ChosenFast.com

Totals for the 2010 Guilford County homeless count (part of the annual, nationwide HUD count) were reported to the state and available on the web as of March 12th, as reported here at ChosenFast.com. Those numbers were officially released to the media today:

Read more on Local homeless count numbers officially released: “Homelessness on rise”…

According to the 2009 point in time count of the homeless in Guilford County, conducted by the Homeless Prevention Coalition (HPCGC) on January 28th, there were 130 unsheltered people in the county, only 26 of whom are chronically homeless.  Keep in mind that those numbers include both Greensboro and High Point.   I believe that the team I was with counted 10 chronically homeless people on the night of the count.  What are the odds that all the other teams combined only found 16 more chronically homeless people out of the remaining 120?  Hmmm…

Read more on Breaking down the homeless count, part 1…

Driving to Community Dinner at Grace, a train passed by on the bridge over my head at Fulton Street. I knew that James would be seeing it soon. It always makes me feel connected to him when I watch the trains go by on the way to the bridge where he lives.  (Same bridge Pete and Ricky used to live under.)  Later, downtown at the Green Bean, I stopped in the doorway on the way in to watch a train leaving the station, heading out of town, and again thought, “James will be seeing that train soon.”

Read more on Watching trains and thinking about James…

Reidsville also participated in the annual state-wide homeless count last week.  Shelter staff at Room in the Inn say they expect Rockingham County’s homeless numbers to increase about 10% from last year’s count of 226 adults and 42 children. I participated in Greensboro’s street count. Our totals should be released in 1-2 weeks. Based on what we’re seeing on the street and at meal locations, I expect our numbers to be up here, too.

Read more on Rockingham County homeless population increasing…

[Show as slideshow]

On Wednesday, January 28th, the Homeless Prevention Coalition of Guilford County conducted its annual Point in Time Count, a nation-wide count of the homeless mandated by the Department of Housing and Development.  The yearly census, conducted over a 24-hour period each January, helps determine the funding that each community receives from the government to provide services and housing for homeless people.  The count begins early and continues into the night, with counts done at shelters, transitional housing facilities, meal locations, and on the street.

Read more on Counting the homeless: 2009…

Counting the homeless: Volunteers try to find them all
Source: www.news-record.com
GREENSBORO – On Wednesday, a man who would only give his name as J. stood along Battleground Avenue holding a sign: “Homeless. Please Help Me. God Bless You.” A smiley face punctuated the plea…

Read more on News stories about 2009 homeless count…

The annual point in time count of the homeless will be held in Guilford County on Wednesday, January 28, 2008.   The count will be coordinated by the Homeless Prevention Coalition of Guilford County.

Read more on 2009 Homeless Count…

[video link]

Video source: Fox8, WGHP, on their web site here, reported by Leah Beno

It was good to see Odell in that clip.  He used to fly a sign in the Aycock/Lee Street area, and I haven’t seen him for a while.  Good to know he’s OK and to find out the area where he is now.  We’ll have to find him on NightWatch.  I know everybody would be glad to see him.  I sure was.   (So was my momma, who remembered his name.)

Read more on Fox8 Video: Winter Shelter Crisis…

Homeless people often have everything they own in their backpacks. These backpacks were stashed near where some of my homeless friends were reading or using computers at the library yesterday afternoon.

From my on-the-street perspective, it certainly appears that hunger and homelessness are increasing in Greensboro.  There are more and newer faces at free meal sites, homeless shelters and the downtown library, one of our de facto day centers.  I went to Weaver House the other day looking for a homeless friend, and for the first time in years, I didn’t recognize a single face among the crowd of homeless people hanging out around the doorway and in the parking lot.

Read more on More hungry and homeless in Greensboro?…

Picked up the donated coffee from Port City Java (thank you!) and juice from our supplies at Salvation Army and then got to the HIVE. Lenslinger from Fox8 was there and Amanda Lehmert from News & Record. But not many homeless folks. So Tim and I went and got Grace’s van and headed to the library to pick up some folks. We got back with a vanful and Marsha was pulling up with some recently housed friends. Pastor Willis Johnson (Shiloh Baptist) was providing an update on the day center committee’s progress when we came in. Dianne Bellamy-Small is here. Ed Whitfield is going to facilitate the discussion.

Q. “Is the voice of the [currently/formerly] people… going to be heard?”

Pastor Johnson gave a very long answer that started with acknowledging that homeless people will not have a vote on everything and won’t like every decision. Pastor Johnson used the phrase, “going from a movement to an institution,” which, quite frankly, sounds my alarm bells, and “those who are our neighbors, those who are indigenous to this reality,” which I think means, “homeless people.” Referring to the structure committee’s suggestions for the make-up of the board, and having a certain number of homeless people on the board, he said, “Those are all things that we’re going to have to have real conversations about.”

Read more on Liveblog: Day center meeting at the HIVE…

Random thoughts and updates for this week:

1.) I’m very thankful for the “housing first” initiative that is moving chronically homeless people from the street to permanent housing, but… I’m growing increasingly frustrated with the all-too-frequent staff and program changes among community support providers, as well as the limitations of available mental health services. (I know — money, money, money — but still…) Giving chronically homeless people an apartment is great, but being homeless isn’t the root problem — it’s a symptom of other problems. How do we define “success?” More homeless people in apartments than on the streets? Or more lives transformed? (I know how I define it…)

Read more on July 10th news update: homelessness, day center, cops and more…

The Homeless Prevention Coalition of Guilford County has released final numbers from the January 2008 point in time count of the homeless. But the totals counted don’t tell the whole story.

Read more on Final county homeless count numbers don’t tell the whole story…