St. Anthony Foundation, along with the Glide Foundation, care for the poorest of the poor in San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood. They take care of people who should really be in supportive care - people who are genuinely unable to care for themselves and make wise choices for themselves.
In the photo: San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom at St. Anthony Foundation's Tenderloin Tech Lab at the 2008 opening. The lab provides wireless Internet connections to 12 low-income housing projects in San Francisco’s Tenderloin.
Yesterday I read this pointed post taken from the St. Anthony Blog, published by San Francisco's St. Anthony Foundation:
A friend of mine has bi-polar disease. She has worked for periods in her life and she’s looking for a part time job now. But for several years she has lived on government assistance in a government subsidized SRO.
It differs from most privately owned SRO’s: The building is well kept and well supervised and there are services on site. There are no rats and no mold and no one shooting up in the hallway. The bathroom is shared with only one other person. But her entire home is one-third the size of my studio apartment. There is a stove burner, a microwave and a mini-refrigerator with no freezer; she can’t save money by buying larger quantities of food. Her place costs $650. Her check is somewhere in the $800’s.
According to the California Labor Federation, the most recent corporate tax breaks give away $2.5 billion a year, every year, to a handful of the world’s largest corporations.
These tax breaks have no value to the state or the majority of its businesses. They do not create jobs or soften the economic blow so many families are facing. Ending them won’t drive corporations from California.
California’s health and human services have already been slashed $26 billion, and now Governor Schwarzenegger is pushing another round of major cuts to education, health care, public safety and other vital services. He will not increase taxes on anyone or anything.
Seniors will lose their cost of living increase for 2 years, plus employment services, adult protective services, and home delivered meals. Poor families will make 4% less at CalWORKS, reducing a family of 3 to $694 a month. People like my friend will have another 30 to 60 dollars cut from their support.
Many of these folks are working. Many others are struggling to get even a part time job.
Corporations are no strangers to government subsidy. They know what it is to need a lifeline, as my friend does. Why shouldn’t corporations pay as much as individuals and local businesses do for the privilege of working in San Francisco.
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There are two major nonprofits that care for the people of the Tenderloin. St. Anthony's is one of them and the Glide Foundation is the other.
You can follow St. Anthony Foundation on Twitter @
St. Anthony Foundation was originally created and introduced to San Francisco by the Franciscan Friars, who first came to the City with Fr. Junipero Serra in 1776. Learn more about the Franciscans here.
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