Week 12 Homework: Saint Anthony

1. What is the organization, and where are they located?

The St. Anthony Foundation is a Non-profit organization started by Franciscan Friar Alfred Boeddeker. They started with a Dinning Room that served free meals and since then have expanded their services which include providing necessary essentials such as food and housing, rehabilitation for several issues, and restoring human dignity.

The St. Anthony Foundation's current main building is located on 121 Golden Gate Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94102.

2. What population do they serve?

They generally serve the residents of the Tenderloin, which is composed of:

1. Recent Immigrants
2. War veterans
3. Mentally/Physically Ill
4. People on substance abuse
5. Economically challenged
   

3. How big is the organization?

The organization is generally concentrated in the San Francisco area and gets nearly 8,000 volunteers annually.

4. How long have they been in existence?

Friar Alfred Boeddeker opened the Dinning Room on October 4, 1950. Using that date, the St. Anthony Foundation has been around for nearly 58 years.

5. Are they a local organization, national, or international?

They are a local organization that operates in San Francisco. However, they do run a farm in Sonoma County which serves as an environment for rehabilitation.

6. What is their mission?

In the spirit of the Gospel, inspired by the joy and compassion of Francis and Clare of Assisi, in solidarity with all who hunger and thirst for justice and peace, and together with those we serve our mission is to feed, heal, shelter, clothe, lift the spirits of those in need, and create a society in which all persons flourish.

- The St. Anthony Foundation Statement of Values where they derived their mission from

In summary, their mission is to not only give economical, material, and psychological assistance to those in need, but to eliminate the root of poverty and injustice which forces people into their situation.

7. What are you doing with them this semester?

Greg, Arnie, and I work with St. Anthony's in several different that they are having. The constant thing that we do is that we help maintain the computers that they are running at the moment. We have also assisted them in designing part of their new building, specifically a tech lab, a class room, and a computer room. We also went to Experian with them and assisted with salvaging several parts that Experian were donating that St. Anthony could use. Finally, we are currently working with them to try and create a program that will serve as a pre-A+ certification course that will go hand-in-hand with San Francisco State's A+ certification training course.