Spring 2025                                                                                                                                                      

Dear friend of the St. Francis Living Room,

Spring is upon us! I am writing to tell you about the happenings at the St. Francis Living Room, a haven for so many homeless and low-income seniors in the Tenderloin neighborhood of San Francisco.

Our mission is to improve the quality of life for homeless and low-income seniors in the Tenderloin. As the Executive Director of the Living Room, I look for ways to enrich our guests’ lives in addition to just serving a hot meal. As an example, for a while, we have been working with the nearby San Francisco Conservatory of Music to have students come and play classical music in our space. And just a few weeks ago, a side-by-side string quartet of students from both the Conservatory and London’s Academy of St. Martin in the Fields came to play at the St. Francis Living Room to the joyful amazement of our seniors. It was a wonderful way for our guests to start their week. We hope to arrange other such performances in the future.

the San Francisco Marin Food Bank, local bakeries (day old breads and pastries) and nearby schools (extra student meals), we have been able to bring the food costs down to below $.60 per person for breakfast that includes a bowl of oatmeal, a sandwich, a fruit, a baked item, juice and coffee or tea. To tell you what this meal represents, one of our guests told me last week: “This is always the best meal of my day!”

The St. Francis Living Room is Bob’s first stop of the day when he is able. We want to make sure that this special place for homeless and low-income seniors in this tumultuous neighborhood continues to be a space of calm and happiness each day. Here is how you can help us:

  • Send a check to St Francis Living Room, 350 Golden Gate Avenue, Suite A, San Francisco, CA 94102

  • From this page, click DONATE on the top and choose a one-time gift, or become a monthly or quarterly supporter.

  • Include the St. Francis Living Room in your estate planning. Contact our Board President, jonathan@sflivingroom.org, for more details.

Thank you so much for your support. We at the St. Francis Living Room wish you and your loved ones a wonderful and joyous Spring! 

Warmest regards,

Pierre

I would like to tell you about one of our regular guests, Bob (seen in the picture above). Originally from Georgia, a Navy veteran and an engineer at Lockheed Martin working on war planes, changing times and economic circumstances brought Bob to San Francisco in 2005. Living solely upon a modest Social Security check, he rented a small room in an SRO hotel with a shared bathroom down the hall. Out of necessity the Tenderloin became his forever place to live. Now in his mid-eighties, he still lives in that same room, but the Tenderloin has become a lot tougher for him to navigate.

The St. Francis Living Room is Bob’s first stop for the day…when he is able. Indeed, last year we missed him for a few months as he recovered from a couple of strokes. On his return, everyone, guests, staff and volunteers, were all delighted to have him back with us. Now Bob comes on most days, taking very small steps, with the help of a cane, slowly but surely, yet he always arrives with a smile on his face, happy to be in this special place, and with friends. He gets his breakfast and then sits at a table without much fuss. Bob is the perfect listener but is so good at coming up with a joke or one liner! No matter what happens, when he is in this space, he knows he is safe…his smile makes everyone feel good and seems to be contagious.

Bob’s always positive attitude radiates to others when in the St Francis Living Room…a great reason why everyone enjoys his presence. His best friend Curtis is undergoing chemotherapy, but he too always wears a bright smile. They support each other with good vibrations defining their friendship, aging together through their health issues, but smiling throughout.

To be able to continue our work, I invite you to renew your financial support of the St. Francis Living Room and help us maintain the positive energy that seniors like Bob need to age with dignity and sans hunger. We can do our work only thanks to generous donors such as yourself. We get no government funding currently and every dollar we receive is stretched as much as possible. With organizations such as