San Francisco, Community

San Francisco, Community

Like most of my peers I had a preconceived idea about the homeless and what they would be like. Even though I had been informed about how the homeless population includes individuals who are living in temporary homes or families that are hopping from house to house, I was still shocked by how different my expectations are from reality.
Before I had often imagined the homeless to be living in isolation from one another without a feeling of belonging anywhere. I felt hesitant about approaching anyone and initiating a conversation because I felt that I could easily say the wrong thing or ask the wrong questions and offend someone.
I think the experience that radically changed my perception and forced me to step out of my comfort zone was the St. Vincent de Paul Wellness Center. On Monday we  had the opportunity to do more than just serve meals to our clients. Instead of solely focusing on providing the bare necessities for survival, we had the chance to reach out and nurture their minds and spirits.

I feel like I had the chance to see firsthand just what St. Vincent de Paul does for this community. During the mindful meditation session I felt humbled and inspired by all the calm faces I saw as everyone went deep within themselves to find inner peace. I was also amazed by how open and accepting people were to sharing their experiences and thoughts about the meditation.

My favorite part was the art program. It is not art therapy because the clients' art is not being analyzed, but it is just as therapeutic. That was the moment where I started opening up and asking questions about the collages that people were working on. I heard fascinating stories and saw just how hopeful these people were despite their circumstances. They were not afraid to tell me if they were recovering from substance abuse or if they had struggles with their addiction. I think these people were honest and welcomed me to their community. I also felt like they had so much more to offer me than I could offer them. I had nothing to teach them, but I felt that they were so much knowledgeable and well rounded than me which was really refreshing.
I think that these people were a great example of community for me. Despite their different backgrounds and opinions they were all fighting the same things together. I watched as two women hugged and made up after a misunderstanding. One of them said "I've known you for far too long to fight about little things like that." When I heard that, I realized just how long these people had been together. And even if their families, friends, and most of the world had given up on them, St. Vincent de Paul and the other clients at the Wellness Center did not.
That's what a real community is supposed to be

San Francisco, Justice: A Few Poetic Thoughts...

San Francisco, Justice: A Few Poetic Thoughts...

Between Two Worlds:
We are from two different worlds and places
Yet essentially the same,
with the utmost respect in
Trying to understand where and how you came
As your story of all the miles will stay with me
From two worlds of a scholar and home
Moving the same direction in two different places
From here and where I from
A privilege to some
But at least all the while
I give you my heart and a smile
Serving in Solidarity

San Francisco, Community :Day 1

San Francisco, Community :Day 1

Day 1: Immersing in a Community

As I drive up to the platform of the Caltrain station, I lift my bags out of the car and begin looking for my immersion group. I hear my name called by a group member (Josue), and see a few familiar faces wave from the other side of the train tracks, as I headed down the stairs towards the platform sign "To San Francisco . On my way down the stairs, I see campus ministry staff member Matt Smith* who greets me on his bike and stops by to visit the group before we leave to which us a safe and meaningful trip/immersion experience.

About a minute later, our train pulls in, and we all lift our backpacks, sleeping and duffel bags towards immersing ourselves in a new community and experience together for the next 5 days of spring break. Talk on the train consisted of gratitude for a much needed break of simple living, from the frantic and fast pace of an exhausting finals week and ending of winter quarter, and Subway sandwich dinner orders.

(A Caltrain conductor noticed/commented about the pile of luggage of our group in the corner and asked where we were headed.)

Shortly afterwards, in about an hour, we arrived at the Millbrae BART station, our second stop and transportation connecting us to SF, as we clamored hurriedly off the train to our next destination.

At the BART station, there we at least several long flights of stairs through to our train, much to my dismay of having a slightly heaving rolling carry-on, wishing to have perhaps followed the 'simple living' in packing a bit lighter (and for an elevator).

However, struggling down the steep narrow staircase with my sleeping bag, luggage carry-on, and backpack, while a large mass of people were traveling upwards the opposite side of the staircase with half of my group behind (and in front) of me, I hear a woman's voice inquire "Do you need help?". As I turn around simultaneously, a woman with sunglasses held the other end of my bag, helping me carry it down the rest of the stairs, as I breathlessly thanked her in appreciation.

Then when I entered the BART train, one of my group members offered to trade, carrying two lighter sleeping bags for my carry-on luggage after we got off BART. I agreed in gratitude and thanked the brave and strong individual (yes there were a few more flights of stairs).

Escalator pulls up to the city street, and I am excited. We had arrived and were immersed in the City. I visited SF every now and then as a local with my family, but knew this would be San Francisco from a different and unique perspective, with excitement and insight into a community rarely seen from trolley cars, Muni buses, and the Golden Gate.

We got off at the civic center, and met our companion, Sean, a graduate Jesuit theology student, who greeted us near a prominent fountain in front of SF Federal Building.

We then walked a few blocks to the St. Vincent de Paul Society, our home for the next few days, and duration of our immersion experience.

There we met our host coordinators Anjali and Michael from St. Vincent de Paul Society (SVPD) , who greeted us with open doors,while we entered the building. Anjali and Michael provided a brief overview, introduction and tour of the organization facilities, its purpose and services offered, by the society for over 100 years.

After looking over our volunteer handbook and journaling our experiences thus far, we went out to a local market to shop for breakfast items and groceries at a convenient local can urban  market around  the corner (similar to Whole Foods*/many organic items, including a $15 jar of peanut butter, much to the disparity of later learning that the budget for a tray of food for a client at MSC food service, for many members of the Tenderloin community and homeless individuals is only about $1.25 to $2 dollars*).

We ended the day with a brief reflection, going over our journey and trip here so far, which led to a realization personal experience thus far that community can be found even in the most unexpected forms the moment we need it the most.

San Francisco, Community & Justice: Day 2: The Other Side/Between the Lines

San Francisco, Community & Justice:  Day 2: The Other Side/Between the Lines

Walking through the Tenderloin in the city (name rumored in origin by police earnings, activity and more), the atmosphere featured a unique, culture, smell, and sights as to announce arrival into the district. For the first time we had entered the Tenderloin. As we walked past in our group, a few individuals had acknowledged us in with "good morning" or "God bless", as they stood lining the streets and areas, singular and in small groups of two or three. Through the unique culture, atmosphere, smell, and sights, one could gather a sense of community, yet somehow unwhole due to current conditions.

That morning, we had woken up 5am to start out our day serving breakfast at the MSC center, to women and men. Next was a tour of the city from the Tenderloin, Grace Cathedral, Market and Mission,  to Chinatown, as our immersion leader/coordinator asked us to take note in being mindful of the individuals and differences in each district.

That afternoon, we ate lunch with the people and community at St. Anthony's, an organization well know and established (for over 50 years) throughout the neighborhood for serving meals of breakfast and lunch to homeless and recovering from difficult circumstances, of individuals and families of the tenderloin and local community. We later learned this was a temporary location which serves of 2600 meals a day from one of the coordinators, while the new facilities, twice as large is being built across the street.

For conversation over lunch with individuals, many in the group voiced concerns in finding common ground and "minding the gap" of being college students interacting with various individuals, while serving in humility. As a delicate balance, admittedly it was difficult at first staring conversations with those who were interested with a simple "how are you? or hello". But once initially acknowledged, many became engaged and immersed in sharing their life stories and struggles.

Later in week, (next day) we served and assisted in food preparation from the other side of St. Anthony's, as volunteers, at a glimpse of the extraordinarily organized foundation* as a well oiled machine of volunteers serving individuals who hold up tickets indicating they are ready to be served for seconds and third time.
The food station consisted of two lines, a variety of individuals of the community being served, and volunteers ranging from college students from local universities (USF, SF State, St. Mary's etc.), college parents (including from SCU), and ages from elder retirees to middle and high schools students.

We worked collaboratively with the staff, to provide the experience, as every had their part in "breading" providing bread for trays and serving individuals who were seated. I enjoyed serving the individuals trays and meals in the fast paced environment and the efficiency and ease of the system in which individuals could take food with them in small bags provided by St. Anthony's to how much members of the community ans staff talked about how they loved the positive environment.

The line on volunteers and individuals being served were next to one another, separated by a tentabarrier*, made me think symbolically about how the only thing separating us as volunteers from the other side, was this thin barrier, of opportunities, society and circumstances, when a man who was volunteer and had brought his 12-year-old son, behind me mad e a comment about how "he wasn't too far from being the other side". We were essentially moving the same direction (of receiving the food trays), but from two different places and purposes to serve an be served. One side students discussed spring break, grad school, what was next for them, the other side concerned with the next meal. Both sides clearly visible to one another with a thin barrier. Essentially it is up to us to reach across the aisle and lend a helping hand.

San Francisco, Justice: Encouraging Encounter: "Street Smarts"

San Francisco, Justice: Encouraging Encounter: "Street Smarts"

Dwayne*, one the day after we first had our meal at St. Anthony's we we gathering the immersion group outside the building waiting for the others. when a man, who appeared to be about in his late twenties, early thirties, in a Raiders baseball cap, tan corduroys and carrying a black bag approached us.
He told us his name was Dwayne, and asked if we were college students and what year we were. He then began to describe how he was a college student at a CSU, and fell into heavy drinking and substance abuse, and social activities, while his grades slipped into academic probation, and further until he was kicked out and suspended from the university. He mentioned how he had three years there studying environmental mechanics of water systems, and yet fell deeper in to the habit of abusing substances while moving around California for several years. Originally from a two-parent household in Oakland, with siblings in the military from a middle class family, ha talked about how he would had been the first one in his family to graduate to a college degree and disappointment of his parents through his jail time and probation as a result of his substance habits.
Then, he mentioned an old friend he recently visited in the medical field who he knew in college, who had a family, and many others he knew were financially stable, who he went to visit. At the end of the visit the friend had dropped him back off in the tenderloin. Dwayne asked him how he had done it all, balanced a family, work, and managed to stay on his feet. The friend had told him, how he had grow up had with one a single mother with substance abuse issues struggling as an only child, and used his difficult circumstances as motivation to get to where he is today, in comparison to how he (Dwayne), had two parents and relatively stable economically.
Dwane had connected this story to us by saying he wanted to share a lesson with us on how one simple urge to "fit in" and be a part of a crowd partaking in substances and social activities ultimately led him down the path of "still trying to complete what he was supposed to 10 years ago, in terms of his education and life goals. Specifically he focuses on the message of motivation for the privilege and those who come from less privilege backgrounds, and how although it may be harder to find motivation with more resources which are harder to appreciate, he cited his own underappreciation of privilege as a downfall, and encouraged us to appreciate the privilege and opportunity of an education which will always ultimately be worth while.
Finally, Dwayne had revealed the fact he could hold his head up high today, was that he was dealing with his substance issues, and after his parole was able to enroll in a certification program due to his 3 years training and education from college in environmental mechanics. This opportunity then led him to a job opportunity and project with a local city on redesigning water systems, as he opened up his back to reveal his technical textbook, which he would proclaimed he reads all day long as a "ninja" on its dynamics.
An elder man, also served by St. Anthony's and member of the community, was listening and chimed in with his own lesson of being in solidarity with Dwayne's experiences, as a Vietnam veteran, and encouraged us to ask people and CEO "at the top", how they got to where they are and keep in contact with them (and not making the same mistakes) offering a different and important perspective on the benefits and creation of education and community.