Friends of the SFPL
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  • Volunteer
  • About Us
    • 60+ Years of Friends
    • Board
    • Staff
    • Our Supporters
    • Financials
    • Blog >
      • History Series
    • Contact Us >
      • Employment
    • Sign-Up for Newsletter
  • Support Us
    • Donate
    • Leadership Circle
    • Innovation Circle
    • Leave a Legacy Gift
    • The Pacifics
    • Gift of appreciated stock
    • Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD)
    • Other ways to give
    • Library Preservation Fund
  • What We Fund
  • Buy & Donate Books
    • Bookstore
    • Donate Books
    • This Is Ear Hustle
  • Laureates 2023
  • Events
    • Book Sales
  • Residencies
    • Brown Handler Writer's Residency ​
    • James C. Hormel LGBTQIA Fellowship
  • Volunteer
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​Powering the legacy and future of our award-winning public library
Members of the Leadership Circle anchor the partnership between Friends, the community, and the San Francisco Public Library. They believe in the value of the library as a democratic institution of free access to resources for everyone. They invest in the public/private partnership that has worked for 60 years to fortify the resilient library we have today.

​Leadership Circle donor commitments between $5,000 and $49,999 make up 33% of donations given to Friends annually. These members inspire thousands of donors to participate at all levels.

"...inspire thousands of donors to participate at all levels."

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​“I give to Friends of the SFPL because we need our libraries now more than ever - they not only lift us up with stories, they are community anchors that bring us together and local economic engines that enable people to apply to college, find jobs, secure government benefits, and gain the skills they need to move forward. The wide-ranging, positive impact our neighborhood libraries have on all of us cannot be understated.”
                                                                                                                                                      – Alissa Lee


A Legacy of Library Excellence

There are many ways to join the Leadership Circle. We welcome a personal discussion to talk about your interests. Members make their gifts in several ways, including Donor Advised Funds (DAFs), direct cash, stock gifts, Qualified Charitable Contributions (QCDs), and online donations through our web portal. We welcome you to contact Marie Ciepiela, Executive Director, at 415.477.5220 or email Marie.Ciepiela@friendssfpl.org.
Donate Online
Appreciated Stock
QCD
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​“Our children began attending “Baby Rhyme Time” at the Library when they were just a few months old. Surrounded by books, music, and the diverse families that comprise our neighborhood, our son and daughter began their lives with a sense of joy around learning. But libraries are about so much more than our own family. Libraries are democracy, equity, and inclusion; they help to bridge the digital divide; and they provide shared public space that helps to anchor our community. As investors in and advocates for the library, Friends is critical to making our library system one of the best in the world.”
                                                                                                                                                           - 
Sarah Ives ​


​Members of the Leadership Circle
$25,000 - $49,999
​​William and Ruth Isenberg
Daniel Handler and Lisa Brown
California State Library
Sarah Jones and  Jason Smith
Sheri Sobrato and Eric Brisson
Cota Capital Management
The Fisher Family
$10,000 - $24,999
Wendy Nervi
Anne R. Blackman
Albert Wald
Helen E. Land
Nion McEvoy and Leslie Berriman
Sophie Taggart
Dodge & Cox
Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation
Paul S. Nadler Charitable Trust
Matt Rubens and Devon Watts
Judy Miner
Mark and Clare Schmehl
Nancy Wakeman
William G. Gilmore Foundation
 $5,000 - $9,999
Frey Family Fund
Kuen Lee
Lisa and Douglas Goldman Fund
John Baldwin
Jared Brubaker and Leslie Harlson
Roberts Family Charitable Fund
Warren and Karen Bird
Norman Goldfarb
Ross Gerber
Bland Family Foundation
Matthew and Margot Kenaston
Michael Linn and Cheryl Frank
​Margaret C. Hauben
Chronicle Books, Inc.
Carl Kaufman and Martha Angove
Diane Gibson and Lawrence Bazel
Mr. Alexander Maisin
Susan Goldstein and Andrew Kivel
Carrie Schwab-Pomerantz and Gary Pomerantz
Ms. Fuller and Mr. Bivins
Eucalyptus Associates
Swig Foundation
Patricia Kelso
Arthur Rock and Toni Rembe Rock
Based on gifts made between January and December 2022.

Check out our $10 Million Strategic Campaign for the Library 2019-2023
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​$ 10 Million Strategic Campaign for the Library 2019-2023
 
Friends’ Board of Directors and the Library leadership gathered in 2018 to develop a strategic plan articulating four compelling needs for the SFPL, two long-term and two near-term.


  • The foremost long-term need is significant growth in Friends’ direct annual support for Library programs and services to double our annual gift of direct support to $2.5 million by 2023. The second is to build Friends’ assets, and by 2023, establish an endowment to cover all operating costs, maximizing our direct contribution to the Library and ensuring our sustainability as a vital community institution.
 
  • The first near-term need is ensuring the renewal of the Library Preservation Fund through community education and advocacy with an initiative placed on the ballot as early as November 2020 (latest, November 2022). The second is funding furniture, fixtures and equipment (FF&E) for branch renovations in the Mission, Oceanview, and Chinatown.
 
The Strategic Campaign for the Library combines a strategic infusion of multi-year, high net worth philanthropic investments with a dramatic growth in grassroots membership tied to championing the Library Preservation Fund and the public/private partnership that fuels our award-winning Library. The campaign goal is to raise $10 million over five years with $4 million from lead donors making multi-year investments over the life of the plan, and $6 million from all other sectors, including growth in grassroots membership of 10,000 households.
 
Library Circle
Membership in the Library Circle is limited to those initiating gifts ranging from $250,000 to $1 million committed over the five years of the strategic plan. Invitations are extended to select individuals who have a history of Library advocacy and support and all former San Francisco City Librarians. Library Circle membership carries honorary status with the Board of Directors. Gifts at this level set the inspiring example for the Strategic Campaign and make up $4 million of the total goal.
 
Leadership Circle
Members in the Leadership Circle are invited to make gifts from $5,000 to $50,000 range, either as multi-year commitments over the life of the strategic plan or regular annual gifts of $5,000 or more.
 
Friends Circle
Members in the Friends Circle include everyone who joins at any level through our learn, join, preserve initiative to educate residents about the Library Preservation Fund, and grow our membership by 10,000 resident households taking a stand for their award-winning Library. 

​ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES &
Donation center Location
1630 17TH STREET
SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107

​Administrative Phone: (415) 626-7500
BOOK DONATION CENTER: (415) 522-8606 

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​Tax ID Number:
 94-6085452 
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