Week focuses awareness on homelessness

by Cameron Rasmusson Staff Writer
| November 10, 2012 8:00 PM

SANDPOINT — November is often seen as a month to be thankful for what you have, but it’s also important to remember those who aren’t as lucky.

Local groups are organizing to assist the neediest members of society in honor of National Homelessness Awareness Week. From Nov. 10-18, residents are encouraged to seek out ways of assisting individuals who struggle to keep properly clothed, sheltered and fed. Whether that means volunteering at a shelter or simply donating a can of food to the food bank.

“The need is growing,” said Bonner County Homeless Task Force volunteer Elissabeth DeFreitas. “What I’m seeing out there is people really struggling to find nourishment.”

The number of food bank clientele is evidence enough of this. Bonner Community Food Center assists almost 4,500 people each month, or around 10 percent of the entire county population. Due to the sluggish growth in the economy, people are having a harder time than ever making ends meet. The problem is that the extent of the issue is difficult to see.

“In a smaller community, you don’t see visible homelessness like you do in a bigger city,” DeFreitas said.

As Thanksgiving approaches, community organizations are putting together some events to address the issue. From Nov. 10-18, a food drive at Yokes will collect non-perishable items for hungry individuals. Business employees will set up bags specifically for food drive collections. Bonner Community Food Center is also beginning its turkey collection for Thanksgiving. Finally, organizers are hosting a candlelight vigil on Dec. 21 to acknowledge those suffering from homelessness and hunger.

There are also some bright developments on the horizon. According to DeFreitas, several nonprofits hope to band together, forming the Sandpoint Community Resource Center. This centralized network will allow organizations to better track problems in the community and respond effectively to them.

“We want to develop more tracking to see what needs Sandpoint experiences on a daily basis,” she said.