The Charter House Coalition operates a shelter and food kitchen for the greater Middlebury area, providing Addison County with a relief center for homelessness. Opened in June of 2006, the Coalition has grown to offer an array of services, including case management for residents and referrals to external social programs. Over time, the organization has assumed an increasingly important role in the community, becoming integral to the well-being of Addison County.
Charter House, located at 27 North Pleasant St, was chartered in 2006 as a 501c3 tax-exempt non-profit organization. The original program, Community Suppers and Pleasant Street Community Housing, was pioneered by the Middlebury Congregational Church and quickly grew into a more complex operation. The coalition provided emergency housing for the rapidly growing unhoused population during the Great Recession in 2009, launched a lunch service, and offered residency during the winter months.
Charter House currently has 25 permanent residents, with six spots available for emergency nightly housing. Understanding the extra challenges faced by marginalized populations, they are intentional in welcoming individuals such as drug users and the formerly incarcerated.
The Vermont state government has designated Charter House as the “Lead Agency for Coordinated Entry” for Addison County, making the Coalition responsible for coordinating social services and outreach programs. One of their services, housing case management, takes a hands-on approach in helping people move out and find housing as soon as possible. This assistance is invaluable to the Middlebury community, where homelessness is a much quieter issue than in big cities.
“Depending on the day, Vermont has the 2nd or 3rd highest rate of homelessness per capita in the United States. Our rate has increased over 150% since 2020,” Tom Morgan, the minister of the Champlain Valley Unitarian Universalist Society, said. Addison County’s home vacancy rate is about 1%, far below the healthy rate of 3%, and the area faces a severe shortage of affordable housing.
Each year in January, the Coalition organizes a Homelessness Awareness Day where local protestors gather to bring awareness to the growing issue. On Jan. 22 at 4:30 p.m., Charter House will organize a candlelight walk through Middlebury and a brief vigil at the town gazebo. Drinks and snacks will be offered, provided by the college.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, Charter House greatly exceeded its capacity due to high unemployment and economic uncertainty. Its website reports that it served 90,000 meals, compared to 40,000 the previous year, and that “bed nights,” or one night spent by a person in the shelter, went from 4,500 to 24,000. To meet this exceedingly high demand for aid in the community, they utilized their emergency relief funding to renovate and expand the shelter.
The college has a close relationship with Charter House — Stephen Diehl, the vice president of public affairs at Middlebury, and two students, Riley Nebolsine ’27.5 and Keegan Gilsenan ’25, having served on the Coalition’s board.
Every Saturday, students in a Charter House club led by Brooke Dolan ’26 and Mary Elliot ’26 go to the shelter to prepare a meal for residents. After cooking and cleaning, if there are leftovers, the team is invited to share the meal. Meals can also be taken to go for those who do not live on the premises.
“While it's wonderful to provide really delicious food to people that need it, for me, what makes the Charter House Club truly worthwhile is fostering relationships and conversations, and in many cases friendships, between people who likely would never have met otherwise,” Elliot said. “Students get to engage with the broader Middlebury community and meet people with such different experiences and learn from the stories of people living at the Charter House, and for the residents of the Charter House, who seem to really love the company of college kids and the joy and energy that they bring.”
Many clubs have collaborated with Charter House to expand campus outreach and introduce more students to the organization. Club Rugby, with the help of Riley Nebolsine ’27.5, organized Sunday night dinners in which players would join their teammates in cooking a meal.
