Long Island's homeless population has risen 32% over 2 years. Here's how to help with the annual tally.

For thousands of people experiencing homelessness on Long Island, the place where they ultimately lay their heads on a given night might be a sidewalk, a shelter bed, a car or a motel.

To count and better assist them, the Long Island Coalition for the Homeless is looking for volunteers to disperse across the region for three to four hours on Jan. 27, asking people a central question: Where do they intend to sleep that night?

Last year’s count identified 4,540 homeless adults and children on Long Island, up from 4,002 in the 2024 tally, or a 13.4% increase, the organization said. In 2025 and the year before that, children made up the largest share of the count at roughly 1,500, though most of them resided in shelters.

According to a report from the New York State Comptroller’s Office, the homeless population on Long Island went up by 32% from 2022 to 2024.

Paul LaMarr, a policy and community planning manager at the coalition, said volunteering for the count is a means to bring more understanding of people who are experiencing homelessness in a region where securing housing is often arduous.

"Our hope is that people recognize that homelessness is a growing problem on Long Island, want to come participate and that they're able to learn a little bit about people who are experiencing homelessness and have meaningful engagement with them,” LaMarr said in a phone interview.

Volunteering registration closes on Friday. Sign-up here: https://shorturl.at/YH9kd

Here’s more about the count and how to volunteer:

Why is the count done?

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development requires that communities across the country conduct a Point-in-Time (PIT) Count, a tally of people who are dealing with homelessness on one day in January, LaMarr said. On Long Island, the coalition is tasked with organizing, planning and conducting the count.

The count is an important part of how federal funding to address homelessness is dispersed on Long Island and across the country, LaMarr said.

How will the count be done?

Some 25 to 30 teams will scatter to predetermined areas across Long Island on Jan. 27. The teams will be led by staff from the Long Island Coalition for the Homeless who have experience in doing street outreach.

If there is inclement weather, the count may be moved to another date. People can register at host locations in Amityville, Medford, Hempstead and Riverhead, the organization said, but could be sent elsewhere.

Is there training involved?

Volunteers are sent a series of short training videos ahead of the count. On the morning of the count, the volunteers will be given a roughly 45-minute training session, with a follow-up for questions.

Volunteers will inquire about several aspects of a homeless person’s life, including why they are homeless, demographics and whether they have mental and physical disabilities.

Even with the information, LaMarr noted that the count is a snapshot of homelessness, not the full spectrum of people who are experiencing housing instability. For instance, someone living on a friend’s couch would not be counted in HUD’s definition of homelessness.

"I think there is value in the numbers, in the PIT count, but I think it's always an undercount of what really is happening,” he said.

What did the 2025 count find?

Most of Long Island’s counted homeless population in 2025 lived in some form of shelter, with 4,220 adults and children living in either emergency, transitional or safe haven housing. The unsheltered population was 320, according to the count.

At more than 2,100, Black people made up the largest racial demographic of the counted unhoused population on Long Island. That figure was followed by roughly 1,000 who identified as being only white, roughly 540 people who identified as solely Latino and more than 350 people who identified as multiracial.

What are the rewards of volunteering?

Outside of the actual count, LaMarr noted that the day is an opportunity to connect people in need with supplies and resources. Volunteers will also be passing out survival kits, coats and blankets.

LaMarr said volunteers often come out of the experience understanding those who are living on the street a bit better. Volunteers, he said, often want to do it again the followingnext year.

"If we can bring a little more awareness and a little more empathy toward people who are living on the street," he said, "I think that's always a good thing.”

By Tiffany Cusaac-Smith

tiffany.cusaac-smith@newsday.com@T_Cusaac

Tiffany Cusaac-Smith is a general assignment reporter for Newsday. She previously worked at USA TODAY and is an alum of Howard University.