My Community, My Home

Many homeless people look at their community as home; that is where they feel most comfortable and safe. Most homeless people reside in low-income areas, where the possibility of becoming homeless is high. Although homelessness is a topic most people prefer not to discuss, it is important to acknowledge that our community suffers high rates of homelessness and many of us that reside in Los Angeles County are considered to be low-income. There are many homeless outreach programs that also benefit people in low-income areas and they are often hard to locate. I believe that if there was an easier way to locate these resources, our community would greatly benefit from them. I decided to research this topic because many from my neighborhood utilize outreach programs to get by. I wish to express that there is a connection to the prosperity of a low-income community because of homeless services. 

A part of my hypothesis states that the homeless services will help the community in which they are located. In Outreach and Engagement in Homeless Services: A Review of the Literature, states they have found in their research that outreach services for homeless people help improve their health and housing situation along with other positive outcomes. (Olivet et al. 54) The article’s purpose is to examine what is known about the relation between homeless people and outreach programs. Many of the examples I will use would be from their Key Findings from Quantitive Research on Outreach and Engagement section found on page 56 of the article. The article list a lot of research articles that discuss how certain outreach programs have impacted the homeless populations. Most of the articles discuss helping with substance abuse and mental illness, they each relatively have a positive correlation of how their programs have helped the homeless population. Of course, this article talks about only groups that target the homeless population but there are many services that gladly help low-income areas as well as cater to the homeless population. 

In my first map, demonstrates the correlation of areas that are below the poverty line and the total population of homeless in the area. The relationship was also positive; if an area that was below the poverty line, the area also had a greater population of homeless. Since there are more homeless in these areas, outreach groups and services would most likely be open to all of those in the area who need assistance. 

In the second part of the project, I wanted to focus on how the knowledge of the location of resources would help the community. An article titled The Impact of Homeless Shelters on Food Access and Choice Among Homeless Families in Minnesota has found that many families who live in shelters often have difficulty with resources or food security. The article continues with examples of how families still struggle even when resources are provided to them (a temporary home/shelter and food stamps). 

Food insecurity issues often lead low-income individuals and families to devise strategies to obtain food. Kempson et al found that low-income individuals obtained food through food assistance programs, shoplifting, selling food stamps for cash, and social support networks. (Richards and Smith 96) 

The article specifies at the end of the article that homeless families each have different experiences throughout the United States and that the families that they researched should not be considered as a representation of every homeless family. I believe that the food insecurity situation still applies to low-income areas in our community. If families are ever in situations where they are not able to eat or find food, they should be easily able to access resources that will provide them with meals. 

In my second map, the map displays and maps out resources throughout Los Angeles County. The map includes the name of the services, a description of what is provided by the service, location, and operation hours. I believe this map will help people locate services that are closest to them and use them accordingly.

I believe that the homelessness resources are really beneficial for the community it serves. In my two maps, we can see how homelessness is the most prominent in low-income communities, communities were most families are below the poverty line. My other map locates the services which also reside in or around low-income areas of Los Angeles County. With the knowledge of these services, both community members and homeless people can use these services to better their situations. With these services like food banks or locations that offer free transportation, the community members can seek help for things that might seem crucial for them. As a way to get an opinion from the community of these services, I created a survey. The survey asks for demographic questions (ie age, race, income,) and also a few questions about the services offered near their community. The main question I would like to get a response to in the survey is the last question, How do the services benefit the community. I believe this question would give my nonprofit the chance to directly see how they impact the families in the community. The other question I would like to see the response is, If not, How can we improve the services to best fit your needs? This question will allow the community to voice their concerns that are not being met. This will allow my nonprofit to focus on providing information about services that will help the community.