Hundreds of people gathered on the steps of Monument Circle downtown Dec. 21 for a memorial service to honor homeless people who died in 2021.
There were 166 known people who experienced homelessness and died this year — with still more than a week left. Last year, there were 87. There was a candle for each person who died, and the bell at Christ Church Cathedral chimed once for each person, plus an extra chime to represent those who died but are unknown.
The Coalition for Homelessness Intervention and Prevention (CHIP) hosts the memorial service each year.
Chelsea Haring-Cozzi, CHIP’s executive director, read each of the 166 names.
The sun was out during the service, but it was cold. Dec. 21 was the winter solstice, when Earth is most tilted away from the sun and the Northern Hemisphere experiences the shortest period of daylight of the year. Haring-Cozzi called attention to the people who are currently homeless and weren’t able to leave the cold to go home.
“Instead,” she said, “they will endure a long, dark, cold night without a place to call home.”
The last time CHIP conducted its annual homeless count in January, volunteers counted 1,928 people experiencing homelessness, a 10-year high. About 54% identified as Black or African American.
Contact staff writer Tyler Fenwick at 317-762-7853 or tylerf@indyrecorder.com. Follow him on Twitter @Ty_Fenwick.
