Volunteers across Guam took part in this year’s Point-In-Time Count today, a critical effort to measure homelessness and determine future resources.  Catholic Social Services in Barrigada Heights was the command center for the Guam Homeless Coalition’s annual PIT Count, where volunteers checked-in, received assignments, and prepared to head out across the island.

The initiative is a one-day snapshot of homelessness, counting people staying in shelters, occupying abandoned properties or living entirely unsheltered. Catholic Social Services executive director Diana Calvo told KUAM News, "The Point In Time Count will provide information on how many homeless there are and in the demographics - how many are elderly, how many are families with young children."

"That helps our island to determine what is the best approach to assist individuals with housing, with access to services and work with other sectors in the community to address that housing availability and affordability issue."

This year’s count comes as Guam continues to face rising housing costs and limited affordable options. It’s what most surveyed today say they need help with most right now, as Calvo said, "Most of them actually would be either some kind of housing, or those that live in substandard housing, some way to access resources that can help them improve their housing environment– all of which are financial resources."

Outreach teams are trained to approach people respectfully, offering information on services while collecting data needed to understand who is most at risk. "They are finding that there’s more unsheltered individuals, and it’s mostly single individuals right now as well as couples. A few families, but not the majority," she said.

Calvo says one of the key challenges this year is actually locating the unsheltered.  As reported, a handful of major homeless encampments have been cleaned up last year. "So we’re having to either go farther in, or identify the areas where the group of them hang out during the day and try to maximize that availability," Calvo commented.

In the meantime, the PIT Count is expected to continue into the evening.  The data will be compiled in the coming weeks to help identify gaps in services and guide funding priorities.