Youth Promise of Lincoln County 

LCJTF has worked closely with the four area police departments, the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office, the Department of Corrections’ Juvenile Services and the school systems in Lincoln County, including Lincoln Academy. The Task Force also collaborates with organizations such as Big Brothers/Big Sisters, the YMCA, Healthy Kids, Maria Mercedes Foundation, Weymouth House, Camp Kieve and Miles Health Care Center. Through the Mentor Assisted Community Service (MACS) Program the LCJTF has developed 16 community service sites throughout Lincoln County.

The LCJTF originated out of a need to divert youth entering the justice system. In 1994 Michael Westcott, a District Court Judge living in Damariscotta, saw a lack of alternatives available to him and the law enforcement community when presented with a juvenile offender first entering the justice system. He called together people from around Lincoln County concerned with working with youth. The meeting included the juvenile probation officer, counselors, local school officials, representatives from local agencies serving children, families and many other concerned citizens wanting to make a difference in the lives of local youth. This and subsequent meetings lead to the formation of the LCJTF.

The initial motivation of the LCJTF was to develop corrections options, but the concerns of the group became much broader. The first efforts were aimed at compiling an inventory of local services with the intention to better support and utilize existing services. The LCJTF then began to focus their activities around developing a continuum of programs to be available to help youth at risk of criminal behaviors. The Task Force has been in operation for over seven years and has three active programs in place.

The Mentor Assisted Community Service (MACS) program, coordinated by a Communities For Children VISTA volunteer, is an organized community service program, which has produced nearly 2606 hours of community service since July 1, 1999, with over 1550 hours provided by at-risk youth and the remainder by the mentors who work with them. Using $8.00 per hour, this translates into a value amount of $20,846 worth of Community Service.

Activities in 2000 included mentor assisted helping at the Miles Memorial Hospital League Rummage Sale in Damariscotta, the Morris Farm "Plant a Row for the Hungry" Program in Wiscasset, which was able to contribute 183 pounds of food to Meals on Wheels, and Christmas present wrapping at the Waldoboro Town Office.

The Jump-Start Program for first-time non-violent offenders was initiated three years ago as a result of a need expressed by the juvenile court judge, the police and the juvenile caseworker for Lincoln County. Since the first LCJTF offering of the 8-week Jump-Start session in 1999, the Program has been immensely successful. Six Jump-Start sessions have been conducted, with 26 youth participating. Twenty-four youth, or 92% of the young people who started the program, successfully completed the program.

Another program affiliated with the LCJTF is the Therapeutic Outdoor Adventure Program, which is operated out of the York County YMCA. The Adventure Program is a yearlong adventure-based alternative correction program aimed at improving the lives of court-involved youth who reside in Lincoln County.

The program includes weekly contact and counseling, monthly group meetings, individual meetings, school liaison and a monthly outdoor program. The outdoor program aims at increasing the youth’s self-confidence by programming the youth for success in challenging situations, such as climbing a sheer cliff face. There are currently ten youth involved and 47 youth have gone through the program.

In October 2000, the LCJTF was selected as one of three community partners in Maine that, along with the central C4C office and the Muskie School of the University of Southern Maine, were awarded a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Center for Mental Health Services C4C PRISM (Partnership Resource and Infrastructure Support Monies) grant for developing the infrastructure needed to support program implementation and evaluation. This grant provides $70,000 in support each year for three years. A Project Director has been hired for this position and will provide the direct oversight of LCJTF’s programs.

In December 2000, the LCJTF hosted a countywide Safe Alternatives for Youth Resource Fair. Twenty local organizations provided resources and services that were targeted to children and youth from birth through age 18. Forty people participated in focus groups which identified resources and gaps in resources in each of the Five Fundamental Resources: a healthy start, a caring adult, safe places, marketable skills and youth giving back to their communities through service.

In January 2001, the LCJTF’s (as the Lead Agency for the 16 partner community coalition) received a 17-month contract of $325,800 from the Tobacco Settlement funds. The efforts of this grant are to prevent the onset of smoking among young people and to promote smoking cessation, better nutrition and more active lifestyles.

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