Tagged: homelessness

During the cold months of January and February, five downtown bars and businesses are trying to keep the homeless of San Antonio warm with a collective donation drive through their shop fronts.

Overnight temperatures in San Antonio have dipped into the 30s in recent days. That concerns Lesa Ammann, the owner of Club Sirius on Losoya Street, who sees the homeless of San Antonio with nowhere to go.

Each year SAMMinistries honors the homeless who have passed away with a special memorial service: this year there were 66. The annual candlelight vigil to honor the homeless will be held tonight -- the longest night of the year.

This year, there were 11 fewer homeless deaths than last year. SAMMinistries CEO Navarra Williams said community concern and good shelters are part of the reason, but there’s also greater outreach to find people when they need to get inside.

Numbers released this week show that the average income for a homeless family is $500 with affordable housing being the most requested service for the homeless (nearly 74 percent of those surveyed).

The 2012 Facts on San Antonio Homelessness were released by SAMMinistries and are based on statistics gathered and compiled by the Trinity University class on Applied Social Studies.