SERVICE PROJECT: Family House

Join Family House, a grant partner for the Rotary Club of San Francisco, for an opportunity to set up, serve, and clean up dinner for their community. Volunteers will serve approximately 70 people and Family House staff will be on site to provide support.

Event is limited to 10 people. Parking is available on the street. Volunteers are encouraged to wear Rotary-branded attire that can get dirty, as well as layers to be prepared for multiple weather conditions. Dinners will be served outside on the Family House patio.

Founded in 1981, the mission of Family House is to serve as a home away from home for families of children with cancer and other life-threatening illnesses by providing physical comfort and emotional support free from financial concerns. Family House provides free, temporary housing to families whose children are being treated at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital. Families may stay at Family House for as long as their child is receiving treatment at the hospital, whether a few days or more than a year. Family House is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Families of children receiving bone marrow transplants, chemotherapy, and radiation treatments are their most frequent guests, as well as those undergoing fetal surgery, organ transplants, and cardiac care. All families are referred to Family House by UCSF’s pediatric social workers who prescreen patient families by diagnosis (cancer is first priority); distance of residence from San Francisco (must live at least 50 miles away); and access to/ability to afford local accommodations. Of families served at Family House, UCSF Benioff Pediatric Social Workers report that approximately two-thirds qualify as low-income, according to the State of California Medi-Cal standards.