As the sun sets on a chilly winter night Crystal Baker, a Human Resources Development Council employee alongside a small team is knocking on trailer doors around Bozeman conducting the Point-in-Time survey.
The voluntary survey asks questions about gender, age, military services as well as the length of time people have been experiencing homelessness, factors that caused this episode of homelessness, use of federal programs and emergency services.
Alongside Bozeman, cities and towns across Montana participate in the survey and last year the Point-in-Time survey identified 2008 people experiencing homelessness, 452 of whom were in the Livingston and Bozeman area. Baker says the results of the survey can directly impact federal and local funding.
“What I see is more donations coming in, what I see is more funding in various areas that's coming in more programs that we're able to create,” Baker said.
Although the numbers have been rising in Bozeman, Baker says the results are likely an undercount as the survey is voluntary, and people move around, especially after a new ordinance in Bozeman further restricted camping in the right of way.
“We had some folks move to private property in Clarkston. That does not mean that those people are no longer experiencing homelessness it just means that they're not in our service area and so we can’t count them, but we know they are still experiencing homelessness,” Baker said.
HRDC was able to provide $5 gift certificates to gas stations and grocery stores to incentivize people to participate in the survey .
The survey is similar to work the organization does year round with outreach, listening to people’s struggles, and helping connect them to services.
