We're here to help. Since 1860, the St. Vincent de Paul Society of San Francisco has offered a crucial helping hand to the needy men, women and children in our community. Today, the St. Vincent de Paul Society is one of San Francisco's major human service organizations and a leader in providing support, shelter and affordable transitional housing to those suffering from homelessness, poverty, addiction and domestic violence. The St. Vincent de Paul Society is a Catholic lay organization which serves and employs people of all faiths. Our mission is to serve anyone in need through direct person-to-person service and professional social service programs. We focus on breaking the cycles of homelessness, substance abuse and domestic violence, helping our clients become self-sufficient, reducing the harm they cause to themselves and others, and consistently treating all of our clients with compassion and respect. A singular strength is our ability and willingness to take in clients with more complex issues, often those no one else will take in.

Multi-Service Center - Homeless Shelter
The largest homeless shelter in Northern California. Shelters, feeds and supports 340 homeless men and women every night, and provides drop-in services to 150 each day. In addition to a safe place to sleep, full breakfast and dinner, the Multi-Service Center offers crisis counseling, drop-in medical care and HIV-testing, mental health and substance abuse case management, job and housing search assistance, a library and computer lab, support groups for those recovering from trauma, and emergency clothing, shower and laundry facilities. more

Riley Center for Battered Women and their Children
The largest continuum of domestic violence shelters and support services in San Francisco, and home to more than half of the domestic violence shelter beds in the city. Services include a 24-hour crisis hotline, an emergency shelter, a transitional housing program, and a community office offering drop-in help, education and follow-up services to former clients. The Riley Center shelters and supports approximately 1,400 women and children each year. Over 60% of our shelter residents are children. more

Vincentian Help Desk
crucial helping hand for the homeless and working poor, and one of only two programs of its kind in San Francisco. The Help Desk provides free clothing, food supplies and small household items to over 12,000 people a year. We help our clients meet their most basic needs for clean clothes, shoes without holes, a warm coat and a bag of groceries in an especially respectful manner. We staff the Help Desk almost entirely with volunteers and organize community drives for the items our clients need, accommodating referrals from over 65 social service organizations citywide. more

Ozanam Detoxification Center / The Wellness Center
Founded in 1978, a social model drug and alcohol detoxification and recovery center which offers care and hope to more than 40,000 low-income men and women each year. "The Oz", as the Center is often called, has provided a critical first step to sobriety, offering up to four days of safe shelter, a clean bed, hot meals and special care to help clients stop the brutal downward spiral of addiction. The Oz also offers counseling, relapse-prevention workshops, money management assistance, and daily 12-step meetings, and support groups twice a week. One of the few such programs in San Francisco, The Oz plays a vital role in our city's safety-net for those struggling with addiction. more
The new Wellness Center, opened on November 1, 2009, emphasizes a daily program of meditation, exercise, spirituality, social support groups and nutrition. 

Arlington Residential Hotel
A single occupancy residence in the heart of San Francisco's Tenderloin district for very low income men and women. Most tenants suffer from some form of mental, emotional or physical disability, and the majority are on government assistance that barely pays their nominal rent and food. The Society provides 24-hour front-desk monitoring, case management, guidance on educational, government aid and employment opportunities, regular food donations, free internet services, and regular social and recreational activities. more

Conferences
Our work has always hinged on the faithful, modest work of dedicated individuals helping the needy one-on-one. While our programs make us one of the largest social service providers in San Francisco, the backbone of the St. Vincent de Paul Society is our parish-based Conferences - groups of men and women with a common concern for the poor and needy, and a desire to provide direct, concrete aid to those in need. Today, the St. Vincent de Paul Society has Conferences based in Catholic parishes throughout San Francisco. Conference members make home visits to the elderly, homebound and otherwise needy, deliver boxes of food during the holidays, make sandwiches for the homeless, collect and distribute food and blankets, pick up groceries and medicine and provide transportation for the infirm, provide furniture for the newly housed, help with utility bills, serve meals and volunteer throughout the Society's programs. Each Conference determines who it will help and how. Conference members personify the spirit of the St. Vincent de Paul Society, seeing God in the face of the poor, and giving of themselves to help others in need. more