My Homeless Count

Walking from bus stop on Pacific to library I counted 57 homeless people milling about at Lincoln Park. There was a group of perhaps a dozen others sitting in a loose circle that I did not include because I did not want to stop walking to count heads. Lincoln Park will be included in the homeless survey. I wonder if they will go to the COA and Village-MHA to hook up with homeless. Used to be even at 7:30AM people were lining up outside the COA for breakfast. Homeless would be at the Village early to sign up for services. They would leave, perhaps heading to the COA for breakfast, then return when the Village drop-in center opened knowing they would be one of the first in line for a shower or to do laundry.

Less were people like me that were headed for the MSC on Anaheim just past Sante Fe for the same reason. I wonder how receptive homeless people will be to taking a survey at 5AM. Imagine waking up to start your day and having someone rapping on your door, "Good morning, I am here to take a survey." Yikes. People need to wake up first, even if they are living on the streets. They need a toilet, a shower or sponge bath. Breakfast. Easier accomplished when homed than when sleeping on sidewalks.

Among my homeless peers were college graduates, poets, musicans, an attorney, former business and home owners, many formerly gainfully employed citizens. Divorced men more than women seemed to end up on the streets being unable to afford supporting themselves and the ex-spouse. Divorced females were almost always the victims of domestic violence. Their husbands were not providers; they were not fleeing a house, but a shared apartment.

The homeless stereotype of "bum" does not fit. But most of what is already known about homeless people is true. Veterans, abuse, mental disorders, substance abuse issues, crime and poverty leads to homelessness.