HUD Omaha Staff Search for Homeless Persons in Frigid January Weather

(From left to right) Ardell Plasek, Omaha VA social worker with the VA Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program, and Greg Cecil, financial analyst with HUD Omaha CPD office, search for signs of homeless under a bridge.

On January 22nd, with a frigid -21 degree wind-chill, HUD staff partnered with other local area volunteers to count the homeless in the Omaha/Council Bluffs (OCB) metro area.

Field Office Director (FOD) Earl Redrick, Community Planning and Development's (CPD) Greg Cecil and Field Policy and Management's (FPM) Andrew Burgin volunteered their time to search pre-planned destinations within the OCB metro area. They attempted to locate and identify as many homeless persons as possible in support of HUD's annual Homeless Point-In-Time (PIT) Count.

For the second year in a row, temperatures on the night of the count marked some of the lowest of the season. Approximately 48 volunteers from 14 organizations participated in the count. It led to 24 homeless adults being located on the streets. The total PIT count for Omaha neared 1,400.

The participating organizations included: Nebraska AIDS Project, Siena Francis House, VA, Community Alliance, Charles Drew Health Center, Heartland Family Services, HUD, The MICAH House, Visiting Nurse Association, Youth Emergency Services, Metro Home BASE, SOAR, Nebraska Health and Human Services, Omaha PD, Council Bluffs PD, and Open Door Mission.

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