41% of the children in Shasta County – those are newborn to age 17 – live in lower-income families, as measured by the federal poverty level. That’s just one of the statistics being released by the Bay Area group “Children Now.” Spokeswoman Kelly Hardy is also telling KQMS that 359 local students are considered “homeless.” That means they either don’t have a regular place to live, are couch surfing, or are staying with other families. 13% per cent of the high school students in Shasta County identify as LQBTQ, and Hardy says: that number is “about average” for the age group. Another statistic: approximately 4,000 children in this area live with at-least one immigrant parent. These numbers were collected from a variety of sources, including the US Census Bureau, the California Department of Education, and state health care services.