Photo shared from the facebook pages of The Community For Creative Non-Violence (CCNV) and The Community Partnership for the Prevention of Homelessness
We had two very cold days in Washington DC. last Monday and Tuesday. Two days ago I listened to WPFW FM 89.3 (Pacifica Radio) - January 8 - Community Watch & Comment-Wednesday 9am and heard how the city of Washington DC deals with their homeless population in days like these. I thought it might be of interest to put this down here for the record so to speak. I couldn't help thinking about JTinDC.
Photo shared from the facebook pages of The Community For Creative Non-Violence (CCNV)
This could be your loved one with his/her dog. Think about it.
The District of Columbia is committed to protecting the homeless from extreme weather injury by expanding shelter capacity during the winter months. You can help: Call the Shelter Hotline when you see a homeless person who may be impacted by extreme temperatures.
The Hotline telephone number is (800) 535-7252; it provides transportation to emergency shelters, and distributes items such as blankets, gloves and jackets.
Citizens can also call 311 to make a report.
We need to keep the lines clear for persons in need. Therefore we have added an email address to contact us:
uposh@upo.org
and a twitter address specifically for the Hypothermia Centers activated during extreme cold:
@DCHypothermia.
The Community Partnership for the Prevention of Homelessness released the following numbers for 2013:
On any given night there are 6,865 homeless persons in the District of Columbia:
512 unsheltered persons (i.e. persons “on the street”);
4,010 persons in Emergency Shelters; and
2,343 persons in Transitional Housing facilities.
During the recent cold days 5 Metrobusses were spread out in the DC area and functioned as "Warming Centers", mainly for those, who don't want to go into a shelter, as well as a Recreation Center.
Here is a list of Shelter and Social Services:
Collection of facebook pages for the Washington DC area's shelter and other social services
The winter is not over. If any of you know a homeless person, who is not aware of these services and doesn't have the means and tools to reach out to these locations, please make sure to help them and spread the telephone numbers.
And if you have intereste and time to volunteer for the The 2013 District of Columbia "Point in Time" Homeless Census on January 29th, consider register here to help the project.