To: Board of Supervisors
From: Dr. Grant Colfax, Health Services Director
Report Title: Resolution Declaring November as Homelessness Awareness and Youth Homelessness Outreach, Prevention, and Education (HOPE) Month and December 21st as Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day
Recommendation: Recommendation of the County Administrator
RECOMMENDATIONS:
ACCEPT a presentation by the Chair and Vice Chair of the Contra Costa Council on Homelessness; and ADOPT a resolution declaring November as Homelessness Awareness Month and Youth Homelessness Outreach, Prevention, and Education (HOPE) Month in Contra Costa County; and declaring December 21st as Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day in Contra Costa County.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact for this action.
BACKGROUND:
November is National Homelessness Awareness month and Youth Homelessness Outreach, Prevention, and Education (HOPE) month and December 21st is National Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day. The Council on Homelessness will join these national efforts to highlight the various housing and homelessness issues in our community and showcase the myriad efforts within the homeless Continuum of Care that is making a real impact on reducing homelessness.
In Contra Costa, we are marking this month by creating:
1. Tools
a. A Homelessness Awareness Toolkit <https://bit.ly/2026HAMTool> to support engagement on the issue of homelessness through education, advocacy, and service.
b. A short video <https://youtu.be/5W84S750b7c?si=26okpWm8KZeKVr22> highlighting the successes and challenges faced by our homeless system of care .
c. Recognition of Outstanding Housing Providers, Volunteers, Partnerships and Phoenix Rising <https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1iFpVdAtuRS_XkV4Xh6dS6N9-MDq3vk89?usp=drive_link> (people with lived experience of homelessness).
d. A Resolution naming November as Homelessness Awareness and Youth Homelessness Outreach, Prevention, and Education (HOPE) Month and December 21st as Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day.
2. Events
a. Community forum on Older Adult Homelessness on 11/6 that included Dr. Grant Colfax, Health Director, Contra Costa County and Dr. Margo Kushel, Director, UCSF Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative.
b. Training on Adultism for homeless service providers presented by the Youth Action Board on 11/10.
c. Community reception <https://bit.ly/2026HAMReception> on 11/17 to celebrate nearly 100 people, projects and businesses who have made an impact on the lives of people facing homelessness.
d. ’Homeless Persons Memorial Day event <https://bit.ly/HomelessMemorial26> on 12/21, co-hosted by Bay Area Rescue Mission, Contra Costa Council on Homelessness, Safe Organized Spaces Richmond and Trinity Center.
CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:
Failure to adopt these resolutions would leave unrecognized the thousands of Contra Costa residents experiencing or at risk of homelessness and would limit public awareness of this issue.
THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA
and for Special Districts, Agencies and Authorities Governed by the Board
body
IN THE MATTER OF Recognizing November as Homelessness Awareness Month and Youth Homelessness Outreach, Prevention, and Education (HOPE) Month, and Declaring December 21, 2026 as National Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day in Contra Costa County; and
WHEREAS, Contra Costa County is committed to preventing and ending homelessness for individuals, families, and youth, and recognizes the importance of increasing public awareness, honoring lives lost, and supporting coordinated community-wide solutions; and
WHEREAS, November is recognized nationally as Homelessness Awareness Month and Youth HOPE Month, calling attention to the experiences of adults, families, and youth and young adults facing homelessness in Contra Costa County, driven by factors such as aging out of foster care, family conflict, unaffordable housing, and systemic disparities including racism, homophobia, and transphobia; and
WHEREAS, in 2025, 13,141 individuals accessed homeless services in Contra Costa County, reflecting a 42% increase since 2021, and the county continues to face a shortage of affordable housing, with more than 33,000 low income renter households lacking access to an affordable home; and
WHEREAS, homelessness continues to disproportionately impact Black/African American residents and multiracial households, who are overrepresented in the County’s homelessness system at 4 times and 2 times their share of the general population respectively; and
WHEREAS, individuals experiencing homelessness face significantly heightened health risks, with non elderly adults experiencing mortality rates 3.5 times higher than their housed peers; and
WHEREAS, Contra Costa continues to expand its homelessness response system, including a 24% increase in temporary and permanent housing beds over the past two years, yet still has only 34% of the capacity needed to meet countywide demand; and
WHEREAS, both the adult and youth homelessness response systems face major threats from significant federal and state funding reductions beginning in 2027, including potential losses of up to $8 million in permanent housing resources, placing hundreds of residents at risk of returning to homelessness; and
WHEREAS, December 21, 2026 marks National Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day, the longest night of the year, a time to honor the lives of Contra Costa residents who died while experiencing homelessness and to reaffirm the County’s commitment to compassionate, evidence based, housing focused solutions; and
WHEREAS, the Contra Costa Health’s Health, Housing, and Homeless Services Division, the Council on Homelessness, and the Youth Action Board work collaboratively with more than 50 community partners to strengthen an integrated, person centered Continuum of Care; and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED .enthe County Board of Supervisors does hereby proclaims November 2026 as Homelessness Awareness Month and Youth Homelessness Outreach, Prevention, and Education (HOPE) Month; and December 21, 2026 as National Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day in Contra Costa County, honoring those who have died without housing and reaffirming the County’s commitment to advancing dignity, equity, prevention, and permanent housing solutions for all residents.