about us

Here you will find ideas for how you can impact the life of someone in need with a gift of $25, $50, $75, $100, $250 or $500.

About the St. Vincent de Paul Society of San Francisco:

Now celebrating 150 years of service to San Francisco's less fortunate, the St. Vincent de Paul Society is one of San Francisco's largest and oldest human service providers.

We provide emergency food, clothing and shelter, support services and affordable transitional housing to those suffering from poverty, homelessness, addiction and domestic violence. A primary strength is our ability and willingness to take in clients with more complex issues, often those no one else will take in.

We care for more than 72,000 people each year, or more than 1,000 people every day. Our programs include:

- The largest homeless shelter in Northern California

- The largest system of domestic violence shelters and services in San Francisco, including nearly half of the domestic violence beds in the city

- One of only two free clothing distribution programs in the city

We are a Catholic lay organization that serves and employs enyone without regard to religious affiliation. We operate with 150 employees and an annual budget of approximately $8 million. Of every dollar raised, we spend 86 cents on programs that directly benefit clients.

Over 75% of our budget is funded through government contracts. In the last year, government funding has been cut by over 10%. Our services for battered women have been particularly hard hit, losing over $250,000 in vital funding.

In these hard times, more people are asking for our help, and community support is essential to continue our services. Remember the poor and suffering this holiday season and help the St. Vincent de Paul Society continue to give them a helping hand.