WE WORK TO SUPPORT
LAGUNA HONDA HOSPITAL AND REHABILITATION CENTER

Founded in 1866, Laguna Honda is one of the largest, most modern skilled nursing facilities in the United States today. The hospital cares for vulnerable San Franciscans, including the severely disabled. As the hospital has grown, so have the number of residents it serves—and the need for activities that give them a better experience of everyday life.

That’s why we’re here.

WE SUPPORT THE CARE OF:

Nearly 800 San Franciscans from diverse ethnic backgrounds

People with HIV/AIDS

People with limited mobility/no mobility

People with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia

People with traumatic brain injury, Multiple Sclerosis, and stroke

People facing the end of life

1956

CityBridge is the latest evolution in our organization’s mission, to enhance the lives of Laguna Honda Hospital residents beyond the daily routines of medical treatment and hospital care.

We started in 1956 as Laguna Honda Hospital Volunteers, Inc., a group dedicated to helping residents in creative ways. Early projects included getting patients modern wheelchairs, furnishing the visitors’ lounge and dining room, buying a color TV and player piano, sourcing power tools for the craft shop, outfitting a new beauty parlor, and installing a new sound system in the Gerald Simon Theater.

Since then, residents’ needs have changed, and so have we. In time, our volunteer group was renamed Friends of Laguna Honda, as we expanded into new areas of fundraising and support. The “Friends” kept old traditions alive while creating new ones, evolving all the while.

Bing Crosby hosted the Laguna Honda Holiday Show for many years. Following Bing was Eddie Fisher, Frankie Layne, and Tennessee Ernie Ford, who all entertained, creating a highlight of the year for residents and staff. Now in its 6th decade, Caring Bridge Laguna Honda is still creating holiday magic each and every year.

2020

In 2020, we became CityBridge. Our new name expresses the vital connections between the City of San Francisco and the residents of Laguna Honda Hospital themselves.

It’s also a symbol of our mission: to help people receiving care at Laguna Honda by building new “bridges” to the world around them.

CityBridge brings happiness and the simple pleasures of everyday living to some of the Bay Area’s poorest, most elderly and most seriously disabled adults, including patients suffering effects of stroke, traumatic brain injury, severe memory loss, MS, Alzheimer’s, HIV/AIDS, mental illness, and those facing end of life who require palliative\hospice care.

We add humanity to healing through programs that support a pleasant, enriched, home-like feeling at this state-of-the-art medical facility.

Join us as we work to make life better for Laguna Honda residents, and to share the compassion that represents the heart of San Francisco.

“I love the work we do for the residents of Laguna Honda Hospital. And I’m grateful for all the volunteers and donors who make life better for San Franciscans in need.”

Peter A. Johnson, President, CityBridge

LAGUNA HONDA HOSPITAL HISTORY

It all started back in the California Gold Rush (1848-1855). “Gold fever” brought 300,000 people to the Golden State from around the world. Some struck it rich. But many more fell by the wayside.

In time, many would-be goldminers ended up in San Francisco, often severely ill, destitute and needing help. In 1867, an “Almshouse” that would later become Laguna Honda Hospital opened in a four-story wood-frame building on the old San Miguel Rancho, west of Twin Peaks. In 1906, the hospital provided care and emergency housing for victims of the Great San Francisco Earthquake. Still, more room was needed, and a beautiful Spanish Revival structure was erected in 1926.

In 1956, a group of concerned citizens created the Laguna Honda Hospital Volunteers, with the goal of making life better for residents beyond medical care and treatment.  And that tradition has has never stopped. In 2010, when substantial funds were needed to construct new hospital buildings, the Volunteers (renamed Friends of Laguna Honda) helped make it happen.

Working with civic leaders, millions of dollars were raised to expand and modernize the facility, which serves nearly 800 San Franciscans today. With a focus on environmental design, Laguna Honda became the first “green-certified” hospital in the state.

Situated in a peaceful, natural setting, Laguna Honda’s 16 different “neighborhoods” allow residents to live together in communities, while maintaining a degree of independence. Now part of the San Francisco Department of Public Health and still funded by the City of San Francisco, Laguna Honda is one of the nation’s largest, most modern skilled nursing and rehabilitation centers, caring for severely ill, elderly and disabled people, including those facing the end of life. It continues to support the well-being of our community–a living symbol of civic pride in action.

CityBridge is proud to be part of this life-saving resource, which keeps San Francisco strong.

Help us build bridges to make lives better.