April Arnwine shook her head and laughed as she described her family as stubborn.
"We don't like to ask for help," she said, sitting next to her blonde, 10-year-old daughter.
The pair sat in metal folding chairs at the Project Homeless Connect event on Friday morning as Arnwine waited to have a tooth pulled from the right side of her mouth. She had been waiting for years to have the troublesome tooth pulled and to be able to chew on the right side of her mouth.
Project Homeless Connect, an annual event sponsored by Metropolitan Ministries, is a one-stop shop for the homeless population in Chattanooga. People walk, ride bikes and take buses to the event every year because it offers everything from dental care and HIV testing to clothes, food, job services and CARTA bus passes.
Arnwine, whose family has been homeless for about five months, said the event is perfect for people like them because they don't have to ask for help -- it's offered.
"We are some of the people who need help right now," she said. "And here, I am just amazed how all these people want to help us."
Arnwine and her family are just a portion of the homeless population living in Chattanooga. According to the city's Blueprint to End Chronic Homelessness, more than 4,094 people experience homelessness each year in Chattanooga. On any given night, an estimated 500 to 600 people sleep in shelters or outside -- 200 of them are in family groups.
Micheal Johnson, center top, cuts Marcus Armour's hair Friday, May 8, 2015, at the National Guard Armory during Project Homeless Connect in Chattanooga. Metropolitan Ministries Executive Director Rebecca Whelchel said Project Homeless Connect is designed specifically to help that portion of the population and those who are on the brink of losing their homes. She said the event is a model for how life ought to be every day.
"We are all coming together as people," she said. "This helps us remember what we are supposed to do in our own little box to care for each other."
Walking through row after row of the booths set up inside the National Guard Armory, Whelchel spoke with excitement as she mingled with some of the homeless who were attending the event and checked on the more than 50 service professionals volunteering their time and resources.
"The thing that is magic is the cooperation [among service providers]," Whelchel said. "The whole thing costs us just a couple hundred dollars to put on."
The grunt work of the event is carried out by volunteers who dedicate hours of labor to make it possible. More than 70 volunteers were busy handing out supplies and guiding people through the maze of services. They also made a point to share a meal of pasta and salad with those who attended.
As the morning continued, more than 500 homeless were expected to make their way through the armory's gates to the event. Each person left carrying at least one bag overflowing with essentials: toilet paper, shoes, toothbrushes and prepackaged food. Many also received fresh haircuts.
Others took advantage of the services offered, including attorneys providing legal advice and TennCare representatives answering questions.
Sam Wolfe of Johnson Mental Health Center tried to connect homeless people in need of mental health services with the proper resources.
"Everyone has a different reason they're homeless, and it's unique to them," Wolfe said. "I just try to meet each individual where they are at -- without assumptions -- and we work from there."
A favorite for many at the event were the free manicures offered by Virginia Tech students.
Candice Godfrey said she walked straight over to get her nails done after picking up a pair of Nike Jordan athletic shoes and some sundresses from the clothing racks.
"You've got to make yourself leave this place," she said as her fingernails were being painted a light shade of pink. "I'm gonna take advantage of it all. This place has everything."
Contact staff writer Kendi Anderson at kendi.anderson@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6592.