The San Francisco Waldorf Alumni Fundraiser for the Coalition on Homelessness (SFWSA-SFCoH) is a fundraiser dedicated to providing direct monetary and material relief to the unhoused community in San Francisco. The COVID-19 outbreak, as well as a myriad of other factors such as the housing crisis in the Bay Area, have made it a uniquely vulnerable time to be an unhoused person in San Francisco. With a pandemic, political unrest and an escalated police presence the unhoused community in San Francisco is in desperate need of direct relief. Started by Waldorf alumni Aldyn Markle ‘15, Emma Stearns ‘15 and Marcelle Rutherfurd ‘15, the SFWSA-SFCoH is an effort to get the Waldorf community mobilized to directly assist San Francisco’s most vulnerable populations.

For decades, the Coalition on Homelessness has developed the leadership skills of homeless San Franciscans to forge true solutions to the housing crisis and beat back mean-spirited attacks against them.

Founded in 1987 the Coalition on Homelessness has been vocal advocates for San Francisco's Homeless Community and leaders in addressing the issues facing them.

Over the years they have taken on a number of issues from promoting housing justice and safe sleeping spaces to combating human rights violations in shelters and police street sweeps.

Click here to learn more about the SF Coalition on Homelessness!

Many of the items that unhoused people need (tents, first aid kits, etc.) can be found at Sports Basement! Many Waldorf families are already members of the Basementeer program. If you purchase donation items from Sports Basement with your Basementeer account you can help both unhoused people and the school! If you aren't a Basementeer yet, check out the description in the link below. It's a great program!

Learn more about the Basementeers Program

The supplies we are asking for are an important tool provide some immediate relief for those experiencing homelessness, however, it is not a permanent solution. We need to address San Francisco housing crises and the city's treatment of its unhoused community. Each year, around 20,000 people experience homelessness in SF, with shelters at half capacity due to social distancing guidelines, the number of people living on the streets is ballooning. In addition, those experiencing homelessness are particularly vulnerable to police violence and unjust protocols. The criminalization of poverty and homelessness creates a cycle that puts those experiencing homelessness at odds with law enforcement and makes it very difficult to get the support needed.

Racial justice and justice for unhoused people go hand in hand. If you are interested in learning about either topic, we have resources for you! The Movement For Black Lives is an online movement dedicated to fighting for relief and reparations for black communities, they have incredible resources on their site and an excellent, easy to follow action plan. Teach and Transform is another excellent platform for learning about racial justice and transformative justice. We also encourage you to check out Mayor Breed's announcement about how San Francisco will be reforming its police department as it is important to stay educated on how San Francisco is providing aid to the black community so that we can help and support in any way that we can.

Below is the list of supplies we are looking for. We are looking for donations in one of three ways.

1) If you already have any of the supplies on the list, or would like to order them from an online retailer, you can schedule an appointment via email and one of our volunteers will come pick up donation.

2) You can also order from a local retailer for curbside pick-up, email us the information and one of our volunteers can pick it up for you. If you order supplies through Sports Basement, their Basementeers program will donate a portion of the proceeds to the school. See Sports Basement tab for more information.

3) We are also accepting monetary donations through our gofundme (linked below) all proceeds will go directly to the Coalition on Homelessness.

We are looking for supplies that are new or in very good condition. Please do not send us any broken or damaged supplies.

• Tents*
• Sleeping Bags*
• Headlamps (with batteries)*
• Portable Chargers*
• First aid supplies*
• Warm Clothing (Jackets, Coats, Hats, Socks etc)
• Hand Sanitizer
• Soap
• Towels

*Most urgently needed.