4,991 is Just The Tip of the Iceberg

4,991. That’s the number of people counted sleeping on the streets of New York City on the night of March 10, 2026—the highest HOPE Count since the survey began.

If you’ve been reading these newsletters, you know I often describe homelessness as an iceberg. The people counted in the HOPE survey represent only the visible tip. These are our neighbors who, for any number of reasons, cannot remain in traditional dorm-style shelters. Many are living with serious mental illness, substance use disorder, or both. But they didn’t simply appear on the streets overnight. Most have spent years trying to survive while navigating a maze of fragmented services, outreach programs, hospitals, and interactions with law enforcement.

Years ago, I met a man I’ll call Julio sleeping in Penn Station. Over burgers at a nearby restaurant, he shared his story. When he was four years old, he fell from a third-story window while living with his grandmother outside Baltimore, suffering a traumatic brain injury that affected him for the rest of his life. He was removed from his grandmother’s care, entered foster care, and eventually aged out of the system before making his way to New York City.

He wasn’t homeless because he wanted to be. He needed what a former partner of ours used to call “sticky” case management, or someone willing to stay with him through the complexity of his journey.

I think about Julio often.

At City Relief, we show up every week with food, clothing, toiletries, and other essentials. But our greatest hope has never been simply helping people survive. It’s walking alongside them consistently, helping them navigate systems that can feel impossible to navigate alone.

Imagine what could happen if we expanded that work. Imagine having enough care coordinators to walk alongside people like Julio—to accompany them to medical appointments, advocate for them when they can’t advocate for themselves, and help them take one small step after another toward stability.

If one care coordinator could walk closely with just 15 of the 4,991 people counted this year, New York City would need roughly 332 care coordinators. At an average cost of $75,000 each, that’s nearly $25 million annually.

Does that sound impossible? Maybe today. But when I saw the highest street homelessness count on record, I couldn’t help but dream about what could be. Every one of those 4,991 neighbors deserves someone who knows their name, believes their story matters, and reminds them they are made in the image of God.

Until that day comes, we’ll keep showing up. We’ll keep training volunteers, strengthening partnerships, and demonstrating that people experiencing homelessness are not an eyesore to be managed, but image bearers to be loved.

I’m not naïve about the challenges of street homelessness. They are real and deeply complex, but I also believe God hears Julio’s prayers. And I believe God is raising up people who refuse to overlook neighbors who have been forgotten for far too long.

Thank you for praying. Thank you for giving. Thank you for helping us move toward a future where no one has to walk alone.

We have a lot of work to do. Let’s get to it.

With Gratitude,

Josiah Haken

City Relief, CEO