Homelessness Rising in Maryland

by Danielle Katz ’18

Living in one of the wealthiest parts of Montgomery County can often create the illusion that rates of homelessness are dwindling. However, homelessness in Maryland is actually on the rise. This issue stretches far beyond the homeless parents seen pacing on 108 and Georgia Avenue collecting money to provide for their children. In fact, in Montgomery County, there are more students in Montgomery County Public Schools eligible for free and reduced meals than there are students in the entire D.C. public school system.

Sherwood’s Give to Live club has been inspired by the rising rates of homelessness to participate in helping reduce these levels in the immediate community, volunteering at many food kitchens and focusing their energy this year on their impact at Martha’s Table. Senior member Abby Callas shared that her favorite aspect  about volunteering at food kitchens is getting to see all the donations and work affect people personally as the club cooks and hands over meals that may be someone’s only meal for the day.

“This is exactly why Give to Live was founded,” said Callas. “It was to allow people to see what their impact on the community can actually do to help people and how much these projects can help people. Volunteering at food kitchens is one of the best ways to experience that.”

In Hagerstown, the number of homeless students is expected to hit an all-time high by the end of the school year, according to the Washington Post and the Herald-Mail of Hagerstown. Both sources report that the number of homeless students in Washington County Public Schools has doubled over the past six years and can expect the number of to hit nearly 900 students this summer. WTOP conducted research around local homeless shelters and found out that 893 minors were independent from a guardian without a stable housing situation. These students were all classified by the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development as unaccompanied homeless youth.

Census data from 2011-2015 revealed that 72 percent of extremely low-income households in Maryland pay more than half of their income toward housing. In response to the issue, in October 2017, the General Assembly’s Joint Committee on Ending Homelessness took steps toward crafting a bill that would provide financial benefits to for-profit and nonprofit developers for building affordable housing units, according to Democratic Delegate Mary Washington (Baltimore).

In addition to helping out in D.C., Sherwood’s Give to Live made over 200 peanut butter sandwiches for a food distribution center called Nourish Now located in Rockville. Nourish Now is a non-profit company that reduces waste and delivers meals to over 50 needy families in the Maryland area. To get involved in helping the cause, visit nourishnow.org.