EAST TEXAS (KYTX) -- Last year, PATH (People Attempting To Help) found 243 homeless people in Tyler. No roof over their heads....no place to call their own.
It's estimated that more than 400 people sleep on the streets of Tyler every night. Now, the organization is doing it again as numbers continue to increase.
"How are they homeless," PATH Community Outreach Coordinator Becky Duncan said. "Because the face of homelessness is not just one face."
The faces are young, just as they're old. Out of the 243 homeless people found last year, 51 were children.
PATH wants to know what's contributing to homelessness so they can help people get back on their feet.
"Are they homeless living on the street, living in the shelter, are they homeless because they lost their job, are they homeless because they have mental problem and they need medication to assist with that issue," Duncan said.
This month, teams of volunteers will search shelters, soup kitchens, streets and parks to count and survey people who are homeless.
"The information is good for lots of different entities in the city, the City of Tyler, school district, social service agencies," Duncan said. "People are homeless in the area where we live."
And that arms PATH and other organizations with the tools to deal with the problem and the tools to help the homeless contribute to society once again.
"It is all of our responsibilities to be our brother's keeper," Duncan said. "If you want to admit that or not. We are our brother's keeper. Everyone of us should be."
The homeless survey will take place on Jan. 26, and anyone can help.
