In 2013, a group of friends and church members started a food pantry to help families stay in their homes as housing and food costs rose in Oceanside. Their commitment was simple: welcome people without assumptions or judgment, honor their dignity, and share the best food they could find.

Since then, The Sanctuary Pantry has grown through partnerships across San Diego County. We have responded when North County school districts called for help, distributed dinners to vulnerable unhoused neighbors during COVID, provided groceries to furloughed workers during federal shutdowns, and helped feed people arriving by the hundreds at the Oceanside train station. Each time we have been asked, we have stepped in, while continuing to provide regular food boxes to hundreds of North County residents every month.

We believe that when we work together, everyone can have enough to eat and the opportunity to thrive.