Presidio Hill Service: March 2012

Thursday, March 1, 2012

03/01/12 Reflections on our morning of service at Glide

Glide was an amazing experience. I met a Chinese lady who told very good story's.
I liked severing food to people and making a difference.

~ Jonah

Last Thursday we went to Glide It was very fun I served and waited tables I felt good helping people less fortunate then myself one of my favorite moments when I said have a nice day people and they thanked me. It made me feel like the people I was helping really wanted help.

~ Joe

At Glide I put boiled eggs on trays in an assemble line. I did enjoy it because I did it with my friend. Another reason why I enjoyed it was because I felt good after wards. I was giving food to people who don't have any. One special moment was when they were passing down the trays and all the bowls were usually blue and one tray had a purple bowl. Then we made the purple bowl tray perfect!

~ Isallin

I was busing tables. I was taking trays from tables and wiping down the spot where people spilled food or there were crumbs. Me Ella, Eloise and Jillian did that except Jill and Eloise were on one side and me and Ella were on the other.

I had an overall fun experience and I would like to go again. I didn’t really like it when it got really crowded but it was still fine.

I remember when I first got there and I was so exited to help people. I was really scared that I was going to be late. I got there when it was 6:47 and I thought I was going to be last but I wasn’t so it was good.

~ Daniella

Glide was very fun and we all had at a lot of fun, one specific moment was when me and Jonah were talking to a nice lady. My job was working in the Coffee House and it was fun because you get to bring the food to the people. She was nice because she was kind to us and she wouldn't stop talking to us.

~ August

At Glide I worked in the main room with Jillian, Ella and, Daniella. I enjoyed it but not as much as last time when we worked in the coffee house. There was one guy who yelled at me when I asked him if he wanted me to take his tray. I loved going to glide because it makes you feel better about homeless people.

~ Eloise

At Glide I put boiled eggs on trays in an assembly line. I did enjoy it because I did it with my friend. Another reason why I enjoyed it, I felt good after wards. I was giving food to people who don't have any. One special moment was when they were passing down the trays and all the bowls were usually blue and one tray had a purple bowl. Then we made the purple bowl tray perfect!

~ Isabella

I observed PHS students, specifically Jonah and August, despite the early morning hour, work hard, be attentive to tasks at hand, charm and delight the coffeehouse guests, and were respectful to all. They were content.

A while ago, I read somewhere that what drives people to excel is to feel of use. That is exactly what I felt yesterday morning and was witness to seeing PHS students at their best.

It was a great start to the day, and the positivity generated there sustained me throughout the day.

~ Eleanor

Thank you for letting me be a part of the Glide Breakfast service as a parent representative of one of the children in your Committee.

At any giving time, within the 2hrs busing tables this morning, it was: fun (?), interesting (?), messy (?), terrifying (?), and rewarding (?).

Not often does an event, in such a short period of time, help us reflect and add such a broad perspective to our lives and the lives of our kids.

Thanks, joey

I enjoyed the early morning drizzle awaiting the arrival of our team of volunteers. It was a pleasure standing, laughing, and joking with Isallin on the curb in front of Glide. Isallin greets everyday with a generous smile and an open heart. Our students' passion for giving back is an inspiration. It means so much to be able to serve and be some small part of these young peoples' lives.

~ Todd

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PHS Students, Families and Friends Make the World A better Place

Quality Foods at Glide

Making a Difference One Sandwich at a Time

Today at Glide I learned many things, I learned that not all of the people that eat there are homeless. Many of them are homeless, and live on the streets. The majority of the people that do come to Glide live in a house but they are food insecure, meaning they can not afford to buy food. Glide is a great place to go if you’re food insecure. At Glide, my favorite part was working in the Coffee House. I wasn’t in the kitchen chopping up food or just putting some food on the tray. In the coffee house, I had to give people trays of food. What really surprised me was that most of them were actually polite. I would have thought they were going to be rude. Today I made a difference because I helped prepare peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with Charly. We were skilled and used two loafs of bread in less than a minute that is about 40 sandwiches. Since we were working so fast we were able to make more sandwiches than we were supposed to, which was pretty amazing if you ask me. I am looking forward to volunteer at Glide more often so I could help make a difference in the world.

~ Aracely

Glide Day Two February 5, 2015

PHS students showed up for and work three shifts at Glide's meals programs today. They arrived at 6:45 am and served breakfast to more than 450 Tenderloin residents. Students sat with staff and clients and enjoyed the foods they had previously served for breakfast. Students went on to report for their second shift doing food preparations. They had a blast collaborating as they prepared bagged lunches, whipped peanut butter and jelly, made salads, wrapped fried chicken, and cleaned up the kitchen. They rushed off to their third shift serving an amazing fried chicken lunch to grateful guests. Students closed the day by meeting with Reverend Dr Karen Oliveto and Kristen Growney Yamamoto, Co-Executive Director at Glide. Together they reflected on their day of service and set intentions.

Street Retreat 2014 - Making a Difference for People Struggling with Hunger and Homelessness

Our project day was spent taking on the complex issues of hunger and homelessness. We served at San Francisco’s world famous Glide and participated in a street retreat with the renowned Faithful Fools. We became one of the 4,000 plus people from all over the world that have made street retreats since July of 1998! We started our day at 6:45 am serving people living in San Francisco’s infamous Tenderloin in Glide’s Daily Free Meals program. Giving was a transformative experience. The Glide meals program needed us and each day requires 60 volunteers each day in order to fill the breakfast, lunch and dinner shifts, 364 days a year. Our food service shift at Glide was 7:00 am through 9:00 am. Once we finished serving breakfast we participated in a daylong street retreat, where we worked at knowing more about the people we served and the remarkable neighborhood that these people call home. The retreat began at 9:30 am as we gathered with song and reflective readings. After introducing ourselves, sharing what had brought each of us to the retreat and the hopes and expectations that each one brought, an orientation to the layout of the day was given and then we set out onto the streets for a number of hours. We were shadowed by experienced adults who had previously participated in and facilitated retreats. There was nothing that anyone of us was supposed to do except trust that we would be led to that which is ours to encounter in the day. In the afternoon, we regrouped to share our experiences and close with a tea. The daylong street retreat offered an opportunity for all of us to bear witness to our own experiences and life story as it relates to what we encountered as we spent a day walking and exploring the streets of the Tenderloin. We entered into the street retreat not knowing what we would encounter and with a lot of apprehension about what it would be. From that place of not knowing, students discover what there is for each of us to know. This made it possible for each of us to begin to “discover our common humanity.” Myths about this neighborhood and the people we support were shattered. Our own stories were revealed to us. We began to see the light, courage, strength and creativity in the people we encounter. While moving through the day, students and adults were asked to be conscious of what came up from within - attitudes, judgments, fears, assumptions - about who is in the streets and why some people are homeless, especially at a time when we are being told that the freedom and privileges of the United States are envied around the world. What was it we saw and heard and felt as we had conversations with individuals, walked through the streets, sat on a bench in the U.N. Plaza, or in a drop-in center, stood in a food line waiting for a meal, became tired or had to go to the bathroom and confronted signs that say, “rest-rooms for customers only”, or “no loitering”? We shared the richness of the experience as it was reflected through the voices of those who had gone into the streets with us. We treasured sharing this experience.

PHS Pledges Support to Glide Meals Program

By Isabel Schroedel

I first started volunteering at Glide Memorial Church on a field trip in sixth grade. I had a great experience there, and it felt really good to be helping people in need. I decided to volunteer with Glide’s Free Meals program for my Bat Mitzvah community service project, and have continued to volunteer regularly since then, as well as helping out in the volunteer coordination office. Once I became aware of how essential volunteer assistance is to the organization (every meal requires 20 volunteers – that’s 21,900 volunteers a year!), I realized that having more student participation would be extremely beneficial for Glide, as well as provide students with an invaluable learning experience. I approached Todd near the end of last year about starting a Glide Committee at PHS to help arrange more volunteer trips.

Since then, with Todd’s help, I have gotten together a group of students and approached Scott about our plans to organize more frequent volunteer trips. The PHS faculty has been very supportive in our efforts, and, after working very hard organizing during the first semester, we had our first trip to Glide in January. Our first trip was a big success; everything went smoothly, and everybody seemed to have a great time. It was very exciting to see all of our hard work pay off, and we are in the process of organizing more trips for the rest of the year.

Day One SF Food Bank - February 4, 2015

Thursday, March 1, 2012

03/01/12 Reflections on our morning of service at Glide