Lexington conducts count of homeless population

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) - Dozens of volunteers are working to help the homeless population in Lexington. Wednesday night.

The annual initiative is designed to identify areas where people experiencing homelessness are, who they are, and supply them with resources.

Around 50 volunteers are going out to different areas where they are counting the number of people who identify as being without shelter, completing surveys, helping them access an emergency shelter, and distributing care packages.

Several Urban County Council members are part of this group. This includes freshman councilwoman Tayna Fogle.

Fogle is driving the Catholic Action Center’s Compassionate Caravan around Wednesday night. Fogle says she wanted to make sure it was out because she knows it is something that is familiar to a lot of the homeless population in the city.

During December’s deep freeze, Fogle went around the city to shelters and homeless camps to meet with people and make sure they knew about the weather coming and that they had a warm shelter to be in while the brutally cold air was here.

Fogle said she’s glad to see so many city leaders involved with Wednesday night’s initiative.

“I’m speechless,” Fogle said. “When Councilmember Sheehan asked for volunteers, and Council stepped forward. I am so blessed to be a part of this Council. I can’t even imagine not being here tonight.”

Fogle says she’ll likely go beyond the two-hour window that these teams are set to be out Wednesday night from 10:00 until midnight. She said she was already running into people asking for help and looking for shelter. Fogle said this is the perfect time to get these people shelter and some resources so they can continue being safe in the city.

Copyright 2023 WKYT. All rights reserved.