St. John's Hospice

What Is Saint John’s Hospice?

Saint John’s Hospice is a Catholic Social Services shelter for men located in Center City Philadelphia. Established in 1963 by Monsignor Anthony J. O’Neill, Pastor of Saint John the Evangelist Church, and The Little Brothers of The Good Shepherd, Saint Johns was created as an outreach ministry to serve and assist the poor and homeless in the community. Saint John’s continues to provide crucial, life-sustaining services with dignity, respect and compassion to homeless men in Philadelphia.

Saint John’s Hospice is an independent 501c3 agency associated with the charitable work of Catholic Social Services.

Residence for over 250 homeless men each year in the St. John’s Hospice & Good Shepherd programs

Emergency shelter for 27 homeless men

Over 3,000 meals served weekly

160 showers with clean clothing, underwear & shoes every week

Mailroom services for over 1500 men

Case management, medical assistance and counseling for all residents and day services guests

Programs We Offer

Saint John’s continues to provide crucial, life-sustaining services with dignity, respect & compassion to homeless men in Philadelphia.

COFFEE HOUSE

Provides a safe resting and sleeping environment for 27 chronically homeless men who typically avoid shelter living.

RESIDENTIAL

Drug and alcohol-free, 40-bed residence for men who are in transition from homelessness to independent living in the community.

GOOD SHEPHERD

Drug and alcohol-free, 12-bed residence for medically fragile, homeless men who are focusing on transition from homelessness to independent living.

DAY SERVICES

Day services for homeless men and men in need; Saint John’s provides a nutritious and hot noon meal for more than 350 men each weekday.

Saint John’s Hospice in Action

Latest News

Homeless ministry looks to ‘Boot Up Philly,’ inspired by local saint

September 14, 2021 | 7:43 pm

St. John’s Hospice in Philadelphia has launched a new campaign to provide urgently needed footwear for the hundreds of men it serves every day — an effort that would make St. John Neumann proud.

Visiting seminarians meet Philly’s homeless men ‘brother to brother’

July 27, 2021 | 6:41 pm

Five young men from St. Paul Seminary in Pittsburgh recently spent a week living with clients of St. John’s Hospice — and found at the archdiocesan ministry a home among family.

Sitting down for a Philly-style meal with the homeless

June 4, 2021 | 4:29 pm

Italian hoagies, soft pretzels, Tastykakes and water ice were all on the menu June 2 as Archbishop Nelson Perez shared a meal with some 100 clients, staff and supporters at St. John’s Hospice.

In Their Words

Hear the stories from the people who have experienced Saint John’s.

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Get Involved

Donate

Benefactors from all over the area have generously provided for the needs of our homeless men since we opened in 1963.

Volunteer

Saint John’s Hospice hosts over 40,000 volunteer hours each year. We could not survive without this generous outpouring of time and talent.

Cook

The Casseroles are the “Main Course” of a complete, hot meal that we serve to hundreds of God’s poor and homeless who come to us for their daily bread.