I have been a Volunteer 10 years of now. The CEO Dawn ,Ron Delvin& the entire staff. Are truly by…read morefar amazing the loyality, kindness the programs that they teach kids. From 14-24-are beyond awesome. It has change my life I grew up with both parents. Nice home&:cabin in Bear Valley/ My dad wk for Delta Airlines 36 years. Travel 1st- class. These kids who come into SYS have had some rough hard times. Whenever they are making music recording . Moe teaching High School to cook/ clean. To prepare them for jobs All kids that I've seen they love it. I admire the entire staff. Being a Volunteer it's work. I love it every time. I go in clean it all makes sense when you see what this place is truly all about. I want to continue to donate$$to see place continue to help kids. To become better to get hired. I have met people in their late 30's. To come in say Hi they tell me they were@ SYS. When they were 12 ! I love hearing wonderful uplifting stories. Hats off to CEO/ Staff

This place is incredible the way they deal w/ kids and families. It seems to be full of love and…read morethey have the knowledge to work w/ the system and get kids the help needed - in a compassionate way. I had the opportunity to attend their event last year and I am just so impressed with the staff of Sunset Youth Services. Apparently they deal with families all over the city, not just in the Sunset as one might suspect. Bravo to the whole group in having the courage to tackle these real life issues like drugs, violence, abuse, and prostitution that many of these children deal with everyday. Can you imagine the pressure of that? We all need a force such as this staff to exert intellect wrapped in love to effect the hearts of our kids and the capacity to advance them into mature people that give back to society. I know there are several people that have gone there - and gone on to live successful lives supporting there own familys, and giving back to the community. It's awesome.

Dropped my son off for Camp Mendocino this morning. Had a wonderful application process with their…read moreamazing camp team. Last year I had Natalie who supported me with the process and again this year, I had the pleasure of getting support from Amira. Because of Amira, my son was able to go to camp this year. She was approachable, professional, and met me where I was. We are from the Tenderloin clubhouse and being treated with dignity is an important attribute. Appreciate you. I wanted to also point out the amazing supervisor on sight who under pressure.was able to keep all the parents grounded and calm. Lettie was able to keep the lines moving and had everyone organized and happy. What a successful drop off. Thank you for making the parents feel secure and trusting that you will take great care of our children.

This club has a great swim lesson program. They are located at the EI Boys and Girls Club in…read moreHaight. They have a sliding scale based on household income starting at $100 for 8 30minute lessons. Even at full price it costs less than anything you will find around. They have a very diverse program with very well trained staff and have 4-5 kids per class. They also have a SWIM TEAM! It consists of 3 groups (beginner, intermediate, & advanced) which practices daily. I think anyone who wants to dive into the world of swimming should come check out this club!

You know you want to volunteer. You know when someone asks you what you did this weekend, it would…read morebe cool to say, "I helped pack meals for the homebound for Project Open Hand" or "I helped with some cleanup at Literacy for Environmental Justice". But you don't feel like you have enough time. Hands On Bay Area is such a cool vehicle for volunteering without commitment. Sign up, show up, do your 2-3 hours and go home. And if you find a project you really love, you can volunteer every month (most are recurring) or contact the agency to become a regular volunteer. I do wish they had more things I could do with my very young girls. I want to raise them to enjoy volunteering, and most of these projects only welcome older children. But we did do a "With Seniors" visit and a good time was had by all. Our new elderly friend Dorothy really connected with my 5 year old daughter. Meet great people, give back to the community, have fun doing it.

**************** REVIEW 427 ******************…read more I've been with Hands on Bay Area when it was Community Impact in Mountain View in 1999. Hands on Bay Area offer volunteers many options of the volunteer opportunities that match their interests, such as: - Adult education and literacy, - Animal support, - Children & youth (- Enrichment and recreations, tutoring, etc) - Community enrichment, - Environment, - Heath & wellness, - Homelessness and Hungers, You can choose from location different counties such as: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marine, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Cruz, & Santa Clara Counties! HOBA has a great website, that user friendly, you can RSVP your project that fits you & they email you the info and also reminder for you! You don't need any skill to volunteer! Hands on Bay Area website makes it really easy to do it & if you are new, they will make you go to an orientation, but it's easy & you get to meet many wonderful hearts just like yourself! So lend a hand, make a different in your community!

Home Repair in the Bayview area of San Francisco. No construction experience necessary, repair is…read morean all day shift, and you can't choose what kind of work you are doing. We had a fun and exhausting day and had a great crew leader and coordinator that worked with the vibe of our group to make it the most optimal. Our group's task was primering the outside of a home and helping clean the inside. Painting the outside was definitely the craziest part, leaning huge 2 story ladders with the bottom being on an angled sidewalk and made true by jamming scrapwood underneath one leg and the top part leaning on a house that was falling apart. Our crew leader did it with such comfort and confidence it made us feel more confidant about the safety. It was cool to see how a primer layer improved the look of the home and made it feel refreshed. I also enjoyed helping clean the inside, not sharing pictures of those for privacy but it was one of the most interesting houses with amazing history I've ever been inside of. Thanks for the fun experience, it made the end of day beers that much better!

I've been on 3 different projects, 2 in Menlo Park (read East Palo Alto) and 1 in Daly City, the…read morecondo development. It's been a lot of fun. I like that they do the safety talk at the start of each day. Also they have safety equipment such as helmets, ear plugs, knee pads. The knee pads are "well used" but are good enough to do the trick. Really nice folks at every site. I'm one to ask a lot of questions, and everyone has been really patient in answering. It's a good volunteer environment. The work itself can be hard work! But it's satisfying, and I was able to take the breaks I needed. It's also fascinating to learn about home construction. I've put down a subfloor, removed old laminate and hardwood flooring, and put down pergo. Plus done some random demolition. I've also seen inside of lots of walls, and have a better sense of how homes were constructed in the 50's. yikes. BTW I learned something important about Habitat. They don't give away houses--they sell them to families at a % of family income over time (30 years?). Then if the family wants to sell, they sell BACK to Habitat, and then they can use their built-up equity to buy something else. The neat thing is that the Habitat system is focused on affordability and smooths out bubbles by basing on salary. (US gov't, are you listening?) Also families that buy from Habitat have to do 500 hours of volunteer work. It's good stuff.

A positive venue of social services that has helped many…read more residents of the tenderloin community for many years Also we (advocates of the ADA/elderly )have observed an increase of accomodation and compassion that run neck and neck with a tasty and diverse breakfast that's served daily.And last but not least, we mustn't forget all the hard work that's put in by Walt and his laundrycrew. Most appeciatively; Michael Bess and compassion.

Best place to donate men's clothing and know they're going where needed most. The donation process…read moreis a little complicated in that the street is actually closed to traffic. Someone at the head of the block will move the barrier and let you pass. Then you drive up to the building and if necessary someone will roll out a giant cart (like the kind you see laundry in a a big hotel) to help unload your car. Then you can feel like you did a good thing!

Terrible. I left 3 messages and no response. My GGP group left us high and dry. We usually get…read moregroceries every Saturday mornings at Oak & Clayton and they're very nice. But the last month they haven't been there so I called and called the main number to see if they can tell me where they went/if they just plain quit distributing at that location. Shit service- no respect. I can see why they're negative reviews- black listed, staff keeps food for themselves sounds like selfish assos staff there to me.

This is a wonderful company that does great work and has a great mission, but the dispatch people…read moreare deplorable, unprofessional, and completely unreasonable. My network of nonprofits/community-based-organizations was blacklisted from receiving donations, because of a minor issue with the building maintenance staff. This came after 2+ years of having a very cordial and open working relationship with them, and I was always listed as an emergency backup if staff wasn't on-site. The founder (Mary Risley) is no longer acting in the best interest of the company, and should step down. The dispatch manager (Tessa) is two-faced and unprofessional. Do not do business with this company.

A small-but-mighty organization that has stayed true to its mission for over 25 years!…read more In a nutshell, great people who do great things for the community and city :)

Help the homeless WHILE devouring delectable Truffles?!?!? Yep, you read right!…read more Last night, February 9th was the second time that I've volunteered At The Crossroads (ATC) through One Brick, a non-profit organization that makes volunteering easy with NO long-term commitment. Here's the link to my One Brick review: http://www.yelp.com/biz/one-brick-san-francisco#hrid:CnCnP7lsYhtMlxBnI6mPJw WHAT'S ATC? ATC is a wonderful organization that reaches out to homeless youths in the Mission and Tenderloin area through night time street outreach, one-on-one counseling services and collaboration with other social service agencies. The caring and compassionate staff at ATC refers to homeless youths as their "clients" which not only takes away the stigma some people may associate with the homeless but shows how much respect they have for them as a human being. During the street outreach, the counselors distribute food, healthcare products, and clothes which slowly helps to build a relationship with their clients. Through counseling, the counselors help their clients determine their short-term and long-term goals (i.e. finding housing, gaining employment, pursuing their passion, etc) and work with various social service agencies to help them achieve their goals. HOW DOES VOLUNTEERING HELP ATC? By helping to sort, organize, clean, and/or pack supplies to be distributed, it allows the counselors more face time with their clients. For example, if 25 volunteers help for 2 hours, counselors will have 50 ADDITIONAL HOURS to spend with their clients (instead of being bogged down with sorting/organizing/cleaning/packing the supplies themselves). HOW DO YOU VOLUNTEER FOR ATC? I signed-up through One Brick which takes less than 2 minutes. You register for an account, go on the calendar and RSVP for an event. The ATC event is called, "Supply Prep for the Homeless" and normally occurs one Wednesday a month from 6-8 PM. The event is limited to about 25 people and spaces get filled quickly, so make sure to sign-up at least one week prior. WHAT'S INVOLVED WHEN VOLUNTEERING FOR ATC? It's very simple, show up with a smile and a helping hand! :) When you enter ATC, you're greeted by a One Brick Event Manager who signs you in and gives you a nametag. Rob Gitin, Director & Co-Founder of ATC will then explain the various workstations and what's involved. Then, you can decide which activity you would like to partake in for the evening. ALL of the work is easy and not labor intensive. There are normally 4-5 stations: 1. CANDY PACKING (My Fav): Pack chocolates and other sweets donated from the SF Food Bank into small individual zip lock bags. 2. TOILETRIES PACKING: Pack soap, deodorant, toothbrush, toothpaste, sanitary pads etc. 3. TIMBUK2 BAG CLEANING: ATC wants to ensure that all of their clients receive clean like-new items, so volunteers wash minor stains and grime off, trim extra thread/fabric and remove any debris stuck in the velcro. 4. SORT/FOLD/ORGANIZE CLOTHING: Sort through and fold t-shirts, outerwear and jeans, and organize by gender and sizes. All of the clothing is new and donated by Old Navy and Levis. 5. GREETING CARD MAKING: Utilize your artistic and decorative skills by making Birthday Cards and ones for special occassions. WHY YOU SHOULD VOLUNTEER FOR ATC? The two-hour volunteering events passes by very quickly especially when there's music playing in the background, other volunteers to chitchat with and yummy snacks (fresh cut Asian pears and TRUFFLES) being passed out by Rob. After every event, One Brick organizes a dinner nearby (e.g. Pancho Villa) where all volunteers are welcome and encouraged to join. This gives you a wonderful opportunity to make new friends and network outside of your social inner circle. You never know who you may meet right? Most importantly, just taking two hours out of your busy schedule will help to improve the quality of life for these youths and empower them to transform their lives! One of my 2011 resolutions was to volunteer at least 2 times a month and so far I've been successful thanks to ATC and One Brick... Thank you both, for not only make volunteering easy and fun but also giving me a NEW APPRECIATION FOR LIFE and THE GIFT OF HUMILITY!

This is the Burning Man HQ office, and I've been here a couple of times for volunteer…read moretraining/events. What a lovely place! Four stars because it's not, say, Facebook, with gigantic snack walls, a sweets shop, and free amenities, but it does have a beautiful charm to it. There's a lot of Burner art, both hung on the walls and placed as sculptures. It's generally a modern office with nice chairs, tall windows, and some tall ceiling areas that give it an airy feeling. The kitchen area is larger than your average corporate kitchenette, with a toaster, toaster oven, blender, and microwave (with googly eyes on it!). Also plenty of table space/prep space. The location, being in the Mission/Potrero Hill area, has moderately awful parking. Best bet is public transit. There's some nice food nearby, including Tartine Manufactury and some more casual/cheaper eateries, cafes, etc. Bathrooms: Clean and functional. Lovely Burner art.

Best year yet. They finally got it right.... although Paris Hilton wasn't there this year and I'm…read morestill looking for daft punk. Weird this is the only year I didn't find them. They should have better vaginal dryness stations. The playa really can do terrible things to your pH. The light shoe was great.