KANSAS CITY, Mo — Nearly 1800 people experience homelessness in Kansas City, Missouri, on any given night, according to the Greater KC Coalition to End Homelessness.
"It has increased and decreased, and I feel like it's on the rise again," said Rachelle Burnett, a volunteer with Free Hot Soup.
As temperatures continue to drop this winter, people without shelter are trying to stay warm and find a hot meal.
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Free Hot Soup, a group of community volunteers, spent their holiday giving them just that.
"Often we forget to ask people what they need and we just hand them stuff. Sometimes they just want us to ask so they can tell us, 'I really need a blanket or someone to just listen,'" said Lindsey Cattanach, a volunteer with Free Hot Soup.
Burnett and Cattanach have been doing outreach for seven to eight years. They share the cost of feeding, providing blankets and hygiene products for the community.
This past weekend, they reached at least 800 people in parks and homelessness camps around the city.
"It wasn’t feasible to buy everyone gifts, but we knew how to make food and goodies," Burnett said.
KSHB 41 has covered stories about this group before. In 2018, the KCMO Health Department tried to shut them down by pouring bleach on meals intended for people in need.
The health department stated there was a risk for food borne illness and Free Hot Soup needed a permit.
While they don’t have a permit, they argue they aren’t an organization — just friends sharing food and the cost to provide it.
"My reason is just because I feel like we should," Burnett said. "We should be helping people."
They might only be able to give out meals or baked goods, but their hope is that in the new year, giving to people in need can be as simple as that.
"It’s as simple as putting a blanket and water in your car and if you see someone in need, hand it out to them," Cattanach said. "That’s intimidating for a lot of people but I have faith a lot of people can do more."
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