SCC To Mourn 201 Lives Lost To Homelessness This Year

SAN JOSE, CA — Dozens of people will gather in San Jose Tuesday to mourn the lives lost to homelessness this year, reading the names of each who died on the streets of Santa Clara County this year.

San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan will join dozens of service providers and council members for the annual event organized by HomeFirst to honor the memory of the lives lost. According to the Santa Clara County Coroner's Office, more than 9,900 people were unhoused during this year's Point in Time Count.

"No one should be living or dying on our streets," Mahan said in a statement. "Homelessness is an emergency, and we must use every tool at our disposal to rapidly provide safe shelter for everyone.

While deaths recorded among the homeless population were down 18 percent from last year, organizers note they have increased more than 60 percent over the last decade, and unhoused people die much younger than the average American.

"The deaths underscore the disproportionate dangers faced by unhoused individuals, including drug overdoses, homicide, suicide, exposure to the elements and premature lethality of treatable conditions like heart and kidney disease," organizers wrote in a news release. "While the average age of death in the United States is 78 years old, of the 201 people who died, the average was 50 years old. The youngest was 20 years old, and the oldest was 86 years old."

The memorial program will include remarks from HomeFirst CEO Andrea Urton and a blessing from Bishop Oscar Cantu from the Diocese of San Jose before attendees read each name aloud. The event is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. at the Boccardo Reception Center.