Counting the Homeless an Impossible Task

A group of people stood next to a tent in the woods near Dale Boulevard Wednesday, looking for homeless people to survey, when a man came up the path from the road, yelling. "That's my tent!" he said.

After recognizing one of the members of the group, the man, William Howard, brightened and welcomed them to his campsite. The group, made up of staff and volunteers from the Hilda Barg Homeless Prevention Center and its AfterShare program, was taking a in the area.

Each year, local charitable organizations participate in a point-in-time count of the area's homeless population, and every year, it is a challenge to get an accurate count. As of Friday, AfterShare announced on its Facebook page that it had counted 20 men and seven women living in the woods in this year's count, which took place over a 24-hour period between Wednesday and Thursday.

William Howard estimated that 40 people live in , but the volunteers were only able to survey three of them. A handful of others, including Howard, said they had already taken the survey at the Bill Mehr Drop-In Center or the county's Winter Shelter. Many others spend the bulk of their time outside of the campsites. "You ain't never going to catch everybody here at one time," Howard said.

Many other challenges confront the groups trying to count the homeless. Gayle Sanders, the director of the Hilda Barg shelter, said it is impossible to find all of the campsites, and some are not safe to visit, even in groups.

Sanders' husband Danny, who works at the shelter, said it is common for people to say they have already taken the survey in order to avoid giving out personal information. He said Wednesday the volunteers were finding more homeless this year than last year, when the official count of homeless in Prince William County . Final numbers for this year's population count are expected to be released in the spring.

Several of the volunteers helping with the survey know first hand what it's like to be homeless. The AfterShare program is made up of formerly homeless volunteers who want to give back to the community.

Dominic Villano, an AfterShare volunteer for the last 20 years, stayed at the Hilda Barg Shelter when he was homeless, after losing his job because of a series of necessary brain surgeries. "They're so caring," he said. "There's got to be more caring out there."

Ronnie Carter said he came out of drug and alcohol addiction and was helped by the shelter when he was homeless. "They worked with me, they helped me a lot," he said. Now he wants to give back. "It's fulfilling," he said. "When I sold drugs in D.C., it was always about me. It feels good to give back. I'm addicted to volunteering."