San Bernardino County officials are still seeking volunteers to help count unsheltered individuals as a part of the Point-In-Time-Count initiative to interview and collect data on the county’s unhoused community.
The service-based count will take place on Thursday, Jan. 23, the results of which will provide the county with benchmark numbers that will serve as the basis for San Bernardino County task force efforts and homelessness county resources for the next year.
Last year’s count revealed that the county’s unhoused population grew 1% from 2023, with 858 total unhoused individuals in the High Desert.
A gander around Old Town Victorville can confirm the unhoused issue, as many individuals stake claims in a homeless encampment on the Mojave Riverbed not too far from Old Town. This has been a city issue for over a decade, The Daily Press has reported.
The San Bernardino Office of Homeless Services (OHS) is committed to ensuring that the county’s homeless population has access to safe and stable housing, Point-In-Time-Count officials said in a press release.
Using methodology from 2016, the count is conducted during the last 10 days of January every other year. Volunteers are needed from every High Desert city to successfully count the area’s homeless population and secure critical funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
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How to volunteer
Volunteers must be at least 18 years old and have either an Android or Apple device to volunteer for the San Bernardino County Point-In-Time-Count. County officials ask that devices be no older than three years with at least 100MB of available space. AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon carriers are preferred for smooth operations, county officials said.
Event organizers request that participants arrive with phones fully charged and location services enabled.
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Volunteers should include people who are knowledgeable about local homelessness and where homeless people live, and spend time and receive services in the community.
“The success of the annual count largely depends on city and community partnerships,” said OHS Chief Marcus Dillard in a press release. “I strongly urge the community to volunteer and help us make a meaningful impact in addressing homelessness.”
The county is searching for key person teams to help organize and implement the count in their communities. These individuals include representatives of local government, social service providers, law enforcement, municipal agencies, educational institutions, faith-based organizations, local business, civic groups, neighborhood associations, nonprofit agencies, and current and formerly homeless individuals.
To register as a volunteer, please visit https://sbchp.sbcounty.gov/community-projects/point-in-time-count. For any questions regarding the count, please call 909-501-0617 or email Claudia Doyle at claudia.doyle@hss.sbcounty.gov.
McKenna is a reporter for the Victorville Daily Press and can be reached at mmobley@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Volunteers needed for San Bernardino Point-In-Time homeless count