How many people are homeless here in Globe-Miami? It’s a challenging question to answer. Once a year, during January’s “point in time” census, Gila County and the countywide Homeless Task Force - made up of numerous nonprofits, behavioral health, food banks, churches and other local volunteers - hit the streets to check under bridges, beneath overpasses and inside empty buildings where homeless people are known to find shelter. The annual winter survey is part of the federal and statewide count; an accurate tally here in Globe-Miami helps demonstrate the need for homeless service funding in Gila County.

On a more personal level, the winter count also helps with more immediate needs; connecting homeless people with services that can help get them off the streets, finding them shelter during the coldest month of the year, and connecting them with local and state services that may provide a permanent solution to their homelessness. To volunteer with the count, please call Gila County Community Services at 928-425-7631. Volunteers must sign a confidentiality form.

To donate or just to advise point-in-time-count volunteers of a place you know where homeless can be found, email tgonzales.1964homelesscoalition@gmail.com or call Barb at 928-701-1339. If you see one of Globe-Miami’s homeless, please tell them about the count and other compassionate efforts by Gila County Community Services and our area’s lead volunteer agency, the Homeless Coalition of Cobre Valley - who provide food, clothing and compassion. Volunteers also help make referrals, and work closely with local agencies and churches to connect homeless people with help and resources. New volunteers are always welcome, and cash donations too.

Consider a New Year’s resolution to do your part on behalf of homeless people, and please feel welcome to join the Homeless Coalition of Cobre Valley in person at their next meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 18, starting at 5:30 p.m. at the Divine Grace Church, 305 W. Live Oak St. in Miami. You can also join their meeting online via Zoom, at https://gilacountyaz-gov.zoom.us/j/99773339664?pwd=bUw2R0RHYUdGcldJT3I1RWtMdEx6QT09.

Another way you can help is by giving nonperishable, portable, packaged edibles and drinks to the food pantries accessible to the homeless at:

* First Christian Church, 401 S. Broad St., Globe (food pantry in front on left)

* Living Waters, 125 Haskins Rd., Globe

* Divine Grace, 305 W. Live Oak St., Miami (food pantry in east side parking lot)

* St. John’s Episcopal Church, 185 E. Oak St., Globe (food pantry in alley)

* St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, 750 Paxton Ave., Miami (up the stairs in front and to the left).