Volunteers found 21 homeless people staying outside, during an overnight count in the Appleton area this week.
Tara Prahl of the Fox Cities Housing Coalition helped organize it. The total compares to 20 in July, and 13 a year ago.
She says it’s always disheartening when some of the most vulnerable people in the community are spending their time outside, especially in the January weather.
Prahl believes they’re finding more people, because organizers have a better idea of where to look. She says they’re also doing more outreach ahead of time.
The coalition will work with local shelters to get an overall count of the homeless population from Wednesday night into yesterday morning.