For nearly 40 years, DrawBridge has been doing one thing consistently — showing up.

Every week, at shelters, transitional housing sites, and community centers across seven Bay Area counties, our trained facilitators and community artists arrive with art supplies, set up a table, and create a space where children can simply make something. No enrollment. No referral. No prior experience required. Children participate by being present in the place where they already live. The facilitators and community artists come to them.

What happens in that room is not a lesson. There are no correct outcomes, no projects to complete, no grades. A child chooses what to make, what colors to use, what to do with the space in front of them. Our trained facilitators return week after week with engaging creative projects, building trusted relationships through consistency and care. Our Community Artist Program brings in artists and mentors who often share the cultural backgrounds, languages, and lived experiences of the children we serve, exposing them to diverse art forms and new possibilities for creative expression.

That consistency is the program. For children experiencing housing instability, control over their daily lives is often limited. Having one hour every week where they get to decide what to make, explore, and express can make a lasting difference.

"DrawBridge was a physically safe place where we could just be kids and make a mess," said Sadaf, who grew up in the Tenderloin and participated in DrawBridge as a child. "My mind was at peace. During times of stress or frustration, I continue to turn towards art as an outlet. That safe space continues to be a part of me today."

Right now, DrawBridge operates at 14 active sites serving approximately 500 children and youth each year across seven Bay Area counties. Fifteen more shelter communities are on a waitlist.

At this time, we are raising $50,000 to sustain our current programs and taking big steps toward clearing that list.

$125 gives one child a month in that room. $1,500 supports one child for a full year. $25,000 activates a brand new shelter site.

Every dollar gets us closer to showing up for every child who's still waiting for their first Tuesday.

Every Week. Every Child. Every Site.

Help us reach 500+ kids — and the 15 sites still waiting

Team Members