As Affordable Housing Month (it’s May if you didn’t know) comes to a close, as we witness war in other parts of the world, and we absorb the devastating mass-shooting tragedies of the past weeks and prepare for the Memorial Day weekend, we are reminded of the fragility of life, the importance of community and the need to do more. From the street violence that claimed the lives of six people in Sacramento, California on April 3, to the racist terrorism in Buffalo, New York that on May 14th took the lives of ten Black people going about their daily lives, to the May 23rd slaughter of 19 children and two teachers in their classroom in Uvalde, Texas, it seems there is no end to the gun violence that rips apart families and communities and tears away loved ones from this earth in a matter of seconds. It is clear that as a society we need to do more; we need to demand change and create change at many levels.
To that end, we ask that you get involved and take action in whatever way you can: volunteering with organizations that are doing important work; voting for representatives and ballot measures that reflect your values; writing to elected officials to express your opinions; organizing friends, family and neighbors to act together, and donating to causes you care about. We are including here a link to an article in Fortune that has donation links to myriad organizations and platforms that are helping those affected by violence and those taking on systemic racism and other underlying causes of inequity. Please visit this article and donate–if you are able–to any of these causes that speak to you.
At SFHDC, we are trying to do more as well. Below, you can read about some of our recent progress in areas such as affordable housing development and preservation, resident services, economic development, and financial empowerment. In the coming months, we will be completing a strategic framework to guide our continued efforts at empowering those we serve to make changes in their lives and to ensure we are directing our resources to the areas that are most needed and where we can help yield the most impact. We look forward to sharing our progress with you.
As we head into Memorial Day, let us remember and thank all those that have given their lives for us and those that have had their lives taken from us. And let us do more to stop these tragic losses everywhere.
David J. Sobel
Chief Executive Officer
San Francisco Housing Development Corporation
