Glide splits up the family,
On Mother’s day
By David Soma

Sunday afternoon, and Mother’s day at Glide. People were lined up all the way to Jones Street and around the corner. For today in honor of Mother’s day, Glide would be serving a chicken dinner. There were a number of families, and even more Mothers. One of the Glide security people walked up the line and began handing out flowers to all the Moms. What a change this is from the old days when there was pushing and fighting, and disorganization on the part of the people who run the line. “This” I though “was nice”. And then it happened. It was kind of a blast from the past when Head cook Carl Mosley came up and announced that the mothers would be served separately and in another dining room.

“But what about my husband we want to eat together” said one woman holding a baby on her arm. Mosley flailed his arms saying “Mothers on that side”, and then he scurried back into the kitchen.

It kind of reminded me of the days of old when Cecil’s son Al Williams ran the food program. I once watched Al body slam an old drunk man to the ground because of would not move out of the front doorway fast enough. Back then I was a volunteer working in the kitchen. About 12 to 15 of us used to show up a hour before breakfast was to be served, we would set the table, set out the chairs, and do what ever else was needed so that the food could be served. I noticed many injustices back in those days. Most of the volunteers were poor and homeless, and volunteering seemed to help their self-esteem. What really bothered me then was that the staff treated the volunteers, and the clients like dirt. They would scream at them to stay in line or to “eat it and beat it” so that they could bring more people in. In those days the volunteers were not allowed to eat until the public had eaten, and the kitchen cleaned. I remember the last day I volunteered; we had finished our assignments and were standing in line waiting for the floor to dry. For some reason cook Carl Mosley served up the plates of bacon and eggs, and left them on the counter with instructions that they were not to be given out until the floor had dried. It was a big floor, and so the 14 or so people who had worked all morning with no food or coffee, had to wait another 20 minutes before they could eat.

When it was our turn I sat across from a man who was doing his community service work at Glide. When the tray of food was put in front of us he just looked at it and shook his head. He put his hand on the now cold eggs and shook his head again. “There’s no love in this meal” he said.

That one statement seemed to sum up the feelings of many poor and homeless people whom had no choice but to go through the Glide line.

Today in 2002 things have changed at Glide and for the better. Al Williams who ran the food program is gone. {ANYBODY ASKING WHY?}

The people who are running it today are doing a much better job. Kudos to the people in office 100. Also much can be said for the professionals who now run and staff the security force. They are for the most part courteous, and polite, and under John Powels direction even Glides busiest days are handle with ease.

But from time to time we may still have to endure some leftovers, may their retirement party come soon.

David Soma is a retired broadcast journalist whose credits include.
Executive editor at c b s news Boston.
News anchor and reporter k d I a Oakland
News anchor reporter ksol-fm San Francisco