The 2014 Brennan Award Dinner was celebrated at the Hilton San Francisco Union Square on Thursday, October 23rd, 2014. It was a beautiful evening that honored a couple and family who embody the selfless spirit of St. Vincent de Paul, Angelo and Yvonne Sangiacomo and Family. The Continental Ballroom was filled with warmth, joy and friendship as Angelo and Yvonne's friends gathered from around the Bay Area to honor them and their work. The event began with remarks from Father Sauer, S.J. and progressed to an exciting Fund-a-Need to benefit our Riley Center for Domestic Violence Survivors and a live auction. The response to our need for shelter domestic violence victims resulted in $78,000 in a rousing round of bidding. We are so grateful. It was truly an evening to remember and all of us at the St. Vincent de Paul San Francisco wish to thank each of you who contributed to this event, especially our event co-chairs Sharon McCarthy Allen, Maryanne Murray, and Joanne Murphy for your generosity and devotion to our mission.

  

On a daily basis, the Multi-Service Center South offers shelter to a minimum of 340 guests and approximately 400 guests during a 24 hour period in our Drop In Center. Recently, we have experienced an increase of homeless guests seeking services in our Drop In Center, often leading to long lines outside of our facility in the rain and/or in inclement weather. For St. Vincent de Paul Society of San Francisco, the collected funding is the "engine" to acquire the necessary resources that allow us to successfully meet all the primary objectives of each program of our organization. With said funding, we can offer the most basic and essential services that everyone in this society deserves and has the right to in order to live fully and with dignity: shelter, food and water. Similarly, St. Vincent de Paul can give back financially to our partners and employees who, day by day, work with dedication, love and care to eradicate homelessness so that our guests can feel safe in our program and to be able to serve them effectively.

 

 Lessy Benedith, Program Director

  

This past year has been one of many transitions for the Riley Center. The energy at the Riley Center is thriving amongst staff, volunteers and clients and it feels good!

 

We have been very blessed to receive a generous donation from The Capital Group Companies Charitable Foundation to renovate some of the emergency shelter rooms at Rosalie House. Their money and volunteer time not only brought new life to the inside of the house but also allowed us to beautify the backyard by planting fruit trees, herb gardens and an overall cleaning. Staff has noticed residents take more pride in the house and have a warmer space to heal while they are under our roof. 

 

We are also very grateful for the skills and efforts of one of our very own Board members, Tom McWalters. He has put in many many hours -- to design the renovations, and coordinate with vendors and contractors -- all while respecting the space and time of staff and clients throughout the process. 

 

We've had many wonderful volunteers and interns this year who have helped enhance the services we offer and support staff with the 24-hour crisis line, Children's Program, support groups and drop-in counseling services at the Community Office. Without this incredibly generous support this work would not be possible. 

  

Becki Hively, Program Director

When I started as Program Director at the Wellness Center 8 months ago, one of the loudest refrains I heard was, "Restart the lunch program." Through the generosity of donors and volunteers, we were able to do this in just 3 months. Our lunch tables were full yesterday, and soon we will need to reconfigure the dining room so we can accommodate more participants. We are diversifying our programs, enhancing our case management, and monitoring our participants' progress. Our community involvement is growing stronger with new partnerships ranging from Shelter Connect to the Felton Institute. Through all of this outreach and growth, we remember it is not the "numbers" but the people coming through our doors. Whether grappling with substance abuse or addiction, homelessness or poverty, mental or physical illness, our participants are embraced, encouraged and inspired to heal and grow. As we respond to ever-increasing needs, we welcome your presence and support with this innovative program and ministry.

 Kathy Curran, Program Director

  

My position with SVdP SF Help Desk began on August 5^th 2014. As the Help Desk Manager I've been truly amazed by the generosity of the people of San Francisco and beyond. Without the ongoing financial support along with food and clothing drives, we could not continue to provide for the homeless and formerly homeless who come through the Help Desk doors. Our client served population continues to rise - last month we served over 800 clients. Help Desk volunteers are the greatest. Most have been with us for years. Without their volunteer hours of sorting, bagging, stocking, fixing, cleaning and serving clients, it would be impossible to keep on top of the many various projects. They are our greatest ambassadors in helping to reach the community about what the Help Desk provides.

 

-Robert Satterfield, Program Director

  

We cannot thank our donors enough for their continued support. We would like to recognize our top donors this calendar year:

The Capital Group Companies Charitable Foundation, The O'Shea Foundation, Genentech Foundation, Robert Stewart and Helen Pfeiffer Odell Fund, and The Celebrate Foundation

  

 

This holiday season you can help us reach our $90,000 goal and truly make a difference...

 -A memorial gift in honor of a loved one can provide meals and help build community at the MSC-South Homeless Drop-in Center.

-A monthly pledge gift can help house and feed families who come to our Riley Center as survivors of domestic violence.

-Your gift can help provide safety and healing services for clients at our Wellness Center.

-Your gift can help us continue to give clothes and canned goods away to anyone in need at our Help Desk.

Remember, together we can provide the safety net to the solution.  Thank you. 

Check out our Executive Director, Margi English, in an interview on KOIT 96.5.

We're so close to our target goal of $3,000 for the Riley Center's Holiday Drive. Will you help to make the holiday's brighter for our domestic violence victims and their children?

Donate now.

We are currently in the midst of updating our website and other social media platforms. Look for new updates in content in the coming months including a blog that will keep up with all advances in our programs and the worlds of homelessness and domestic violence.

 

SVDP-SF is happy to announce four new hires to our development team. We are proud to welcome Leah Jones, Development Director, Gabriela Bova, Volunteer Coordinator, Terry Hopper, Donor Database Manager, and Jordan LaMarche, Development Associate.