnishings to people in need or who have suffered fires. In partnership with the Congregational Church, we outreach in the form of the “Feed our Scholars” and “Set for Success” programs.

In Matthew 25 verses 34-36 Jesus said “I was hungry, and you fed me, naked and you gave me clothes, sick and you visited me, thirsty and you gave me something to drink, homeless and you gave me a room, in prison and you visited me.” Our congregation has done all these things. We are now trying to work with Commonspace to develop Work Force Housing in our building. In 2023 there were 50,000 people living in Lincoln County, with over 2,000 unhoused. There were almost as many living in tents, campers or other “inadequate housing.” The need for housing in our community is great.

We will not be a homeless shelter, a recovery center, or a warming center. Those who serve you at convenience stores, bag your groceries, take care of your children after school, or take care of your parents as CNAs will be able to afford to live and work in our community. Please help us to love and treat our neighbors as you would like to be treated yourself. 

Timothy Cowing

Dresden