On every island in Hawaii families are sleeping in tents on the beaches, tucked away in the lava, and camped in public parks. Homeless parents work full time jobs while children do their homework by flashlight – in cars parked in Hawaii’s towns and cities. Many of our elderly have to decide between medication or food at the grocery store, and the mentally ill of our state are left with little resource but to sleep outside. Homelessness in Hawaii is a growing epidemic, and these statistics are heartbreaking:

• Statewide, 12-15,000 people are homeless at some point of the year.
• At least 6,300 are homeless at any given day.
• 11% of those living without housing are children.
• 32% of the homeless are of Native Hawaiian ethnicity.
• 22% of Hawaii’s homeless have some form of employment.
• 14% of those homeless are veterans.

Source: HOPE Services Hawaii, http://hopeserviceshawaii.org/message-from-the-ceo/facts/