A good start: St. Anthony’s sets a course for a young college grad

April 16, 2025

The transition from college to the real working world can be jarring—especially in San Francisco. Carrie Portis had planned to go seamlessly into a new analyst job after graduation, but the 1989 earthquake put a pause on that trajectory, leading her to think creatively about her next career move.

The thrift store at St. Anthony’s was an inspired opportunity to flex her newly minted organizational skills as an outreach worker, helping to manage the store and the furniture deliveries. She thrived in the busy environment that served individuals and families in the Tenderloin with endless care, patience, and invention.  

“My co-workers at the store always went above and beyond to help customers, making sure they felt welcomed. And they worked hard to make the space look good so people had a positive experience all around. Seeing that—it was really meaningful to me.”

She remembers the generosity of people in the surrounding community, too. Overstocked small shampoos from a large hotel became hygiene gift-kits. Donated backpacks made the first day of school so much better for neighborhood schoolkids—and their parents.

From serving hot meals in the dining room to stocking warm winter coats, Carrie saw how attending to the core needs of people with dignity and compassion can change individuals and communities. The thrift store is now a free clothing program distributing over 260,000 items of clothing annually.

Carrie says her experience at St. Anthony’s opened her eyes to new ways of giving and connecting to people who were struggling with homelessness, poverty and substance use.

“If I had extras of things—a shopping bag for example—I’d save it for someone who needed a tote for their child’s toys. It became a habit, and it becomes a way you think about what you can do to help other people.”

Carrie’s career since her days at St. Anthony’s has always centered on how to bring more opportunities and economic stability to San Franciscans in need. The barriers to stable living can be both personal and systemic, and she champions innovative paths to stability that may at first seem unlikely.

In 1995, she launched Rubicon Bakers with high hopes and a dedicated staff that included formerly incarcerated men and women who needed a second chance. The hours were long, the work high pressure, but she loved the camaraderie that arose from shared pride in the thousands of scratch-made cakes, muffins, and cupcakes that Rubicon turned out daily.

She had a small office in the large warehouse within earshot of workers on the floor. She loved hearing the laughter and singing and was struck by how staff would bend over backwards to help each other out.  Offering a ride when a car broke down (frequently), or spotting a shift for someone whose child was sick (not unusual for working parents), it was a daily show of generosity that made her employees family. And as the bakery grew, Carrie was able to create more jobs for more individuals seeking a way out and up.

Carrie says that St. Anthony’s has always had that same spirit of innovation with heart she so admires, creating a web of services that she believes help people find both purpose and economic mobility.

Innovations like St. Anthony’s Companionship Program are an example, leading the way with a new model of care that reimagines the path to sober living.

Drawn from more than seven decades of best practice, the St. Anthony’s companionship model is a scalable, multi-year approach tailored to each person in the substance use recovery and transitional employment programs. A dedicated companion with lived experience is partnered for up to three years with each person in the recovery program, offering one-to-one support, guidance and coaching on the journey to lasting sobriety and stability.

More recently, the expansion of behavioral health services at St. Anthony’s medical clinic provides guests with access to trusted mental health clinicians who understand the impact of life on the streets, domestic violence, untreated trauma and other personal and health issues that can impede recovery. The clinic’s addition of child behavioral health specialists is especially important so that clinicians can identify and treat young children unable to verbalize their stress, fear and confusion.

Because St. Anthony’s is supported primarily by private donors, the organization has the autonomy necessary to advance new models of care at a one-stop resource right in the San Francisco Tenderloin where guests have been finding hope and help for over 75 years.   

As an analyst and especially as an innovator, Carrie Portis pays close attention to how services can be scaled and policies created to foster more support, stability and economic mobility. Today, as CEO of PIPs Rewards, she helps young adults stay engaged and take positive actions toward their educational and career goals through training and incentive programs and personal technology that’s fun, data-driven and life-changing for students returning to school after dropping out.

“How we take care of core needs and how we do it together—it all starts with understanding where people are at. From there, we can offer a path forward—along with the dignity of choices. That’s something I first learned at St. Anthony’s, and it put me on a course for life.”

The innovative services at St. Anthony’s would not be possible without our caring donors who make our mission possible. Please help us continue uplifting San Franciscans by giving today.