News

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused an unprecedented surge in the need for food assistance in San Francisco and Marin. With unemployment still record high, more people than ever need access to healthy food. The San Francisco-Marin Food Bank is now serving more than 56,000 households each week, nearly double the number helped before the pandemic. With community support, the Food Bank is able to continue to provide access to nutritious food that is essential to keeping our community healthy.

Harnessing the capabilities of two major research institutions, teams from the University of Haifa and the Scripps-Center for Marine Archaeology at UCSD are partnering on underwater excavations in 2020. Teams in Israel excavate and teams in California process the data collected and produce computer models of the site and 3D printers build physical models of objects found (Photo credit: Amir Yurman).

Alameda County Community Food Bank has been at the forefront of local hunger relief efforts for 35 years. Before COVID-19, 1 in 5 County residents was experiencing or at risk of hunger. The need has now doubled, with the hardest impact on working families with children and seniors. Food distribution has increased by 50% in response: they will provide more than 50 million pounds this year through a network of 300 non-profit agency partners, schools, contactless drive-through distributions, and home-delivery.

Russ Roberts, American economist and public intellectual, will assume the role of President of Israel’s Shalem College in March 2021. In a country in which higher education has historically emphasized specialization, Shalem College is pursuing a bold alternative: the cultivation of citizens for lives of influence and service, and not merely careers. Roberts plans to focus on enhancing the classroom experience and recruiting more top-level faculty to join Shalem’s community of scholars and teachers.

Since 1970, Meals on Wheels San Francisco has provided homebound seniors with what they need to live independent and dignified lives—nutritious meals prepared and delivered to their homes, professional social work services including wellness and safety checks, and a friendly visitor. Now in its 50th year, the nonprofit has opened a new industrial kitchen and distribution facility after the previous one reached its meal-making capacity limits at 8,000 meals daily. The new kitchen, located in The Sangiacomo Flynn Building, will accommodate the production of up to 30,000 nutritious meals daily.

The virtual premiere of Nico Muhly’s “Throughline” is Esa-Pekka Salonen’s first presentation as the new music director for the SF Symphony. The production tests the limits of pandemic music-making and serves as a bellwether in the emerging genre of works created for the constraints, and possibilities, of music-making in our moment. (Photo credit: Kristen Loken)

This November marks 25 years since the tragic assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. His friend, biographer, and former Israeli Ambassador to the United States, Itamar Rabinivich, will join in an exclusive conversation with Koret Director Abe Sofaer to discuss Rabin’s life and work on November 17, organized by the San Francisco Jewish Community Center.

Since the pandemic crisis began, Jewish Family and Children’s Services (JFCS)’ focus has been clear: no one should be alone in their time of need. They are caring for the old and the ill, providing nutritious food, offering expert mental telehealth services, guiding parents and children, giving no-interest loans and grants to those struggling. This year, 120,000 people will receive help—and the crisis continues to compound. The JFCS Emergency Fund was established to ensure that people in crisis receive immediate, reliable help.

This year, St. Anthony’s recognizes 70 years of providing essentials to people experiencing homelessness and extreme poverty: food, clothing, medical care, shelter, addiction recovery help, access to technology, job training, counseling, community, and more. Inspired by hope to recognize the dignity in every person, St. Anthony’s continues to serve thousands of San Franciscans daily during the COVID-19 pandemic, and will continue to do so as long as there is a need.

Mid-way through a three-year project with the National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI) funded by Koret, leaders at the Hayward Unified School District identified a gap in the number of students reaching AP math by senior year. Working with their NMSI team, they developed a new a summer program, Geometry for Acceleration, that has put nearly 100 high schoolers on a path to advanced math and college readiness.

In celebration of the de Young museum’s 125th anniversary, and on the occasion of reopening to the public after six months, the museum presents The de Young Open, a juried community art exhibition by artists from all nine Bay Area counties. Representing the breadth and depth of Bay Area creativity, 6,188 artists submitted 11,514 artworks. Working solely from images, a jury of curators and artists selected 877 artworks for display online and in the gallery. Exhibiting artists who choose to offer their work for sale retain 100 percent of the proceeds, the de Young’s way of further supporting the local art community.

GLIDE is a nationally recognized center for social justice, dedicated to fighting systemic injustices, creating pathways out of poverty and crisis, and transforming lives. Through its free meals program, integrated comprehensive services, advocacy initiatives, and inclusive community, GLIDE empowers individuals, families and children to achieve stability and thrive. GLIDE is on the forefront of addressing society’s most pressing issues, including poverty, housing and homelessness, and racial and social justice.