The Glas family used to live just down the street from Abiding Presence. While they didn’t attend services, they knew neighbors who were members and saw signs about the Food Pantry every time they drove by. Kim and her husband Tim have put an emphasis on a yearly family project during the holidays. “Last year we did a project to educate girls in Guatemala and raised $10,000” Kim shared. So when they gathered as a family to discuss their 2025 project, Oliver and Abigail chose the Abiding Presence Food Pantry. “Sometimes I volunteer at the Pantry with my husband on Saturday mornings and the kids would ask things like, ‘How long was the line?’ or ‘How did things go this morning?’,” Kim recalled. “One particularly difficult story to tell them was that a few weeks ago someone slept in their car overnight just to get fresh food,” she said. She shared, “The kids feel especially connected to Abiding Presence because they’ve been involved with the Kids Food Pantry packing produce for pantry guests.”

When Roger moved to Northern Virginia, the first thing he did was find a church. As he moved throughout the area from McLean to Alexandria and finally Springfield, finding a church was always a priority. Growing up in Minnesota as part of a farming family, church was a big part of their community. The family attended church every Sunday and provided not just comfort but guidance. Roger recalled, “being part of a church was a matter of carrying on and honoring the family tradition.”