St. Anthony Foundation

Last updated
St. Anthony Foundation
Founder Alfred Boeddeker, O.F.M.
TypeCharity
Focushomelessness, poverty
Website www.stanthonysf.org

The St. Anthony Foundation is a nonprofit social service organization in San Francisco, California. They provide services for people experiencing homelessness and poverty, [1] [2] and they are best known for their operation of the St. Anthony Dining Room in the Tenderloin District. [3] [4] [5] It was founded in 1950 by Franciscan friar Alfred Boeddeker to serve free meals to the poor in an ordinary restaurant-like setting.

At St. Anthony Dining Room, breakfast and lunch are served daily, including on holidays. [1] The Dining Room has served as many as 2,500 plates of food a day, [6] and over thirty seven million meals since its creation. The foundation operates a residential drug and alcohol treatment program for men, the Father Alfred Center, whose residents provide volunteer labor for the Dining Hall. [7] Other social services are provided, [8] including the Tenderloin Technology Lab (with more than 40 computers available for use), [9] services for women and children, a free clothing program (by appointment only), and a Hygiene hub, where people can access showers and laundry services by appointment. [1] Local political figures honoring the foundation include Representative Nancy Pelosi, who served the thirty five millionth meal in 2009. [10]

In 2014, a new dining hall was opened that can serve 2000 people. In 2021, the Hygiene Hub was opened in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2023, an outdoor hub, the Welcome Center, was launched, which provides referrals to essential services. [11]

References

  1. 1 2 3 writer |, Natalia Gurevich | Examiner staff (2024-11-27). "Expanding St. Anthony's guided by same principles". San Francisco Examiner. Retrieved 2025-06-06.
  2. "About our Guests | St. Anthony's". St. Anthony Foundation. Retrieved 2025-06-06.
  3. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=2K0VAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ChAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4990,465932&dq=st-anthony-dining-room&hl=en [ dead link ]
  4. The Economist website
  5. "Herald-Journal - Google News Archive Search".
  6. "Hungry -- even in San Francisco". 5 June 2007.
  7. "San Francisco Non-Profit".
  8. http://www.ktvu.com/news/17491171/detail.html [ dead link ]
  9. "Tech Lab | St. Anthony's". St. Anthony Foundation. Retrieved 2025-06-06.
  10. "Stimulus: Pelosi seeks to add jobs, state aid". 9 February 2009.
  11. "Celebrating 75 Years". St. Anthony Foundation. Retrieved 2025-06-06.