Community
San Francisco encompasses a patchwork of cultures and people within one compact peninsula. What does it mean to live in this world-class city as a Mennonite Voluntary Service worker? Yes, you'll enjoy stunning views of the Golden Gate Bridge, explore diverse neighborhoods, and experience a place known as a refuge for queer folk and others marginalized by mainstream culture. But you'll also get to know this complex place much more deeply.

The San Francisco MVS unit is housed in the spacious top flat of a Victorian-style house lovingly maintained by the local Mennonite church. MVSers each have their own bedroom and share a common living area, kitchen, bathroom and shower room. The house also shares an organic garden and small patio with the neighbors downstairs. The location offers easy access to public transportation, and is within walking distance of the church, parks, groceries, and many church members' homes.

The vibrant and funky Lower Haight neighborhood where the house is located is a mix of renters and owners, apartment buildings and single-family dwellings, shops and restaurants. As in many large cities, people come and go frequently, don't often know their neighbors, and it's easy to get swept up in the bustle of city life. Forming intentional Christian community takes extra focus and deliberation, as our church and unit have found, and we're looking for MVSers ready to dedicate themselves to living in service, community, and simplicity.

Service
Our MVS program has always been an important way that FMCSF engages with its surroundings. MVS placements in San Francisco are with agencies whose work FMCSF strongly supports, and church members (including former MVSers) are sometimes working at these agencies. MVSers engage with issues of poverty, homelessness, social justice, education, and health in a vibrant urban setting. There are also opportunities to nurture children, work with youth, and advocate for nonviolent change in society. Placements typically include a combination of direct service and administrative support. In recent years, we've placed MVS workers at agencies such as:

• Mission Graduates (after school program)
• Delivering Innovation in Supportive Housing (property management for the recently homeless)
• Raphael House (family shelter)
• The Gubbio Project (day shelter in a church building)
• Global Exchange (human rights advocacy)