While San Francisco is regarded as one of the preeminent technological cities globally, the city’s Tenderloin district reflects a different story, harboring an unprecedented degree of drug abuse, crime, and destitution. The streets are crowded with tents and homeless encampments, and discarded needles are commonplace, as are individuals experiencing mental health crises and drug addiction. In fact, the issue is so pervasive that in 2022, a staggering 10.2% of the population was estimated to be living below the national poverty line and in desperate need of financial aid. Unfortunately, this has become an intractable problem that San Francisco’s technological prowess hasn’t been able to solve. Instead, the city relies on its long history of compassion and refuge for the marginalized to combat this pervasive and dangerous normalcy. Fortunately, Stuart Hall High School students can be a part of the solution by participating in the school’s Glide Service Club which brings students to one of the city’s most prolific social justice organizations, Glide Memorial Church.

Glide Memorial Church stands as a beacon of hope in the community providing a range of services to low-income and homeless individuals in crisis, including housing, health care, legal aid and free meals. Importantly, Glide gives regular San Franciscans, including Stuart Hall high school students, an opportunity to make a difference. Each week Glide hosts numerous volunteers who help provide more than 2000 meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner – every day of the week all year round. Holidays are no exception as the organization even boasts the liberty of preparing seasonal specials like turkey on Thanksgiving.

What makes Glide so special? Founded in 1929 and transformed into a force for social justice in the 1960s under the guidance of Rev. Cecil Williams and Janic Miriktani, Glide stands as a sanctuary and refuge for the thousands who walk through its doors. Its mission is “to create a radically inclusive, just, and loving community mobilized to alleviate suffering and break the cycles of poverty and marginalization.” One of the leading factors as to why Glide functions historically well can be attributed to the dedicated and grateful community. Many of the people working there – from the front desk staff and shift managers to the security team and the dish washers and cooks – are people who have benefited from Glide’s services themselves. Those who used to rely on Glide for food and rehabilitation, now find purpose in aiding the organization that lifted them out of poverty. An exemplar of this phenomenon, shift and volunteer manager Curtis remarked on his own transformation saying, “I used to be one of the people coming through this hall everyday for a meal; Now I work to make sure everyone receives the help and care I did.”

At its core, though, Glide is a volunteer organization and frequent visitors are a necessity, not a commodity. The trip through the tenderloin can be daunting and alarming at first, but the contrast between the streets outside and Glide itself could not be more stark. The difference in circumstances drastically shifts the way in which you can interact with people you might have otherwise avoided. It becomes clear that those waiting in line for a meal service are not just “recipients” of aid or just another tally in the rampant homelessness crisis, but humans with aspirations and ambitions of a better life. Teacher head of the Glide Service Club Dr. Arnwine wrote, “I know the work seems simple—and it can be challenging emotionally at times—but generosity and compassion are simple.”

As a member of the Glide Service Club, there are a plethora of different jobs a shift manager can assign you to – including ticket taking, food service, table cleaning, or working at the organization’s cafe for disabled guests. For those at school looking to become involved or make a difference in our city, our school’s Glide Service Club regularly allocates designated shift opportunities over the weekends. It’s two hours of your time and a great opportunity to see how a San Francisco institution takes care of its people.