Deaths of homeless a call to action
Last year, 322 people experiencing homelessness died in San Antonio and Bexar County, a 95% increase over 2022. It’s a grim, alarming number. On Dec. 21, as it had done for 16 years, Samministries hosted the Homeless Persons’ Memorial at Milam Park in downtown San Antonio.
For each person who died without a home, a pair of shoes was set out, a candle was lit and a bell tolled. Each name was read aloud. The ages of those who were remembered ranged from 11 days to 94 years. Every person had a name and a story.
The ceremony memorializing the homeless people this community has lost should be viewed as a call to action. What must we do to ensure no person dies homeless?
In her recent Express-news commentary reflecting on these deaths, Nikisha Baker, president and CEO of Samministries, wrote that prior to 2020, the number of homeless people in San Antonio who died each year was relatively flat at about 70. That changed with the COVID-19 pandemic. That year, there were 102 deaths. In 2021, it went down to 72 deaths. And since then, the number has grown.
The increase in the number of people experiencing homelessness who died is startling — one death is too many, but nearly one per day is a crisis. Yet this staggering number likely reflects better tracking due to increased funding and services.
As Baker has said, the improved tracking is progress. Having more accurate data and knowing this number is the first step toward prevention and intervention. Previously, homeless people were dying, but many of them weren’t counted.
In the past, Samministries and other agencies attempted to count the number of homeless people who died by cross-checking pauper burials, medical examiner reports and a communitywide homeless people database.
The process is different now. City of San Antonio and Bexar County investments have led to hiring more outreach workers, which means better monitoring of the local homeless population. If caseworkers lose track of a person, they search. The increased identification and awareness of the deaths of people who were homeless likely reflects a moderate increase in the death count, Baker told us.
While San Antonio has ramped up its homeless encampment sweeps, substantive change is happening in other, less visible efforts. More street outreach case managers and advanced data collection have led to more effective programming and services, and better outcomes.
In 2022, San Antonio voters passed a historic $150 million housing bond that emphasized permanent supportive housing. Bexar County’s street outreach pilot project, in conjunction with Haven for Hope and Leon Valley, shows promise. And the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development recently awarded $14 million over three years to area nonprofits serving unsheltered people.
People become homeless for many reasons, and there are myriad challenges serving the homeless population. Their conditions and life circumstances are complex. But homelessness is not as removed as many people think. It’s estimated that more than half of San Antonio families are one paycheck or emergency away from homelessness.
According to the local point-in-time 2023 report, 3,155 people were counted as experiencing homelessness, a 5% increase from the 2022 count.
All of this speaks to the need for permanent, supportive housing; tracking and monitoring of those people who are experiencing homelessness; and workforce training and wraparound services.
Memorializing the 322 local people who died in our community last year while experiencing homelessness is important. But the most meaningful way to honor their lives is to commit to programs and services that place people in homes.
This surge in reported deaths of homeless people should be a clarion call. May our city and county and the agencies who work to help them continue their noble efforts, and may our broader community share a sense of urgency.
Improved tracking of the unsheltered illustrates need for intervention, prevention