By Allison Perrine
RED BANK – Where did you sleep on the night of Jan. 28, 2020?
If you spent it outdoors or are homeless or in danger of becoming homeless, the county wants to hear from you.
Jan. 29 marked this year’s annual Point in Time Count in New Jersey. The aim is to count the homeless population in New Jersey. In Monmouth County, anyone who is homeless or is in danger of being homeless was invited to spend the day at any of four dif- ferent centers in Asbury Park, Freehold, Keansburg or Red Bank.
At Pilgrim Baptist Church at 172 Shrewsbury Ave., Red Bank, attendees were offered food, drinks, clothing, “blessing bags” filled with hygiene products and much more. It was the 10th year of hosting the survey, formerly called NJ Counts.
“We are a mission-minded church,” said Rev. Dar- lene Wilson when asked about Pilgrim Baptist’s leadership in the event. “We have a heart to want to help.”
Kathy Weir, director of Monmouth County Continuum of Care, expressed gratitude for Pilgrim Baptist. “We know that they are very involved in the community. They do a lot of great things,” Weir said.
After attendees enjoyed food and drink, much of which was donated by Eat Clean Bro this year, they were asked to stop by at least three tables staffed by volunteers from different county-based organizations. That included Fulfill of Monmouth and Ocean
Counties, Soldier On, Brookdale Community College, Mental Health Association of Monmouth County, YMCA, Lunch Break and many others.
“In Monmouth County we have a lot of organizations and people aren’t aware of them. So, they can go around and find out what resources may fit their needs,” Wilson said.
Then, they could shop through racks of warm clothes donated by com- munity members and organizations and were also offered free blood pressure screenings and flu shots courtesy of the Visiting Nurse Association.
The number of homeless on a given January night in Monmouth County increased by 25 to 360 in 2019. But Weir said there’s no way of telling whether that is due to a rise in the homeless population or that more people are hearing about the event and attending. She also said there is a mix of men and women visitors each year. Most of the Red Bank visitors are Spanish-speaking. Because of that, they bring in Spanish and English interpreters to help attendees fill out the surveys.
Though it was not part of the Point in Time survey program, the JBJ & PBC Hope & Comfort Warming Center next to Pilgrim Baptist stayed open Jan. 28 for people in need. The Warming Center is typically open during statewide “Code Blue” nights, but it opened its doors Jan. 28 to give people a warm place to stay and to offer them a chance to take the survey.
Preliminary information from this year’s Point in time survey should be available in about a month, Weir said, and the complete report will be available in the summer.
ALSO AT THE EVENT
Birgit Mondesir, assis- tant director of admissions at Brookdale Community College, described the Tuition-Free Brookdale program. It allows Monmouth County residents who meet the proper criteria to attend state community college for free through its Community College Oppor tunity Grant (CCOG). Applicants must live in a household that earns less than $65,000 annually, no matter how many people live in the home, must apply for a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and must be first-time degree seekers.
It’s really an initiative for people who don’t think higher education is a possibility for them, said Mondesir, and more people should take ad- vantage of it. “We’re tr ying to really get that word out so that people will know that this is an opportunity that we have to take advantage of now.” Because it’s a grant program, money could eventually run out and the government could decide to withdraw it, she added. “It’s imperative that we push it through as much as possible.”
William Madigan, Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) case manager with Soldier On, said their primar y focus is to help homeless veterans. They have seen a general decrease in that population over four or five years, largely thanks to the SSVF grant, he said. It’s important to “get veterans off the streets. They are the foundation, the bedrock of our initiative,” he said, and it’s important to support the people who “volunteered their lives” who now have mental health and other issues.
Case manager Allison Turnbach and bilingual family specialist Carmen Rivera, both with the Mental Health Association of Monmouth County, provided information about intensive family support, community support and financial ser vices and more Jan. 29. It has two offices, one being the Red Bank Resource Network (RBRN), which has free services and on-site counseling.
