I first learned what homelessness was when I was six years old. There was a man on the side of the road holding a cardboard sign that read, “Anything helps. God bless.”

I asked my mom what he was doing walking around near the highway exit, and she told me that he did not have a home. I was very concerned, but she told me not to worry about it.

We should be worrying about it.

Even though there were 33 states that had a decrease in their homeless population, 16 states’ homeless populations increased in 2015. The states with the highest rates of homelessness on any night in 2016 were California, New York and Florida, respectively.

Homelessness can happen to anybody. Men, women, veterans, students, parents, children, elderly people, young people and anybody in between.

So, why is this happening?

High housing costs and low incomes plague the United States. The median price for a house in the US increased by $54,000 between 1970 and 2000.

What can we do to help the people that end up in this awful situation?

You can donate your time and money to local homeless shelters. I participated in a warm clothing drive a few years ago and donated some of my old clothes to my local shelter. We also collected toiletries to donate.

There are 3,785 shelters in the US, and one is bound to be near you. You can look online and find a shelter to volunteer at or donate to. If you come across a homeless person on the street, you could buy them a meal.

I am setting a personal goal to donate at least 20 items to my local shelter this fall. I also would like to buy at least one person a meal before the end of the year. I encourage you to do the same.

It isn’t that hard to do, and it will make a huge difference in somebody’s life.

National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week is November 11-19, 2017.