There is no better way to celebrate community than by gathering together to share traditions and delicious food. We invite you to join us for the South Bay Tamalada, an afternoon dedicated to connection, culture, and nourishment.

Whether tamale-making is a cherished generational tradition in your family or you’ve never spread masa on a husk in your life, all are welcome! This event is a true community effort—we each bring a portion of the ingredients or tools needed to make the tamales, ensuring there is plenty for everyone to enjoy.

Event Details

• When: Saturday, January 10
• Time: 3:00 PM – 8:00 PM
• Where: South Bay Campus, Social Hall (760 First Ave, Chula Vista)

How to Participate
Because this is a communal "potluck-style" preparation, we ask that you sign up in advance to contribute an item. Your contribution helps make this afternoon of nourishment possible for the whole group!

Click Here to Sign Up

Questions?
If you have any questions about what to bring or what to expect, please feel free to reach out to Carlynn Ashley at [email protected].

We can't wait to see you in the Social Hall for a day of food and friendship!

by Rhea Kuhlman, South Bay Food Pantry Volunteer.
At the South Bay Food Pantry, we never know until the last minute what kinds of fresh produce we’ll receive from the San Diego Food Bank and Feeding San Diego, or how much meat or bread will be available for our families on Saturday.  But one thing we can always be sure of is that the bags of shelf stable goods the mid-week baggers put together every week will contain good healthy food that can keep a family going, regardless of what else is available.  The SBFB always keeps on hand stores of non-perishable items to supplement the fresh and frozen items we distribute each Saturday

By Nina Douglass, South Bay Food Pantry Volunteer
The parking lot of 907 Broadway is like that of any other Chula Vista strip mall on weekdays.  On Saturdays, however, the lot is transformed by hundreds of South Bay Food Pantry volunteers and clients.  Volunteers arrive by 8am to receive and stage hundreds of pounds of canned and other dry goods, fresh produce and Starbucks bakery items from the big Feeding San Diego truck. By then, many pantry guests are already waiting for the 9am distribution of numbers which serve to organize the line-up for the 11am - 12:30pm food distribution.  The few trees at the site provide welcome shade for people waiting to collect their food.

by Nina Douglass, South Bay Food Pantry Volunteer
When asked what inspired her to found the South Bay Food Pantry, FUUSD member Maureen McNair has recalled noticing signs of insufficient access to nutritious food among the elementary school children she taught in that neighborhood.  Maureen’s recognition that chronic food insecurity in the South Bay is pervasive led her to address the problem through the creation of the pantry.

By Maureen McNair
Here is a good reason to answer a telephone call from an unknown phone number, even in the weeks leading up the election: it could be actual good news! Shirley Koch works for Rady’s Children’s Hospital in a program called Health Stars. Health Stars provides early literacy intervention for low income and homeless parents with children up to age 8. It was Shirley on the phone calling to introduce herself and ask if she and her team could distribute books and literacy information at some of our Saturday food and Sunday diaper distributions.  I immediately agreed. Not only that, after Shirley explained her literacy mission in more detail, I let her know she had hit pay dirt to help her meet the goals of Health Stars. 

Day of the Dead has been an important celebration for so many of us for the last few years. I have felt grateful for the opportunity to share with this congregation this holiday during worship. And I know this is a meaningful service for so many of our Mexican, Mexican-American, and Latinx members. An affirmation of our culture and an opportunity to honor our beloved dead in community. The pandemic has already prevented us from gathering and celebrating so many occasions together: Easter, Pride, Pachamama, and more. For our services and some rituals, we have tried new virtual ways to recreate them. But, leading a Day of the Dead service online didn’t feel right to me this year.