Reconnect This Holiday Season

At St. Anthony’s, dignity is always in season. This is especially true during the holidays when people yearn for a place where they feel welcome and appreciated. As the days get shorter and the temperature drops, we invite you to reconnect with the most sacred meaning of the holiday season: being part of a world where we celebrate the inherent dignity of all people.  Below, you’ll find the many ways you can make this holiday season a special one for low-income San Franciscans.

Volunteer:
Spend a day at St. Anthony’s serving meals, decorating the Dining Room, carving turkeys, or pouring some piping hot cocoa. One of the best gifts you can give yourself is the chance to reconnect with hundreds of San Franciscans who spend a part of their holiday season at St. Anthony’s. For the first time in 2013, most volunteer shifts are just a click away. Check out our new online volunteer sign up system and choose a day that works for you. (If you are interested in volunteering on Thanksgiving or Christmas day, please call our holiday volunteer line at 415-592-2829.)

Donate:
Drive by and drop off donations at our annual Curbside Donation Drive the week before Thanksgiving and the three days before Christmas. You’ll find teams of volunteers clad in bright red jackets lining the sidewalk outside of our temporary Dining Room at 150 Golden Gate Avenue. This year, we are collecting turkeys, hams, pantry items, unopened travel size hygiene items (especially shampoo, body wash, and toothbrushes and toothpaste), and new socks. We hope to collect 1,000 turkeys the week before Thanksgiving and 500 hams the week before Christmas. For more information, visit the events page on our website, or LIKE us on Facebook to get the real-time turkey tally and other updates.

Knit for St. Anthony’s:
Join thousands of crafters who send us hand-knit scarves and hats from around the world. Along with handmade cards, the scarves and hats will be given away as gifts for anyone who eats in our Dining Room on Christmas Day. Our goal for 2013 is to collect 5,000 scarves and hats. Find out how you can become a Scarving Artist here. We’ll share stories of people who have found a unique and heartwarming way to connect with the guests at St. Anthony’s, often times from miles away.

Tune into the Fight Hunger Bowl:
Huddle for hunger by tuning into the annual Fight Hunger Bowl on December 27th, the only collegiate bowl game that includes a philanthropic mission. The bowl will be a showdown between a team from the Pac-12 conference and BYU. St. Anthony’s will play host by including all of the players and staff of one of the teams as volunteers in our Dining Room on Christmas Day while Glide Memorial will host the other team in a friendly rivalry that has brought opponents together in the fight against hunger. Proceeds of the bowl have provided over 300,000 meals to people in need over the past 3 years. To find out more, visit the Hunger Bowl website.