Some of Our Favorite Local Nonprofits to Support This Giving Tuesday

Volunteers at The Marine Mammal Center

To balance out the extreme spending on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Giving Tuesday started in 2011 – encouraging the support of nonprofits and organizations which help others. 

We have featured hundreds of amazing and worthy local nonprofits throughout the years. For the first time, we’re giving you a suggested list of worthy causes to support either monetarily or with your time this holiday season. We could have made this list a hundred miles long but tried to pair it down to just a few of our favorites:

Nonprofits Supporting Artists:

Art Span:
If you’ve gone to any SF Open Studios event, chances are it was organized by ArtSpan. ArtSpan supports artists through workshops, events and more. In their own words: “ArtSpan, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, is committed to cultivating a vibrant, accessible, and world-class art community in San Francisco and to promoting the city’s unique creative energy locally and globally”
artspan.org

ArtSpan – supporting local artists

Arthouse
Arthouse is a nonprofit co-op housing and venues for artists, writers, and musicians in San Francisco. “We would like to partner with investors to lease empty mixed use buildings, with a contract to buy them, using profits from venues, grants, donations, and rents to purchase them, at the social impact investment rate of return.”
arthousesf.org

The Crucible
Oakland’s legendary art school gives back to their community in numerous ways. They work with the local community to empower youth through hands-on workshops, and programs which spark creativity and personal growth. They also help artists in need via relief efforts which include groceries, and monetary gifts from The Crucible’s Community Relief Fund.
www.thecrucible.org

Welding Classes at The Crucible

Organizations that Give Back to The Needy:

Coalition on Homelessness
Organized in 1987, Coalition on Homelessness has helped thousands of people by helping to implement solutions to public policy and service solutions which will help create long term solutions to poverty within San Francisco.
cohsf.org

Glide Foundation
For decades, Glide has been providing housing, meals, healthcare, and many other services to those in need.
glide.org

Punks With Lunch:
Punks With Lunch compassionately supports those in need by helping to provide basic living necessities. Volunteers engage directly with individuals to empower and provide them with important knowledge so they can make informed decisions which impact their lives.
punkswithlunch.org

SF LGBT Center:
SF LGBT Center’s mission: “To connect our diverse community to opportunities, resources and each other to achieve our vision of a stronger, healthier, and more equitable world for LGBT people and our allies.”
sfcenter.org

Oakland Leaf:
Founded in 2001 by a collective of East Oakland educators who create out-of-school programs, youth development for at risk youth. They support seven high-need East Oakland elementary and middle schools, paid internship programs for high school students, and a summer camp.
oaklandleaf.org

Nonprofits For Animal Lovers:

Rocket Dog Rescue:
Rocket Dog’s mission is clear, “Rocket Dog Rescue is a volunteer-based organization serving the greater Bay Area, dedicated to saving homeless and abandoned dogs from over crowded animal shelters. We also help dogs from other areas that have compelling situations where they are in danger of abuse, neglect or euthanasia.”
rocketdogrescue.org

Supporting Rocket Dog Rescue helps pups in need.

Napa Bunny Rescue:
Since 2019, Napa Bunny Rescue has adopted out and saved 116 rabbits. They help find homes for abandoned and feral rabbits. Napa Bunnies has a foster-based program and uses donations on veterinary bills and supporting foster families across the Bay Area.
napabunnies.org

SFSPCA:
In their own words, “As the largest animal shelter in the SF Bay Area and the first cage-less animal shelter established in the U.S., we are transforming the way pet guardians and their beloved furry family members access lifesaving resources.”
sfspca.org

Marine Mammal Center
We went and explored this amazing organization just recently. A care center that houses, cures, and rehabilitates the sea otters, seals, and sea lions (among many other species) that are in trouble, hurt or sick, from up and down our California coastline.
marinemammalcenter.org

Photo by Elena Graham © The Marine Mammal Center.

We also love:

Planned Parenthood:
A healthcare resource which provides important reproductive health care, sex education, and vital information to patients worldwide.
weareplannedparenthood.org

48Hills:
Launched by editors of SF’s beloved SF Bay Guardian, 48 hills is a nonprofit independent news and culture website.
48hills.com

Not a nonprofit but should be mentioned, especially on Giving Tuesday…
Support Broke-Ass Stuart:
We got real with you a couple of weeks ago about what it takes to run a small independent news source like Broke-Ass Stuart. We hope you’ll consider joining our Patreon so that we can keep bringing you local news without any paywall.
patreon.com/brokeassstuart

Don’t have extra money to donate? Volunteer Your Time:
You don’t need to pay money to donate to these worthy spaces. Volunteering your time is also worth its weight in gold. If you’re unable to send money to any of these spaces, consider donating time.