The county’s Health and Human Services Department is seeking volunteers for the annual “Point-In-Time” (PIT) Street Count, to help survey unsheltered individuals and households in the overnight hours of Jan. 25, officials announced.
In partnership with community service providers, the County Continuum of Care program coordinates housing, services, and funding for homeless families and individuals.
PIT counts are conducted throughout the United States. It is a method of identifying individuals who may be living on the streets, in cars, in campgrounds, under bridges, or in similar circumstances.
At the local, state, and federal levels, the information gathered is used to allocate resources to individuals and households in need of homelessness assistance. In order to qualify for federal funding, an annual count is required by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
The volunteers will receive training, be organized into teams, and go to designated locations where unsheltered persons may be located. There will be training provided to prepare volunteers for engaging with people experiencing homelessness and administering the survey.
“The annual Point-In-Time count is truly an all-hands-on-deck team effort by government, our community partners and volunteers. I encourage willing and interested Montgomery County residents to come out and volunteer,” said County Executive Marc Elrich. “The information we gather from this event is critical to our efforts in ensuring that homelessness is rare, brief, and non-recurring in Montgomery County.”
A hybrid training will be held at 9 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 25, at the Mid-County Department of Health and Human Services Building, located at 1301 Piccard Drive in Rockville. In-person training is recommended for first-time volunteers, while hybrid training is recommended for returning volunteers.
Interested volunteers can register online by Jan. 20. Questions about the PIT Count can be emailed to [email protected].
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