Reaching Out to Agencies in our Community
The City of San Francisco has created the website below offering opportunities to volunteer during this time. If you are comfortable volunteering, and fulfill the requirements for the volunteer opportunities, we hope you will consider lending a helping hand. It is one way to share Christ’s grace and love throughout the City. Please click HERE for more information on how to be a volunteer.
Restart Project
This year, our parish giving tree ministry is in partnership with The Diocese of Northern California, who has invited us to partner with other parishes in their diocese and our own in providing essential household and personal goods for victims of wildfire, flooding, and other disasters. Victims often need household and personal items since they are often a long distance from stores providing necessary goods and/or have difficulty shouldering the financial burden. This “restarting" of life for disaster victims can take months while they live in temporary housing until their permanent housing is rebuilt.
With
much gratitude for a successful initiative on behalf of a sister
diocese to you, Rev. Jane, Mike, Nancy Clark, and all the SMV
parishioners who generously contributed many more items than we had
originally anticipated!
"Open Your Hearts to Gubbio" was the message and WOW did that message get through! Once again St Mary's parishioners responded to the call, opened their hearts and wallets, went shopping, and provided what turned out to be a packed-to-the-max SUV load of supplies for the Gubbio Project. Awe and appreciation were much in evidence as we made the bonanza delivery of 26 blankets, 68 toothbrushes, 38 tubes of toothpaste, 83 pairs of socks, 32 bottles of hand sanitizer, 15 boxes of power bars and snacks and 54 assorted hygiene items. Think of it this way: 83 people are walking around with new socks and 26 people have a cozy new blanket. We supplied 132,300 calories and 5,856 grams of protein from our peanut butter contribution. Peanut butter sandwiches are a Gubbio courtyard favorite snack. Sixty-eight people have a brand new toothbrush and, thanks to our vast toothpaste donation, 3,040 tooth brushings can happen.
The hard working staff workers at Gubbio were truly touched by the generosity of our parish. Consider making a trip to 15th and Mission, St John the Evangelist Episcopal Church to see for yourself the heartwarming hospitality and kindness in evidence in the beautiful courtyard and the peaceful quiet in the elegant old sanctuary where unhoused San Franciscans can find respite and sacred sleep. In the meantime, heartfelt thanks to all for this outpouring of generosity. Photo is Amy Nachman, part of St. Mary's Outreach Team.
Eucharists: worshiping with shelter residents - Next Door is a residential shelter managed by Episcopal Community Services on Polk and Geary. Nancy Bryan and Tim Smith serve as deacons at these weekly Eucharistic services for the shelter residents. Please come to serve in the worship service, to share the Holy Spirit and to build community with shelter residents who eagerly await permanent housing. Services are on Thursdays at 5:30 p.m. Please contact Tim Smith at [email protected] or Nancy Bryan [email protected] to join them at any of the services.
During COVID 19 Shelter in Place, our activities which center around a weekly Eucharistic service have been suspended.
Food Basket and Travel Toiletries
Every week, throughout the year, people donate non-perishable food and toiletry items to the box located in the narthex. Items are distributed to a variety of partner agencies in the city. The Rev. Nancy Bryan coordinates this effort. For more information, contact Nancy at [email protected].
Open Cathedral: bringing food to an outdoor Eucharist for homeless persons
Open Cathedral is a weekly outdoor Eucharist service held at the Civic Center for unhoused San Francisco residents and those in transition. The service is conducted by clergy of the S.F. Night Ministry with assistance of Open Cathedral volunteers and deacons. Our fifth and sixth graders help to prepare 100 sandwiches and fill the lunch bags on the third Sunday of every third month, help bring the food downtown and participate in the service.
