Hotlines / Shelters
- Maine Statewide Crisis Hotline operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, year round, and serves children, adolescents and families in crisis.
- Statewide Domestic Violence Crisis Hotline will connect you with your local domestic violence resource center.
- List of Hotlines / Crisis Numbers from the State of Maine’s Department of Health and Human Services.
- Maine Emergency Shelters information on locations and contacts for shelters in Maine.
- 211 Maine “a free, confidential information and referral service that connects people of all ages across Maine to local services.” Available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Maine COVID-19 VACCINATION Information
Community Vaccination Line: 1-888-445-4111
The Maine COVID-19 Community Vaccination Line helps Maine people get information about vaccine clinics. For translation services, call the number listed above and state your desired language (for example: “Spanish”). Deaf and hard of hearing individuals may dial 711 and asked to be connected to the number above. The vaccination line does not provide faster access to appointments.
For local help contacts & resources, please visit our Local Resources page.
Computer Skills
- Tech Boomers Free educational website for older adults and other inexperienced Internet users to help learn basic computer skills.
- Digital Learn Resource created by the Public Library Association that offers digital literacy support and training.
Diverse Books and Anti-Racism Resources
- The Anti-Racist Reading List by author Ibram X. Kendi.
- “Talking About Race” web portal to help people explore issues of race, racism and racial identity; released by The National Museum of African American History and Culture.
- Talking to Young Children About Race and Racism
- 8 tips for choosing “good” picture books featuring diverse, BIPOC characters.
- Where to find diverse books curated by the nonprofit We Need Diverse Books.
- Anti-racist resources for children, families, and educators curated by The Brown Bookshelf.
- 45 Black Young Adult Novels
- Talking Race With Young Children
- Beautiful Blackbird Children’s Summer Virtual Book Festival brought to you by Indigo Arts Alliance; activities, dance, and links to a collection of children’s books by Black authors and artists.
Employment / Education
- Getting a Job: Resources, Courses, Webinars
- No-cost, short-term training in currently-needed fields by Maine’s Community Colleges.
- Maine JobLink
- Maine Career Center
- Resume Writing Tutorial
- Early College Programs at the University of Maine
- Senior College
Fact Checking
- How to Spot Fake News infographic from The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions based on this article
- Evaluating Information a guide from the American Library Association which lists several fact checking sites including but limitied to:
- FactCheck.org
- PolitiFact
- Snopes
Financial Help
- Bureau of Unemployment Compensation unemployment information for Maine residents; includes Pandemic Unemployment Assistance Insurance information.
- Protecting Your Finances During the Coronavirus Pandemic information from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; includes resources for mortgage and housing assistance.
- COVID-19 Rental Relief Program information from the Maine State Housing Authority.
- Personal Finance and Consumer Protection Guide steps for quicker financial relief from the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
Health Information
- HealthCare.gov
- The Iris Network
- National Alliance on Mental Illness – Maine
- National Institute of Mental Health
- National Library of Medicine
- MedlinePlus
- Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Legal Help
The Gale LegalForms database is available through the Digital Maine Library (use the A-Z index to find the link to Gale Legal Forms).
- Maine Laws and Legal Resources
- Maine Attorney General’s Consumer Law Guide
- HelpMELaw’s Legal Library
- HelpMELaw’s List of Helpful Organizations for legal information and advice; list includes legal offices serving low-income clients.
- Pine Tree Legal Assistance organization serving people who live in Maine or have a problem in Maine; includes many Self-Help Tools.
- WomensLaw.org provides information on different forms of abuse and legal information for domestic abuse victims.
Libraries
- Digital Maine Library is a collection of databases, including Gale Culinary Arts Collection, Gale LegalForms, NoveList Plus, ProQuest Global Newsstream, & PubMed.
- The Maine State Library is a great resource for information, research tools, genealogy help, and services, including library services for people with disabilities. One of those services is Talking Books which the Maine State Library describes as a “federally-funded program which provides recorded books and special players free to persons who are blind, visually impaired, physically handicapped (cannot hold a book) or who have a doctor-certified reading disability.”
- Portland Public Library offers library cards to all residents of the Southern Maine Library District who can sign up for a card at Portland Public or at a number of participating libraries, including Kenenbunk Free Library. A card offers access to PPL materials, including many digital resources and databases. Please call KFL at 207-985-2173 for more information.
- Louis T. Graves Memorial Library in Kennebunkport, ME
- Wells Public Library in Wells, ME
- RSU 21 Libraries our local public school libraries
Taxes
- Federal Forms, Instructions & Publications from the Internal Revenue Service
- Maine State Forms from Maine Revenue Services
- IRS E-File Options including IRS Free File program (certain restrications apply)
- Maine FastFile options, including Maine i-File (free for Maine tax payers, certain restrictions apply)
- United Way’s My Free Taxes program
- Other websites for filing your taxes include TurboTax turbotax.com and TaxAct: taxact.com