An annual requirement for accounting local homeless populations is set to take place in the final week of the month.

A Point-In-Time (PIT) Homelessness Census is required by the Department of Housing and Urban Development if federal funds are received from the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants program, according to the National Alliance to End Homelessness. Although the count is only required every two years, The Cross Church and community members will count the homeless population in the Wylie area for the seventh straight year.

The count takes place in the last week of January and Wylie’s The Cross Church will do its part at 5 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 26, said Hope for the Cities Pastor Jon Bailey. Countywide, the effort is organized by Community Resources, he added.

“The PIT helps us identify our homeless neighbors: people living in tents, under a bridge, sleeping in their cars, living in a storage unit, etc,” Bailey said. “Once identified, we are able to better understand how we can help people and connect them with needed resources.”

During these point-in-time counts, communities are required to identify whether a person is an individual, a member of a family unit, or an unaccompanied youth under the age of 18 or age 18 to 24. In addition, communities must identify if a person is chronically homeless, indicating long-time or repeated homelessness and the presence of a disability.

“Since we are living in a growing community, we need to stay on top of what is happening in our city and surrounding area,” Bailey said. “We want to meet as many needs as possible and identify areas that need to be addressed where there is a lack of resources.”

Volunteers kicked off the program with a meeting hosted by the Collin County Homeless Coalition Jan. 5 at St. Mark Parish Center in Plano. The Cross Church plans to host a meeting at its event center at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 16, before its participation in the count one week later.

For the full story, see the Jan. 11 issue of The Wylie News.