On Sunday, November 17, 2024, I volunteered at St. Mary’s Center with the PMI-SFBAC Sustainability Program. I wasn't sure what to expect since I did not know much about St. Mary’s Center or the services it offers to the West Oakland Community before my involvement with them. As part of our volunteering experience, Isolde Honoré, St. Mary’s Operations Supervisor, candidly explained to us the important role that St. Mary’s Center plays in the community.  

This organization is a 501(c)3 nonprofit assisting seniors and preschool families in West Oakland with housing security, food, health, and social connections. Since seniors are one of the fastest-growing populations experiencing homelessness in the Bay Area, St. Mary’s Center offers housing assistance by providing transitional housing, counseling, case management, housing navigation, financial management, and advocacy to prepare them for housing or help them remain housed. In addition, St. Mary’s Center provides full preschool day services to low-income families to help prepare their kids for kindergarten.

During my time volunteering at St. Mary’s, I was tasked with painting the fence surrounding the facility building, which needed some love and care. About half a dozen volunteers from PMI SFBAC's Sustainability Team assisted for roughly two hours. Additional volunteers helped inside the kitchen. Every Sunday, St. Mary’s Center provides Sunday meal services starting at 11 am to Seniors, which is widely attended. 

This volunteering experience was eye-opening: I did not know that Seniors are one of the fastest-growing populations experiencing homelessness not only in the San Francisco Bay Area but in all of California. A May 2024 article published by the California Budget and Policy Center states that during fiscal year 2022-2023, out of 215,000 adults without children contacted by local California homeless service providers, nearly 40% were adults aged 50 and over. Even more striking but not surprising due to historical institutional racist policies, are the racial disparities observed within the population of homeless adults. As the California Budget and Policy Center article states, while Black Californians age 50 and older make up approximately 5.4% of the population in the state, they comprise 26% of homeless individuals in California. This is a tragedy and a crisis that needs prompt intervention from policymakers as well as deep soul introspection on our part. Being an immigrant from Mexico, where I was taught by my family that our elders are to be respected, revered, and taken care of, it makes me sad and disappointed to see how our society often forgets about our elders. We need to remember that, if we are lucky, we will all become an elder one day, and the way we treat our elders will be the way we will be treated as well. 

Going forward, one of my goals is to see how I can continue helping organizations such as St. Mary’s Center by either volunteering, donating, or participating in events to raise awareness of the need for the services provided to elder adults and low-income families.

Note from the Sustainability Team: This was the final Sustainability Event of 2024, and we thank you, our community, for supporting our program through another year of building awareness and problem-solving together. With the generosity of your time, we surpassed our UN Global Compact Pledge goal of 1000 hours this year and pledged 1143 hours. We are lining up next year's events and invite you to join us in January. Keep an eye out for upcoming events on our webpage. We wish you all a profound and joyful holiday season.