Ron Morris, a 30-year-old man who has been homeless for a year, said he looked forward to both the food and the religious service.

And while the four people in the room shared a common experience, each had come to be homeless for different reasons.

It took me down so low, I became homeless for 10 years.

Most of those studied were homeless for six to eight months before pulling themselves off the street, though they often return.

Homeless for three or four years, Mary said she thought some good might come of the event.

He became an orphan in the age of 9 and had been homeless for some time.

After his release from prison in 2004, he was homeless for a while.

From there he fell into drug use and was homeless for three years during the 1980s.

He moved into his own apartment in December, after being homeless for 10 years.

Toward the end of her life, Maier may have been homeless for some time.