Volunteer Spotlight: Jasmin  

Jasmin came into the volunteer office hoping to get involved with GLIDEs work. I had the opportunity of interviewing her, and hearing how GLIDE is a part of her inspiring journey of self-discovery. 

Tessa: What brings you here? 

Jasmin: I am actually on a spiritual journey of awakening enlightment and transformation.  

She spoke openly about how reading Rebirth by Kamal Ravicant, a story of traveling the Camino de Santiago and finding oneself, inspired her to heal herself of the traumas she carried through her own form of pilgrimage. She began traveling in August of 2022, and went from New York to DC to Paris to Madrid to Spain, volunteering in different communities. Finally, she found herself in Porto and began the Camino she had read about months earlier.  

“By the time I was at my first albergues – affordable hostels, I had nothing but the jacket on my back and what I had stuffed in my pockets.” 

For Jasmin it was about opening her heart to the situations she found herself in and connecting with people in transformational ways. 

Jasmin then returned to the United States and volunteered with the Red Cross for six months. At this point in her journey, she had volunteered in 5 countries, and 8 American states.  

Tessa: I’m interested in why you chose GLIDE; what brought you here? 

Jasmin: I have always wanted to visit San Francisco. The day before visiting GLIDE, I came into town and visited the Catholic Charities. From there I went to Dolores Street Center, and I heard the name GLIDE. 

 The next day she walked into our office. 

What spoke to me the most during our conversation was her belief in traveling rich in mind, body, and soul. In Jasmin’s eyes, it’s important to give out love; it’s our responsibility to each other, and she tries to embody that in all aspects of her life. 

“I take nothing but what’s on my back and I live from the kindness of strangers. I live the creed. I treat people how I want to be treated, and it returns itself 10-fold every single time.” 

Her year long journey of self-discovery is coming to an end, and she plans to return to New York. 

Jasmin: In this phase now, I feel that I’ve reached the point of completion.  

Jasmin is ready for the next step, and plans to start a few humanitarian initiatives, and pursue a Master’s in Legal Studies. 

She has found her purpose in loving and caring for those around her. Just as GLIDE prides itself on being unconditional, she has made that her own personal mission. It was through this unconditional love that she found herself again. 

“Even walking on the streets, I want people to feel that they are loved. With no expectations of anything in return. I just want people to know that no matter where you’re going, where you’re from, or who you are, you deserve love; we deserve love. And I feel like it’s my responsibility to give that love, and I do that everywhere I go. It’s been incredibly rewarding.”