Leaders Who Create Community: Some communities are built by strategy and planning. Others are built simply by opening the door and setting out plates.

In this episode, Jason Squires sits down with longtime friend Daniel Gluck, professor at Jessup University in Rocklin, CA, to talk about the surprising, sacred, and slightly chaotic work of creating community around the dinner table. Daniel and his wife Alyssa have been hosting college students in their home every week, and the response from students has been refreshingly simple: “What time is dinner?" Together, they explore how food becomes more than food, it becomes belonging. Daniel shares why creating a space with no agenda helps students feel seen and safe, what happens when people are welcomed as they are, how to keep showing up when life is full, and the boundaries that make sustainable hospitality possible. They also offer encouragement for anyone who feels drawn to do something similar but worries they aren’t qualified, ready, or “organized enough.” This conversation is a reminder that community doesn’t require perfection. Just a table, some food, and the willingness to say, “Come on in.”