In the predawn hours of Sunday morning, nearly 600 volunteers fanned out across Travis County to conduct the biennial Point-in-Time Count, a federally mandated survey that seeks to assess the area's homeless population. As reported by FOX 7 Austin, these volunteers braved rainy weather to collect data on individuals living without shelter in cars, tents, or abandoned buildings. "I drive past those streets every day. And I didn't realize that just five feet behind that brush line and behind those trees. There are campsites, there's people living there. And you don't, you don't realize it and see it," volunteer, Mark Littlefield said in a statement obtained by FOX 7 Austin.
Organized by the Ending Community Homelessness Coalition (ECHO), this year's count enlisted the help of hundreds, who began their work around 3 a.m., approaching people experiencing homelessness for interviews. According to Angela de Leon, Director of Operations at ECHO, "The Point in Time Count is our opportunity to have a better understanding of the scale of the crisis of homelessness for our community. So, this is data that we're able to utilize to help us understand what resources are needed, what programs need funding, and then go out and actually advocate for those things down the road," as she told FOX 7 Austin. After waking them up, volunteers questioned about their experiences, how they ended up in their current situation, and whether they've sought assistance before.
ECHO acts as the lead agency for the Austin/Travis County Continuum of Care, tasked with community-wide strategies aimed at ending homelessness. The goal of the Point-in-Time Count is to document the demographics of homeless people on a single night, providing crucial information to guide future policy and funding decisions. Ground News highlighted the effort, noting the early morning deployment of these volunteers as they surveyed the homeless population.
In the 2023 Point-in-Time Count, ECHO reported a total of 2,374 homeless individuals, with 1,108 in shelters and 1,266 unhoused. "Anyone that's in a shelter will also get counted. But these folks that are here tonight are going to be doing the unsheltered count," de Leon explained to FOX 7 Austin. The findings from this year's count will be compiled into a report by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which in turn will affect the federal funding the Austin Travis County Continuum of Care receives in its next budget cycle.
Mark Littlefield, a long-time volunteer for the count, reflected on his experiences, stating to FOX 7 Austin, "I thought that I might do this one time. I thought I might volunteer for this one year. One time. And now it's been over ten years. And. And it has. And it changed the way that I interact and feel about this issue ever since." The collective effort of these volunteers and the data gathered aim to pave the way for better support and solutions for Austin's homeless population, with results from the survey expected to be released come springtime.
