GLIDE – San Francisco: serving the people of the Tenderloin and San Francisco since 1963 – GLIDE offers individual and collective transformation through compassionate, sustained, comprehensive care to all in need.

How Chalu Banarsee Overcame Drug Dependency with help from GLIDE

Chalu Banarsee doesn’t tell his story in a straight line. He starts in Guyana — singing in church as a kid — and then you’re in Brooklyn, then on tour, then deep in the streets of San Francisco. Then he circles back. Faith, music, survival, loss, all layered together. But one thing comes through clearly: he’s still here. And there were moments when that wasn’t guaranteed. “I’ve been cut, stabbed, punched, beat, poisoned,” he says. “I’ve died seven times.”

Starting Over: How Low-Income and Unhoused Women at GLIDE Are Rebuilding Their Lives

GLIDE has many programs to help women and families: affordable childcare, free formula and diapers, support groups for parents, assistance for survivors of domestic violence and trafficking, and aid with job training and applications, to name a few.

For this article, we interviewed Denise Moody, a Workforce Navigator in GLIDE’s Women’s Center, to understand on a deeper level the challenges that women in our programs face and overcome. But before we dive into that, some numbers.

Human Trafficking in San Francisco Bay Area: Why Survivor Stories Matter

An arranged relationship brought her to the United States—one built on brief phone calls and scattered text messages. “We were totally two different people,” she explains. “I never actually knew him. We only spoke over the phone. Whatever he told me, that’s only what I knew.”

What followed was not simply a troubled marriage. It was abuse. It was exploitation. “It was not just domestic battery,” Sara says quietly. “It was human trafficking as well.”
Before he could face the consequences in court, her partner fled the country. She was left behind—alone in a new land, traumatized, and fighting to survive.

The Magic of Low Threshold Case Management and Peer Support

“Myravanni Alefosio works on the front lines, providing low threshold case management on the streets around GLIDE. She says, “I want all my clients to know and believe: I’m just like you, I’m not better than you.” People are willing to trust her when they know that she can relate to their struggles. “I used to be homeless,” said Myra. “I’ve dealt with addiction, and my family deals with it. So helping people is a passion for me. I’m a walking testimony that things can get better: seeing is believing.”

Addressing Health Inequity in San Francisco with The Shop

“Last week, GLIDE celebrated a joyful and hopeful milestone for the Tenderloin: the ribbon cutting of The Shop, a groundbreaking new program that pairs free haircuts with access to health services and community support.

The Shop is the first program of its kind in the country to combine barbershop services with health resources and case management. Inspired by the historic role of barbershops in Black communities as places of community and connection, The Shop will transform a familiar cultural space into a doorway to healing. “

Angela Davis in Conversation at GLIDE Culminating Black History Month

On Thursday, February 26th, GLIDE hosted a powerful and timely Black History Month event called, “Legacy and Liberation – A Conversation with Dr. Angela Y Davis.” For decades, Dr. Angela Y. Davis has shaped global movements for Black liberation, prison abolition, and intersectional justice. Among her trusted supporters was GLIDE’s Reverend Cecil Williams, whose leadership positioned GLIDE as a sanctuary for the revolution.