How Does a Homeless Shelter Help the Homeless?
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Statistics
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In 2007, The National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty estimated that there are 3.5 million homeless people in the United States in any given year. Some 1.35 million of that 3.5 million are children. While mental illness is a contributing factor for some of the homeless population, the majority of the homeless are not mentally ill. High housing costs, the high cost of living and job loss contribute to the number of homeless persons in the United States.
Emergency Homeless Shelters
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Emergency homeless shelters provide temporary housing to those in need. Usually, the housing is a series of cots in a communal setting, where the entire homeless population of the shelter sleeps together in one room. Because of the vast homeless population, shelters limit the amount of time a person can stay there to anywhere from a few days to a month. Emergency shelters often provide free food and clothing as well as housing. Unfortunately, there are more people in need than there are shelters available. In 2007, the U.S. Conference of Mayors conducted a study of homeless shelters in 23 cities. Twelve of the 23 cities reported that they had to turn homeless people away because they were too full in capacity. Ten of the cities reported that they saw an increase in the population of homeless children and families.
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Long-Term Homeless Shelters
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Long-term homeless shelters focus on helping the homeless get back on their feet. They aim to provide a stable housing solution for the homeless while providing them with counseling, education and job and housing placement. Housing First is one program that provides long-term housing to the homeless. The goal of the Housing First program is to get homeless people off the street and into permanent housing, while teaching them the skills and providing them with the resources to become self-sufficient.
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