For at least the past five years, Sweetwater County has participated in a nationwide homeless population count to determine just how many homeless people are in the county.
The annual Point in Time Count will take place from sundown Jan. 22 to sundown Jan. 23 to gather this information. The national PIT county is an unduplicated count on a single night of the people in a community who are experiencing homelessness. This includes both sheltered and unsheltered populations.
Kathy Tacke, member of the Wyoming Homeless Coalition Board of Directors, said she has personally participated in the count for the past five years. Tacke said the stats gathered are given to policy holders, law makers and agencies that can assist the county with funding to help address the homeless population.
“It forces a need (for) that kind of housing,” she said. “To get the money you have to prove the numbers. It’s difficult to find these people.”
According to Tacke, homelessness in Sweetwater County may not necessarily be increased, but the process used to count the homeless population has increased.
Prior to 2014, data wasn’t kept in Sweetwater County or the state, however Tacke provided data that has been obtained since then for Sweetwater County and the state. Sweetwater County recorded 6 homeless people in 2015, 33 in 2016, 48 in 2017 and 43 in 2018, while the state recorded a total of 757 in 2014, 789 in 2015, 857 in 2016, 873 in 2017 and 639 in 2018.
“I think as the years have gone on, it’s not so much as we have seen an increase in homelessness, but we have improved our process,” Tacke said. “We cover every county and have volunteers across the state. It is thought that last year’s data is a good idea as to where we are homeless wise.”
While the common conception of a homeless person is a single male traveling with a backpack, the spectrum of people experiencing homelessness is much more varied, Tacke said.
“It’s not the guy under the bridge,” she said.
For Sweetwater County homelessness can look like one family moving from one friend’s home to another in an effort to stay off of the streets in a cold winter. Homelessness in Sweetwater County is often hidden because of the cold weather the county has.
“It’s more common than you think,” she said.
Another example Tacke gave is two families of 10 to 12 people all living in the same house because one family came onto hard times and could no longer afford to pay their rent or bills.
“We get requests day after day of people that can’t pay their rent or bills,” Tacke said. “A lot of it is economy based.”
“Many people don’t realize how homelessness is often the result of a series of unfortunate events, like expensive medical treatment or an unexpected bill,” Tacke said. “Instead, they assume a homeless person is lazy or an addict.”
When conducting the count, volunteers will work with law enforcement agencies, food bank employees and the Loaves and Fishes Soup Kitchen in Rock Springs because they have a pretty good idea of which patrons may be homeless.
“We drive to all of the frequent spots where they might be living,” Tacke said.
Anyone can volunteer to help with the count, however those who have been in a situation like this are encouraged to volunteer. Tacke said those who experienced homelessness in the past have a better idea of where to locate those who are in that situation now.
The Sweetwater County Family Resource Center will be the host site for the count. Volunteers are needed to assist on the day of the count. Those who are interested can stop in at 756 Pilot Butte in Rock Springs or contact Tacke at SFRC at 307-362-6549.
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