On December 20, The City of Worcester’s Department of Health and Human Services, in conjunction with the National Health Care for the Homeless Council and the Unitarian Universalist Church of Worcester are hosting the 31st annual Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day: The Longest Night Vigil.

Worcester community members, both with and without lived experience with homelessness, are welcomed to honor those who have been lost to homelessness.

“We’re looking to honor people who have died while being homeless in the last year,” said Eniya Lufumpa, the homeless outreach strategist at the City of Worcester’s Department of Health and Human Services. “For me, I think it symbolizes the fact that the homeless population is not being othered. They are a part of our community. We are all one.”

Lufumpa said that coming together on the 20th shows that the City is working to end homelessness, that it believes that the epidemic should not exist, and that it is working to address the problem with looking at accessible housing and beyond.

According to 2017 data from the HUD Point in Time Count Results, there are 1,593 individuals experiencing homelessness in Worcester County. At that time, families were the largest group affected.

“I think it’s incredibly important to remember that there are people that live outside,” said Amy Grassette, who is a former chair of the National Consumer Advisory Board of Health Care for the Homeless Council and currently serves in Worcester’s community as Family Health Center’s volunteer coordinator. “We should recognize that those people were here. They were human, and now they’ve lost their lives because of the elements or health conditions of being outside.”

Lufumpa said that Covid-19 has only exacerbated this issue further. There has been a decrease in family homelessness, she said, but over the last year there has been an increase in individual homelessness.

“It’s affected in terms of people not having their regular livelihoods,” Lufumpa said. “The stress of the pandemic has also affected people’s mental health that also affects people’s ability to keep a job.”

Lufumpa said that she hopes people recognize at the vigil that individuals do not choose to be homeless and that they become more empathetic toward the group.

There will be two speakers at the vigil with lived experience of homelessness that are, as Lufumpa said, doing “amazing things in the community.” Nikki Bell and Ron Waddell will both be talking.

“They’ll both be talking about their lived experiences, how it changed them, and a message of hope for those currently experiencing homelessness,” Lufumpa said.

The organizers are asking attendees to bring winter donations that can be provided to the homeless who also attend as well as shelter guests.

“At the event, we’re hoping to be able to provide people with jackets, gloves, scarves, anything that they need to survive the winter,” Lufumpa said. “Any access that we have we are going to donate to the local shelters.”

This is the first year since the onset of Covid-19 that the memorial will be held in person again. However, there will be no lighting ceremony nor a walk around the Commons like in past years. According to Grassette, instead of the candles, everyone will stand in a circle. Once someone is recognized, they will step forward.

“There’s such a misconception about homelessness,” said Grassette, adding that her own family experienced it before due to losing a business. “They think it’s about drug consumption or addiction or that it’s people that are lazy. That needs to change…Making people think that it’s not who they think it is necessary but making people aware that there’s a problem in our city and we need to address it.”

Attendees are encouraged to wear masks while at the outdoor event. There will also be a free Covid-19 vaccination clinic onsite with all three vaccines for both original vaccinations and boosters.