Soup for All raises funds to prevent homelessness...

Diners lined up for a bowl of soup donated by one of six area restaurants, with proceeds going to prevent homeless in West Michigan. November’s Soup for All lunch was sponsored by the Ottawa Area Housing Coalition.

A 2010 poll showed one in six Michigan residents knew someone who had been homeless in the past six months. And it showed that 33% of people in Michigan believe homelessness in their community had increased in the past six months, according to the Michigan Campaign to End Homelessness.

The event, combined with a similar event in Grand Haven, raised $12,000 last year, according to Lyn Raymond, coordinator for the Ottawa Area Housing Coalition.

Devon Stuit, a maternal and infant health provider at the Ottawa County Health Department, said she has seen an increase in the past year of people who are either homeless, or on the brink, seeking services.“It’s amazing how many people are living in a hotel or a car or a tent,” she said. “It’s getting worse all the time.”

Zeeland couple Bryan and Kaylin Van Dyke said while they don’t know anyone who is homeless, that doesn’t mean they don’t care about the issue. They attended the Holland lunch with their 16-month-old son, Alden.

“West Michigan is a giving, caring community,” Bryan Van Dyke said. “We want to support (this cause) any way we can.”