An important part of the process of taking care of homeless people: knowing where they are.
NEW BRUNSWICK -- Taking care of the homeless is a huge and important task, but one of the challenges is that the community does not always come forward for support.
That makes surveying the homeless population by counting them an important part of homeless services.
Ivette Molina and her crew went out three times during the day Wednesday, trying to get an accurate reading of homelessness in Middlesex County while working on the nation wide Point in Time Survey/Project Homeless Connect.
The afternoon search only found a few, because many were off working.
"The economic disadvantaged cause of poverty is not having a livable wage," said Molina, who works for Elijah's Promise in New Brunswick.
"The census counts those in the streets, shelters and transitional housing," said Bobbin Paskell, assistant director of Coming Home of Middlesex County and Point in Time coordinator.
Coming Home is a non-profit non governmental agency with a mission of ending homelessness.
In Middlesex County last year, there were 1,065 homeless people, which was a decrease from 2014, Paskell said.
Of that total, 989 individuals, including 356 children, were sheltered in emergency shelter, transitional housing, hotel placement or housing with a temporary subsidy from welfare.
Many in need came to Elijah's Promise Soup Kitchen in New Brunswick where they can receive lunch and dinner five days a week and one meal each day on weekends, according to the Coming Home website.
While having lunch people were interviewed for the survey and received services such as a vision check, clothing, a hair cut or help with a variety of government programs.
As Molina handed out gloves, hats and scarves to the day laborers standing around in snow looking for work she remembered an old abandoned house she heard about and off the van went.
The abandoned house makes a perfect spot for the homeless to stay, but on Wednesday it was empty.
The search continued on.
Ed Murray may be reached at emurray@njadvancemedia.com. Follow Ed on Twitter at @EdMurrayphoto. Find NJ.COM on Facebook.