Even before the pandemic hit, life was tough for Cristina Niu and her two young sons. They lived with her mother and three other family members in the Sunset District — seven, sometimes eight of them packed into a snug three-bedroom house — and Niu worked six days a week at a taqueria.
“We didn’t really see it as OK to be so crowded,” she said, “But we’re all family.” So they made it work.
But as the pandemic approached, then abruptly shut down San Francisco, things got worse. Niu lost hours and days at work, then eventually lost her job altogether. When the schools shut down, sons Victor, 10, and Angelo, 6, had to study at home, and her mother’s drinking problem made sheltering in place in a crowded home challenging, she said.
“It was kind of hard for the kids to be around that every day,” she said.
“I was thinking so this is going to be it.”
As the pandemic ground on, Niu, 29, started to grow resigned to her crowded life, she said. “I was thinking so this is going to be it.”
Then, in spring, came an unexpected and much-needed burst of good fortune. After spending 10 years on the waiting list for Section 8 housing — since she was pregnant with Victor — she became eligible for subsidized housing.
“I had kind of thought they forgot about me,” Niu said.
And as luck would have it, a family housing complex near the waterfront had an apartment available. Niu was so thrilled she was ready to accept over the phone, sight unseen, but the manager persuaded her to visit first. She found a spacious fourth-floor apartment with two bedrooms and a clean, well-managed complex with its own laundry facilities and a small rooftop patio with a view of Coit Tower and the Bay Bridge.
It was a life-changing opportunity, Niu said.
“The family’s housing stability was endangered if they couldn’t get assistance with the security deposit.”
Unfortunately, because she was unemployed, Niu didn’t have enough money saved up to pay the security deposit or buy furniture — and it can be difficult to find assistance with security deposits.
“The family’s housing stability was endangered if they couldn’t get assistance with the security deposit,” said Niu’s caseworker, Marie Crinnion, at the Saint Anthony Foundation.
That’s when The Chronicle’s Season of Sharing Fund stepped forward and provided a grant for the security deposit and to help the family buy needed furniture — beds, dressers, couches — for their first-ever apartment. The fund works throughout the year to combat homelessness and hunger in the Bay Area’s nine counties. All donations directly help people in need, with administrative costs covered by The Chronicle and the Walter and Evelyn Haas Jr. Fund
“The apartment is Cristina’s first apartment, and she and her family are very grateful for the assistance they received,” Crinnion said.
“We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for them,” Niu said.
The kids have their own appreciation for the apartment. They like the views, visiting the laundry room and patio, pushing the buttons in the elevator and having their own room.
“What I like about it is we’re up on the fourth floor. We have a roof (patio) and a laundry room, and me and my brother share a room,” Victor said, pointing toward their bunk beds.
“When we got here, it was empty.”
“They absolutely love their new home,” Crinnion said. “The area is great and the building is very nice. They love being right by the water, and, in October this year, they enjoyed their own ‘private air show’ with the Blue Angels flying by on their practice rounds.”
Now, it’s home. On a recent night, the boys ate dinner at the kitchen table while Cristina sat in the living room with two guests. Later, they showed off the early evening view from the building’s rooftop patio, looking out at the twinkling lights from the bridge and the glow of Coit Tower.
“They absolutely love their new home,” Crinnion said. “The area is great and the building is very nice. They love being right by the water, and, in October this year, they enjoyed their own ‘private air show’ with the Blue Angels flying by on their practice rounds.”
“We love it,” Niu said. “It’s so peaceful, so different. The kids are in a completely healthier environment. We have our own now.”
Along with the new apartment, life is looking brighter, too. Niu earned her high school equivalency certificate and completed a transitional employment program, Crinnion said. The kids are back in school in person — and Niu has a new part-time job working for Amazon.
And it all started with the new apartment.
“We love it,” Niu said. “It’s so peaceful, so different. The kids are in a completely healthier environment. We have our own now.”
Reach Michael Cabanatuan: mcabanatuan@sfchronicle.com; X: @ctuan
At Season of Sharing Fund, we believe that an unexpected financial crisis should never mean losing your home. Preventing homelessness isn’t just kind—it’s also the most effective way to keep our communities thriving. 100% of your donation keeps Bay Area residents housed, cared for and nourished.
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