RSVP Member Video

RSVP continues a longstanding partnership with the the San Francisco Food Bank, as members of the Apple Corps. Below, RSVP members, talk about why they choose to support the Food Bank.



To find out more about volunteering at the Food Bank, contact RSVP at 415-474-7787.

California Offers First Medals for Service

CaliforniaVolunteers, the first cabinet-led volunteer commission in the United States, announces the inaugural Governor and First Lady's Medals for Service. Nominations are now open for individuals, businesses, and nonprofit leaders whose innovation in the field of volunteerism has a tangible impact on the community, region, and state.

Nominations are due on May 22, 2009, and winners will be announced at the National Conference on Volunteering & Service.

Click here to learn more and make a nomination.

Volunteer Opportunity: Plant Sale!

Volunteers are needed to staff the San Francisco Botanical Garden's 42nd Annual Spring Plant Sale. Opportunities include traffic control, cashiering, bottled water distribution, and serving refreshments. Pre-sale volunteers are needed to help drive (in your truck or wagon) plants to the sale site.

The Annual Spring Plant Sale is the largest plant sale in the Bay Area, and it offers access to 4,000 different plant varieties, many from the Garden's own collection. The Sale is also the Botanical Garden's largest fundraising event of the year.

For information on volunteering at the Sale, please contact the RSVP office at 415-474-7787.

When: April 28 and 29 (pre-sale) and May 1 and 2 (sale)
Where: SF County Fair Building, SF Botanical Garden
Lincoln Avenue and 9th Avenue

Docent Tour of Tilden Region Park

Celebrate 75 years of the East Bay Regional Park District with a tour. RSVP is hosting a docent led tour of Tilden Regional Park Botanical Gardens in Berkeley.

Join us on FRIDAY, May 15, 2009 at 2 PM.

The Gardens contain a beautiful array of California flora. For more information and to make a reservation, call Scott Weinzirl at (510) 452-0868.

Let the docent led tour kick-off your Trails Challenge 2009. Hike five of 20 trails in the East Bay Regional Parks, or 26.2 miles, and receive a commemorative pin.

Click here to read more and register for the challenge.

Garden on "the Rock"

RSVP San Francisco & Alameda Counties, in collaboration with the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, invites men and women 55+ to a free visit and tend to the gardens of Alcatraz on Wednesday, April 22, 2009. These beautifully restored gardens are maintained by staff gardeners and volunteers, and here's where you come in. In addition to enjoying the beautiful view, spend the morning participating in muscle-building activities like pruning, weeding, and reseeding. All tools will be provided. The boat (free) to Alcatraz will leave at approximately 8:30 AM. The return boat will leave at noon, or you may choose to tour the public areas and wait for a latter boat.

Call RSVP 415.474.7787 for details and to reserve a space.

Workshop: Intro to Genealogy

Join RSVP for an Introduction to Genealogy. Jane Knowles Lindsey of the California Genealogical Society will help you get started with researching your family tree. She will also provide materials that will guide you through the resources of the Society's library. Please call RSVP at 415-474-7787 to reserve a place.

Thursday, April 16, 2009
First Unitarian Universalist Church
Fireside Room
1187 Franklin Street

Well-being Survey

We're happier and healthier in the West, according to a recent survey by Gallup. Utah, Hawaii, and Wyoming took the top three slots in American well-being survey. Organized by congressional districts, the highest well-being scores were found in the West, the lowest in the South. There was a correlation between wealth and well-being, but also engagement and well-being. Eric Nielsen, a spokesman for Gallup said, "It's not just about physical health. It's about their ability to contribute at work and be more productive, and it's about feeling engaged in a community and wanting to improve that community."

Click here to learn about the well-being of your community. Then look for the zip code field. (See picture at right for an example.)

Click here to read more about the survey.

Award Season

The Oscars may be over, but the service award season has just begun.

Spirit of Service Awards

The federal Corporation for National and Community Service is committed to recognizing and celebrating outstanding service by their volunteers. The Spirit of Service Awards pay tribute to the most outstanding participants in each of the Corporation’s programs - including Senior Corps (RSVP, Senior Companion, Foster Grandparent), AmeriCorps and Learn and Serve America. Awards are presented to the winners during special ceremonies at the 2009 National Conference on Volunteering and Service, June 22-24, in San Francisco, CA. Nominations are currently being sought, and nominees must exemplify the spirit of national service, demonstrate exceptional service or leadership, and serve as role models for others in their community.

RSVP's partners are encouraged to participate in recognizing the work of RSVP volunteers at their organization by contacting their local RSVP office to nominate a volunteer.

To read more about the 2008 winners, click here.

Minerva Awards

California women have inspiring stories of service to share. Each year, we hear a few at the October Women's Conference (hosted by California's First Lady, Maria Shriver) where Minerva Award winners are recognized. If you are inspired by the service of a colleague, friend, or grandmother, consider recognizing their work with a nomination.

Read about last year's Minerva Award winners here.
Make a recommendation for the next Minerva Awards here.

Purpose Prize

A prize of a different kind, the Purpose Prize comes with a $100,000 award for social innovators, who are 60 and older. Winners are leaders in a larger Encore Career movement that allows experience adults to earn, learn, connect and contribute.

Hurry! The deadline is March 5, 2009!

Winners include people like:

• Gary Maxworthy, a former food distributor who developed a new process for bringing over 38 million pounds of fresh produce to California's food banks.


• Sally Bingham, 67, a homemaker-turned-Episcopal priest, who organized a national religious response to global warming.


• Gordon Johnson, 75, who won $100,000 for his successes in keeping siblings united in foster care instead of further traumatizing them through separation.

To read about winners and fellows, click here.
To nominate or apply now, click here.

Volunteer Opportunity: World Affairs Challenge!

Volunteer with RSVP and the World Affairs Challenge!

World Savvy, a non-profit organization whose mission is to educate and engage youth in community and world affairs, needs volunteers at the World Affairs Challenge, a one-day event featuring presentations and projects by middle- and high-school youth. RSVP of San Francisco & Alameda Counties is looking for adults age 55+ to serve as judges for the various student events. The Challenge can be a life changing event for the students who participate and your help as either a judge, proctor or registration desk volunteer will contribute to the success of this day.

Training at a Financial District location will be provided. The Challenge will be held at the San Francisco State campus on March 14, 2009. Be a part of an exciting occasion for SF’s young people by calling RSVP at 415.474.7787.

Dishing it Out: Photo Exhibit & Film Series

Dishing It Out at the San Francisco Public Library

Exhibition of Candacy Taylor's Photographs and Oral Histories at San Francisco Public Library Highlights Career Waitresses Across the U.S.A.

For many, waitressing is a stepping stone to a brighter future. But in the exhibition, Dishing It Out: Career Waitresses Across the U.S.A., coming soon to the San Francisco Public Library, photographer Candacy Taylor turned her camera and her tape recorder on the women who race to our tables, quarrel with the cooks and bring humor to the American roadside dining experience. The exhibition is on view Feb. 14—April 26, in the Main Library's Jewett Gallery, 100 Larkin St., Lower Level.

Through interviews and photographs, Taylor has documented waitresses across the United States, examining their careers and their significance as workers within their communities. The exhibition focuses on a subculture of waitresses who have been thriving in restaurants for decades—the most veteran of them for 60 years. Despite the traditional view of the overworked, weary waitress, most career waitresses love what they do. Many say that "slinging hash" has provided them with a good life. They own their own homes, drive new cars and send their children to college. Any way you slice it, this is hard work. But waitressing has kept their minds sharp and their spirits young and has given them the opportunity to make meaningful connections with their regular customers.

The exhibition includes 14 oral histories (including five Bay Area career waitresses) and 53 photographs of the women who serve our food. Taylor's fascinating journey presents the subtle nuances and rewards of everyday honest work. The exhibition is organized by SUBJECT MATTERS traveling exhibitions in cooperation with Candacy Taylor.

Related Program:

Meet the Photographer and Career Waitresses

Feb. 22, 1 p.m. Latino/Hispanic Community Meeting Room, Main Library, Lower Level

Photographer Candacy Taylor offers a multimedia presentation and panel discussion with waitresses featured in the exhibition.