Venita is a senior in the Tenderloin who is raising her 6 year old grandson, who this year will start first grade. Tran, another Tenderloin resident and single parent, is helping his 9 year old son get ready for the new school year as well. While back-to-school time is exciting for both families, it is also a time when the added expenses of school clothes and supplies can create an added economic strain. A list of school supplies expected from students and parents including binder paper, notebooks, book covers and pencils, in addition to classroom supplies such as tissue paper, copy paper and Band-Aids, often come from the teacher weeks before school begins. Not having a second income to rely on in a tumbling economy, or enough from a primary income to cover basic necessities, the free backpacks offered to neighborhood children by St. Anthony Foundation come right on time. According to the last census (2000), single parents account for 27 percent of family households with children under 18; it is anticipated that number will increase in the 2010 census.

With one of the citys highest concentrations of children and some of the lowest income levels, Tenderloin children have many challenges to accessing basic needs such as education, healthy food, and school supplies. To help students and parents work together on building a successful school year, St. Anthony Foundation handed out free backpacks filled with dictionaries, notebooks, and school supplies to neighborhood children in St. Anthonys Green Services Building located at 150 Golden Gate Avenue in San Francisco on August 27, 2009. Single parent families were on site to share their stories of single parenting in the Tenderloin, and how critical social services support is for filling in the gaps for their children.

The backpacks ranged in colors, sizes, and shapes, as did the students who received them. The backpacks were donated by groups or individuals through Family Giving Tree and Raft, and were filled with school supplies.

Venita is a senior in the Tenderloin who is raising her 6 year old grandson, who this year will start first grade. Tran, another Tenderloin resident and single parent, is helping his 9 year old son get ready for the new school year as well. While back-to-school time is exciting for both families, it is also a time when the added expenses of school clothes and supplies can create an added economic strain. A list of school supplies expected from students and parents including binder paper, notebooks, book covers and pencils, in addition to classroom supplies such as tissue paper, copy paper and Band-Aids, often come from the teacher weeks before school begins. Not having a second income to rely on in a tumbling economy, or enough from a primary income to cover basic necessities, the free backpacks offered to neighborhood children by St. Anthony Foundation come right on time. According to the last census (2000), single parents account for 27 percent of family households with children under 18; it is anticipated that number will increase in the 2010 census.

With one of the city’s highest concentrations of children and some of the lowest income levels, Tenderloin children have many challenges to accessing basic needs such as education, healthy food, and school supplies. To help students and parents work together on building a successful school year, St. Anthony Foundation will hand out free backpacks filled with dictionaries, notebooks, and school supplies to neighborhood children in St. Anthony’s Green Services Building located at 150 Golden Gate Avenue in San Francisco on August 27, 2009 at 5pm. Single parent families will be on site to share their story of single parenting in the Tenderloin, and how critical social services support is for filling in the gaps for their children.

The backpacks range in colors, sizes, and shapes, as will the students who receive them. The backpacks are donated by groups or individuals through Family Giving Tree and Raft, and are filled with school supplies.

I love my job as Advocacy Coordinator here at St. Anthony Foundation, and one of my favorite things to do is to talk politics with the women who live at St. Anthony’s Madonna Senior Center and Residence. Last month, I asked our Madonna residents if they’d like me to organize some non-partisan debate watching parties in the recreation room at the center. I wasn’t too surprised when they accepted my offer, and  I prepared for the party by trying to figure out which type of snacks would go best with our evening of political discourse.

Our Madonna residents don’t pull any punches, and they certainly aren’t shy about speaking their minds! The opinions and comments that were flying around the room while we watched the debate were significantly more entertaining and informative than the debate tracking graph at the bottom of the television screen.

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