This week is National Hunger and Homeless Awareness week. Thomas Rebman of Homeless and Hungry, whom I interviewed and wrote about over the weekend, is continuing?his mission?to spread awareness about homelessness by being ‘homeless’ again. This time he tackles the?Florida city of Daytona Beach. Daytona is yet another American’town?with?restrictions and bans on helping the homeless.
I decided I wanted to know more about the people of Daytona that are living on the streets. So,?here are 5 things I’ve learned about the homeless population in Daytona Beach/Volusia County:
- At the time of the 2013 HUD survey, there were 1483 unsheltered homeless people living in Daytona Beach and the surrounding area. This statistic does not include the nearly 500 people living in emergency or transitional shelters.
- 22 percent, or 329 people, of the unsheltered homeless population in Daytona are Veterans.
- 19 percent of the unsheltered homeless suffer from chronic substance abuse. (This kind of blows the ?they are ALL?drug users and drunks? myth out the window.)
- At the time of the survey there were 42 children under the age of 18 living unsheltered on the streets in Volusia County (where Daytona Beach is located).
- Only 71 of those included in the population count of unsheltered were severely mentally ill. (Yep, not all homeless people are crazy ? in fact the VAST majority aren’t mentally ill in Daytona.)
Tom spent most of his first day walking and meeting many of the homeless residents. He was able to find a local mission for a meal and then he posted where he was planning to sleep last night.
After the first full (rainy and cold) night sleeping on the streets in the beach town, Tom posted the following video, which included a startling discoveries about Daytona.
They?only had 10 available homeless shelter beds in the whole town yesterday ? which filled quickly.
In a previous video posted yesterday, Tom shared one of the many challenges faced for the homeless in cities like Daytona. Smaller towns have a more brutal reality for those in need. Resources and help are less available and there is much distance to be covered to find food, shelter, or other necessities. Couple the distance with a city that is creating more and more rules on helping the homeless and you have the perfect storm of misery.
A point to ponder about homelessness in Daytona Beach, last year a couple who have made it their life’s work to feed the homeless were?arrested in May, cited with two 2nd degree misdemeanors and fined $2,238 for their group. Additionally, they were banned from Manatee Park, where they were feeding the hungry of Daytona. Sad. Just sad.
Tom left us with these parting words in this morning’s video,
?Please do things for people that need your help.?
?He continues,
?Befriend a homeless person and help them get off the streets.?
Follow Tom Rebman’s journey on the Homeless and Hungry Facebook page as he continues to spread awareness about what it is like to walk a mile (or a few) in their?shoes.
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