LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Organizations across Arkansas are continuously working to fight the ongoing homelessness problem. While recent numbers show progress, experts said there's still work to be done.
Matthew Desalvo with Central Arkansas Team Care for the Homeless (CATCH) and Salvation Army said this year agencies identified 773 people in four counties experiencing homelessness on Jan. 26 in the annual "Point-in-Time" count.
The 773 people are the lowest on record in the last 10 years.
"It's just a number on one night in the winter," Desalvo said. "Obviously, there are some areas that you don't cover. So according to HUD, it is the actual number of people experiencing homelessness that night that you're able to identify, count and talk to."
Crews are typically set up in about 15 different sites across Pulaski, Prairie, Saline and Lonoke counties.
Last year, volunteers counted 974 people.
"In a nutshell, things are getting better because there's a ton of coordination, and not as many silos anymore," Desalvo said. "We have so much need like you can't expect a handful of nonprofits to solve homelessness."
To keep it simple, Desalvo said it's going to take a whole community to help.
"We need more money, we need more resources," Desalvo said. "We need more lawmakers who are making laws and policies that will help this population get a leg up through the work that we're doing."
In Jefferson County, an area not included in CATCH's "Point-in-Time" count, the Salvation Army is seeing an increase in people staying at its shelter.
"We've seen 211 people in our shelter this year," Pine Bluff Salvation Army Lt. Rachel Perdieu said. "Compared to last year, there were 239 for the whole year. So, we're tracking a little bit higher than last year."
Perdieu said she first noticed the increase when inflation rose.
"It is alarming for us to see the increase in need and not a huge increase in funding," Perdieu said. "We're having to stretch things a little farther than normal."
Desalvo hopes to get more volunteers before next year's "Point-in-Time" count to help formulate a more accurate number.
"You can't expect organizations, some of them operating on a shoestring budget, to have everything you need to solve homelessness," Desalvo said. "It takes everybody."