On Saturday February 9^th Rebuilding Together San Francisco completed the second phase of its Seismic Safety pilot program.  Through this program our volunteers made the homes of three low-income families safer in the event of an earthquake.  The weekend of the 9th we installed plywood stiffening panels (also known as shear walls), which reduce the ability of a home to rock side to side or front to back.

While installing anchor bolts (designed to hold houses firmly to their foundations), I noticed a couple of volunteers with quizzical looks on their faces.  When I asked what was up and they told me they were wondering how it was that a 91 year old was concerned enough about seismic safety to reach out to Rebuilding Together for help.  I told them it was actually the other way around: Rebuilding Together that reached out to her!  I went on to explain how a coalition, including the City of San Francisco, concerned about a general lack of seismic safety in single family homes throughout the city approached Rebuilding Together for help in finding some qualified, deserving families.  As a result of Rebuilding Together’s 20+ year history of serving low-income homeowners in San Francisco we have an extensive database of past clients who know us and trust us.  Once we decided where in the city we wanted to work, we reached out to people we had helped in the past.  After conducting site visits at the homes of all 23 interested candidates we found that only 5 met the requirements for an all volunteers seismic safety project: the first floor of their home is 1) a garage,  2) unfinished, and 3) uncluttered.

The outpouring of volunteer support for this Seismic Safety pilot program has been overwhelming.  For the past 20 years many of our  volunteers have become accustomed to putting their personal lives on during March and April to help us through our National Rebuilding Day, with the understanding that we’ll leave them alone for the rest of the year.  However, times are changing and with the addition of our Fall Build Day, we’ve begun to offer new opportunities for our volunteers throughout the year.  What’s remarkable is, that instead of burning out, they keep coming back for more!  A dozen of our most seasoned skilled trades volunteers, along with a generous helping of volunteers from our sister affiliates in Oakland and the Peninsula, came out in force to make this program a success.  Behind the scenes Simpson Strong Tie provided a generous donation of seismic safety hardware, and volunteer engineers helped us draft plans unique to each home.  Special thanks to Thor M. for speaking at the educational seismic seminar we put on for our volunteers, to Justin B.http://www.flickr.com/photos/rebuildingtogethersf/8469091392/, who has put in countless days and hours as the Project Lead for all three homes in the pilot, and to our funders who provided the financial backing to make this project possible.

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The Project:

Founded in 1989, Family Service Agency of San Francisco (FSASF) is the oldest nonsectarian, nonprofit, charitable social-services provider in the City and County of San Francisco.  Their mission is to strengthen families by providing caring, effective, and innovative social services, with special emphasis on the needs of low-income families, children, the elderly, and disabled people, thus improving the quality of life for all San Franciscans.

Why We Love Them:

FSASF loves seniors and RTSF loves seniors, so by extension RTSF loves FSASF!  Here’s a partial list of services FSASF provides to San Francisco seniors: Outpatient Mental Health, Full Service Wellness Programs, Peer Recovery, Community Integration, Adult Day Support, Long-Term Care, Foster Grandparent Program, Companion Programs, Community Service Employment.  For a full list, complete with program descriptions, click HERE.

How They Found Us:

FSASF is one of a small group of organizations who have benefited from our Facility Renovation Program multiple times over the last decade.  It helps that they run their services out of half a dozen buildings around the city, so every time we’ve served them it’s like we’re serving someone new!  In 2001 we worked on their Bryant St. office; in 2005 it was their Gough St. facility; and this past year we helped spruce up their Geary Blvd location.  The building at 6221 Geary also houses the Richmond Senior Center, which received a Rebuilding Together make over in 2011 (perhaps it was seeing how well their upstairs neighbors fared that prompted FSASF’s most recent application!).

The Need:

A common refrain we here from the non-profit facilities we serve is, “We want to offer our clients a space that is welcoming, warm, bright and cheerful.  People often come to us at challenging times in their lives and we want to inspire hope, strength and joy.”  FSASF is no different.  Of particular concern to them were their therapy rooms and a handful of their offices, which can often double as therapy rooms when meeting with clients.  The existing rooms, all white, felt cold and clinical.  Secondly, the management at FSASF, understanding that the office environment affects staff too, wanted to create a workspace that was brighter and cleaner, and that felt more professional too; something that staff could be proud of.  Sometimes we at RTSF have to point out to the agencies we serve that improving their personal work space will improve their capacity to work which in turn will allow them to provide superior service to their clients.  The folks at FSASF didn’t take any convincing; we were on the same page since the get go.

The Fall Build Day Team:

A large team of enthusiastic volunteers from the law firm, Arnold & Porter, assisted by a small contingent of volunteers from Green Key Real Estate, and lead by the dynamic duo, veteran Project Leader Leo Socal and rising star Ariel Fortune, transformed the FSASF space at Geary St. is an absolute whirlwind of activity!  The work at FSASF was made possible thanks to a grant from Arnold & Porter; however, the extent and quality of the results reflect their volunteer’s natural inclination to go above and beyond the call of duty.  Responding to the leadership of Volunteer Captain Sean Callagy, employees from Arnold & Porter raised additional funds in order to expand the amount and quality of furniture they could provide to FSASF.  One volunteer in particular who exemplified the Arnold & Porter spirit was Bridget Smith-Eastman.  Chosen by the team leadership as their Project Rockstar, Bridget was described this way, “She worked tirelessly and brought her own small army of helpers. The bottom line is that she was fantastic, and helped motivate everyone around her to get the job done quickly without sacrificing quality.”  Way to go Bridget!  Special thanks are also in order for: Erika Jennings, who lead the Green Key Real Estate volunteers; Paul Hayes, a professional painter who helped us with quality control; Gary Linsky, a carpenter who built and installed some custom wire molding; Cathy Spensley, Senior Division Director for FSASF, and all the other staff who jumped in at the end of the day and helped us finish painting and clean up; Matt Rodriguez, our sales rep at Kelly Moore Paints, for walking the job site and advising us on paint quantity, type and color.

The Work

• Paint, paint, paint!
  • Group Therapy Room
  • Individual Therapy Rooms 1 & 2
  • Staff Offices 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5
  • Hallways 1, 2, 3 & 4
  • Lobby
  • Conference Room
  • Reception Area
  • Install new office furnishings
    • Cherry Wood Conference Table
    • 14 Cherry Wood/Fabric Conference Room Chairs
    • 6 Cherry Wood/Fabric Lobby Chairs
    • 6 Cherry Wood/Fabric Therapy Room Chairs
    • Small Round Cherry Wood Table
    • 15 Rolling Office Chairs w/ Arm Rests

Partners

• Arnold & Porter – Thank you for your sponsorship!
• Green Key Real Estate – Thank you for your volunteers!
• Cycon Office Systems – Thank you for providing us a discount on office furniture!
• Kelly Moore Paints – Thank you for your excellent service!

A big thank you to any volunteers who weren’t already mentioned.  Pulling off this project was a real team effort and we needed every single body that showed up that day, otherwise we wouldn’t have been able to complete our ambitious goals!  For more photos of this project, check out our Flickr page, and don’t forget to “like” us on Facebook!

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