Every winter volunteers scour cities like Ceres helping officials take a physical census of the homeless individuals as part of a countywide Point-in-Time Count.

This year’s count is scheduled for Jan. 25, 2024 and represents a large countywide operation requiring many volunteers. They’ll work alongside the Stanislaus County Homeless Outreach and Engagement Team as they fan out across communities. Volunteers are now being sought to engage with local homeless individuals to complete a survey and help distribute care packages that include beanies, socks, snack and water to people they survey. 

The goal is to register 250 volunteers by the registration deadline of Jan. 7. Those wishing to participate, may sign up online at https://stanislaus24.pointintime.info/ or register by calling (209) 558-2961 or e-mailing csoc@stancounty.com Volunteers will be required to attend a training session and select the city where they’d like to conduct a survey. 

Each year, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development requires communities to count the number of people experiencing homelessness in counties across the nation. The PIT count is a snapshot in time, an unduplicated count of sheltered and unsheltered people experiencing homelessness on a single night in January. 

The annual count data helps determine the scope of homelessness in each city and the county as a whole, define existing resources, and identify any gaps in services. The Stanislaus Community System of Care is overseeing the count.

“While we have made great strides in addressing homelessness in our community, there are still challenges and work to be done,” said Maryn Pitt, chairwoman of the Stanislaus County Community System of Care. “The information we gather as part of the annual Point in Time Count serves as a valuable tool in not only understanding who is experiencing homelessness but also assists us in identifying unmet needs and better aligning resources in the community.” 

The information also helps determine how much funding will be available to communities for the development of housing and supportive services for people moving from homelessness to independent living. 

Last year, 2,091 homeless persons were identified in Stanislaus County during the point-in-time count, an increase of 234 people from 2022’s total count. 

Modesto, the largest city in the county, had the most homeless with the count at 1,642; followed by Turlock, the second largest city having the second highest count at 233. Ceres had 17 homeless persons and Hughson and Keyes with three each.

Of the count, 55% (1,142) came from the sheltered population — congregate shelters, transitional housing, and hotel/motel voucher programs — while 45% (949 people) came from the count of people living on the streets, in parks, abandoned buildings, under bridges, along rivers or in their cars. 

Of the unsheltered population, 40% (949) told surveyors they slept on the streets or on sidewalks. Of the sheltered population, 69% said they stayed in an emergency shelter — a 32% increase from the 2022 count due to the increased state and federal funding used for hotel/motel vouchers — while 19% stayed in transitional housing. 

For more information about CSOC, visit www.csocstan.com.