Tag: Point in Time

Homelessness complicated by shortage of services Accessing mental health services a challenge for the homeless

photo by Karen Laslo

by Melissa Herzstein & Amy Ballard
guest commentary posted March 18

“I never know what day it is. I only know the time based on whether the sun is out.”

I (Melissa) was alarmed by this statement from an unhoused individual I interviewed as I helped with Butte County’s 2025 Point in Time (PIT) count, the biennial study that measures the number of unhoused persons through observation and response to a survey about their needs. This man was describing the challenges he faced in seeking mental health services at a walk-in facility. He was given an appointment for months out, making it impossible for him to attend because he had no reliable way to tell time. read more

Viewing the world with empathy A first-hand experience with Point-in-Time

photo by Yucheng Tang
Elvert Richardson checks for homeless people or encampments under a bridge near the Chico State campus.

by Yucheng Tang
posted Feb. 4

It was not a normal stroll.

“We need to check the lower part of the slope next to the creek. The homeless always set up their camps there,” Elvert Richardson said to me on a recent sunny Wednesday morning, while we were walking along Big Chico Creek on the north side of Chico State campus.

I was one of the 280 registered volunteers for the Point-in-Time count in Butte County on Jan. 29, there to learn about homelessness as a reporter. Every team, usually consisting of three to four people, was sent out by the Butte County Homeless Continuum of Care (CoC), a local planning body, to count unsheltered people and conduct the survey in an assigned area. read more