communications – Page 15 – GLIDE – San Francisco: serving the people of the Tenderloin and San Francisco since 1963

A community of families with children, students, and seniors who cannot afford the Bay Area’s high rents are living in RVs near Lake Merced. This community is facing the threat of 4-hour parking restrictions, which will require them to leave work or school to regularly move their vehicles or face ticketing and towing. Implementing the new parking restrictions without anywhere else to go will push families deeper into instability and homelessness.

…Many of the families living in their RVs are struggling to make ends meet as they work low-paying jobs. There are also students and seniors living in RVs who cannot afford rent anywhere else……

GLIDE’s Center for Social Justice is one of the founding members of the End Poverty Tows Coalition, which advocates with and for people living in their vehicles and low-income people who cannot afford to lose their vehicles to tows. The End Poverty Tows Coalition recently came together to stand alongside these families and urge the City to reject these 4-hour parking restrictions that would be devastating for these already marginalized families. We have been pushing for the City to fulfill its promises to these families to open up a safe parking site for their RVs and help them access affordable housing.

As part of this organizing effort, GLIDE arranged a press conference on October 24th,2023 alongside the families who live in their RVs, as well as other community organizations. RV residents and supporting community members and organizations shared powerfully about the need for a safe parking site and permanent affordable housing.

ABC7 News coverage of families living in RVs along San Francisco’s Winston Drive

Unfortunately, the SFMTA Board of Directors did approve the 4-hour parking restrictions in September, and they are scheduled to take effect on December 19. GLIDE has been organizing with the families to elevate their stories and raise public awareness.

So many of the families living in their RVs are struggling to make ends meet as they work low-paying jobs. There are also students and seniors living in RVs who cannot afford rent anywhere else.

At GLIDE, we firmly believe in our collective responsibility and capacity to open pathways to stability, rather than place barriers and increased hardships for families and students working to make a life in San Francisco. If you would like to support our efforts, you can quickly send an email to City leadership.

Reverend Cecil Williams has etched his name into history as a ceaseless champion for the poor and marginalized.

We believe Rev. Cecil Williams deserves the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Cecil has been the unwavering leader of GLIDE, and its thanks to his leadership that our organization is a nationally recognized champion of social justice, supporting individuals in poverty and crisis, and bringing about positive change.

Will you please send a letter to President Biden requesting him to award the medal to Cecil?

Cecil’s message of unconditional love and radical inclusivity have never been more relevant. He created a haven for the homeless, for the oppressed, and for those cast out of other communities when no one else was. The injustices he fought require constant vigilance and collective action, and we can take inspiration from his extraordinary life and acts of service.

After arriving at GLIDE in 1963, he built the dwindling congregation of a few dozen people to more than 10,000 parishioners. He worked tirelessly for six decades until stepping away earlier this year at the age of 93.

During his tenure, he shared the pulpit with world leaders and world activists. He fought for LGBTQIA+ rights long before it became politically or socially acceptable. In the image of Martin Luther King, Cecil has been a beacon of hope and an agent of change in our society when we needed it most.

No better words describe Cecil’s leadership and vision than his own. “For decades, I have raised my voice against injustice and have shaken my fist at death. Sometimes I sound like a broken, soulful record that goes ‘round and ‘round singing and shouting through the urban wilderness, ‘Choose life. You have the power. Act like you are alive.’”

Please help us get Cecil the national recognition he deserves for his many years of service and leadership to GLIDE.

Email President Biden with your request today.

Doors opened Sunday, October 15, to a first-of-its-kind historical exhibit encapsulating 60 years of GLIDE history under the leadership of Rev. Cecil Williams and Janice Mirikitani.

Bringing together news clippings, archival photos and curatorial descriptions, the exhibit offers a sweeping overview of GLIDE’s progressive and inclusive stances since 1963. A joint project hosted by GLIDE and the Tenderloin Museum, visitors can learn about everything from GLIDE’s take on the crack epidemic in the 1980s to its ground-breaking advocacy for LGBTQ inclusion.

The exhibit opened on a day of record-breaking attendance of Sunday Celebration. Many churchgoers perused the exhibit, lingering over photos from Cecil and Jan’s wedding in 1982 as well as a wall of celebrity pictures depicting all the public figures who have visited GLIDE over the years.

One of the visitors was Cecil himself, who admired the display and then joined Dr. Gina Fromer, GLIDE’s new President and CEO, for a few words before they attended celebration together.

The exhibit is free and open to the public in GLIDE’s Creative Space, next to the lobby, where visitors, volunteers, and donors can easily stop by. The collaborative effort was made possible by the foresight of long-time GLIDE archivist, Marilyn Kincaid, who lovingly curated more than 50 boxes of archival material that formed the basis of the exhibit. Many thanks to Director of Public Affairs Francesca Delgado-Jones for curating. More information about GLIDE’s history can be found here.

How to see it

Event: 60 years of GLIDE historical exhibit

Cost: Free and open to the public

Location: Creative Space 330 Ellis Street, San Francisco, CA 94102

Sixty years ago, a young Black minister named Cecil Williams arrived at GLIDE, determined to breathe life into a dying church. Cecil’s arrival served as an awakening for GLIDE, inspired by his spiritual training in Black liberation theology and his lived experience growing up in the Jim Crow South.

He saw the connection between systems of poverty and injustice outside GLIDE’s doors with his prophetic vision to build a community rooted in unconditional love and radical inclusivity.

Within weeks of his arrival, Cecil transformed the dwindling congregation of a few dozen people into a rollicking, vibrant, diverse faith community of over 10,000 congregants.

He also laid the groundwork for a critical system of services and programs to meet the needs of the City’s most underserved people through the emergence of the GLIDE Foundation.

Since those days in the early 1960s, GLIDE has continued to grow and thrive, serving as a beacon of hope and a refuge for many of the City’s most vulnerable residents.

As we face the challenge of growing economic inequality and work to repair our safety net in a post pandemic world, Cecil’s vision is as important today as it was 60 years ago.

A critical component of this vision is modernizing GLIDE’s facilities and operations. In September of 2023, we kicked off our Building Modernization Campaign by celebrating a $1M investment by Assemblymember Matt Haney and the State of California. This investment will go towards four capital projects for Glide Memorial Church (GMC):

Modernizing an essential elevator that connects the Church with street level access and our senior/disabled dining area
Restoring the stained glass, revitalizing an iconic visual element of the building that is listed on the US National Park Service of Historic Places
Replacing and upgrading the electrical, lighting, controls, and sound system to modernize our weekly Celebrations
Making critical investments in fire and life safety systems for the 100-year-old facility

We are deeply grateful to Assemblymember Haney and the State of California for making the inaugural investment in our Building Modernization campaign. In doing so, Assemblymember Haney is honoring the value and worth of the vision Cecil laid out 60 years ago.

We are equally excited for our new President & CEO, Dr. Gina Fromer, to lead this campaign as we prepare to embark on the next 60 years of GLIDE’s legacy in San Francisco and beyond.

Stay tuned through our website and social channels for updates on the progress of GLIDE Forward and our Building Modernization campaign.

More than 450 churchgoers on Sunday — record attendance since before the pandemic — got to hear from GLIDE’s new President and CEO, Dr. Gina Fromer.

Dr. Fromer shared the story of how she came to know GLIDE’s power as a young mother of three small boys. It was Thanksgiving, she remembered, and “I struggled with poverty in a community with minimal resources for families.”

A sixth-generation San Franciscan, she took three different buses to get to the Tenderloin for a turkey and extra groceries so her family could enjoy the holiday. Even though she felt some shame in asking for help, she was touched by the warm welcome and came back for the next two years.

“Glide was important to me as I was working my way out of poverty,” she told the congregation.

Four decades later, Dr. Fromer is an accomplished leader of influential nonprofits in the Bay Area. She arrives at GLIDE during an important turning point as Co-Founder Rev. Cecil Williams marks his 60th anniversary with the organization he built.

“Thank you to Cecil and Jan[ice Mirikitani] for laying the foundation for this amazing Glide movement over the past 60 years,” she said, adding, “My career path has led me to this very moment in time, and to this critical city anchor institution. … Responding to community is at the core of my passion for people and San Francisco.”

Dr. Fromer said she’s excited about the “three doors” that GLIDE holds open to meet individuals and families wherever they are in their lives. The Center for Social Justice is at the front lines of critical policy work in San Francisco that has implications statewide and nationally. Robust programs provide everything from meals, housing help and healthcare to those who need it. And the church provides a warm entry point for community members, advocates and clients.

“We want to disrupt the pipelines to poverty,” she said, “and create pathways to healing spiritually, mentally and physically.”

You can listen to Dr. Fromer’s full remarks here.

2023 has marked a major milestone for GLIDE on so many fronts, including a return to community that has uplifted the Tenderloin and all of San Francisco.

Beginning in July with our return to indoor dining service, we’ve since expanded our Legal Clinic services, to both online and in-person; we received a $1M check from the state of California to support our infrastructure needs; our Center for Social Justice helped secure $950M to fund the Universal School Meals program for the state of California, and we heralded the arrival of our new President & CEO, Dr. Gina Fromer.

But if it’s one event that our beloved supporters anticipate more than anything, it’s GLIDE’s premiere annual Holiday Jam in November. This year, we are celebrating Cecil William’s 60th anniversary at GLIDE!

This will be a night filled with a star-studded cast of inspiring musical artists all led by our Mistress of Ceremonies KQED’s Priya David Clemens.

Thursday, November 9, at 7:00 pm (PST).
Visit www.glide.org/holidayjam and get your tickets today!

Why should you attend this year’s Holiday Jam? Read on!

Show your support by making a difference in someone’s life! When you support GLIDE, you are at the forefront of giving people a chance at recovery and turning their lives around.

While GLIDE’s Free Meals program is among our most visible, we also offer a plethora of support by means of such actions as rental assistance, providing on the street harm reduction techniques to combat mental illness and drug addiction, and establishing the Janice Mirikitani Family Youth and Childcare Center (FYCC) which offers low-income families educational resources to help stabilize their lives.

As a human services agency, GLIDE is at the forefront of a mission to break the cycles of poverty and marginalization. When you support GLIDE, you participate in a movement rooted in empowerment and recovery.

Holiday Jam Entertainment!

This year’s Holiday Jam will showcase a superfecta of artistic power unlike anything we’ve presented before.

Legendary songwriter, composer, and producer, Valerie Simpson will perform a tribute to her music ( highlighting many of the songs composed in collaboration with her late husband, Nick Ashford).

GLIDE was lucky enough to snag masterful blues guitarist, producer, composer, philanthropist and founding member of multi-platinum rhythm and blues group, Tony! Toni! Tone!, D’wayne Wiggins.

Activist and prolific R&B and soul visionary, Goapele will perform some of her most stirring music to delight her fans.

And rebel soul singer Martin Luther McCoy rounds out the star-studded line-up who will be performing his distinct blend of jazz funk fusion music.

San Francisco’s varied and colorful history includes the Holiday Jam!

Friends and supporters have been gathering to raise funds for GLIDE every November for over 20 years. In San Francisco, the Holiday Jam is a tradition hosted by Co-Founders Rev. Cecil Williams, Janice Mirikitani, and now our new President and CEO Dr. Gina Fromer. Artists, poets, comedians, and political changemakers come together to perform.

GLIDE family and staff enjoy the show, eat GLIDE’s famous fried chicken, and celebrate love and community. Past attendees included Robin Williams, Maya Angelou, and Bobby McFerrin, to name but a few!

For 60 years, the GLIDE Ensemble and The Change Band have united people with different beliefs and life situations to sing about freedom, honesty, love, and hope. Led by Musical Directors Vernon Bush and Zoe Ellis, the Ensemble has teamed up with a “who’s who” of notable musicians such as Sammy Davis Jr., Leonard Bernstein, Marvin Gaye, Bono, Bobby McFerrin, Maya Angelou, and Joan Baez.

Since its humble beginnings on Christmas Day, 1966, with just 10 singers and jazz legend John Handy, the GLIDE Ensemble and Change Band has expanded to over 100 voices and eight musicians. Don’t miss out on this special performance!

GLIDE’s Holiday Jam is the premiere event to celebrate GLIDE’s service in San Francisco and supporting our programs and breathing life to those who’ve fallen through the cracks but are looking to get back up again.

Let’s honor Cecil Williams and his incredible legacy of social and civic activism!

The 2023 GLIDE Annual Holiday Jam: Keep On will take place on Thursday, November 9, at 7:00 pm (PST). Visit www.glide.org/holidayjam and get your tickets today!

Volunteers are an essential life source for GLIDE. Our meals program could not function to serve all our clients without them. The COVID-19 pandemic saw an alarming decline in GLIDE volunteers and something needed to be done to stem the flow. GLIDE looked to Meals Navigator Diane Truong. Diane went into action by recruiting a dedicated dozen senior volunteers in the local Asian community, a few of whom were former GLIDE clients themselves.

Since 2020, this tight-knit group of volunteers have been coming to GLIDE five to six times a week, helping serve breakfast to our many hungry clients.

We want to tip our hats to these passionate group of volunteers. You are the unconditional love we live and breath each and every day.

Please take the time to review our Volunteer page and consider volunteering. We welcome you to join us!

My Name is Huang, Qun Ying. I am 81. I live across from Glide. I come volunteer at Glide every morning at 7:00 am.

I want to help the community. I enjoy working with the Meals team members because everyone here is so friendly and respect seniors. Besides volunteer at Glide, I am at home taking care of my 93 years old husband.

My name is Wen DaMei. I am 70 years old. I just moved to the Tenderloin a year ago. And I am so happy that I found Glide just across where I live to do my volunteer work. I love to help and serve people.

I also volunteer at the YMCA Chinatown. I love to volunteer at Glide Church because I love to go to Church on Sunday.

I am Mai Hong Hai. I am 74 years old. I am very happy to volunteer at Glide because I can be able to do something for the community.

Every morning I take the bus from Chinatown to get here at 6 am to help all the setting up tables, chairs, and other stuffs to get ready for the breakfast hour. I I also stay and help on the lunch hour too.

I love to volunteer at Glide because everyone is so friendly.

My Name is Huang, Qun Ying. I am 81 Years old. I live across from Glide. I come volunteer at Glide every morning at
7:00 am. I want to help the community. I enjoy working with the Meals team members because everyone here are so friendly and respect seniors.

Besides volunteering at Glide, I am at home taking care of my 93 years old husband.

My name is Pei Shai Chen. Everyone calls me “Patricia.” I am 84 years old. In the pass three years, I was like every other Glide client who picked up their food after getting in line on the sidewalk. One day, I felt so happy that Diane asked me to volunteer.

Every morning around 6:00 am, I come to Glide to help on preparing breakfast and helping the Meals team get things ready. I feel good for myself that I can help others by volunteering at Glide.

We are excited to announce that former GLIDE client, Dr. Gina M. Fromer, has accepted the position as GLIDE’s new president & CEO.

Dr. Fromer will start on October 11th, replacing interim CEO Malcolm Walter who has dedicated himself to GLIDE’s mission for the past ten months.

Dr. Fromer has more than 40 years of experience leading organizations and communities, creating partnerships, designing innovative solutions, and achieving strategic goals like ending poverty, addressing food insecurity, and promoting social justice.

“I’m here to move forward the legacy Cecil and Janice started,” Dr. Fromer said. “We have to speak out for the people who are most vulnerable. I’m for creating a world where there’s a love agenda, and GLIDE is a doorway to that love agenda. Beyond the Tenderloin, GLIDE is here to make San Francisco a better place for everyone.”

Dr. Fromer, a Bayview-Hunters Point native and sixth-generation San Franciscan, is committed to the mission started by Rev. Cecil Williams and Janice Mirikitani 60 years ago.

Dr. Fromer’s personal journey — from a young mother of three boys who relied on help from GLIDE in the late 1980s to the organization’s CEO today — is a story of accomplishment and true inspiration. “I want people coming to GLIDE for help to see me and say, ‘She was able to break the cycle of poverty for her family, and one day, I can do that too.”

As a teen, she began a lifetime of service as a counselor for Young Community Developers, which provides support and training for young adults. She began her career at Head Start before rising through the ranks at the San Francisco YMCA.

Gina will be tasked with launching GLIDE Forward, a strategy to grow the organization’s positive impact in the Tenderloin and throughout San Francisco. The plan will bring together clients, community and congregation through integrated, direct services, social justice and advocacy, and spiritual healing. It includes the modernization of GLIDE’s campus and facilities for the next 60 years.

“GLIDE Forward builds on our strengths and goes a step further in empowering individuals and families to experience less suffering and move towards stability. This plan combines our vibrant community, unique legacy, and unparalleled reach with a more outcomes-based approach to integrated services in the Tenderloin and beyond. It is breathless and inspiring in scope and scale,” said Malcolm Walter, a Board member and outgoing interim CEO.

Kaye Foster, Chair of the Board of Directors, added: “Gina is the absolute best person to lead the charge to revitalize GLIDE coming out of the pandemic so we continue to be a force for empowerment and compassion in San Francisco for generations to come.”

Glide Family,“GLIDE is one of the most essential institutions in our city and there is no better investment than in the betterment of GLIDE,” said Haney.It is with great joy that our GLIDE family warmly welcomed Matt Haney on September 25 to thank him for his support of a $1 million allocation in the State budget to fund GLIDE’s modernization project!This investment will fund restoration of the stained-glass windows in the Glide Memorial Sanctuary, provide seismic upgrades and repairs to the Taylor Gate elevator, and modernize our audio-visual equipment throughout the organization.Attendees at today’s event included Chair of the San Francisco Democratic Party Honey Mahogany, Interim CEO Malcolm Walter, the Executive team, and GLIDE staff.For Assemblymember Haney, GLIDE remains a beacon of light for a city that champions GLIDE’s values of unconditional love and radical inclusion.“These investments being funded by the people of California will go a long way into improving access for people who frequent GLIDE’s services. As far as my role is concerned, representing this community, I can’t think of a better investment we can make as a state and in the future of GLIDE.”Please visit our social media channels on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn to see more coverage from Matt’s visit to GLIDE.Love always,

GLIDE

Author: communications

Why should you attend this year’s Holiday Jam? Read on!

Holiday Jam Entertainment!

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