Community Corner

Homeless Families Represent Trend at Compassion Center Event

Still in the planning stages, the proposed Gilroy Compassion Center hosted a one-stop homeless help event Wednesday.

While much work remains before opening the Gilroy Compassion Center, a full-time homeless shelter, "compassion" was a common sight Wednesday. That's because the building that's been donated for the center played host to the quarterly "Project Homeless Connect" event.

The regular event, which functions as a one-stop service center for the homeless, drew hundreds of area residents.

Attendees were also asked to take part in the “Housing 1000 SV” survey, an effort to house the Santa Clara County’s 1,000 most at-risk homeless residents.

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“We’re hoping to do this [survey] on a quarterly basis,” said Marty Estrada, homeless outreach coordinator for St. Joseph’s Family Center.

An increase in the number of homeless families was a clear trend, he said.

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While numbers from the most recent homeless census have yet to be released, county officials said that Gilroy has the highest per-capita rate of homelessness in the county.

Check back on Gilroy Patch for a full story about the impact of this event on the community.


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