Episcopal Impact Fund awards $60,000 in 2026 Poverty Relief Grants to 28 Bay Area congregations and ministries
Where the church meets the street, Episcopal Impact Fund is there.
Episcopal Impact Fund has a rich history of supporting communities in need. For almost 50 years, the Impact Fund has been committed to funding programs that alleviate poverty for Bay Area residents. In the current climate, low-income households are in economic distress and have less money to spend on necessities such as food, healthcare, and education. Our Poverty Relief Congregational Grants provide a safety net to families seeking stability and a path to self-sufficiency.
This year, working with long-term partners across the Diocese, our Poverty Relief Congregational Grants provide $60,000 to support 28 congregations and ministries meeting urgent needs throughout the Bay Area. Grantee churches are running food pantries and meal programs that put fresh groceries and hot meals on the table for thousands of families each month; sustaining safety net services like laundry, showers, school backpacks, and household essentials; supporting early childhood and after-school education for at-risk students; and accompanying our most vulnerable neighbors — migrants building new lives, incarcerated individuals on Death Row, and isolated seniors — with dignity and compassion. Several grants also strengthen the infrastructure behind this work, from a food pantry’s network upgrade to a new bilingual senior wellness program.
These congregations are at work throughout the Bay Area, serving local communities that are especially at risk — neighbors who are food insecure or experiencing homelessness, people exiting the justice system, migrant families, incarcerated individuals, isolated seniors, and children and youth whose access to basic resources helps break the cycle of intergenerational poverty.
Their work is a lifeline for our community, and we are honored to help make it possible.
“Our congregational poverty relief funding is a partnership with churches doing hands-on work and engaging directly with people experiencing poverty in their own communities. We give so they can continue to lean into relationship — so they can live church in the streets.” –Christina Alvarez, Episcopal Impact Fund, Executive Director
Our 2026 Poverty Relief Congregational Grant recipients are:
- All Saints Episcopal Church, San Leandro – Food Pantry
- All Souls Episcopal Parish, Berkeley – Open Door Dinner
- Christ Church Portola Valley & Woodside – Homeless Shelter Meal Program
- Christ Episcopal Church, Alameda – Shelter and Services for the Unhoused
- Church of the Good Shepherd, Berkeley – Food Pantry
- Episcopal Church of the Incarnation, San Francisco – Senior Wellness Program
- Episcopal Church of the Resurrection, Pleasant Hill – Inter-Faith Food Pantry
- Grace Cathedral, San Francisco – Community Preschool
- Grace Episcopal Church, Martinez – Laundry and Hygiene Program
- Holy Child & St. Martin Episcopal Church, Daly City – Food Pantry
- Holy Family Episcopal Church, Half Moon Bay – School Backpack Program
- Holy Spirit Episcopal Church, Concord – Safety Net and Education Program
- Alban’s Episcopal Church, Albany – Food and Hygiene Program
- Anna’s Episcopal Church, Brentwood – Mission Possible Program
- Anne’s Episcopal Church, Fremont – Shelter Meals Program
- Francis Episcopal Church, San Francisco – Community Food Pantry
- Francis of Assisi Episcopal Church, Novato – Food and Hygiene Program
- James’ Episcopal Church, Fremont – Bag Ministry
- John the Evangelist Episcopal Church, San Francisco – The Gubbio Project Hosting
- John’s Episcopal Church, Oakland – Food Pantry
- Luke’s Episcopal Church, San Francisco – Inter-Faith Food Pantry
- Mark’s Episcopal Church, Berkeley – Hot Meals for the Hungry Program
- Mark’s Episcopal Church, Palo Alto – Corrections Institutions Chaplaincy
- Mary the Virgin, San Francisco – Accompaniment Program
- Paul’s Episcopal Church, Oakland – Food Pantry
- Paul’s Episcopal Church, San Rafael – Death Row Ministry
- Peter’s Episcopal Church, Redwood City – Hygiene Kit Program
- Stephen’s Episcopal Church, Belvedere – Meal Bag Ministry
To learn more about the life-changing works of these organizations and their programs, read the full release here.
About Episcopal Impact Fund
Episcopal Impact Fund is creating pathways out of poverty for children, families, and youth in the San Francisco Bay Area. We channel our community’s time, talent, and treasure in a shared mission to ensure that our most vulnerable neighbors have access to the dignified housing they need to thrive. Through trust-based philanthropy – grantmaking, advocacy, volunteer initiatives, and faith-based affordable housing development – we’re working toward a Bay Area where every person has the resources and opportunities to realize their full potential. Since our founding in 1977, the Impact Fund has helped elevate the lives of millions of our neighbors experiencing poverty. To learn more, visit www.episcopalimpact.org.