Volunteers sought to join homeless count in York Region

YorkRegion.com
April 9, 2018
Kim Zarzour

Have you ever met a homeless person?

If you live in York Region, the answer is probably no.

Maybe you’ve dodged their request for cash at the stoplight, the remnants of their makeshift home, their eye contact.

Maybe you’ve missed them altogether, hidden in friends’ basements, on their couches, in a car or out of sight.

Maybe you want to know more — to help solve this shadowy issue — and now there is a way.

The Region of York and its community partners are looking for volunteers to help understand the needs, and numbers, of the region’s homeless.

Called I Count, it’s part of the first provincewide survey of people experiencing homelessness in communities across Ontario.

Staff and volunteers will connect with homeless people by visiting different sites throughout York Region, collecting information to help them connect with service and supports and to better understand the size and dimension of the issue in the community.

The results will be revealed in a report to York Region council in June, and it will be repeated every two years, said Katherine Chislett, commissioner of community and health services of York Region.

“We want to understand the scope and scale of the issue, why they are here, and what they need to end homelessness," Chislett said. “We can’t end homelessness if we don’t understand it.”

United Way did similar point-in-time count in 2016 and found more than 260 people living without shelter, but an estimated 80 per cent more homeless people are hidden and as yet uncounted, Chislett said.

Organizers hope to learn more about that invisible group as part of the I Count project by reaching out to places they may frequent, such as food banks and drop-ins, and asking agencies to spread the word.

The region is hoping 200 to 225 citizens will participate as volunteers. More than 100 have signed on so far, she said.

Participants must be 18 years of age or older.

From April 17 to 20, trained volunteers, under direction of a team lead who has had extra training, will visit identified locations to meet and ask to survey those who are experiencing homelessness.

Volunteers will help connect people to the right services and supports and prioritize those with highest need to help them get housed, Chislett said.

“They’ll need to be prepared to put in some time and do some walking. Some folks will be tramping out into the forest.”

But it is more than simply asking homeless people to fill out a form, she said.

“It becomes a real conversation. They are going to understand more about being a citizen in York Region and homelessness. Homelessness is more nuanced and complicated than one might think. This activity brings out your caring side.”

Deadline to volunteer is Monday, April 9.

If you can’t take part in this month’s count but still want to help, you can promote it using #icountYR or sharing the posters and videos at york.ca/icount.

For more information, including how to volunteer, visit the I Count website or call Access York at 1-877-464-YORK (9675).