Around 30,000 people are expected on the National Mall on Saturday for the 19th annual Fannie Mae Foundation’s Help the Homeless Walkathon, an effort to aid the estimated 12,000 Washington-area citizens living without shelter.
The walkathon is the centerpiece of the foundation’s Help the Homeless Program, which will benefit 180 organizations throughout the region that provide services to the homeless.
“A lot of the reason that people are homeless comes as a result of a very serious issue, simply the lack of affordable housing that exists in this region,” said Stacey D. Stewart, president and CEO of the Fannie Mae Foundation.
“Not everybody can write a check for an affordable home, but they can come out and help raise money and build awareness.”
In addition to the main walkathon, another 70,000 people, mostly children, have participated in 631 “mini-walks” since September at their schools, churches and synagogues.
Including corporate sponsorships, the 2005 program raised more than $7.8 million for Washington-area homeless service providers. Stewart hopes to exceed that total this year.
The Metropolitan Washington Council of Government reported 12,085 regional homeless in 2006, compared to 11,419 in 2005.
The average single-family home in the region now costs $415,000, Stewart said, and apartment rents top $1,000 for a one-bedroom — $1,200 for a two-bedroom.
“It takes some minimum-wage workers anywhere from three to four minimum-wage jobs working almost 24 hours a day, seven days a week to afford that apartment on their own, not to mention the basic necessities of life,” Stewart said.
