Homeless count aims to offer hope

Some are victims of domestic violence. Some are struggling with mental illness or addiction. And some are only children.

On any given night, as many as 250 men, women and children are homeless in Milwaukee County.

And for 12 hours, beginning at 7 p.m. Wednesday and continuing until 7 a.m. Thursday, teams of service providers, veterans advocates, law enforcement officials, religious leaders and volunteers set out to count them. They also will keep counting for the next week at “popup” sites in an effort to prevent people from slipping through the cracks.

Known as a “point in time” count, the survey tries to provide a snapshot of homeless people — with or without shelter — living in Milwaukee. The event also offers warming room locations complete with housing advocates, hygiene kits and health care assistance.

“Really, we want to look beyond just tonight, and not only connect folks with the point in time count, but also housing intervention,” said Eric CollinsDyke, outreach services manager with the Milwaukee County Department of Health and Human Services. “Our goal is the same as it is always when we go out on the street, and that’s to get people off the street.”

The count helps the Milwaukee Continuum of Care coalition and the state measure progress toward ending homelessness and identifying unmet needs. The surveys are conducted twice each year, in January and July.

“Tonight is a crucial night. Spread the word,” Nancy Esteves, system administrator with the Institute for Community Alliances, said Wednesday. “We won’t only just be interviewing folks. We’ll have Hunger Task Force conducting assessments there, where they can connect them to services in regards to food. We’ll have housing assessments being conducted at each of the warming rooms. In addition, in some of our warming rooms, we’re actually having some of our nurses on site, as well.”

This year is especially important for accurately counting young people, said Julie Bock, senior vice president of programs at Pathfinders Milwaukee.

Officials have the least accurate data when it comes to counting young people, she said.

“They are some of the most vulnerable people in our community,” Bock said.

Between Jan. 1, 2015, and Dec. 31, 2016, more than 40 people died homeless in Milwaukee County, many on the streets.