Report: Number of Sarpy County residents experiencing homelessness increases

BELLEVUE, Neb. (WOWT) - A survey of Sarpy County schools and residents found an unsettling trend: The number of homeless people in the county is rising.

In the latest survey conducted in January, Lift Up Sarpy County totaled 75 people:

30 people were estimated to be living in encampments
18 people were being housed in the Omaha-metro hotels
27 people were living in their vehicles or “couch surfing”

During that same period, Sarpy County schools reported 144 children were self-reporting to be homeless, according to the organization, which leads the county’s steering committee overseeing the Sarpy County Task Force on Homelessness. Lift Up also noted in its report that not all schools in the county had provided counts.

“These numbers are staggering and reflect only a glimpse into what’s going on,” said Lift Up’s executive director, Tanya Gifford. “While we knew that more than 5% of Sarpy’s population was living at or below the poverty line, even we were taken aback by some of the stories and situations we discovered during the (survey).”

Gifford says with the record growth the county is experiencing makes it difficult to believe the number of people experiencing homelessness is also growing. Lift Up says the number of evictions in Sarpy County are almost double the rate they were a year ago, averaging about 13 evictions per week.

“This past week alone, 27 households were facing eviction,” the Lift Up release states.

To help ease the burden on those experiencing homelessness, Lift Up created backpacks with supplies they call Community Care Kits. They will be distributed to law enforcement, first responders, convenience stores, and other retailers in the county.

Lift Up says donations are welcome for these kits, as well as help with distribution. Businesses and organizations can sign up on the agency’s website.

“No paperwork is required to provide someone with a kit and people are asked to use their own discretion as to who might benefit from its contents,” the Lift Up release states.