I Am A Retired Army Veteran Essay

     Although it is very hard to estimate the number of homeless people in the US, we can get very close using massive amounts of studies and the census so we can at least get a good idea so we can start helping them. 52% of requests for emergency shelter for families were denied in the last year, a 22% increase from least year.(2) Homeless families in rural areas have very little or nothing to fall back on if they are faced with homelessness. They are often forced to live with friends or relatives to avoid homelessness. This is often considered homelessness and counted in studies. However, nearly half of the families requiring emergency shelter aren't even as lucky as to have a friend or relative to live with.(3) The national estimate for homelessness in the United States as of 2001, was 3.5 Million people, 1.5 million of them being

There are more than 500,000 homeless individuals all over the United States who are either living inside shelter homes or along the streets according to a survey conducted by the National Alliance to End Homelessness. Various surveys are being conducted so that the current problems being experienced by these homeless people can be properly addressed and the necessary solutions can be provided. Among the information gathered are as follows:

Homelessness in the United States is at an all time high with 500,000 adults in the streets

It is estimated that 3.5 million people will experience homelessness during a given year. The fastest growing population experiencing homelessness is families, mostly made up of single mothers and her children. Families headed by women comprise more than half of the homeless population and 42% of this population is under the age of 5. Across the country about 2.5 million children are homeless, which is equivalent to 1 in every 30 children. The legal definition of homeless “refers to those who spend 7 consecutive nights in a car, abandoned building, public park, emergency shelter, nonresidential building, or other unconventional residence.

As of January 2017, it is estimated that there 553,742 people are homeless in America. To be homeless means to be without a home, living on the streets. Umpteen studies, the book The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, as well as The Glass Castle movie, display the various leading factors building up to the plight of living without a home. Alcohol, mental illness, and poverty are a few known causes of homelessness.

There are varying estimates regarding the number of homeless people in America. According to reports from NLCHP the number of homeless people in America is 3 million which include 1.3 million children. ("Homelessness and Poverty, Overview," 1). As I am living in the state of California so I want you to take notice of the homelessness in this state. Estimates reveal that there are 4,400 to 8,800 homeless people in Foresno County (Della-Piana, 2006). The other areas like San Joaquin County has 2,700 people homeless (Farrow, 2009) and in Sacramento County there are similar number of homeless individuals. The situation has become worse due to financial crisis and financial conditions of foreclosures and layoffs. Other reasons are shortage of cheap housing and increase in inner city drug culture due to which homelessness increased in California's Central Valley.

The issue of homelessness is one that I can relate to all too well. About twenty five years ago I found myself among the homeless. My story is simple, I had no formal education and was working a job making minimum wage. I couldn’t keep up with my rent and other living expenses and was finally evicted from my overpriced apartment. At the time I was on a waiting list for public housing for which there was at least a two year waiting period. The fact that I was single, with no children did not help me either. For a while I lived on the streets and in shelters, too ashamed to approach what family members I had with my problems knowing that they were

In January of 2015, there were 564,708 individuals who were experiencing homelessness by unwillingly sleeping outside and not having emergency shelter. In the United States, there were reportedly 33 states where the homeless population was decreasing, while increasing in 16

The first key finding I found most profound was a study by the State of Homelessness Report. This study found there was 549,928 people homeless on one night in 2016 (State of Homelessness Report et al.,). The second point I found interesting was from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, and they discovered there was approximately 39,471 veterans homeless on any night. The department also found that 11% of homeless adults are US Veterans (Anonymous et al., 2012). A third finding I found intriguing was a study in 2015 revealing there was over 2,000 homeless people in

In the United States, soldiers are currently returning home from war broken and scarred. While some physical wounds are clearly visible others are often hidden/invisible to the naked eye, but men and women proudly wear these wounds as a badge of courage and honor for protecting our nation. These men and women come home rightfully expecting help, assistance and care and get hit with the reality of poor care from the Veteran Health Administration and Department of Defense.

According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness (2016), in January 2015 there were approximately 564,708 individuals living in emergency shelters or outdoors. With the baby boomer population aging, the rate of homelessness among this population has also increased.

The National Alliance to End Homelessness states that there are 633,782 people experiencing homelessness on any given night in the US.  142,168 (22.1%) are children, 62,619 (13%) are veterans, and 269,991 (42.6%) are disabled and unable to work (cited from http://www.endhomelessness.org/)

The biggest reason at 24% to why people are homeless is because of domestic and family violence, another one of the biggest reasons is to do with financial difficulties at 20% there are lot of other reasons such as housing crisis at 16%, inappropriate or inadequate dwellings at 11%, relationship issues at 8%, accomodation issues at 5%, health issues at 4%, transition from custody agreements at 2%, lack of family/community support at 1% and itinerant workers at 1%. In America there are more than 500,000 people without a house and there are 318.9 million people in America, most of the people in America at night are either sleeping in homeless shelters, under bridges, in cars or are in some other way sleeping

According to Social Solutions there are 564,708 people in the United States that are homeless as of 2016. 15% of the homeless are chronically homeless, which means an individual who has disability and has experienced homelessness for a year or longer. 35% are families who can’t afford housing, 8% of the homeless are veterans due to poverty and overcrowding in government housing, and the rest of the homeless are single young adults who either got rejected for being who they are or there was conflict and they ran away.( Social Solutions) The National Alliance to End Homelessness explains,

Homelessness is increasing more every year. In fact, according to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, over 640,000 people experience homelessness every