The task force estimates the number of homeless seniors in the county at roughly 200, out of about 15,000 homeless. But Thelen said that is not much more than an educated guess. A lot more, said Paul Downey, president of Senior Community Centers. We saw 45 newly homeless seniors in the month of January. Tough to estimate Many shelters are hard-pressed to estimate the number of seniors they serve.
Some clients lie about their age, or sometimes harried workers forget to ask.
Some shelters use 60 as the threshold of senior citizenship, others 65. Last year, the city of San Diego's winter shelter served 359 single adults over age 51. In North County, the Vista homeless shelter served a record 30 people over age 65 last year, and the Escondido shelter served 21 people over age 60, said officials there, who said they saw more this winter. The East County Council on Aging, which provides counseling and other services, has served more than 11 homeless seniors so far this year. The Vista shelter has closed for the season.