On a sunny Thursday afternoon in the Bayview, Danielle scopes out tables of fresh produce at the Bayview Church of Christ neighborhood food pantry. She’s bringing them home to her mom, who she’s been caring for full-time for the last 13 years. The weekly visits to this pantry, part of the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank’s Neighborhood Food Network, have become woven into their daily life — even sparking Danielle’s creativity.
Finding Creativity Where You Can
Danielle is a passionate, professional artist, but being a caretaker means she doesn’t always get to her work. When she can’t find the time, she creates with what she has: the food she cooks for her mom, much of which comes from the Bayview Church of Christ food pantry. Eggs on potatoes with tomato, carrot ginger soup, grapes and pears arranged on a plate. When her mom is delighted by one of these artfully arranged meals, Danielle takes a picture.
Danielle estimates she’s taken about 500 photos by now. “Those pictures only happen when she wants a picture,” she explains. “I only take those pictures when she says, ‘Ooh, I like this. Let me take a picture.'”
She’s even turned these pictures into an art exhibit, showing them both with fellow artists and in a solo show.
The food from the pantry has brought unexpected joy to this family: ingredients that become art, and meals that spark happiness. It has also helped ease some of the burdens.
Between managing her mom’s Alzheimer’s and trying to afford life in San Francisco, there’s a lot to juggle. So when Danielle noticed the pantry opening in 2023 while walking her dog, she signed right up. She was grateful she wouldn’t have to choose between groceries and paying for other essentials.
“It’s one less thing I have to worry about,” Danielle says. “Financially, every little part matters and counts.”
A Partnership That Changed Everything
Bayview Church of Christ is one of more than 200 pantries in the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank’s Neighborhood Food Network. Each week, about 230 people pick up groceries at the pantry. Nearly 70% of what the Food Bank provides is fruits and vegetables.
For Chris Elmore, the pantry coordinator, partnering with the Food Bank in 2023 was a game-changer.
Before that partnership began, he and his brother were picking up donations from Safeway in Chris’s box truck and distributing them from the church parking lot on their own. It was a lot of work.
When those grocery store donations ended, Chris connected with the Food Bank at their warehouse on Pennsylvania Avenue.
Now, Chris says, “Everything is fresh. We got onions, we got grapes, we got celery, grapefruit. We usually have some type of meat, maybe milk. Just everything that you can want.”
When Spices Make the Difference
And recently, the pantry’s been offering ginger, jalapeños, and cilantro as part of a Food Bank pilot program testing whether spices and aromatics help families use more of the produce they receive.
Chris has noticed people love the spices and are using them in all kinds of dishes. “The ginger and the jalapeño are the best right now,” he says.
One man made something that looked like fortune cookies shaped into flowers, using ginger and other ingredients from the pantry. Another woman brought back spring roll-like pastries with beef and vegetables inside. People have brought tostadas to share with volunteers.
Chris loves seeing how the spices inspire people to try new dishes—and how those dishes reflect the neighborhood’s diversity. Bayview brings together people from all over the world, each with their own culinary traditions.
“The cultures here are different,” Chris says. “Even [within] countries like China and Japan, you got the Easterners, you got the Southerners, and they cook things different.” He’s learned phrases in multiple languages just from running the pantry each week. “This is my community,” he says, “and the people here are great.”
Chris isn’t the only one who’s found connection. For Danielle, the pantry means food in the house, people who know her and her mom, and one less thing to figure out each week. It’s community care in action.
“Most of the people here are my neighbors,” she says. “I see them not just when it’s food bank day. I see them when I walk the dog. This is helping each other.”
Alma loves to cook for her husband, her daughters, and her neighbors. Sisig sizzling in the pan. Chicken congee, fragrant with fried garlic and spring onion. Tilapia steamed with tomatoes and garlic.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Food Bank launched Pop-Up Pantries across San Francisco and Marin in response to surging food insecurity. Alma went to the Stonestown Pop-Up during this time, grateful for a reliable food source while she was working but still struggling to make ends meet.
Susie has deep connections to Chinatown, which is why she still volunteers here despite living in the East Bay. She worked at Chinatown Community Development Center for 19 years building affordable housing. “I saw that these folks really lived with very little income,” she recalls. “A lot of them worked in the United States for decades, but they never got their Social Security because of under the table pay. They’re hardworking, but they’re struggling.”
Sunlight streams through the floor-to-ceiling windows of the Western Addition Community Market. The space is modern and welcoming, with the cheerful energy of a neighborhood bodega — energy matched by Holly. We met her as she moved excitedly through the aisles of produce and groceries, planning out what she would take home.
Even when you’re mission-driven, it can take a few turns to find someplace where your work truly reflects your values and you can see its impact every day.
When Jeni decided to donate her late husband’s red Ford Ranger to the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank, it wasn’t just about parting with a vehicle. It was about honoring his life in the community he cared about.
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