The Way Out — Live. Work. Love.

Off the streets.
Off drugs.
Back to life.

The Way Out is a recovery-focused homelessness initiative of The Salvation Army San Francisco designed to get people off the streets, get people off drugs, and give them back their lives.

Services are delivered through a Recovery System of Care and include detox, shelter, and stabilization; residential drug treatment; recovery housing and independent living; workforce development and life skills; and an alumni support network.

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Participants gathered around a barbecue on the beach at sunset

FY 25/26 OUTCOMES

Success Rate
trending_up
83%
Success rate
Participants
groups
1,488
Number of participants served
Drug-Free Living
bedtime
123,161
Nights of drug-free living

"I came to Harbor Light to put back together the shattered pieces of my life. I'm grateful for this opportunity to start over and heal the broken parts of me - mind, body, and soul. It's helped me save my life in more ways than one. I've reunited with my children, my mother, and my brother, and I've found myself and my voice again through this program. Life isn't perfect, but since coming to Harbor Light, I can smile, laugh, and love myself again."

— Harbor Light Participant
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From the streets to self-sufficiency. Step by step.

  1. 1

    Stabilization

    Harbor Light Detox
    Hope House
    Eleanora Fagan Center

  2. 2

    Treatment

    Harbor Light Residential
    Pinehurst Women's Program

  3. 3

    Recovery Housing

    Joseph McFee Center
    Wells Place
    Culinary Training Academy

  4. 4

    Independent Living

    Railton Place
    James Baldwin Place

  5. 5

    Independence

    Alumni Support Network

The Salvation Army shield

Why The Salvation Army

Our History

For the past 140 years, The Salvation Army San Francisco has served our city’s poor and unhoused. Through The Way Out, we offer a continuum of integrated services to address the needs of individuals struggling with drug addiction and homelessness, connecting every stage of recovery so our participants can reclaim their place in the community, reunite with family, and achieve their dreams. In 2023, we launched California’s first Recovery System of Care, offering a proven path from the streets to independence.

What We Offer
  • Treatment on Demand with real-time access to detox, stabilization, and shelter
  • Two to four years of post-treatment recovery housing paired with life skills and workforce development
  • Workforce development and culinary training with job readiness, placement, and retention services
  • Alumni Support Network because recovery is a journey, not a destination

Your investment doesn't buy a bed.
It buys a life back.

Every gift, of any size, helps someone take the next step from the streets to a life of their own.

Support The Way Out

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The Salvation Army Western Territory | San Francisco

Live. Work. Love.

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