April 2014

Happenings at Gubbio -

from the director

People are getting housed and getting into programs! Gratitude for all of the people now volunteering in the sanctuary - that has freed up our Hospitality Monitors, Tina Esquer in particular, to give more one on one attention to some of the 200+ people who come through the doors of the church each day. Tina has been able to ensure that at least 12 people got into a clean and sober living program in the last couple of months. She was instrumental in connecting one woman, Mary*, who had been sleeping at Gubbio (and on the streets) for at least 4 years, with the San Francisco Homeless Outreach Team (SF HOT) - Mary now has a case manager and is living in a room of her own. In the last couple of months, I have seen a good number of former guests waving their new room keys in the air and hugging Tina and other staff, thanking them for all their help. We hope to build on this accompaniment work!

A retired bishop from Rio de Janeiro is coming in two weeks to San Francisco specifically to learn about The Gubbio Project and to see if he can take the model back to Brazil. We are excited to see what develops!

The Gubbio guest, Michael, who was featured on the front page of the SF Catholic two weeks ago and has been living in a doorway near St. Mary's was offered one year free rent in an SRO in North Beach by a reader who was moved by his story. He moved in Tuesday!

And a special thanks to all those who made the Martin Sheen/10 Year Anniversary event the incredible success that it was!

Shelly Roder, Fr. Louie Vital and Martin Sheen

10 Year Anniversary Celebration in Review

We are so grateful for the loving community that surrounds the work of The Gubbio Project. That community was so evident on April 27th at our 10 Year Anniversary Event.

The evening kicked off at 6:00p with hors d'oeuvres, courtesy of Hilton- Union Square. The feature event was a conversation between Shelly Roder, co-founder of The Gubbio Project and actor and activist, Martin Sheen. Sheen shared stories including a recount of visiting Fr. Louie Vitale in prison; accounts from on the set of his next film, Trash; his journey with AA and alcoholism; and his childhood. Roder recounted stories from her time in the Tenderloin and the philosophy of love that brought so many in our community to trust and admire her.

Both Roder and Sheen presented an award to Fr. Louie Vitale, co-founder of The Gubbio Project in his Golden Jubilee- 50 years of being a priest. They presented Louie with a beautiful hand bound book, partially filled with notes of gratitude and admiration for all his work with Gubbio and in the Tenderloin. The book will continue to circulate gathering stories and thanks for some time and will eventually be returned to Vitale.

We are so grateful to those who bought tickets, participated in the raffle, bidded for books, and who show their support in other consistent meaningful ways! Happy Anniversary to The Gubbio Project: 10 years of Sacred Sleep!

Fr. Louie Vitale and Martin Sheen share a laugh

The crowd

In This Issue

From the Director

10 Yr Anniversary Recap

Need: Blankets

Kitchen Volunteer Day!

Memorial for Daniel Solis Cruz

Please Donate Blankets!

We're consistently in need of lightly used or new blankets or sleeping bags. We have many donated but cannot keep up with the need. Help us by donating blankets or sleeping bags. They can be collected from thrift stores, garage sales or bought brand new!

Email:

[email protected]

for more information!

Help us make the

Kitchen shine!

RSVP to participate in deep cleaning

Help Gubbio prepare for the expanded Summer Breakfast Program by coming to deep clean the kitchen with us on Thursday, May 15 2014, 9:30a- 1:00pm. Email

[email protected] to participate in the clean up! All volunteers will be provided a home-cooked lunch created by Gubbio staff.

During the Summer Breakfast Program we will be hosting an additional 30 meals on top of our usual Friday schedule in just 10 weeks. That's more than half of what we are able to host in an ENTIRE year! Making the kitchen squeaky clean will create a healthier, happier experience for everyone involved: guests, volunteers, staff and our community partners with whom we share space. The end goal is to make our continued growth sustainable; we want to be able to continue providing so many meals!!

A thank you to groups who have signed on to provide the food and share a meal with our community: Zendesk, Maureen Kelly & Co., The San Francisco Zen Center, John Leonard & Co., and the Columbia Presbyterian Church.

Daniel Solis Cruz

Memorial Service - 10 am Th, 24 April at St. Boniface. In Spanish.

Daniel, who hails from Honduras and was homeless with a few of his brothers here in the TL, was a some time Gubbio guest who would often volunteer to help clean up. He was found dead on Golden Gate Ave across the street from the church on Sunday, April 5th at about 4 pm of an apparent heart attack.