I joined volunteers earlier this week in Walnut Creek to find out where homeless people had spent the previous night, count them and have them fill out questionnaires to describe their situations. We heard some heartbreaking stories about how people persevere in truly trying conditions. But, we also saw up close  how they survive and will use that information to improve their conditions. In all, more than 150 volunteers, including Coordinated Outreach, Referral and Engagement (CORE) teams — both outdoors and indoors from Discovery Bay to Richmond to San Ramon

From this information, Contra Costa County can improve the delivery of a variety of services to the homeless. These homeless census  counts, done every two years, are required to tap into federal dollars to help fight homelessness.

To read the East Bay Times story, read here, and to watch the accompanying video, watch here.