With the DFW area growing exponentially, so is homelessness.
In 2020, the nationwide HUD-mandated homeless count reported that the growth rate of unsheltered homelessness in Dallas was greater than in New York City and Los Angeles.
Recently, OurCalling has seen this drastic uptick in homelessness and has conversed with hundreds of people who have had to say the dreaded words, “I’m homeless and need help,” for the very first time.
Every day, hundreds of individuals come to our facility seeking services, but there are still thousands of others throughout Dallas, living in the elements, hoping for someone to come to them. This year our teams are visiting twice as many homeless camps. And of all the people we are meeting, two out of three are brand new – they are completely new to homelessness, or completely new to Dallas.
The growing unsheltered homeless community is primarily located under bridges, behind motels and they are spreading into the surrounding suburbs. Homeless individuals in these remote areas are far away from bus stops and homeless service providers, so they will sometimes go weeks without contact.
For this reason, OurCalling is expanding our Search and Rescue teams to travel throughout Dallas to find these vulnerable homeless individuals and encampments. OurCalling provides the most comprehensive street outreach teams serving throughout Dallas county. We remotely deliver essential needs, offering the hope of Christ with an exit strategy to get off the streets to an average of 105 encampments each week.
Is it working? This calendar year, the OurCalling team has helped over 1,300 individuals exit homelessness through recovery programs, family reunifications, housing initiatives, nursing homes, boarding homes, and even housing focused shelter programs. We track a lot of data and have performance metrics on what we do and how we do it.
You can help us expand our street outreach efforts. By giving to a strategic initiative like this, you can help us hire more staff, purchase more vehicles, reach more people, and you can help them get off the streets.
You are playing a vital role in serving the homeless community. Together, we can lead people to Jesus and help them get off the streets. You can give by visiting ourcalling.org/donate. If you want to see how you can have a Search and Rescue team in your preferred area, contact .
