A Haunted Halloween Post on the California Budget

Almost everything about this year’s California budget process was scary: from the Governor’s Proposed budget in January to his revised budget proposal in May to the line item vetoes included once the budget was finally signed 100 days late.

A Haunted Proposal

This year’s budget process was scary.  From the Governor’s proposed budget in January, through the May Revise, until the time the 100- days-late budget was signed, low-income seniors, people with disabilities, immigrants, and families looking for work and in need of cash assistance have been afraid.  Why?  Because the programs that help them with health care, food, and a basic standard of living were all on the chopping block this year.

More people are “haunted” because more need help

California’s budget cuts come at a time of unprecedented misery.  In the midst of the “Great Recession”, more and more people are in need of help at the same time that the programs that help them are on the chopping block.

According to our friends at California Budget Project, from 2007-09, California saw:

Ongoing fear

When we talk about being haunted, we don’t talk about a one-time scare.  Someone who feels haunted has a persistent, recurring fear.  Cuts to medical care, in home support services, food programs, medicine, and other forms of relief are not new.  Struggling Californians are haunted by budget decisions of the past at the same time that they’re afraid for the present and future.

These are issues that affect all of us.

Who are the people who we see in St. Anthony’s food lines, social work center, drug and alcohol rehab, our computer and employment skills training center, and clothing program?  The exact same people who are haunted by the cuts listed above: seniors, people with disabilities, struggling families, people trying to overcome addiction, and people looking for work in a tough job market.

Coming home

Where do you want to be when you’re scared?  When you’re afraid for your future?  For many people, the only place that can feel safe during scary times is home.  For those who don’t have stable homes, they come to St. Anthony’s: we are their home.  Maybe it’s fitting that the word “haunt” comes from the Old Norse word heimta, meaning “to bring home”.

So…what’s up with the recession?  Economists, stock traders, hedge fund managers, bookstore clerks, the bagger at the grocery store, even the random dude standing at the corner of my apartment building screaming about the end of the world all seem to be putting forth their two cents on this topic.

A couple of weeks ago, forecasters polled by the National Association for Business Economics (NABE) generally sounded optimistic – keeping in line with views held by the Fed – predicting that via a bumpy recovery, the U.S. recession should end very soon.  This recession has been termed by many as the greatest financial disaster since the Great Depression with majority of the optimists expressing opinions that it should end by the third quarter of 2009 and the remaining advocating for either the last quarter of this year or else the first quarter of 2010.

Now before I proceed, I would like to clarify my stance on the comparison of this recession with the Great Depression.  The real estate price boom between 2000 and 2007 largely is the culprit for the most recent crisis.  Economic historians have written several papers in the last year discussing such comparisons and the major similarity would appear to be the sharp drop in the stock prices in the first year following the peak of the market.

There was a drop in the Dow of 48 percent in 1930 and a drop of 37 percent in 2008.  Yet the issue in the 1920s seems to have been propelled by a quantity boom as opposed to the more recent price boom.  The latter period was fueled by low interest rates stemming from a loose monetary policy and some so-called innovative methods for breaking down discriminatory lending practices as folks with bad credit or folks who didn’t put down much in the form of down payments were allowed to take out loans.  Even those who had credit but no real source of income were allowed to take out large mortgage loans.  The background checks and good lending practices were thrown to the wind as loans were granted left and right.  Good old Fannie and Freddie proceeded to purchase huge chunks of such loans between 2004 and 2006 and we all know what happened shortly thereafter.

(more…)

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.

This new year, our Nation’s voice has renewed her call to volunteerism, heightened by the growing needs of so many people in the current “economic downturn” . Our new President, Barack Obama, invited all who could to honor Martin Luther King Day as a National Day of Service. The phones here at St. Anthony Foundation rang off the hook!

As individual volunteer coordinator here at St. Anthony Foundation, I answer our Holiday Phone Line–a special number dedicated to Holiday volunteering interest during the Season. This past year, I heard something much more frequently than in previous years: “I’ve been laid off, and want to volunteer while I’m looking for work…” Even after the Holidays, that statement continued to be repeated on the year round volunteering voicemail. And I’m still hearing it. In addition to this “voice of the times”, we’ve been contacted of late by wonderful organizations who “want to do something” to address the current climate of hardship by inviting St. Anthony’s to participate in customized volunteer fairs. We’ve been happy to attend and blessed to meet the many people “who want to do something” to make a difference for the better.

A “light bulb” went on for me at one of these recent events, during a conversation with a radio journalist who was asking me about volunteer demographics and St. Anthony Foundation needs. There seems to be a notion gaining ground that Volunteerism is an answer to the economic casualties of the “Great Recession”. You’d assume that a volunteer coordinator would be all about that, yes? Not quite, and thanks really to the strong Justice Education framework that girds our volunteer programming here at St. Anthony’s–both for groups and individuals– I’ve been mentored in the model that views service from the zoom-in personal to the wide big picture. Our volunteers do have eyes AND hearts “wide open”! Volunteering to serve a tray of a hot, nutritious, and tasty meal to each person waiting in line and at last sitting down in our Dining Room invites a birds eye view of every person served as well as a recognition of just how long that line is, and what that says about our devastated “safety net”.

(more…)

St. Anthony’s new campaign debuts today alongside the scores of news articles confirming what we’ve already been saying for the past two years: Homelessness is on the rise.

The stereotypes of homelessness bare little resemblance to the new faces we’re seeing here at St. Anthony’s. Homelessness and poverty is happening to people of all walks of life.

Want to respond to the economic crisis? Make an online gift to St. Anthony’s today.

Oldest San Francisco Dining Room For The Poor Prepares For Toughest Christmas Ever

SAN FRANCISCO, CA December 22nd, 2008 Every guest that walks through the door at St. Anthony Foundation Dining Room on Christmas Day will be served a Christmas meal of glazed ham and mashed potatoes, thanks to a donation of 3,300 pounds of ham from a long time St. Anthony’s volunteer. Donations like this are making the difference for San Francisco’s oldest private social services agency which is dedicated to serving the poor.

“We have weathered 7 recessions since we opened our doors in 1950” noted St. Anthony Foundation Executive Director Fr. John Hardin, OFM. “Instead of the 2,600 meals that we serve every day, we are looking at serving closer to 4,000 on Christmas. Fortunately, our volunteers and donors have really stepped up to help us meet the need, which is growing every day.”

Christmas Day marks the last day of St. Anthony’s Curbside Holiday Drive, where donations of food, clothing, and monetary donations can be made by driving up at curbside, so donors don’t even have to leave their cars, from 9am to 3pm. Donated items are distributed free of charge to San Francisco’s most needy residents.

For 58 years St. Anthony Foundation has provided free, life sustaining support for the poor and homeless. St. Anthony Foundation’s programs help heal individuals and families by providing a gateway to solutions to poverty, including a Dining Room which serves 2,600 meals every day, a Technology Lab/Employment Program, a 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.