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"From the depths of need and despair, people can work together, can organize themselves to solve their own problems and fill their own needs with dignity and strength."
~César Chávez
Rural homelessness is one of the most difficult issues we face as service providers, advocates and community leaders. Texas is a large, geographically diverse state and, outside of the major metropolitan areas, is rural. Currently, only 78 of the 254 Texas counties participate in one of the 27 Continua of Care that have been organized around the state. In the 2003 Continuum of Care competition, Texas could have qualified for an additional $15.2 million if all of the counties were represented in a Continuum of Care and met HUD's scoring and threshold requirements.
People who experience homelessness in a rural setting are often overlooked and undercounted. There are far fewer emergency shelters in rural areas and persons experiencing homelessness must often live in cars, campers, abandoned houses or other places not meant for human habitation. Also, many people who become homeless in a rural setting are forced to live with family or friends resulting in gross overcrowding. In some instances two, three or four families with children live in housing that is meant for one family. While the current HUD definition of homelessness does not include those who are living with family or friends, the resulting overcrowding can lead to health problems and increased poverty, putting even more families at risk of becoming "literally" home less.
Texas Homeless Network (THN) is committed to helping ALL communities in Texas prevent and eliminate homelessness. Our mission statement says it best: To strengthen communities and partnerships to prevent and eliminate homelessness. To this end, THN offers training and technical assistance designed to help communities form and build effective coalitions of people working together to effectively respond to the needs of persons experiencing homelessness. For further information on how THN can help your community, please contact me at 512.482.8270 or ken@thn.org.
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