MARICOPA COUNTY, Ariz. — Wearing a shirt with two of her sister's pictures on it, Beatrice X. Johnson stands back in Perry Park in Phoenix.
"Even though this wasn't the home we chose for her, this is the home she chose," Johnson said.
Johnson's sister, Dorothy Jean Dale-Chambers, lived at Perry Park, unsheltered.
While Chambers lived here, Johnson said she and other family members would come to check on her and bring her food.
"She was so funny; she loved music," Johnson said.
In April 2022, Chambers and her boyfriend, Joseph Gutierrez, were struck by a truck and killed in the nearby crosswalk at 32nd and Yale streets.
"I want my sister to be remembered as a human being and not a throwaway," Johnson said. "She was not a throwaway. Joseph Gutierrez was not a throwaway."
The couple is just two people out of 736 people experiencing homelessness that have died so far this year, according to Maricopa County data.
There could be another 450 people, but the county hasn't determined if they were homeless.
Their names now hang on a banner at one of Central Arizona Shelter Services' shelters in honor of National Homeless Persons' Remembrance Day on Wednesday.
"We really are at a crisis," said Lisa Glow, president and CEO of CASS.
The hundreds who have died this year already exceed last year's total by 42%, and the year isn't over yet.
"They represent individuals, and they're individuals you may know. They are individuals who never imagined they would be homeless," Glow said.
While the data provided to 12News by Maricopa County doesn't include those who've died so far in December, at least 112 of those known to be homeless this year were murdered. At least 60 people died of natural causes.
"We do know that people who experience longtime homelessness have more health issues. They die younger. So we need to get them off the streets and provide the support that's needed," Glow said.
While CASS and other organizations have expanded shelter space this year and have more plans for the future, Glow said more is still needed.
"The lack of shelter is leading to those increased street deaths. We've even had babies die in the streets, lot of seniors dying on the streets. That definitely keeps me up at night," Glow said.
Despite her sister being struck and killed months ago, Johnson still returns to help those who live unsheltered at Perry Park, recognizing the need there
"There are those of us out here, who will be relinquishing our last breath to make sure that this doesn't happen to the next person who's unsheltered," Johnson said.
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