From left: Fr. Michael Blackburn, Fr. John, and Fr. Tom

On Saturday, March 5^th, Fr. John Hardin OFM and Fr. Tom West OFM celebrated the 25^th anniversary of their ordination as Franciscan priests. A mass in honor of them and Fr. Michael Blackburn OFM, who was also ordained 25 years ago, was held at St. Boniface, and was followed by a reception at the New Povorello Room at 150 Golden Gate across the street.

Fr. John was St. Anthony’s Executive Director from 2002-2009, and now is the Provincial of the St. Barbara Province of Franciscans and the chair of St. Anthony’s Board of Trustees. Fr. Tom West has been a chaplain at SAF for the last two years, but has ties to St. Anthony’s that extend back twenty years, when he and Fr. John lived with St. Anthony’s founder, Fr. Alfred Boeddeker, at St. Boniface Church, and served in the Dining Room.

Thanks are in order to Lou Giraudo and Boudin Bakery for catering the luncheon and the Dining Room volunteers for their support. If you see Fr. Tom or Fr. John around, be sure to congratulate them on 25 years of service!

Shari Roeseler steps in to lead historic non-profit into the next decade

SAN FRANCISCO, June 21st, 2010 St. Anthony Foundation announced today the selection of Shari Roeseler as the new Executive Director of St. Anthony Foundation.

Roeseler is a respected leader in the nonprofit sector, having worked extensively with Mercy Housing California, a key provider of affordable low-income housing programs in California, over the last ten years. Most recently, she served as the Vice President of Resource Development, and was responsible for all the California fundraising for the well known national non-profit.

“We are thrilled to have Shari Roeseler lead St. Anthony Foundation into the future,” noted Deputy Executive Director, Linda Pasquinucci. “As we ramp up to building an up-to-date Dining Room, Shari’s leadership, development expertise, and passion for serving the poor will enable St. Anthony’s to continue to meet the needs of San Francisco’s most vulnerable citizens.”

The former Executive Director, Father John Hardin, OFM, stepped down as Executive Director after being named to lead the provincial of the Franciscan Order of the Western United States. Father John will continue to serve as the President of the Board of Trustees of St. Anthony Foundation.

“St. Anthony’s is a treasured San Francisco institution that has saved many lives and won many hearts,” Roeseler noted. “I am honored to have been chosen to lead this historic and forward thinking nonprofit, which in addition to serving over 36 million meals since its inception has also been a non-profit thought leader in green service standards, culturally competent healthcare, nutritionally targeted meal service, and so much more. It is an honor to have the opportunity to rise with St. Anthony’s to new levels of leadership and service for the poor”.

As the Foundation’s Executive Director, Roeseler will help raise funds for the new Dining Room. The new Dining Room will be built on the same site as the original Dining Room, which operates today as it did in 1950 from a converted parking garage in the heart of San Francisco’s Tenderloin District. The Dining Room currently serves 2,600 meals a day.

“These are challenging times for many people, and St. Anthony’s has stepped up to meet the needs of more people than ever before while serving the community’s most vulnerable, “Roeseler said. “This is also a time of tremendous energy and excitement among San Franciscans who are looking to be a part of St. Anthony’s in building its capacity to make a difference. I am looking forward to working with the Foundation’s outstanding supporters to make the vision of the new Dining Room a reality.”

Roeseler has been committed to community service throughout her career. She was a Sister of Mercy for 8 years, and has worked with Yolo County Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Center and Catholic Healthcare West/Mercy Healthcare. She has a B.A. in Social Work, Sociology, and Criminal Justice from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and is completing a Masters in Ethics at the Graduate Theological Union- Jesuit School of Theology.

St. Anthony Foundation is a 60 year old San Francisco institution whose programs help heal individuals and families with programs that provide a gateway out of poverty, including a Dining Room which serves 2600 meals every day, a free clothing program, a technology lab, residential drug and alcohol recovery program, and a free medical clinic. St. Anthony Foundation does not accept any federal, state, or local government money for its programs, and is entirely funded by private donations.

St. Anthony Foundation began back in the middle of the last century when the children of the Depression joined together to help the victims of an economy still recovering from World War II. The booms and busts of population shifts and changing job markets left some out in the cold and many lined up on Golden Gate Avenue. In today’s extremely challenging economy, St. Anthony Foundation can continue to attend to the needs of those affected by this crisis because we still depend on that higher instinct that we share with our supporters–the courage to reach out in generosity. For St. Anthony’s, that means being prepared to serve more meals in our Dining Room, which means more food to procure and more volunteers to cultivate. For those who support our work with their large and small donations, that means framing personal financial concerns within the context of those whose struggles may be more immediate or critical. For those who support our work with their volunteer time, that means inviting friends to share in their volunteer experience, as a way not just of volunteering their time, but also of moving through this economic paralysis by sharing the values of gratitude and service. And for the staff, it means longer hours, more innovative resource management, and more opportunities to cheer on those who make it through the struggle each day. The experts are telling us that, like the Great Depression, these economic developments will affect a generation. Standing with the poor through seven recessions over the past fifty-eight years tells us that the impact will reverberate even beyond that. While some may see the sacrifice, others see the opportunity to invite more gratitude and generosity into their daily lives. And while some tighten their hold and fear for their own families, others invest in those most threatened by the economy as another way of investing in their own children’s futures. We share their hope that by narrowing the chasm between the haves and have nots in this generation, we insure more opportunity for spiritual and social cohesion in the next. Perhaps these difficult times will produce another generation like the one that established St. Anthony Foundation–people pushing beyond their fears and reaching out to those in need. I offer this reflection from a new vantage point. Recently I was selected the Provincial Minister of the Franciscans. The provincial conducts many other social programs, and this promotion will enable me to guide the work of St. Anthony’s as the president of the Board of Trustees. This broader perspective has given me an even deeper appreciation of the impact St. Anthony’s has on the poorest of the poor, and on San Francisco in general. Our Deputy Director, Linda Pasquinucci has stepped in as Interim Director and will continue to attend to the day-to-day operations of the organization. And I will continue to share the inspiration I receive from our guests, staff, and volunteers. As the season moves forward, I encourage you to reach out to those in need, be it our guests or your neighbors, for whom support and encouragement may be critical. For it is truly in giving that we receive.

Reality Is That Donation Are Still Needed

SAN FRANCISCO, CA December 18th, 2008 St. Anthony’s is still glowing from the gift of $35,000 and set of new Technology Lab computer monitors from Gurbaksh Chahal, “secret millionaire”, as recently featured on Fox network’s new reality show by the same name. But with December marking the highest one-week filing rate of unemployment claims in the last 26-years, and the temperature dropping daily, St. Anthony’s is still stretching to meet the demand of those seeking food, warm clothing, and medical care.

To help meet the need, St. Anthony’s is preparing for its 21st anniversary of St. Anthony’s Curbside Holiday Drive. 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.

“Whether you drive a Lamborghini or a Toyota, donations are critical to meeting the need this holiday season. In November we served 14% more meals in our Dining Room than November of  last year. We have 40% more people coming to our Free Medical Clinic than this time last year. And our Clothing Program has been unable to serve all the families that are coming to us for warm clothing,” noted St. Anthony Foundation Executive Director Fr. John Hardin.

St. Anthony Foundation’s programs help heal individuals and families by providing a gateway for solutions to poverty, including a Dining Room which serves 2600 meals every day, a free Clothing and Housewares program, an Employment Program/ Technology Lab,  Residential Drug and Alcohol Recovery Program, and a Free Medical Clinic. St. Anthony Foundation does not accept any federal, state, or local government money for its programs, and is entirely funded by private donations.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA November 11, 2008 From 10:30am-11:30am, card-carrying veterans visiting St. Anthony Foundation will receive a special gift of chocolate, energy bars, rain ponchos, and tea. While many may be categorically eligible for the VA housing loans which will be made available through Veterans’ Bond Act of 2008 (S.B. 1572, which was passed on November’s ballot), the reality of the mental health challenges and addictions which afflict many homeless veterans make qualifying for the housing loans difficult. Veterans Day is one of St. Anthony Dining Room’s busiest days of the year.

Veterans make up almost a quarter of the homeless population in the United States, with the Veterans Administration (V.A.) estimating there is approximately 2,075 homeless veterans in San Francisco. Many who turn to St. Anthony’s Dining Room are veterans who have sacrificed their physical and mental well-being to serve their country. Today, they spend Veterans Day struggling to secure food and housing.

“The best way to honor our veterans on Veterans Day is to help direct them towards the services and programs that can help them, and that they are eligible for.” noted St. Anthony Foundation Executive Director Fr. John Hardin.

Bobbie Rosenthal, Regional Manager for homeless programs at the Department of Veterans Affairs will also be on site to discuss the award of 105 housing vouchers as part of the Housing and Urban Development-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) Program.

Gifts bags for the veterans were made with donations from local Bay Area businesses, including Clif Bar, San Francisco Chocolate Factory, and Numi Tea.

St. Anthony Foundation was established in 1950 to care for San Francisco’s poor. St. Anthony’s continues to offer a number of programs to improve the lives of poor and homeless San Franciscans, including a Free Medical Clinic and the Employment Program / Tech Lab. St. Anthony’s does not accept any federal, state, or local government money, and is entirely funded by private donations.

St. Anthony Foundation Executive Director Fr. John Hardin celebrates his 60th birthday today. Happy Birthday, Big Kahuna!

The tents are up and the final finishing touches are being done for tonight’s Raising The Roof II Charity Gala for St. Anthony Foundation. Robert Fountain has just completed another exquisite event design, Pam Moore of KRON 4 is excitedly going over the evening’s itinerary and honorary co-chair Warren Hellman is tuning his banjo in preparation for what is sure to be an impressive number featuring St. Anthony’s very own Executive Director Fr. John Hardin. I won’t give away too much now — but if you attended last year’s Gala you know that musical surprises are not out of the ordinary for this event!

SAN FRANCISCO, CA On October 3rd, just one day shy of St. Anthony’s 58th anniversary of serving San Francisco’s poor, St. Anthony’s will opened its LEED (Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design) certified Social Services Center. The new center will enable the historic San Francisco non-profit to serve more people in its Free Medical Clinic, Employment Program and Technology Lab, and Social Work Center, as well as being home to St. Anthony’s Auxiliary Dining Room.

DEDICATION EVENT

The short and sweet building dedication took place between 12 noon and 1:30 pm at 150 Golden Gate in San Francisco, CA, with hors d’oeuvres and beverages provided by sustainably minded food purveyors such as Green’s, Perbacco, Serpentine, Farmer Brown, Alive!, and Numi Tea. Building tours took place after a brief dedication ceremony with local dignitaries and St. Anthony’s program participants serving as key speakers.

BUILDING GREEN

Designed by HKIT architectural firm, the new service center features open and airy waiting rooms with excellent air quality, natural light, regionally harvested and manufactured wood doors, and warm colored, low-VOC painted walls. By committing to the use of low emitting materials, environmentally responsible equipment, and conscientious management of construction waste, St. Anthony’s is leading the wave of high-level environmental responsibility in the non-profit and social services sector.

PROJECT HISTORY

St. Anthony’s former social services building, located at 121 Golden Gate, was housed in a non-reinforced masonry building that was once home to a parking garage. When retrofitting proved to be too costly and rebuilding impossible without a discontinuation of crucial drop-in services during the building’s renovation, St. Anthony’s looked for other options.

The availability of 150 Golden Gate, across the street, gave St. Anthony’s an opportunity to continue its services while creating a healthier, greener, and structurally sound place to serve guests and clients. St. Anthony’s embarked on an unprecedented Capital Campaign to fund the building, which brought a new category of donors from all over the United States. Many of them have, in the process, learned about the services provided by St. Anthony’s, and become donors to the existing programs.

ST. ANTHONY’S AND ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY

The conscious effort towards greater sustainability is an intrinsic part of the system and culture of St. Anthony Foundation. As a Franciscan organization, the tandem roles of environmental responsibility and social responsibility are fostered in a tradition of social justice. In the Tenderloin, where environmental illnesses such as asthma and diabetes are rampant, St. Anthony’s Green social services building is a discernible investment in a healthier environment for San Francisco’s poor.

St. Anthony’s efforts of sustainability are supported from many different avenues. In addition to a Green Service Center, the in-house “green team” constantly assesses internal practices of sustainability, bringing impactful changes in the way the organization recycles, composts, and reuses. Clothing is recycled and redistributed at the Clothing and Housewares Program; Computers are refurbished in the Employment Program Technology Lab; and thousands of pounds of food each week are reclaimed, served, and finally composted in the St. Anthony Dining Room, which has served almost 35 million meals to date.