SFGHF

A Message of Gratitude for San Francisco’s Public Hospital

When the San Francisco General Hospital Foundation asked us to create a campaign during the pandemic to encourage the city to show gratitude for the frontline healthcare workers at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital (ZSFG), we were eager to take on the project. Their unwavering dedication to caring for our community during such a challenging time inspired us to help bring this important message of appreciation to life.

We developed It Takes Heart, built around the universal symbol of love and support: the heart. Drawing from the Foundation’s branding and its iconic Hearts in SF program, we created a name, visual identity, and custom heart graphic that abstractly represents two people embracing. The concept carried through to the logotype, with a customized "H" designed to evoke the same sense of connection. This unifying icon appeared in newspaper ads, murals digital media, and more.

San Franciscans were encouraged to display hearts in their windows, write letters of thanks, and share messages on social media with the hashtag #ittakesheartsf. The community responded overwhelmingly, with homemade hearts appearing on windows, doors, sidewalks, and murals across the city. This outpouring of support culminated in a 200-foot-long fence outside the staff entrance at ZSFG, displaying notes of gratitude and photos submitted by the public. The campaign became a powerful reminder of the compassion and unity that define our city.