OCEAN BEACH – He’s been called a godsend for distributing food from San Diego Food Bank weekly to the homeless, poor and needy in Ocean Beach and Midway District.
He is Glyn Franks and, for more than a quarter-century, he has operated Second Chances-Bread of Life, Inc.
“We are a tiny little faith-based nonprofit,” said Franks. “We distribute food at The Orchard Senior Living Apartments on Channel Way in Midway District on Fridays at noon, and to the homeless in OB on Saturday mornings.
“I am not ordained and am only an unpaid volunteer coordinator and servant,” noted Franks, a transplant from Yuma, Ariz. A devout Christian, he draws inspiration for serving the poor from biblical passages suggesting people, through faith, are offered forgiveness and new beginnings.
Franks has made it his mission to practice what he preaches. He accomplishes that by regularly distributing free food to those who need it. He stressed that his self-chosen mission is not about him. Rather, he emphasized the impact and importance of the volunteers who help him.
“They carry the load and make the outreaches happen,” he said.
A handful of volunteers from The Orchard were on hand Friday to help.
When Franks distributed the food behind the apartments on Channel Way, a couple dozen people were lined up. They received produce, eggs and a variety of other foodstuffs from San Diego Food Bank, all piled up in the back of Franks’ truck.
Volunteers rapidly set out the food on tables for distribution. “Produce and fruit a lot of times are already ripe and they’ll become overripe overnight,” noted Glyn about the need for haste. “We come straight here from the food bank so it gets distributed immediately.”
Grateful recipients lined up to collect their food allotment. Many stopped by to thank Franks directly for his generosity.
“We’re a nonprofit, we’re non-denominational,” said Franks of his food-distribution operation, which he began after moving to OB. “God was calling me to start up an operation like this,” he said, quoting Matthew 25 from the Bible. “Christ ordered us to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, tend to the sick, and visit prisoners” said Franks of his motivation.
Franks said he made a pact with the Almighty when he started his mission.
“I said, ‘You have to provide all the funding, all the products, all the volunteers – everything.’” He added, “If you do that – I’ll show up. That’s my deal with God.”
Franks sometimes brings things other than food, like barbers to cut hair. “We had a full-on medical clinic for many years,” he noted.
Franks spoke of the need for the food and other services he provides, citing The Orchard as an example.
“This is a low-income senior project,” he noted. “Some of the people here are living on Social Security and disability, and that doesn’t pay for much.”
Franks emphasized that he’s just a small part of an age-old legacy of charitable giving. “It starts at the back of that (his) truck and it stretches back 2,000 years,” he said.
San Diego Food Bank
The Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank is the largest hunger-relief organization in San Diego County. Last year, the organization distributed over 50 million pounds of food. The food bank serves, on average, 400,000 people per month in San Diego County. Food is distributed from two warehouse locations and by the bank’s partnership with more than 450 nonprofits.
The food bank also receives donations from the public. The food is then shared through partner food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters and other organizations and individuals, as well as through SDFB’s distribution sites.
Those in need of immediate food assistance can call 211, and an operator will find their nearest food distribution site. Calls are free, confidential, multilingual and available 24 hours.
