This is a day dedicated to counting the number of homeless.
Homeward which oversees the distribution of public funding for the many services in Richmond coordinates the count.
The following statement is from Homeward's website.
"Communities using funds from the Dept. of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) are required to conduct periodic counts of people experiencing homelessness. This data is compiled locally and nationally to inform programs and planning."
Volunteers from all over go into the streets, abandoned buildings, under bridges and even the woods to find where the homeless are staying.
The purpose is to get some kind of measurement of the number of homeless in order to see if the situation is improving or getting worse.
Unfortunately I do not believe that the number is but so accurate.
This is not because of the effort put into the survey, but because of the complexity of the problem.
Yesterday I wrote about two people I found sleeping in cars.
Will they be counted?
What about the number of folks living in a motel?
Or how about the person living on someone's couch?
I personally know of several people who lived in cars and motels.
I know of a camp in the woods that was not known of for a long time.
I am not saying the Point in Time is a bad thing.
You have to have a starting point.
You need some type of measurement.
I just believe the numbers are grossly understated.
The problem of homelessness is complicated and I believe the Point in Time might just be missing the mark.
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