Sonoma County’s annual homeless count needs volunteers for the one-day effort later month when counters head out early on Feb. 23 to look for homeless people.
The annual “Point in Time” count, which takes place from 6 to 10 a.m. on that Friday morning, will require approximately 75 to 90 volunteers to canvass one or more census tracts as part of a team effort, said Michael Gause, the Sonoma County Community Development Commission homeless program coordinator. “Volunteers with automobiles, flashlights and cell phones are especially in high demand,” Gause said on the county’s 2018 homeless count website.
The ”Point in Time Count” helps ensure needed support for local homeless services providers that receive grant funding from state and federal agencies. The count is also used to adjust service needs if appropriate, said Gause.
The homeless count has continued for more than 10 years and is mandated by the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for proof of need for HUD homeless aid funds, now totaling approximately $3 million annually for Sonoma County.
Volunteers will work with recently homeless persons who have been recommended to help with the count owing to their knowledge of encampments and other locations where unsheltered people can be found, said Gause.
The homeless guides are paid, but volunteer participation is critical to the success of the annual countywide effort, said Gause.
The Feb. 23 count will deploy from five locations around Sonoma County, including West County Community Services in the former B of A building on Main Street in Guerneville and at the Healdsburg Day Labor Center at 405 Grove St in Healdsburg (next to City Hall).
Volunteers are also asked to participate in homeless count training sessions that start next week. Onsite training will take place in
Healdsburg on Tuesday, Feb. 13 from 9 to 10:30 a.m. at the Healdsburg Day Labor Center, and the same day in Guerneville at West County Community Services at its headquarters on Main Street from 6 to 7:30 p.m.
When the Feb. 23 count gets under way, the teams intend to count homeless in each of the county’s 126 census tracts, said Gause. Some of the tracts are pretty large and require a lot of driving, said Gause, but many such as Guerneville are sufficiently compact so that “people can get out and walk.”
Volunteers are expected to have a car and a cell phone, be willing to help with transportation needs, and be able to walk approximately two to three miles if necessary. No one will be asked to walk into any area where safety may be a concern. Additionally, all volunteers are strongly urged to attend one of the training sessions.
Questions may be directed to Gause at Mi***********@so***********.org or call 565-1977. The website address for information or registration is www.surveymonkey.com/r/2018HomelessCountRegistration.
There will also be a phone survey after the count to locate “hidden homeless” who are staying with friends or family. These may be people who are not homeless but are “very close” to becoming homeless, said Gause.
The county’s homeless count consultant, Applied Survey Research, a non-profit social science research company based in Santa Cruz, is directing this year’s count and will prepare a report that will be completed this spring.
