Get to Know Homeless Children
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| Who We Help |
| The Facts - Homeless Children in the USA |
| Individual State Stats |
| The Facts - Homeless/Street Children Worldwide |
| Other Children Who are At Risk |
Homeless Preschool and Grade School Children Who are With an Adult.
Over one half of all homeless children are preschoolers. Usually one parent, but sometimes both parents, have lost their housing for a variety of reasons. The children have been uprooted from everything which is familiar. With little understanding of what is happening, they are moved into an unstable lifestyle. They are vulnerable. They are also completely open to the gospel of Jesus Christ.
These little children may greet volunteers with wide open arms, even when visiting Bible Club for the first time. Or, they may stay at a distance until they are comfortable to join in. Many of the children have seen and experienced much hardship. They carry wounds. But as with any child, they want to be loved, accepted and encouraged.
Preschool age children will eagerly participate in Bible Club; start your Club for them. Older children may also be interested, or they may wait, watch and gradually be drawn to the fun, food and love at Bible Club. Teenagers and even some adults will not want to be left out. They will join in next. In time, entire families may be reached with the gospel through reaching the youngest and most vulnerable members of the homeless population first.
The Facts - Homeless Children in the USA
Millions of children will never know they are loved at all, let alone God's perfect love. For many, the family unit, God's design for nurturing and teaching children His ways, is in disrepair. With each new generation, the full ramifications of the breakdown of the family become more apparent. Nowhere is this more clearly evident than in the lives of homeless children.
As of the 2000 census there are estimated to be more than 1.2 million homeless children in the United States.
This number indicates that there are three times as many homeless children in our country today as there were ten years ago. Will this alarming trend continue into the new millennium?
In August of 2001 the front page of the New York Times reported that the number of homeless children in New York City's shelter system, 11,594, is at a record high and accelerating. The mayors report of 30 cities stated that the increase in the number of homeless children is being echoed in cities across America. If the numbers are high in the summer, what will the winter hold when typically the number of homeless women and children grows?
Historical Background
Homeless families began to surface in America in the early 1980s. They soon became a national concern. In 1983 the first federal task force on homelessness was formed.
w By 1987, families were the fastest growing segment of the homeless population. They had grown to comprise one third of the total homeless population (Waxman, 1987).
The first and only federal legislation to assist the homeless, the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act, was signed into law on July 22, 1987. This legislation provided millions of dollars for emergency housing, food and health care. It specifically benefited homeless children by allowing them easier access to public schools (The McKinney Act, 1999). The focus was on emergency aid and the short term. Two decades later we have learned there is more to lifting people out of this devastating lifestyle than meeting their physical needs. The emergency situation which affected a few families in the 80's transformed into a new type of long-term poverty affecting many in the 90s (Homes for the Homeless, 1996).
In the early 90's estimates for the number of homeless children, not including runaways, in the United States ranged from 68,000 to over 750,000 depending upon who is counting (Linehan, 1992; Wells, 1990). The most commonly quoted number was 450,000.
Poverty
Poverty is part of homelessness. In 1997, 13.3% of the US population, 35.6 million people, lived in poverty. Forty percent of those living in poverty are children (US Bureau of the Census, 1998). Many of these children are precariously housed, one pay check or unexpected expense away from homelessness. Preventing poor families from becoming homeless families is crucial.
Since 1984, the US Conference of Mayors has conducted an annual status report of hunger and homelessness in America.
w Their findings indicate that since the late 1990s, over one third of our nation's homeless population, or around 37%, is consistently comprised of families.
w In rural areas proportionately more families are homeless. Single mothers and children represent the largest group of people who are homeless in rural America (Vissing, 1996).
The Family
A homeless family will most often look like a young mother pushing a stroller with a toddler trailing behind. They are walking in a part of town which makes you wonder what they are doing there. It's where they live. They are homeless. In the 80s homeless families were headed by a single parent, usually a mother, who on average was 27-years-old. The kids were teenagers (Waxman, 1987). Since then, homeless families are getting younger.
w In 1998 the typical homeless family consisted of an unmarried 20-year-old mother with two children under age six, each with a different father (Homes for the Homeless, 1998).
w In 1999, the percentage of families headed by a single female had increased to 67%, a 21% increase over ten years (IUGM, 1999).
w Today, up to 86% of homeless parents are raising their kids in families which are not intact.
Just over half of today's homeless parents were raised in a single-parent home, by relatives, or in foster care. Twenty two percent reported living in shelters as a child (Homes for the Homeless, 1996). Many upon reaching 18-years-old moved directly into the shelter system from foster care.
w Altogether, nearly two-thirds of homeless mothers grew up in broken families.
Thirty percent of the women never had a father in the home. Even fewer of today's homeless children have had a father living with them. The absence of fathers from the families is sobering and emphasizes the need for positive male role models.
Children are inheriting homelessness and all its associated problems. Drugs and alcohol often lead to physical and sexual abuse. The destructive patterns of their parents are repeated as the mothers enter abusive relationships where substance abuse and isolation perpetuate the dysfunction of the family.
Homelessness is devastating to the families who experience it. Every aspect of their lives is disrupted. Family members are separated. The children's emotional, physical, intellectual and developmental growth and well-being is seriously compromised. Healthy relationships and strong family ties are often not modeled for the children and therefore are foreign to them.
w Nine percent of parents who do not have their children living with them have no idea of their whereabouts (IUGM, 1998).
Demonstrating healthy family relationships is vital to ministry with homeless children. As second and third generation homeless children are growing up and heading their own families, the stark reality of what happens to a child who grows up in a fractured and broken family is only too clear. With each successive generation the family suffers further decay.
w Broken families beget broken children (Burger, 1998).
Little Children
w Based upon surveys conducted among 10,000 families, the average age of a homeless person in the United States is nine years old (The Institute for Children and Poverty, 1998).
Children living in homeless families may be part of an impoverished family, living with a temporary guardian, hiding from an abusive family member or part of three generations living together on the streets. The situations are endless. The numbers are staggering. And no one knows exactly how many children are growing up living in homelessness. It is difficult to accurately and consistently count the homeless.
w Nearly 90% of homeless children are between the ages of 1 and 14 years.
w Of those children residing in emergency shelters in 1999, 57% were under the age of 5
5 (Coalition on Homelessness, 1999).The vast majority of homeless children are under 12 years of age. Fifty-two percent of homeless children are preschoolers, 36% elementary school age and 12% are in junior and senior high (Children and Youths, Report to Congressional Committees, 1989). The extreme poverty and unstable housing associated with homelessness can be especially harmful to these very young children (Homes for the Homeless, 1998).
What is Life Like for the Children?w Over one third of the families have either been reported or are being followed for child abuse or neglect. One out of five children have been placed in foster care.
w Half of all homeless children have witnessed or been subjected to violence in the home.
w Over half of the children have never lived in their own home.
w Forty-one percent have been homeless more than once.
w The homeless child is three times more likely to end up in remedial education and four times more likely to drop out (Homes for the Homeless, 1998).
When compared with poor children who are housed, the homeless child exhibits more severe health problems, more developmental delays, more anxiety, depression and behavioral problems and lower educational achievement (Shinn and Weitzman, 1996). Often there is an "out-of-order" relationship where the child is forced into the role of nurturer (Boxill, 1986). The homeless child is rarely able to enjoy the simple pleasures of childhood.
They are children.
We know that the majority of people who become Christians do so between the ages of 4 and 14 years. In most cases homeless children are within walking distance of a Christian church. They respond to the love of God,
acknowledge their need for a Savior and are transformed into new creatures in Christ.In one year we knew more than 453 homeless children by name through their attendance at one Bible Club. Nearly 90% of the children prayed with us to ask Jesus to be their Savior before they moved on.
Public sentiment shifted away from homelessness in the 1990's. In 1987 our nation's top four newspapers ran 847 articles on homelessness. In 1996, the same four papers ran only 200 stories on the homeless (Ratnesar, 1999). Today there is a renewed emphasis in helping the poor and homeless.
As we find new statistics on your home state we will update our records. If you have a documented source of statistical information on homeless children in your area please send it to: reachkids@inhisarms.org
w In the summer of 1991, Alabama located more than 17,000 homeless children living in the rural environment of that state (Drolen, 1991).
w In January 2001, 55 agencies out of 99 responded to a survey. They identified 498 homeless families in Alaska. The average age of family members - 8 years old. ( www.ahfc.state.ak.us/Department_Files/Planning_Department/homeless/013101-HmlssSurvey.pdf)
w The Alaska Department of Education estimated that in 1997, 2,000-2,500 homeless children lived in Alaska. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated 11,914 homeless children lived in Arizona. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w Based upon a statewide survey conducted for the 1990 census 7,484 homeless children were counted.
w Based upon a rough estimate Arkansas claimed 5,354 homeless children in 1990.
w Los Angeles County's only free clinic estimates there to be 8,000 homeless and runaway kids living on the streets and in the shelters of Hollywood. (Youth Today, 8/2001)
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that there were 137,037 homeless children in the state in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w In 1990, 30,000 homeless children lived in Los Angeles County (Gelman, 1991).
w In 1997 Jefferson County found 20 homeless children within its' territory. In May of 2000 the same county found 355 homeless children. During the 2000-01 school year Colorado estimates that 3,040 homeless children will participate in special school programs. ( www.cde.state.co.us/cdeprevention/pihomeless.htm)
w A 1990 University of Colorado Study found 3,214 homeless children in the state.
w Data from 1993 in a 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth found 5,090 homeless children in Connecticut. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
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w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth identified 9,482 homeless children living in Georgia in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w The Hawaii State Plan for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth stated an estimated 3,028 homeless children lived in the state in 1990. In one year, over 450 of these homeless children participated in a weekly Bible Club led by a few women from a local church. At least 90% of the children asked Jesus into their heart before they moved on.
w Data from 1993, in a 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth located 5,155 homeless children living in Idaho. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w The state estimates that there will be 37,500 homeless children residing there in 2001. (www.illinoiscoalition.org/facts.html )
w In 1996, the Illinois Coalition to End Homelessness estimated that there were 33,000-45,000 homeless children in the state. ( www.nch.ari.net.edsurvey97/tables.html )
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that in 1993 the number of homeless children within the state was 15,302. (www.nch.ari.net.edsurvey97/tables.html )
w A random sample survey of public schools and shelters in 1990 counted 8,866 homeless children.
w In Iowa, 53% of the 24,000 homeless persons counted were children (Myths, 1999).
w The Iowa Department of Education identified 9,849 homeless children within the state in 1996. (www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w In Kansas a 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth counted 8,236 homeless children within its' borders in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w In 1991 Kansas housed 6,000 homeless school age children. (Real Change Seattle's Homeless Newspaper)
w A one day count in 1990 of school districts and shelters found 7,731 homeless children.
w The Kentucky Department of Education counted 5,781 homeless children living there in 1997. (www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w The Houston Chronicle reported on August 15, 1999 that Louisiana's children are at higher risk for homelessness than children living in any other state. At least 13,000 children experience homelessness each year in Louisiana.
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that in 1993 there were 13,546 homeless children living in Louisiana. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w In 2001 there are approximately 1000 homeless persons in Alaska each night, 30% are children. (www.mainetoday.koz.com )
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that in 1993 there were 8,337 homeless children living in Maine. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w Maryland Department of Human Resources conducted a survey in 1996 which estimated that there were 10,994 homeless children in Maryland. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w State tracking of students and various surveys located 4,029 homeless children in 1990.
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that there were 9,087 homeless children within the borders of Massachusetts in 1993. (www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth identified Michigan as the state with the most homeless children residing there, 139,555 children were without a home in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w From 1985 to 1997 the number of homeless children in Minnesota shelters increased 733%, to 49% of the total number of persons housed (Myth, 1999).
w According to a 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth the number of homeless children grew to 20,802 in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w A variety of statewide surveys conducted in 1990 found 14,885 homeless children.
w Based upon those schools which returned an attendance survey 1,354 homeless children were identified in 1990.
w Missouri estimates (based upon the 2000 census) there are 17,527 school age and 5,668 preschool age homeless children within the state. Of these 23,000 children over 5,000 are unsheltered at night, meaning they sleep in campgrounds, cars, parks and like places. ( www.dese.state.mo.us/divimprove/fedprog/discretionarygrants/homeless/Hmcensus.html )
w The Missouri Department of Education estimated 8,000 homeless children lived in the state in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w According to a 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth there were 2,028 homeless children estimated to be in Montana in 1993. (www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth located 6,101 homeless children living in Nebraska in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w Nevada Office for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth indicated that only 1,596 homeless children were living in Nevada in 1996. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
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w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated 17,132 homeless children lived in New Jersey in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
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w Of the 140,000 homeless people living in New York state in 1997, 50% were children and youth (Myth, 1999).
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that there were 22,776 homeless children within the borders of New York in 1993. (www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that there were 6,274 homeless children in the state in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w The Department of Public Instruction (4/18-24/99) sent out 699 surveys to agencies and school principals. The 426 which were returned estimated 232 homeless children were found. Preschoolers 20, Elementary age 94, Junior High 32, High School 86. ( www.dpi.state.nd.us/title/homeless/stats.shtm )
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that there were 27,416 homeless children in the state in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
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w Based upon 109 of 161 shelters, the department of education estimates there to be 27,570 homeless children in Oregon in 1999. ( www.ode.state.or.us/stusvc/homeless )
w The Oregon Housing and Community Service Department estimated that there were 20,682 homeless children in the state in 1996/97. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w A one night shelter count in the state located 10,176 homeless children in 1990.
w The 2000 census for Pennsylvania reveals that there may be as many as 25,000 homeless children in the state per year. The following numbers are based upon data collected (1/99 -12/99) from 182 of the 211 shelters in the state.
Preschool children 7,801, School age children 13,314, Total 21,114 ( www.pde.psu.edu )
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that there were 17,782 homeless children in the state in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w Rhode Island Coalition for the Homeless estimated 1,500-2,000 homeless children lived in the state in 1997. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that there were 5,307 homeless children in the state in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that there were 1,455 homeless children in the state in 1993, this was the lowest number for any state. (www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w The state homeless coalition has found that homelessness has increased most rapidly in smaller towns and rural counties. Hamilton County (with Chattanooga, a city of over 150,000 people) listed 3,200 homeless persons in 1990. In 1996 that number had grown to include 7,581 homeless persons. ( www.chattanooga.net.metrocouncil/indicators%20pages/pov2.html )
w According to a 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth there were 5,900 homeless children who received direct services during the 1996/97 school year in the state of Tennessee. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w Texas estimates (based upon the 2000 census) that there are over 125,000 school age children who experience homelessness each year. Children under 5 years old are not included in that number. ( www.tenet.edu/OEHCY/ )
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that there were 123,738 homeless children in the state in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w In 1990 a one night count at homeless shelters located 20,942 children.
w According to a 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth there were 20,232 homeless children who received direct services during the 1996/97 school year in the state of Utah. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w Utah stated that 4,894 homeless children resided in 31 shelters in 1991 (Utah, 5/92)
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that there were 726 homeless children in the state in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w Based upon a 2000 census survey sent to shelters Virginia estimates there to be 11,761 school age and 5,217 preschool age children who are homeless. ( www.wm.edu/education/HOPE/estl.html )
w In Virginia, the number of children in shelters increased more than 270% from 3,912 in 1985 to 14,478 in 1995 (Myth, 1999).
w In 1995, the Virginia Coalition for the Homeless counted 14,178 homeless children within the state. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that there were 16,471 homeless children in the state in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w A one month ratio study conducted in 1990 of sheltered and unsheltered homeless children indicated 34,803 homeless children resided in the state.
w Women and children made up more than half of the homeless population in the District of Columbia. In the Washington DC metropolitan area in 1997 there were estimated to be 16,000 homeless persons. (Community Partnership for the Prevention of Homelessness, 1997)
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that there were 5,298 homeless children in the state in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that there were 8,245 homeless children in the state of Wisconsin in 1993.( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html)
w A 1995 U.S. Report to Congress on the Education of Homeless Children and Youth estimated that there were 1,474 homeless children in the state in 1993. ( www.nch.ari.net/edsurvey97/tables.html )
Every state, city and rural territory houses homeless children within its borders! The statistics reflect the tragedy of thousands of little lives across our country.
Please take a minute to prayerfully consider what part
you can play in giving hope to the children who are the true victims of homelessness. They are waiting for you, dear Christian, to come to them with the hope of Jesus.Since half of all homeless children are preschool age, this means a generation is growing up as never before. They literally have no future or hope apart from Christ. The past 20 years have shown us that they are destined to repeat their parents lifestyle, unless you and I reach out and lead them into the safety of Jesus' waiting arms and the changed life He makes possible.
The Facts - Homeless/Street Children Worldwide
No look at homeless children in the United States would be complete without briefly mentioning the scope of the problem.
w At the end of the 1980s there were 100 million street children estimated to be living in the
w world (Relin, 1991).w Ten years later the number had grown to 150 million children (UNICEF, 1998).
Street children are different than homeless children in many ways, but similar in many more. Street children are the international counterparts to the homeless child and runaways in the US. The plight of a street child is heartbreaking. Brazil has received a lot of publicity over its 12 to 24 million street children. Reports of children being hunted down and shot shocked the world. Each country has its own sad story to tell of the fate of its children:
w 12,000 South African children rounded up and placed in prison
w 75,000 children in Manila live in the garbage dumps and work on the streets
w 40,000 prostitutes under 14 years live on the streets of Thailand
w 1.3 million crippled children beg for employers in Bombay
w Nearly 2 million children live on the streets of Mexico city with 240,000 of them having been abandoned
w 130,000 children are considered "left over" after the fall of Cheausescu in Romania
w Russia has 2,000 state orphanages housing about 200,000 children. (Relin, 1991; Kaplan, 1993; Gruner, 1994; Action International, 1996,
w www.CSMonitor.com/durable/1999/11/16/p7s2.htm ).No country has remained untouched by the devastating consequences of the disintegration of the family.
HIV/AIDS
The effects of a tiny virus seem to have quietly launched what could be the worst disaster facing the family today.
w The HIV/AIDS epidemic is single-handedly destroying millions of families.
In Sub-Saharan Africa 23.3 million adults and children are currently living with HIV/AIDS. In 1999, 400,000 children died in that region from the virus. By the end of 2000, 10.4 million children in Sub-Sahara became orphans due to this one disease. The governments of these countries predict that the number of orphans will double in ten years (Greiser, MD, 2000).
Over 20 million children will have become orphans living on the streets and on their own in one region on one continent from a single disease. Asia may be the next to succumb as countries like Thailand and India are seeing more and more people infected with the virus.
w Millions of children are being left to raise themselves.
The church working together, can make a difference in the lives of these children. There are many organizations working to facilitate ministry on behalf of lost and hurting children. If you and/or your church would like to find out what you can do for the children
get connected with international ministries who are making a difference.
Other Children Who are At Risk
In the United States homeless children are not the only children who are living in crisis or who need loving Christians to come to them with the Good News of the Gospel. Other children who you may want to consider beginning a ministry for include: any child left on his own after school, orphans, foster children, those in group homes, detention centers or hanging out on the corner, gang members, runaways, throwaways, taggers, boarder babies or children living in low income housing such as motels, trailer parks or projects.
The next time your church goes on a short-term missionary trip, include a daily Bible Club for the children as part of your outreach.
w Wherever there is a lonely, hurting child which God has brought to your attention, there is a child whom you can impact with the love of Jesus Christ.
Let the little children come to Me, do not hinder them, for the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these. Matthew 19:14
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