San Juan County’s 2015 Point in Time Homeless Count will be conducted on Thursday, Jan. 29. Count organizers and volunteers work with local family resource centers, food banks, churches, healthcare providers, senior centers, libraries, the sheriff’s office and many other community support service providers to conduct the count. The count, initiated by the state of Washington in 2005 (RCW43.185C.030), is conducted annually at the end of January. Agencies not open on the day of the count are authorized to conduct the survey on their business day closest to Jan. 29.

Last year’s San Juan County count identified 65 individuals, 44 of whom were living out-of-doors, in vehicles or in abandoned buildings. The remaining 21 people were staying in temporary, unstable living arrangements, often with friends or family. Results of previous counts can be viewed at: www.commerce.wa.gov/Programs/housing/Homeless/Pages/Annual-Point-In-Time-Count.aspx. If you have questions or would like to help, contact Melanie Rollins at 378-4474 or melanier@sanjuanco.com.