
The Glidettes: Our Moment of Joy
During the month of May, GLIDE celebrates Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage. In this story, we highlight the Glidettes, a delightful group of Asian-identifying seniors and performers who embody GLIDE’s mission to create a loving and inclusive community.
Read More >>
Not All Heroes Wear Capes
Nearly 80% of all opioid overdose deaths take place outside of medical settings, ushering in a new era where heroes in street clothes are stepping into the role of first responder.
Read More >>
The Face Behind the Prime Rib Legacy at GLIDE
If you ask Joe Betz for his expert opinion on the best way to prepare prime rib, his response is simple: Slow cooking and good quality meat. “You have to have good beef. If you put salt and pepper and all this seasoning stuff, it doesn’t really help.”
Read More >>
Still We Rise: GLIDE Comes Together in Celebration
November 18th was a day of hope and joyful reunion as the GLIDE community came together, in-person for the first time in two years, at GLIDE’s major fundraising event, the Holiday Jam. The 2021 GLIDE Annual Holiday Jam: Still We Rise returned as a modified in-person event that brought the community together for music, storytelling,
Read More >>
Thanksgiving 2021: A Celebration of Resiliency
In the early morning hours of Thanksgiving Day, the 300 block of Ellis Street was buzzing with action. Teams of GLIDE staff and volunteers were laying out decorations, carving turkeys and packaging seemingly endless rows of food containers. Hundreds of feet of white festival tents were adorned with fairy lights, and the musical score for
Read More >>
National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week 2021: Social Media Recap
Every year, right before Thanksgiving during National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, advocates across the nation spotlight poverty in our country. GLIDE honored the awareness week with an educational series on our social platforms. If you didn’t catch it, check out our recap slideshow below, and please join us in combating food insecurity! Follow us on social media!
Read More >>
A Brief History of GLIDE’s World Famous Fried Chicken
Fifty years ago, congregants from GLIDE Church organized a potluck for their hungry neighbors in the Tenderloin. Their pastor, Rev. Cecil Williams, GLIDE’s Co-founder and Minister of Liberation, requested fried chicken—a staple of any festive gathering in the African American community of his youth. That’s the origin of what has come to be known as
Read More >>
Celebrating Jonathan Leong
A dedicated volunteer whose legacy lives on through his bequest to GLIDE’s Daily Free Meals program Longtime volunteer Jonathan Leong passed away on October 19, 2017, leaving a very generous bequest to GLIDE’s Daily Free Meals program. Just days after creating his living trust, he told his sister Bonnie, “A person dies. A great charity
Read More >>
What Makes Me Volunteer
Ryan Clark is one of our GLIDE Emerging Leaders interns this summer. Joining us from Boston College, Ryan took an immediate interest in food justice, education and volunteerism, and has spent the last several weeks working on a campaign to increase and retain the number of volunteers in the Daily Free Meals Program. Though the
Read More >>
Meet Diane and Pamela: GLIDE’s Meals Navigators
In August, 2017 GLIDE introduced two full-time Meals Navigators to the Daily Free Meals program, which is GLIDE’s largest and longest running program, offering meals three times daily to all in need or some 750,000 meals a year. Pamela Brown and Diane Truong help connect people in our community to other services at and beyond
Read More >>
Giving Back to San Francisco with Eddie
Eddie is a Meals Program Team Member who first walked in the doors at 330 Ellis looking to volunteer. Two and a half years later, Eddie can do just about everything in the Meals Program – coffee house, prep room, main dining hall, opening shifts, closing shifts and everything in between. He does it all with a
Read More >>
It’s Never Too Late (Or Too Early!) to Make a Difference
Kent first came to GLIDE as a homeless teenager in search of a hot meal and assistance navigating San Francisco’s affordable housing system. Today, he returns every Monday and Thursday morning to volunteer in the kitchen, which comes easy to him – he has years of experience in the restaurant industry! He believes little things,
Read More >>
Serving Lunch (and Love) with James Sampaga
Welcome to our Volunteer and Staff Highlight Series! Throughout the next five weeks we will be shining the spotlight on a few of our amazing volunteers and staff members in the GLIDE Daily Free Meals program. These people pull off something miraculous every day — three times a day. If you’ve ever joined us for mealtime you know it’s a major operation, requiring
Read More >>
Painting Al Fresco with Maddi
Maddi is a young man who is multi-lingual, a talented visual artist, and now homeless. He’s been coming to GLIDE frequently, and we have enjoyed getting to know him better. He graciously shared his story with us. I was born in Kuwait, but I was born as a non-citizen, without documents. My mom is
Read More >>
A Father’s Gift
Iona Lewis is a Case Manager with GLIDE’s Men in Progress program. Thanks to her father, Iona has been a part of the GLIDE community her entire life. Now, she and her husband Raphael are both employees here and their son, Carlo, attends GLIDE’s Family, Youth and Childcare Center (FYCC) during the day. Iona and
Read More >>
"Just as meaningful as any meal"
At one point in my life I was “designer guy in Laguna Beach” with a fancy house and a fancy car. I had all of this stuff. Talking about this makes me cry. If all of this had not happened, I would’ve been somebody that I don’t want to be. We don’t know what people’s tragedies are.
Read More >>
Sole Power!
GLIDE celebrates its thriving partnership with local eco-friendly fishing company, Pioneer Seafoods If you’ve walked by the corner of Ellis and Taylor on any given weekday over the last few months, there is a chance you have seen a “fishy” operation taking place. Giuseppe and Joleen of Pioneer Seafoods have been hauling a truckload of
Read More >>
Service with a Smile
Meals program volunteer Michael finds meaning and pleasure in serving his Tenderloin neighbors Michael is a dedicated volunteer in GLIDE’s Daily Free Meals program as well as a program participant. Originally from the Glen Park neighborhood of San Francisco, Michael had only been coming to eat at GLIDE for a week before he started to spend
Read More >>
Growing with GLIDE
Jonathan Fennell has worked at GLIDE for over 17 years, and seen a lot of changes during his time here. As San Francisco celebrates the 50th Anniversary of the Summer of Love, members of GLIDE staff are reflecting on how the Church and Foundation have evolved over time. We were thrilled to catch up with
Read More >>