Homeless Count

Re “2-Day Campaign Targets Homeless for Census Count,” March 29.

According to this article there were 504 homeless people recorded in Ventura County in the 1990 census. If you add the numbers in this article--347 in Oxnard, 121 in Ventura, 11 in Simi Valley and seven in Ojai--the census has misplaced 18 people.

I am looking forward to the final count for the year 2000. On March 28 there were five census staff people at the Samaritan Center, where 41 homeless people were gathered. They covered the PADS [Public Action to Deliver Shelter] sleep site on March 27 but have not shown up at the dinner site. Many homeless people don’t use the drop-in center or the PADS program but they do go to dinner.

In order to have an accurate count, all sites must be covered.

The census also enlisted a “volunteer” homeless person to help gather the information. He alone has 110 census forms filled out by the homeless.

I recently received yet another phone call. Why? To double-check the enumeration done by their “volunteer.” I have logged more than 25 phone calls and six visits from the Census Bureau. Most of these have been different personnel asking the same questions. This has given me cause for concern:

Will the 200 census be accurate? Did it have to cost so much money? Should we believe what we read?

Remember that an accurate count of all people in our community is important for future funding from the government--but redundancy is costly too.

JANET S. GAGEBY

Executive Director

Samaritan Center of Simi Valley