Among the crowds of people shopping and dining along Clematis Street in downtown West Palm Beach, are people like John Kavanaugh.
“For you, when you have to go find a place to sleep, what do you do?” asked WPTV’s Joel Lopez.
“Wherever I feel safe. It’s not easy,” said Kavanaugh.
He said he’s an army veteran that fell into homelessness after he had health complications.
“How long have you been without shelter?” asked Lopez.
“On and off since 1986,” said Kavanaugh.
He’s one of 2,126 people that are homeless in Palm Beach County according to a Point in Time count.
WPTVIt’s a number that has gone up over the last three years.
“Honestly, we’ve been all hands-on-deck for quite a while now. Homelessness is not just a county government problem; it is a community problem,” said Dr. James Green.
He’s the director of the Palm Beach County Community Services Department who said they received $650,000 from the state to help with their efforts.