The Coalition for the Homeless of Houston/Harris County is set to release its annual study in June, detailing the number of individuals experiencing homelessness, estimated at 3,300 across Houston.

If you're experiencing homelessness, here's where you can find help.

If you're experiencing homelessness, here's where you can find help.

HOUSTON – The annual Houston-area homeless count and survey, conducted by the Coalition for the Homeless, found 3,055 people were experiencing homelessness on the night of the study in late January. The Coalition for the Homeless noted that this year’s published numbers are not directly comparable to those of other years due to methodology changes and circumstances surrounding the coronavirus pandemic. The count informs the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development of the effectiveness of collaboration and homeless programs in those counties. AdCoalition authorities note that the annual count cannot provide an exact number of people experiencing homelessness for several reasons, including the daily fluctuating number and the more than 3,700 square miles of the area being canvassed. The count results are combined with additional data points, like the information stored in the Homeless Management Information System, to gauge progress of the local homeless response system.

HOUSTON – In Houston, a heartbreaking problem can be seen on many street corners and under countless highways. The Coalition indicates the number of homeless veterans they counted in 2020 was 267 compared to 376 in 2019. Oscar Gonzalez is the site coordinator for U.S. Vets Houston and is often the first contact for homeless vets looking for a meal, a shower, and a place to call home. Wilcox spends most nights on a downtown bus stop bench, but he is making progress and hopes to become another success story for U.S. Vets Houston. The VA’s hotline for homeless veterans can be reached by calling 1-877-4AID VET (1-877-424-3838).

Michael Nichols is the President and CEO of the Coalition for the Homeless. This is an essay he wrote as part of our series Why I Love Living Here, a weekly feature where area residents share why they love living in Houston. When we decided to come to Houston, we left our large families and many friends in Atlanta. We also showed up in Houston at a time when tens of thousands of people were flooding into our job-rich region. Less than two years ago, I joined the Coalition for the Homeless as its interim CEO.