SAN GABRIEL VALLEY CONSORTIUM ON HOMELESSNESS ASKS FOR HELP 

Later this month, thousands of volunteers will walk in small groups from neighborhood to neighborhood searching for the homeless – not only the chronic homeless that many observe walking around town every day, but those in need who often go unnoticed, including seniors living in their cars and the working poor who don’t have enough saved up for an apartment deposit.

The San Gabriel Valley Consortium on Homelessness is working this year with the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority to conduct a count of the homeless. The data is required by the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development and used to help make the case for necessary funding for housing and other support services.

The count also raises public awareness of the plight of the homeless in the volunteers’ own communities, says Todd Palmquist, executive director of the San Gabriel Valley Consortium on Homelessness. The non- tablished about 15 years ago to help end homelessness in the San Gabriel Valley and to educate and advocate for appropriate housing for those in need.

“Homelessness affects a lot more than the chronic homeless, those people you see walking with shopping carts,” says Palmquist. “This count really does educate people that more homelessness occurs in their community than they know.”

You can help Volunteers are still needed to help with the physical count, to drive the counters or assist at the deployment stations. Anyone 18 years old or older is eligible to help. Those interested can sign up online at theycountwillyou. org, where they will be given more details and information on training.

The count will be held countywide Jan. 27-29. The effort in the San Gabriel Valley will begin at 8 p.m. Jan. 27.

In addition to providing an accurate count of the estimated 39,000-plus homeless people in the county, the data collected will include basic demographic information that will be used by city and county officials as well in determining the need for various programs that help the homeless.

“Knowing who and where the homeless are will allow us to identify best practices and raise public awareness of homelessness. With this count, the volunteers really do impact the lives of veterans, families and individuals,” says George McQuade, director of communications for the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority. “And it’s a it’s a life-changing experience for the volunteers, as well.”