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Falcons Volunteers
As President of the Southern California Falcons, a youth football and cheer organization, I believe that community-based organizations that have the resource of people must use those resources to help meet the needs of the community.
We are glad to know that our volunteers understand their importance in our community.
Los Angeles County has the largest number of homeless people in the country, with the vast majority living in Metro and South L.A.
Of the more than 51,000 estimated homeless people currently residing in L.A., a staggering 40 percent, nearly 20,000 homeless people, reside on the streets or in shelters in these areas, according to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority.
The homeless count is a necessary measure for the Homeless Services Authority and other homeless advocacy organizations to continue receiving funding and resources from the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development, HUD.
Aside from collecting sheer numbers, the census aims to uncover shifts in trends of the homeless population, with South L.A. being a distinct focus of the count.
The Southern California Falcons Youth Football and Cheer Organization stepped in to do its part in counting the homeless in South Los Angeles.
Why?
South L.A. increasingly has become a hub for many at-risk groups of homeless individuals.
Findings from the 2011 L.A. Homeless Count revealed that 37 percent of unaccompanied homeless youth (persons 18 and under) and 33 percent of homeless family members (individuals with relatives also living on the streets) were living in South L.A.
Homeless youth in South L.A. are often the product of the neighborhood: the foster care system, problems coming out of prison, youth detention centers. Others come from broken homes, single-family homes.
There also is the stark reality of joblessness in South L.A., which is about 16 percent compared to 9.5 percent for the greater city.
In southern parts of South L.A., it can be as high as 25 percent, for African American males as high as 35 percent.
Mr. Johnson, leader of Falcons Youth & Family Services, may be contacted at scfalconssports@aol.com
