Chronicle Season of Sharing Fund

In March, Michael Peterson was a finish carpenter — a skilled artisan with a knack for designing intricate woodwork. In the past, he oversaw as many as six workers executing his plans. Now, in the middle of a work day, he

Clarice Patterson answers her door in a bright red embroidered dress and red leggings. The interior of her small living room has been decorated top to bottom for the holidays, as festively as possible. Along the banister and above the

Napa Valley is not only beautiful; it’s also expensive. That’s no secret. But what’s less known is the difficulty seniors, many of them deeply rooted residents, are having surviving in the valley as rents soar. Larry Hyson, a 71-year-old Calistoga man,

Sandra Quiroz’s new apartment, in the Casa de Vilarrasa affordable senior housing complex in Benicia, is modest: Its walls are bone-white and beige, its shelves are strewn with family photographs, and its windows look out to a sun-dappled courtyard. But compared

Unemployment is down and the economy is strong, but that doesn’t mean hunger has ebbed across the Bay Area. Local food banks have not seen any drop in demand for free groceries over the past few years, an indication that the