Shared Breakfast is First Church’s Food Ministry. Together, we serve about 150+ hot breakfasts every Sunday Morning.
Join us every Sunday from 7:30–9:00 a.m. as we share food and fellowship with those who are hungry. Shared Breakfast is a beloved First Church tradition, served every week since 1997. You’ll find us at our Fellowship Hall entrance at 180 Denny Way (the corner of 2nd Ave and Denny Way). Open to anyone that needs a warm meal. Dine-In and To-Go options are both available.
Volunteer with Us!
Please consider joining the Shared Breakfast team!
It takes about 20 volunteers from both the Church and the Local Community to make our meal program happen each Sunday. There is no requirement to be a member of the Church to volunteer with us. If your place of business or your organization or faith community would like to gather a group to volunteer with us, we can accommodate that request and look forward to welcoming you.
We are especially looking for volunteers willing to serve as Assistant Cooks, Servers, and Dishwashers. Volunteer commitments are usually 7 am – 9:15 am, with some starting at 6:30 am.
No food preparation or service experience is necessary as we will provide the training!
Please contact our Shared Breakfast Volunteer Coordinator with any questions: sharedbreakfast@firstchurchseattle.org
or use our form to express interest: Shared Breakfast Volunteer Interest Form
Shared Breakfast 20th Anniversary Video
“Thanks for the great breakfast. You made me smile when I thought there was not anything to smile about.”
— A Shared Breakfast Guest
Supported entirely by donations
For $2.50 you can provide one guest a hot meal. For $25, you can feed ten. A $750 gift covers an entire Sunday of breakfasts for our guests. You can make a secure gift online below — please designate it to “Gloria Shared Breakfast.”
Prefer to send a check? Please make it payable to First United Methodist Church of Seattle, directed to the Gloria Fund (used entirely to support Shared Breakfast). Mail to: First United Methodist Church of Seattle, PO Box 19596, Seattle, WA 98109.
Volunteer for Shared Breakfast
Shared Breakfast is run entirely by volunteers — fundraising, grant writing, food shopping, preparation, service, and even coordinating. If you’d like to volunteer, we’d love to hear from you. We also regularly welcome groups of 3–5 people who want to prepare and serve breakfast together on a Sunday morning.
Shared Breakfast Volunteer Coordinator: sharedbreakfast@firstchurchseattle.org
The Blaine Veterans Center
Serving our neighbors goes beyond breakfast. The Blaine Veterans Center is a 24/7 enhanced shelter for veterans, built into First Church’s building and operated by our partner Compass Housing Alliance with the King County Veterans Program. We’re honored to provide its home; Compass runs the shelter and its services.
For shelter information and admissions, please contact Compass Housing Alliance: 206-474-1000. You can also learn more at the Blaine Center.
A long history of service
With more than 160 years in Seattle, First Church has a long history of leadership in human services — a special focus on caring for our downtown neighbors that includes:
- Supporting Civil War veterans in the late 1800s
- Providing asylum for Chinese workers during the riots of 1886
- Feeding families in the church’s soup kitchen during the Great Depression
- Reaching out to servicemen during World War II
- Founding a retirement home for senior citizens in 1961
- Providing housing to homeless men and women through Pulliam/Wesley Haven in the 1970s and 80s
- Helping establish a 60-bed overnight shelter and a daytime homeless women’s congregation
- Serving a weekly breakfast for the hungry, every Sunday since 1997