WASHINGTON 鈥� After the candles were lit, 41 names were read inside the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in downtown D.C. Friday afternoon.
Each name called out was that of a homeless D.C. resident who died this year while living on the streets.
The reading was part of the third annual homeless memorial vigil put on by the . The D.C.-based coalition consists of advocates for the homeless, many of whom also spent time on the streets.
鈥淥ur goal is that we never have to do this again,鈥� said Jesse Rabinowitz with Miriam鈥檚 Kitchen, which helped to organize the event.
Members of the coalition called for more to be done to eliminate homelessness in the District.
Many of those taking part in the event showed their support for a plan proposed by to make homelessness rare, brief and nonrecurring by the year 2020. They also called for more to be done in the area of subsidies and housing to get more people off the streets in 2016.
鈥淭he local government has a part to play, the federal government has a part to play and the individual himself has a part to play,鈥� said Robert Warren director of the People for Fairness Coalition.
During this year鈥檚 event, attention was also given to the the Watergate in Northwest D.C.
鈥淭ents save lives. The reality of it in this city, you are not going to house all the people who need housing,鈥� Warren said.
On Thursday morning Warren along with other advocates met with city leaders, urging them to stop what he calls 鈥渆ncampment sweeps鈥� in the District.
鈥淲here do you kick the homeless out to, where do they go?鈥� said Michael Craig, who spent weeks on the street several years ago. He says many avoid shelters because they don鈥檛 feel that they are safe while staying in them.
In the past, the campsites unsafe, unsanitary and illegal.
Rabinowitz says safety is a big concern for members of District’s homeless community, but it isn鈥檛 the only reason people choose not to stay in shelters.
鈥淭hey are also really strictly scheduled. So if you鈥檙e working a job, it鈥檚 hard to get there in time to get a bed,鈥� Rabinowitz said.
There were this year, according to the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.
