St. Vincent De Paul Village weighs in with local numbers

SAN DIEGO, September 24, 2014- The Department of Education released a study this week reporting that the number of homeless children enrolled in public school in the U.S. has risen 8 percent in the last year (newest data is from 2011-2012 school year).  This brings the total to 1.3 million nationally.  California remains the state with the largest population of homeless children. 

According to St. Vincent De Paul Village, San Diego’s largest residential homeless services provider, the numbers in the report point out the severity of the issue both nationally and here in San Diego County. In 2013 alone, St. Vincent’s provided life-changing services to nearly 1,500 homeless children, 40 percent of whom are not even school aged yet (five years or younger). 

In addition to those who are literally homeless and on the streets, the Department of Education’s definition of homelessness includes students who are “marginally housed.”  This includes multiple families doubled up in a single-family dwelling or motel room, or those forced to “couch surf” between spare space in the homes of family and friends.

“So often when we think of those who are homeless, we think only of those living on the streets,” said Diane Stumph, CEO of St. Vincent’s.  “Unfortunately, the story of those living on the margins is familiar to many of the families that turn to St. Vincent de Paul Village and to the homeless teens we serve at Toussaint Academy.”

Facts:

• In 2013, St. Vincent de Paul served 703 families.
• In 2013, Father Joe’s and St. Vincent de Paul provided housing and/or services to 1,483 children including 308 children aged 13 – 17, 588 children aged 6 – 12 and 587 children aged zero – 5.
• Father Joe’s Villages and St. Vincent’s prepares up to 4,000 meals daily, houses 1,500 people nightly, and provides support to the nearly 8,500 homeless individuals living in San Diego on any given day.
• San Diego has the 4th largest homeless population in the nation and the third largest homeless veteran population in the nation.

For more information on other services and programs, visit www.neighbor.org or read our infographic on whom we help.


ABOUT FATHER JOE’S VILLAGES/ST. VINCENT DE PAUL VILLAGE
As Southern California’s largest residential homeless services provider, Father Joe’s Villages and partner agency St. Vincent de Paul Village have been empowering people to achieve self-sufficiency for over 62 years. What started as a small chapel serving San Diego’s impoverished has grown into a cutting-edge provider of innovative housing programs and services. Father Joe’s Villages and St. Vincent de Paul Village prepare up to 4,000 meals and provide a continuum of care to nearly 1,500 individuals every day—from infants and adolescents to adults and seniors. This includes over 200 children and over 200 military veterans. As industry thought-leaders, the two agencies offer innovative solutions to address the complex needs of the homeless, regardless of age, race, culture or beliefs. The organizations’ primary goal is to transform lives and end the cycle of homelessness. To this end they provide housing, healthcare, food, clothing, education, job training and child development in an internationally modeled “one-stop-shop” approach. The organizations’ mission is made possible only through the efforts of compassionate staff, dedicated volunteers, and generous public and private donors. For more information, please visit: http://www.neighbor.org.