In 2020, the season of gratitude and giving back feels even more important as so many are sick, hungry, out of work, and facing poverty in larger numbers than ever.
As you're preparing your feasts and thinking about holiday gifting this week, take the time to donate or volunteer to in-need nonprofits that are supporting and feeding vulnerable people around the Bay Area.
Volunteers at Mission Food Hub hope to collect enough donations to supply 7,000 turkeys to feed hungry neighborhood residents this Thanksgiving.(Courtesy of Mission Food Hub)
1. Help those dealing with poverty spurred by the pandemic.
Make a donation to Tipping Point Community, the SF-based foundation that funds more than 60 Bay Area nonprofits serving impoverished community members. Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, Tipping Point estimates that 113,000 more Bay Area people have fallen into poverty. One hundred percent of your tax-deductible donation will go directly toward fighting poverty on the local level. // tippingpoint.org
2. Feed the Mission on Thanksgiving Day.
Mission Food Hub hands out thousands of Thanksgiving turkey dinners each year. As of late of November, the community food pantry was still short of achieving its 7,000 turkey goal and lines were already around the block with people lining up for food. Donate generously to ensure that no Mission resident goes hungry this year. // Donate online atgivebutter.com or mail check donations to 1333 Florida St., San Francisco, 94110.
3. Sign up for Shanti Project's Covid-19 Emergency Response Volunteer (CERV) program.
Born out of the UCSF Cancer Institute nearly 50 years ago, SF's Shanti Project helps homebound residents with chronic illness cope with isolation—all the more important now during a pandemic that is driving everyone deeper indoors. CERV volunteers can provide one-time or occasional support to older and vulnerable adults in the high-risk group for Covid by doing grocery shopping, dog walking, delivering pet food and medicine, and picking up mail. // Email helpnow@shanti.org to apply; for more information, go to shanti.org.
4. Support the Red Vic's affordable and subsidized housing project for queer, trans, and BIPOC community.
The Haight's shape-shifting Red Victorian bed and breakfast slash queer-centric art space was forced to close its doors along with many other businesses due to Covid-19. Help bolster the Red Vic's next iteration as supportive housing for in-need LGBTQ+ people by making a donation to their GoFundMe. The project is still nearly $80,000 short of its $100,000 goal.
5. Volunteer for Glide's Daily Free Meals program.
Even as hunger in San Francisco reaches record highs, the local nonprofits that work to feed the people are also reeling from Covid-19. Glide, which was forced to suspend its volunteer program earlier in the year, is once again accepting volunteers just in time for the holidays, with the hope to attracting enough hands to give out thousands of pre-prepared meals on Thanksgiving Day—all while navigating challenging Covid-19 protocols including gathering the necessary PPE gear for volunteers, social distancing, and mask-wearing.// To sign up to volunteer, email volteam@glide.org, or donate by mail or by phone; glide.org.
