Looking for HOPE: Homeless Services Holds Overnight Survey
By Zach Campbell
Brooklyn Daily Eagle
BROOKLYN — Nearly 120 people gathered late Monday in the cafeteria of Boerum Hill’s P.S. 261 to take part in the annual HOPE (Homeless Outreach Population Estimate) survey of street homelessness. They were part of the 3,000 people volunteering across all five boroughs for the Department of Homeless Services (DHS), and they were geared up for a very long night.
HOPE volunteers walked many of New York’s streets, parks and subway stations for four hours early Tuesday morning with surveys in hand, stopping every person they encountered for a few quick questions. They were instructed to ask every person they passed if they “had a place they called home,” and if it was a house or an apartment.