Why Should I Care About SF CARES

Our Vision

SF CARES is a collaboration of St. Paulus Lutheran Church, Night Ministry, Welcome, and the Faithful Fools Street Ministry. All faithful organizations whose hearts are focused both on addressing poverty and all the issues that come along with it and on bringing people together by serving one another in San Francisco.    

  

We are particularly passionate about providing opportunities, resources and support for individuals who are poor, homeless, formerly homeless and experiencing mental health or brain disorder issues.  Among other things, our collaborators grow and distribute fresh produce, feed communal meals to hundreds each month in a variety of venues, advocate for those we serve, accompany and provide pastoral care for thousands of people each year. SF CARES provides support to each of the collaborators by assisting with volunteer recruitment, scheduling, training and nourishment; facilitating the sharing of assets; and providing a framework for the collaborators to assist and support one another.

  

SF CARES offers people the opportunity to explore what kind of service they are being called to do. We have volunteers who live outside and we have volunteers who are rich. People living in the City and the suburbs, youth, seniors and everyone in between serve with SF CARES.

SF CARES helps volunteers find the service opportunities that are right for them. We offer training for the mind and nourishment for the soul to help our volunteers serve to the fullness of their abilities, find fulfillment in the work they do with those we serve, and avoid burnout. SF CARES' philosophy that we all have something to teach and that we all have something to learn, along with our practice of blurring boundaries between those who serve and are served, allows for genuine relationships to form and our volunteers to be blessed by those we serve, even as they offer their own blessing of service.

 

Developing A Heart For Service:

Every Sunday:

• 2p.m., Open Cathedral * Civic Center, (the plaza at Leavenworth @ McAllister) Lunch is offered for anyone who wishes to participate.  Worship attendance is not required to participate in the lunch.

Every Thursday

• 10a.m, 11a.m. Faithful Fools (234 Hyde) Bible Study
• 12:30p.m., 3:30p.m. Faithful Fools (234 Hyde) Write On! Creative Writing Group
• 5:30p.m.,  Open Cathedral Mission, (Mission and 16th St. BART station)

Saturdays

•  9a.m. - 5p.m. Faithful Fools (234 Hyde) Street Retreats, Walk the Tenderloin meditatively with the question of what connects each of us and what holds us apart.  Generally on the third Saturday of the month.
•  3p.m.- 5p.m.Faithful Fools (234 Hyde) Meditation
• 7p.m. Faithful Fools (234 Hyde)Movie Nights Generally the second Saturday of the month.
• 1p.m. every third Saturday, St. Francis Lutheran (152 Church St.) training on how to best serve individuals who suffer from mental health and substance abuse issues.   Please call 415-673-3572 ahead of time to RSVP.

Every Third Saturday:

• 1:00p.m - 3:00p.m. Urban Ministry Training Series (152 Church St) Come join us to learn about a variety of topics to improve the safety and welcome of your urban ministry or program. Everything from maintaining good boundaries to dealing with challenging guests to what is the most helpful menu for your feeding program to nourish your guests and reduce waste.

Every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday

•  9:00 a.m. Faithful Fools (234 Hyde) Meditation

Any Night

• 9:45p.m. Night Ministry Walk Around, Come and join the Night Ministers for an evening and experience firsthand the ministry to our lonely, anxious and forgotten sisters and brothers in Christ.  (Call 415-441-0123 in advance to schedule a night walk.) 
• Have a Speaker, Invite a Night Minister or someone from Welcome to come talk about what we do.

 

Volunteers Needed: 

Let us know you are interested in any of these opportunities by filling out the

Volunteer Interest Form

Every Night:

• 10pm - 2am, Crisis Line Counselors, at Night Ministry

Every Tuesday:

• 1-4:30p.m., Servers, Cooks, Dishwashers, Clean up, at the Welcome Center (at Old First Presbyterian Church, 1751 Sacramento St at Van Ness - parking free with validation at the Old First Parking Garage) 
• 2-4p.m., Companions at the Welcome Center (at Old First Presbyterian Church, 1751 Sacramento St at Van Ness - parking free with validation at the Old First Parking Garage).  Companions sit and talk with our guests while they eat. 
• 2-5p.m. Set up, Serving, Clean up, at the Friendship Banquet at St. Mark's Lutheran Church at 1111 O'Farrell.  We also welcome churches and other organizations to sponsor a meal.  Costs range, but usually fall in the $200 - $250 range.

Every Wednesday:

• 10-2p.m. Gardeners, at the Free Farm, (at Eddy and Gough). Everyone is welcome and there are many tasks for people of all skill levels and physical abilities (please note that the site has limited wheelchair access at this time.) A free vegan lunch is offered at each workday except Sundays. 
• 10a.m - 2p.m.Senior Program, (152 Church St), activities, lunch and hospitality for seniors are provided at St. Francis Lutheran Church.  We are looking for people to help serve the meal, to sit and visit with our guests, and to assist them as needed.  We can use kitchen help from 10a.m. until 1p.m.and folks to help clean up from 1p.m. until 2p.m.

Every Thursday

• 5:30p.m. - 6:30p.m. Bring Food for 70to Open Cathedral Mission (Mission and 16th St. BART station)

Every Saturday:

• 9:30am-1:00, Hospitality Hour Preparation, (152 Church St) Food sorting and some prep work.  Come help us sort donated food and do some of the prep work for Sunday's meal.
• 10-2p.m. Gardeners, at the Free Farm, (at Eddy and Gough). Everyone is welcome and there are many tasks for people of all skill levels and physical abilities (please note that the site has limited wheelchair access at this time.) A free vegan lunch is offered at each workday except Sundays. 
• 4-7:30 p.m. [2nd and 4th Saturdays of the month only], Hosts, Servers, Cooks, Dishwashers, Clean up, at the Welcome's Community Dinners (at Old First Presbyterian Church, 1751 Sacramento St at Van Ness - parking free with validation at the Old First Parking Garage).  We also welcome churches and other organizations to sponsor a meal.  Costs range from $200 - $600.

Sundays:

• 7:30am, Hospitality Hour, Hosts,(152 Church St., just up from Market) Servers, Cooks, Dishwashers, Clean upat St. Francis Lutheran's Hospitality Hour.  Just now we are particularly in need of a volunteer to power wash the sidewalk at 9:00am.
•   10a.m. -12p.m. [first Sunday of the month only] Gardening with Temple Emanu-El, at the Free Farm, (at Eddy and Gough). Everyone is welcome and there are many tasks for people of all skill levels and physical abilities (please note that the site has limited wheelchair access at this time.) Lunch is not offered on Sundays.
• 2p.m to 3:30p.m. Bring Lunch for 100to Open Cathedral Civic Center
  (the plaza at Leavenworth @ McAllister)

Let us know you are interested in any of these opportunities by filling out the Volunteer Interest Form