Who is homeless?

Sometimes it's hard to support a cause, no matter how informed you are about the subject, without knowing more about who exactly it is you're helping.

People are far more likely to donate their time to a good cause if they can associate faces and names to the numbers of statistics.

The following is a quick fact list on those who are currently homeless, or are most likely to become homeless in the future, provided by the National Coalition for the Homeless. Hopefully, this list will help you relate to those who are homeless, whether it be by identifying with your own personal experiences, or it hits close to home with someone important in your life.

-- Domestic violence. Battered women who live in poverty are often forced to choose between abusive relationships and homelessness. Approximately 63% of homeless women have experienced domestic violence in their adult lives. 50% of the cities surveyed by the U.S. Conference of Mayors identified domestic violence as a primary cause of homelessness.

-- Mental illness. Approximately 16% of the single adult homeless population suffers from some form of severe and persistent mental illness. Most homeless people with mental illness do not need to be institutionalized, but can live in the community with the appropriate supportive housing options. Many mentally ill homeless people are unable to obtain access to supportive housing and/or other treatment services.

-- Lack of affordable health care. For families/individuals struggling to pay rent, a serious illness or disability can start a downward spiral into homelessness, beginning with a lost job, depletion of savings to pay for care, and eventual eviction. 1 in 3 Americans are uninsured. Of those uninsured, 30.7% are under 18.

-- Addiction disorders. The relationship between addiction and homelessness is complex and controversial. Many people who are addicted to alcohol and drugs are at increased risk of homelessness. Addiction does increase the risk of displacement for the precariously housed: in the absence of appropriate treatment, it may doom one's chances of getting housing once on the streets.

-- Lesbians/Gays/Bisexuals/Transgenders. 40% of homeless youth are of gay, lesbian or bi sexual orientation. 27% of male teens moved away from home due to conflict. Half have ran away from home at least once.

-- Foreclosure. Foreclosures have increased the number of people who experience homelessness. Since the start of the recession, 6 million jobs have been lost. 40% of families facing eviction due to foreclosure are renters and 7 million households living on very low incomes are at risk of foreclosure.

Other causes include, but are not limited to, eroding work opportunities, decline in public assistance, lack of affordable housing.