skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Monday, April 29, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

At least 4 killed in Oklahoma tornado outbreak; 10 shot outside Florida bar; AZ receives millions of dollars for solar investments; Maine prepares young people for climate change-related jobs, activism; Feds: Grocery chain profits soared during and after a pandemic.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Ukraine receives much-needed U.S. aid, though it's just getting started. Protesting college students are up in arms about pro-Israel stances. And, end-of-life care advocates stand up for minors' gender-affirming care in Montana.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

More rural working-age people are dying young compared to their urban counterparts, the internet was a lifesaver for rural students during the pandemic but the connection has been broken for many, and conservationists believe a new rule governing public lands will protect them for future generations.

Something to Be Thankful For: Homelessness Declines in NC

play audio
Play

Friday, November 22, 2013   

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – This Thanksgiving, an increasing number of North Carolina families and individuals will celebrate the holiday at their own kitchen table, instead of on the street.

Statewide homeless rates are declining – down 11 percent in the last year – thanks in part to a change in how agencies assist the homeless population.

Placing individuals in housing used to be one of the last things on the to do list of strategies – but that's changing, explains Emily Carmody, project specialist with the North Carolina Coalition to End Homelessness.

"Once people have a stable place to live, they really are able to address a lot of the different issues,” she stresses. “Finding a job, going to school, getting into treatment or recovery – all of that's a lot easier when you have a place to go home to at night."

Carmody adds that some communities have had even larger reductions in homelessness.

In Winston-Salem, it's down 29 percent, and Wilmington has seen a 15 percent decline.

Much of the funding comes from the federal HUD program. State money for research and training in North Carolina has been eliminated in the last two budget cycles.

Tim West, program supervisor of the Community and Business Development Department for the City of Winston-Salem, says his community's success is largely driven by a plan implemented by the United Way of Forsyth County that started in 2007.

"The focus on housing folks as quickly as possible once they become homeless is really what made us successful,” he explains. “And we really need to give a lot of credit to our 10-year plan to end chronic homelessness."

With fewer dollars, Carmody says cities have learned to be strategic with their spending.

"I think right now, what we're seeing is kind of the fruits of that labor,” she says, “of that concentrating on getting some of the individuals who have been in our systems for a long time and have the highest needs into housing. And now, we're seeing how that movement has helped our system."

A small number of North Carolina communities did see increases in homelessness between 2012 and 2013, including Asheville and Durham.

Reporting for this story by North Carolina News Connection in association with Media in the Public Interest. Media in the Public Interest is funded in part by Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
Some groups see disproportionately high rates of suicide, including veterans, racial and ethnic minority groups, people with disabilities and LGBTQIA+ people. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Rates of suicide among young people have increased by about 36% in roughly the last two decades and the surge has caught the attention of federal poli…


play sound

Members of Nebraska's LGBTQ+ community and their supporters saw positive actions at both the state and federal level this month. At the state level…

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri residents are gaining new insights into the powerful role of food in health care as experts and organizations advocate for a shift toward foo…


New Mexico is the second sunniest state in the nation after Arizona, creating maximum opportunities for solar development. (KristinaBlokhin/AdobeStock)

Environment

play sound

New federal funding aims to revolutionize solar energy access within New Mexico's Native American communities and benefit the state overall. The …

Health and Wellness

play sound

Nevada health-care providers, patients and advocates are responding to the U.S. Supreme Court case that'll determine the future of the Emergency …

Environment

play sound

A Knoxville-based environmental group is advocating for the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act expansion, currently awaiting House approval…

Environment

play sound

State officials in Maine are preparing the next generation for climate change-related activism and careers. A new state-run website helps young …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021