More than 2,500 meals are expected to be served today as the Boise Rescue Mission hosts its annual Christmas Banquet at the Nampa First Church of the Nazarene. Men, women and children from throughout the Treasure Valley are expected at the event, which will also include distribution of 900 food boxes. Additionally, Santa will be distributing toys to more than 2,000 children. A similar holiday banquet was held last Saturday at the Garden City Boys and Girls Club.

In this week's BW, we visit a unique day shelter that each winter sees scores of homeless moms, dads and infants come in from the cold. The Pioneer Community Center on Ash Street, south of Downtown Boise, is tucked into a unique neighborhood that includes the city's main homeless shelters.

A new study, while indicating a slight decline in veterans using shelters, says younger vets are more than twice as likely to be homeless as non-veterans in the same age group. About 13,000 of the nation's homeless in 2010 were ex-service members between ages 18 and 30, according to the study.

A joint product of the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Veterans Affairs, the report unveiled a number of critical fidings including the fact that homeless vets are most likely to be middle-aged white men with a disability.

According to the study, the number of veterans who used emergency shelters or transitional housing for the homeless in 2010 dropped 3 percent from the year before, but the report also found that veterans continue to be overrepresented in the nation's homeless population, accounting for 13 percent of all homeless adults in shelters, even though they are just over 9 percent of the total adult population.

Boise's River of Life Mission isn't known for how colorful it is. But the region's largest shelter, managed by the Boise Rescue Mission, is getting a new interior look.

The men's shelter is among 51 locations nationwide chosen by the U.S. Conference of Mayors to undergo a transformation, thanks to volunteers from the United Way and Benjamin Moore Paints.

As temperatures climb back into the 90s today, employees and volunteers at the region's shelters are expecting to be full again this evening, as they have been through much of the summer.

City Light, the Boise Rescue Mission's shelter for women and children, has seen an average of 90 women each evening, a new record. Interfaith Sanctuary, a shelter for men, women and children, has been so full that workers have asked some men to sleep outside under a carport behind the building.

In tomorrow's BW, we examine how the summer heat is pushing more people into shelters that are already taxed by a failing economy.

The number of homeless individuals counted in a statewide census on Jan. 26 indicated a drop compared to a similar count in 2010.

The Point-in-Time count requires regional housing coalitions to number unsheltered and sheltered homeless persons and families in Idaho during one night in the month of January every year. In this year's PIT, 2,199 homeless persons were counted, a 6 percent decrease from the 2,346 registered last year. While the overall number of homeless dropped, those counted in sheltered residences increased, while those counted on the street dropped; 38 percent of the homeless counted in this year's survey were in Ada County.

The numbers indicated that 25 percent of the homeless in Idaho were minors, 24 percent suffered from substance abuse, 17 percent from mental illness, 23 percent were victims of domestic violence and 15 percent are veterans.

A shocking report released today by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development indicates that Idaho's homeless population jumped 34 percent from 2007 to 2010, the fourth largest increase in the nation.

The analysis, 2010 Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress, listed Idaho's 2010 homeless population at 2,346. The report said 1,546 homeless were sheltered in Idaho but 782 were unsheltered.

Nationally, 649,917 were reported to be homeless in 2010, a 3 percent drop from 2007. The data count for sheltered and unsheltered homeless persons on a single night is usually conducted at the end of January. The number of people experiencing homelessness on a single night in America increased by 1.1 percent over the last year.

Earlier this month, Bill Roscoe, executive director of the Boise Rescue Mission, said, "Sleeping outside in Boise is a choice," adding that the River of Life men's shelter and City Light women's shelter should always have some space available. In 2010, the mission reportedly provided 126,300 "bed nights" and more than 340,000 meals with no direct government funding.

The Boise City Council will take a resolution next week designed to funnel a community development block grant funding to Interfaith Sanctuary, the Treasure Valley homeless shelter that has been running at or near capacity since opening its doors in 2007.

On any given night, an average of 126 men, women and children make their way to the River Street shelter.

In the past 60 days, more than $10,000 has been earmarked from the Home Partnership Program for major capital improvements to the shelter, including a new HVAC system and restroom and shower upgrades.

While the failing economy pushed more people into the shelter, the same downturn was blamed for a $6,000 drop in unsolicited donations to Interfaith Sanctuary last year.

An unfortunate but crucial census is underway today throughout Idaho. Scores of service providers and volunteers are fanning out across the state to count Idaho's homeless.

The event is called Point in Time. It's designed to count those who are homeless or who may be "precariously housed" (doubled up, facing eviction, jailed or hospitalized). Trained interviewers are asking the homeless where they spent the night of Wednesday, Jan, 26. The data is required for any agency that receives funding or assistance from the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development.

Homelessness has been on the rise in recent years according to data from the survey's previous years. In January 2010, for example, 2,346 Idahoans were countered as being homeless, a 21 percent increase from 2009. Of that number, 13 percent were identified as veterans and 15 percent said they were victims of domestic violence. In Ada County in 2010, 872 people were counted as being homeless

Estimates on just how many men, women and children in Boise are homeless range anywhere from 300 to 500. But one statistic is soberly sure. Nine adults—eight men and one woman—died while homeless in Boise this past year.

Tuesday night, considered the longest night of the year, a vigil will be held to memorialize the nine. The annual memorial observation is a tradition for Interfaith Sanctuary, El-Ada Community Action Partnership and the Corpus Christi Day shelter. The interfaith program will include Scottish bagpiping, Native American drumming and prayers from the Christian, Native American and Buddhist traditions. The vigil will begin at 7 p.m. at the Corpus Christi Shelter on Americana Boulevard. More than 150 cities across America will hold similar memorials.

It's been nearly a month since Citydesk first heard word that renowned homeless advocate Will Rainford and his wife Rosio Gonzalez, executive director of Catholic Charities of Idaho were leaving the Treasure Valley. Both are board members of Interfaith Sanctuary. The shelter's executive director, Jayne Sorrels tells Citydesk that the organization is currently accepting applications from community members interested in serving on the board. In addition to the vacancies created by Rainford and Gonzalez, there are a couple of additional openings, and "we have a general need for people with diverse skill sets," Sorrels says. Applications are available at interfaithsanctuary.org.

Citydesk also asked Sorrels about the City of Boise's pilot program "Have a Heart, Give Smart." The recently unveiled initiative encourages citizens not to give to "panhandlers" but rather to organizations that serve the homeless.

"People want to help and are very compassionate and often don't know the best of more effective way to go about this," said Sorrels. "Whether to give money to someone who is panhandling or not is certainly a personal choice. The campaign simply provides people with other options to consider."

Interfaith Sanctuary shelters more than 120 men, women and children each night and provides supportive services that promote self-sufficiency.