At a fundraising luncheon Thursday, the South Plains Homeless Consortium released some of the information gathered during a point-in-time count from January 2016.
The PIT count looks to gather information about the homeless population and also find out what kinds of resources are needed to help address the issue.
According to the South Plains Homeless Consortium, 425 homeless individuals were counted in January 2016, as compared to 351 individuals in 2015.
“It’s not necessarily saying we’ve increased the numbers on the streets,” Chad Wheeler, president of the South Plains Homeless Consortium, said. “A lot of it has to do with the success of the count, the weather, and how successful it was from year to year.”
Wheeler said, “We had a really good turnout this year with volunteers, a really good count, so I think that’s helped us have a more accurate number,” Wheeler said.
The luncheon Thursday also raised funds for a number of groups in Lubbock that help the homeless.
“The consortium works with a wide variety of people and agencies, addressing homelessness in every level, every way,” Wheeler said. “From youth homelessness, to veteran homelessness, to chronic homelessness, every one of those areas is a concern of ours, and we’re really interested in system-wide change, and how we can support the community at large and coordinate services in the community.”
The full breakdown of the PIT count from 2016 will be released by the consortium on Wednesday, April 27.
A meeting is scheduled for that day from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the First Baptist Church at 2201 Broadway.
More information on the South Plains Homeless Consortium can be found on its website, spconsortium.org.
