Mid-Columbia Houseless Collaborative Prepares for Annual Houselessness Count
Kelli Hovrath, Director of the Office of Housing Stabilization with a trunk full of street outreach supplies. Photo Credit: MCCAC
From Mid-Columbia Houseless Collaborative:
The Dalles, Oregon –Members of the Mid-Columbia Houseless Collaborative are preparing for the 2023 Point in Time (PIT) Count, which will take place in Hood River, Wasco, Sherman, Klickitat, and Skamania Counties between Monday, January 23rd—Friday, January 27th.
The annual PIT Count is a federally mandated survey of sheltered and unsheltered people experiencing houselessness in communities across the country. The count, which occurs in January of every year, plays a critical role in determining the level of state and federal funding communities receive to address houselessness. It also provides key insight into the needs of those impacted by houselessness, including the disproportionate impact houselessness has on communities who have historically faced inequitable barriers to safe and affordable housing, such as communities of color. Additionally, houseless community members have the opportunity to access supplies and housing stabilization services that outreach case workers offer when conducting the count.
“Although we do street outreach throughout the year, the PIT Count is arguably our biggest single outreach effort every 12 months, and our best opportunity to ensure our efforts match the scope of the houselessness crisis in our communities,” said Kelli Horvath, Director of the Office of Housing Stabilization at Mid-Columbia Community Action Council. “We are grateful for the enhanced collaboration with partners in 2022 that allowed us to get more solid data about the communities we are working to serve, and we are excited to build on that coordination in 2023.”
The 2023 PIT Count will be the first PIT Count to be conducted in the region since the formation of the Mid-Columbia Houseless Collaborative although it is not the first PIT count to occur in the region. The collaborative was formed in 2022 by the Mid-Columbia region’s leading houselessness assistance providers, Mid-Columbia Community Action Council (MCCAC) and Washington Gorge Action Programs (WAGAP). The Collaborative, which includes nearly 40 organizations, local governments, and individuals from Hood River, Wasco, Sherman, Skamania, and Klickitat Counties, has now published a five-year strategic plan that will improve coordinated efforts to prevent and respond to houselessness.
The collaborative is interested to see how this year’s PIT count compares to last year’s in which Wasco, Hood River and Sherman Counties all saw a 50% increase in people experiencing houselessness as compared to data collected in 2020.
MCHC would like to note that better count coordination between housing assistance organizations, culturally specific service providers, and social service agencies in 2022 helped provide a better understanding of how houselessness has affected the region in 2022 compared to in previous years. For instance, in Wasco and Hood River Counties, there was a notable increase in the number of Native American individuals experiencing houselessness in January 2022 compared to the last PIT Count in January 2020. This is reflective of a focused effort by MCCAC to support organizations that provide culturally specific services, like Nch’I Wana Housing, the Oregon Human Development Corporation (OHDC) and The Next Door, Inc., in conducting the count among populations they have expertise in serving.
Leslie Naramore
“It is our hope that the Houseless Collaborative will help us to engage more community partners than ever as we work to make sure all members of our communities are counted,” said Leslie Naramore, Executive Director at Washington Gorge Action Programs. “Having good data will help us all as we move forward toward our goal of no one having to live unsheltered.”
Community members who want to help make the 2023 PIT Count a success are encouraged to donate supplies that can be distributed to houseless community members during the count. Supplies needed are gently used/clean gloves, wool socks, coats, and sleeping bags, or new/unopened hand warmers, tarps, and travel-sized toiletries such as shampoo, soap, and toothpaste. Donations should be dropped off to Mid-Columbia Community Action Council’s office in The Dalles at 312 E. 4th St. or in Hood River at 606 State St. Ste. 1B.
Those who wish to support the work of the Mid-Columbia Houseless Collaborative in other ways, such as financial donations, or learn more about the Collaborative’s strategic plan, can visit www.midcolumbiahouselesscollaborative.org, or contact Development and Engagement Coordinator Sarah Kellems at skellems@mccac.com.
