We have received many hand-crafted hats and scarves to give to the guests of St. Anthony’s this Christmas. Keiko Yamaguchi from Japan sent this beautiful handmade Pierrot doll, a symbol of good fortune, as a gift for a child here in the Tenderloin. It is clear that the love and hope the doll was made with found equal love in joy with our young friend.

Our generous crafters from all over the world send a message of hope; a gift freely given. And those who receive this precious gift; not only the gift of warmth but the knowledge that they are cared for and cared about. Hope can only be given to one by other human beings. We are so be a community of people who provide endless hope. Thank you!

We’ve got 3 days to collect another 1,178 pairs of socks. On Saturday, a volunteer group is putting together  2500 gift bags, one for every guest who comes to the Dining Room on Christmas Day, and every bag needs a pair of socks: new, preferably men’s crew or trail socks.

The San Francisco Security Traders, the Girl Scouts, and the Ladies of the Consular Corps got us off to a great start with almost 600 pairs. People are still bringing them in to Curbside, where we meet cars and unload your donations of food and clothing. (Drive up to 105 Golden Gate at the corner of Jones and volunteers will unload for you.)  We’re just slightly more than half-way to the goal.

Any socks received at Curbside will go to the bags. Any socks left over will be divided among our programs.

Three days before the day before Christmas. Fewer than 400 pairs a day will fill those bags. They’re easy to find, inexpensive to purchase, light to carry. Thank you for whatever you can do. Thanks for sharing this post on Facebook and wherever else you can. Happy Holidays.

Shari Roeseler, St. Anthony Executive Director accepts a gift from the Ladies of the San Francisco Consular Corps. Pictured with Charlotte Schulz,San Francisco Chief of Protocol and LSFCC president, Gerlind Rothen at the LCCSF annual Holiday Luncheon on Dec. 13th hosted by Midori Inomata at the Japanese Consulate. We are so appreciative of the support of LCCSF and they are some of our favorite volunteers!

Christmas Curbside Donation Drive Starts Next Weekend:

Saturday, December 17th – Saturday, December 24th!

St. Anthony’s 24^th Annual Christmas Curbside Donation Drive begins on Saturday, December 17^th. St. Anthony Foundation staff and volunteers, wearing easily identifiable red jackets, will take delivery of food, clothing, and monetary donations at curbside, so donors won’t even have to leave their cars! Donated items are distributed free of charge to San Francisco’s most needy residents.

Your donation of NEW SOCKS, clean and ready-to-wear clothing, canned and dried foods are all much needed and appreciated! And if you’ve been working on hand knit scarves as holiday gifts to our guests, bring them in!

WHEN: December 17th-24th, 2011 – Weekends from 9-3 & Weekdays from 8-6

WHERE: St. Anthony Foundation - 105 Golden Gate @ Jones

NEEDED ITEMS:

Clothing
We need all kinds of clothing for men, women, and children – our most critical needs are for the following items:

Socks, Shoes
Underwear
Winter coats
Jackets
Hats

Monetary Donations

St. Anthony’s is happy to accept cash or checks for donation during Curbside and is prepared to issue receipts onsite for tax purposes.

ITEMS WE CANNOT ACCEPT:

Empty clothes hangers
Knick knacks
Used toys
Children’s car seats
Furniture
Medical equipment
Dirty, stained or torn items
Books and magazines
Exercise/sports equipment
Housewares
Computers, electronics

If you have any questions about donations, please call us at (415) 241-2600.

And in case you’d like to volunteer and join us for the holidays, call the St. Anthony Holiday Line at 415-592-2829. We look forward to seeing you!

The mission of St. Anthony’s is to feed, heal, shelter, and clothe those in need. But how does this mission come alive in our work? As a newcomer to St. Anthony’s I set out to discover how each of these goals is fulfilled by spending time in several programs.  

The Dining Room is without a doubt St. Anthony’s most popular program. Three-hundred and sixty-five days a year the dining room is open to feed thousands of people. One of my favorite moments was witnessing the joy that filled the Dining Room on Thanksgiving Day. The dining room provides a safe place, a shelter, a feeling of home for many that crave a little companionship and a place to go. Guest Services Intern, Bethany, says “Our biggest goal in the Dining Room is to make sure that [the guests] feel like they are served with dignity and respect… we hope to feed them daily, not just with food but with friendship.”

The Social Work Center provides individual case management to over 3,000 people a year. A Friday afternoon in St. Anthony’s Social Work Center during drop-in hours is no ordinary afternoon.  When the elevators open up at 1 o’clock people pour out of them. Twenty plus people wait to be seen, all in dire need. Each personal case is different; they span from housing needs, applying for California ID’s, seeking employment options, and many other needed benefits. I got to sit in on some meetings with social worker, Sarah, and her drop-in clients. I heard only the reader’s digest version of each person’s life, but each story managed to be shocking and heartbreaking. I met one man who came here from Istanbul with his family as a child hoping for a better life, one man who graduated from Cal Poly Pomona, and one man who even went to law school and passed the Bar Exam. How is it that these people, so similar to you and me, are living on the streets of the Tenderloin?

In this economy many people end up jobless and in some cases even homeless. We see the Occupy movement mentioned in the news daily, but the bottom 1% of the 99% that we see every day in the Tenderloin often still goes unnoticed.  

At St. Anthony’s we don’t forget these people. We spend time working to heal them and the issues that others would rather overlook. In the Social Work Center (SWC) on that same Friday afternoon, a man soiled himself in the waiting area. The staff who work in the SWC handled this situation with delicacy in order to uphold the dignity and respect of the guest. The SWC staff is trained to handle any unexpected problems that arise; new clothes from the Free Clothing Program were given to him and in doing so we remember our guests’ needs are important. Working at St. Anthony’s is often not glamorous and things tend to get messy, but when working for the greater good of all, things usually do get messy.  

It’s easy to overlook how much work goes into each specific program on a daily basis at St. Anthony’s. I spent time in each program and after being with St. Anthony’s for just about 4 months, I can truthfully say that St. Anthony’s goes above and beyond in all areas of our work, not only because it is their job, but because they care about serving each individual person who comes through our doors.

St. Anthony's interns knit never-ending hope!

They all knit for St. Anthony’s!

St. Anthony’s knitters are one of the most diverse groups of people you can ever imagine but they all unite for the common purpose to share a message of hope and compassion with the guests and clients at St. Anthony’s.

We have knitters from Texas and Louisiana; from Greenbrae and Pacifica; and from Japan and New Zealand. From civic groups and church groups, knitting circles and schools: a veritable army with a coat of many colors indeed!

We have received 1,096 scarves and 296 hats so far and hope by December 21st to receive 2,500 which is the number we need to distribute on Christmas Day. So if you are almost finished with yours then keep on knitting. Every scarf matters because every person who will receive one will know that there are people who care.

So all you knitters out there just keep on: knit for hope, knit for faith, knit for joy and know that the work of your hands warms the body and nourishes the soul of each individual who receives one.

Turkey Bowl

Two days prior to Thanksgiving, pro bowlers, sports celebrities and the community gathered together at Serra Bowl in Daly City to volunteer their time and skills as they bowled strikes for turkeys at the eleventh annual Turkey Bowl. This event raises money to buy turkeys to benefit the St. Anthony Dining Room as well as the North Peninsula Food Pantry & Dining Center of Daly City. Rex Golobic and his family – the owners of Serra Bowl – created this event to help feed the hungry over the holidays.  It has been successful since its very beginning and over 1,000 turkeys are contributed every year to help those in need.

Nancy Pelosi visits the Dining Room

On the day before Thanksgiving, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and her grandchildren graciously volunteered in our Dining Room. She has been donating her time to St. Anthony’s for many years and we are very thankful for her support. After serving, Pelosi reflected that “On Thanksgiving, we come together with family and friends to honor a spirit of gratitude: offering thanks for the blessings in our lives; giving back to the less fortunate in our communities.” Congresswoman Pelosi and her family captured the spirit of giving that we at St. Anthony’s cherish so much.

Turkey Carve

Later that day, recently re-elected Mayor Edwin Lee, Police Chief Greg Suhr, and Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White joined St. Anthony Chefs to put the final touches on our 61^st Thanksgiving Day meal.  The Mayor, Chiefs, and uniformed members of the San Francisco Police and Fire Departments carved the last of 4,800 pounds of turkey and added the final garnish of whipped cream to our 4,000 pumpkin pies.

Thanksgiving Day

On Thanksgiving Day and all other days, St. Anthony’s opens its doors to any and all San Franciscans.  Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist, joined over a hundred volunteers and thousands of guests to serve and enjoy a delicious meal prepared for 4,000.  As St. Anthony’s prepares to serve a growing number of needy residents, Executive Director Shari Roeseler commented, “These are difficult times.  At St. Anthony’s we see increasing numbers of people seeking services from all of our programs. The dining room alone saw a 15% jump in the number of guests in October.  Despite the challenges people of San Francisco are facing, I also see hope on a daily basis as donors, volunteers, and guests come together to celebrate the holiday season.” The Dining Room was full of hope and holiday cheer on Thanksgiving Day, as guests ate all the food off their plates, had second helpings of pumpkin pie, took more food home for leftovers, and walked out of St. Anthony’s with full stomachs and smiling faces.

With 4,800 pounds of turkey, 1,250 pounds of mashed potatoes, 1,250 pounds of yams, 1,000 pounds of stuffing, 4,000 individual pumpkin pies and more, this may have been one of the biggest thanksgiving meals you’ve ever seen!

In giving, we receive:  help others keep warm this winter by dropping off gently-worn coats or visiting our website to donate today.

Thanks to One Warm Coat for helping us again this year. They sent us over 1,000 beautiful new coats like this young lady just received. And there are more on the way, with One Warm Coat drives at Burlington Coat Factory, The Container Store, and many other businesses and organizations. This Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, we will be doing a coat drive in front of the Ferry Building on Embarcadero with the help of some of our volunteers and several girl scout troops, collecting even more coats to keep our guests warm. Channel 2 will be covering the drive during their breaks.

Many thanks to Sherri Wood and all the good people at One Warm Coat.