| Former sailor and academic researcher forged unique bond as writing and editing duo | It’s a Thursday morning and the North Beach branch of the San Francisco Public Library has just opened. Like almost every Thursday morning for the last 10 years, Janis Kaempfe and Claude Ury have settled down at one of the branches’ eight networked computers. Ury is there to polish up his review of a recently published book on languages. Kaempfe is there to help. Ury, a retired economics and social sciences researcher, spends much of his time crafting short book reviews for publications like the Library Journal and the Literary Hub. Kaempfe is a former Merchant Marine sailor and a just-retired technology trainer for the Community Living Campaign. The two have a well-established routine. Ury drafts a review at home and meets Kaempfe at the library, where she makes suggestions, edits the piece, and emails it for publication. Janis Kaempfe and Claude Ury at the library in North Beach, where they meet to go over his book reviews before publication. (Photos by Colin Campbell) Today’s session is a bit sad. Since Kaempfe is retiring, she’ll no longer be available to work with Ury, and this is the next-to-last time they’ll meet. “Working with him is so stimulating; his reviews are full of information,” she said. “This feels very, very bittersweet. Although fiction … | April 24, 2024 | Bill Snyder |
| Teacher, translator, artist, and full-time caretaker: Finding time is just one of his challenges | Hitoshi Shigeta has perfected the art of juggling. Not the act you might see in a circus, but the act of a man whose life has three demanding priorities. He’s a working artist and teacher of art, an English-to-Japanese translator of business documents fighting against a technological wave, and full-time caretaker to his 27-year-old autistic son. Hitoshi Shigeta at the de Young Museum, where he teaches a free, eight-week arts course for seniors, as well as at Saturday workshops for children, below. (All photos by Colin Campbell) He believes in service and devotes time to teaching art to seniors at San Francisco’s DeYoung Museum, and along with his wife helps other families with autistic children break their isolation and find relief in the outdoors. He specializes in teaching watercolor painting and monotype printing, an effect made by applying paint or printing ink to a flat sheet of metal, glass, or plastic. He often works in pencil, and many of his images project a rather mysterious sensibility, reminiscent of film noir. Shigeta has a whimsical side as well. For about a dozen years he drew a cartoon strip he called “Dimmstown, A Not Really Daily Cartoon” and he maintains a web store where he sells cups, aprons, and pillows, decorated with images of … | April 14, 2024 | Myra Krieger |
| Support housing tenant makes the most of his microwave and contributes to the nabe with ‘pedestrian protection’ | How do you eat If you are on a fixed income and live in a single-room occupancy hotel? When the pandemic closed a lot of your favorite cheap food spots? If you are Christopher Coleman, you get creative with your mini fridge and microwave. “The way you cook a juicy porkchop in a microwave, you get a salad-size plastic bowl, you put the pork chop in the bowl with a little salt and pepper and water. It takes about 10 to 12 minutes, see, and it cooks through at all angles, and it gets all the fat and grease out of it, it really does. And it’s juicy too, not dry! Then I season with lemon juice, French’s mustard.” Christopher, 59, lives at the Star Hotel at Mission and 18th streets, housing with on-site support services for formerly homeless people with complex mental health needs. Run by DISH (Delivering Innovation In Supportive Housing) in partnership with the San Francisco Department of Public Health, it has 52 units on three floors. Coleman has lived at the Star Hotel for eight years. He’s retired now but helps the neighborhood with what he and his friends call pedestrian protection. They watch out for faltering seniors, runaway dogs. and thieves. (All photos by Naomi Marcus) He … | March 24, 2024 | Naomi Marcus |
| Military background and delight in the job help ‘star’ Muni driver keep things running smooth | Jolt after jolt, from stop to stop, veteran San Francisco Municipal Railway driver Angel Carvajal has piloted trains, buses, and streetcars across the hills, streets, and tunnels of San Francisco. And over the years, among a mostly civil clientele, he’s dealt with knife-wielding and abusive passengers, a truck driver who plowed into his light rail train, and plenty of unhappy and sometimes disturbed riders who need a kind word. “Sometimes you have a double job,” he said. “Driving and listening to a passenger who starts talking about his personal life.” Carvajal admits that his job can be stressful, but he likes it so much he takes extra shifts on the weekend. He particularly likes driving the historic F line, so he can schmooze with the tourists. He also delights in helping the seniors who depend on Muni. Angel Carvajal in the employees’ lounge at Muni Metro’s East Maintenance Yard near Potrero Hill. (All photos by Colin Campbell) “I was so proud that every time I opened the door, I was able to help a grandma or a grandpa or a person with a disability get on or off my coach or train. It’s like a big blessing coming from somewhere, you know?” Now 66 and a resident of the Outer Mission, Carvajal … | March 20, 2024 | Mary Anne Lewis |
| Insatiable curiosity led free spirit to bio-science career, travel, health activism and now, acting online | A cross-country train trip when she was 9 is a joyful memory for Jane Merschen, one of the few from a difficult childhood. While her mother, made sleepy by medicine prescribed for mental illness, dozed on the trip from Los Angeles to St. Louis, Merschen happily “ran around the train, getting kicked out of the smoking and gambling cars, but having a lot of fun,” she said. The journey was a bright spot. Her mother’s mental illness and her father’s refusal to care for her, forced her into a group home for two years until her grandmother agreed to raise her. The specter of inherited mental illness troubled her for years. One of Merschen’s many jobs was as a traveling medical technologist in the Navajo Nation in Monument Valley. (Photo courtesy of Jane Merschen) Even so, Merschen, now 71, grew up to be independent and free-spirited. She was curious about the world. She traveled widely, studied history and mythology in Greece, and became politically involved in Central America. She never feared to look for new career opportunities. Keenly interested in public health, she earned several related degrees. She worked as a traveling medical technologist in the Navajo Nation, which covers portions of Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah, as well as in hospitals … | March 3, 2024 | Jan Robbins |
| Painful college experience unexpectedly leads to successful career for man from Mississippi | Imagine having such a vicious toothache and no access to a dentist that you take a pair of pliers and extract your own tooth. Meet Chester Moody. It’s 1958 in the Jim Crow South: Lorman, Mississippi, to be precise. He is 17 years old, attending Alcorn Agricultural and Mechanical College, a historic black college. At the administration office, he is told it will be 21 days before a dentist visits the college. In excruciating pain, he couldn’t wait to get written permission from his parents, which the school required to leave campus. “The only privilege you were allowed as a Black man was to know your parents’ name,” Moody said of the South in those days. So, young Chester Moody broke into the campus woodshop, borrowed a pair of pliers, and performed his own extraction. Chester Moody became a dental lab technician through strokes of luck, both bad and good. (Photos by Colin Campbell) “It took me a while to get the courage, but the moment I clamped the pliers around that molar, the pain went away. It just dissipated,” he said. “I now know that it was the gas escaping, but I couldn’t walk around with pliers coming out of my mouth.” While screwing up the nerve to pull, there was … | February 25, 2024 | Naomi Marcus |
| Writer of science fiction for the young tries to impart their simultaneous sense of wonder and danger | The path to success for many novelists is paved with rejection slips, but not for Ellen Klages, a prolific author of science fiction and science-oriented historical fiction for young people. “I was 45 and started at the top,” she said. While that might sound boastful, Klages has the receipts to back it up. Ellen Klages has written several award-winning pieces of science fiction and historical science fiction for children as well as adults. (Photos by Colin Campbell) Ellen Klages’ first short story was a finalist in 1998 for a prestigious science fiction award. Her first short story, “Time Gypsy,” is a time travel and lesbian romance that was anthologized in 1998 and a finalist for the Hugo and Nebula awards, science fiction’s equivalent of the Oscars. Within a few years, she published a novel and again earned Nebula and Hugo nominations along with several awards for children’s literature. Now 69 and living in Bernal Heights, her resume includes five published novels, eight non-fiction works, and two short story collections. Before her writing career took off, Klages drifted through a series of low-paying jobs and an aimless course of study at two universities. She taught herself to be a professional proofreader and spent years working at the San Francisco Exploratorium, proofing and eventually … | February 19, 2024 | Myra Krieger |
| Wattusi Trio dancers embraced by U.S. jazz greats and European club scene of the ’50s-’70s for their fantastical, “exotic Africa” perfomances | An animal trainer from Barnum and Bailey Circus trained Deloris Perlmuttter, center, to use a whip in the Wattusi Trio’s dance perfomances. (Photos courtesy of Deloris Perlmutter) Deloris Perlmutter was only 20 years old when two young Cuban men selected her as the third member of their Wattusi Trio, a newly formed Afro-Cuban dance act that would catapult them to fame in the exploding international club scene of the ’50s, ‘60s, and ‘70s. “Every club had its own house band. Acts competed to be the most elaborate and to have the most interesting original music and gimmicks,” she said. “We were over the top in presentation and costumes” – from bikinis covered with bright red spangles and bejeweled red crowns to colorful, robes and spectacular headdresses. It was an era in which Africa conjured fantasies of the deep, dark jungle, a dangerous and unknown continent. Their act was drawn from a Tutsi tribal dance witnessed by Deborah Kerr and her safari guides as they search for her missing husband in the 1950 film “King Solomon’s Mine.” The movie dance, as was the Trio’s, is a derivation of the tribe’s actual dance. For one, only men participated in the actual Watusi dance. Jungle fantasy “We were after the fantasy, the fantasy of the … | February 11, 2024 | Judy Goddess |
| Noted landlord for the down, out and addicted admits to a tough job but still worries she hasn’t done enough | The family’s money was tight, but Kathy Looper, then a teenager, headed to Union Square and a shopping trip to I. Magnin. She had three home-made dresses and was wearing the best one. “I thought I looked rich,” she said. Kathy Looper (All photos by Colin Campbell) When she got to the ritzy store, a man standing by the entrance stopped her and asked for a handout. “His face was distorted, and he looked crippled, holding himself up with two canes,” she recalled. The request and the man’s terrible visage unsettled her and she fled. Nearly 60 years later, the memory still upsets her. “I feel like I have to make up for being so insensitive,” she said, dabbing away a few tears with a tissue. Looper tends to be hard on herself – “I’m very self-critical” – but over the years she has built a life dedicated to social service: developing programs to aid addicts, the homeless, and the mentally ill. In partnership with her late husband, Leroy Looper, she purchased and rehabilitated an old Queen Anne Victorian on Guerrero Street in the Mission District, and it became a well-regarded board-and-care for schizophrenics called Chateau Agape, named after the couple’s daughter. Hanging in Looper’s office, this portrait of her and her … | January 28, 2024 | Bill Snyder |
| SENIORS TALK: How did you spend New Year’s Eve? | On a cool, clear winter morning, the Noe Valley Town Square is a fine place to sip coffee and chat with friends and neighbors. The former site of an abandoned gas station, the gathering spot on 24th Street is dotted with tables and chairs and is steps away from shops selling coffee and bagels. The community has struggled to get the city to install a bathroom, but the project has been delayed. SeniorBeat stopped by recently and asked a group of seniors how they spent New Year’s Eve. Did they stay up to watch the ball drop and party into the wee hours? Or did they turn in early? Here’s what they had to say: Our participants: Steven Pressman, far left in a blue cap; his partner Lisa Stark to his right; and Peggy Cling, to the right of the man in the Stetson hat. Her husband Pete Cling is not in the picture. Susie Shaw, in the light blue jacket, is next to Peggy, and on the far right, in a black jacket and wearing sunglasses, is Jean-Paul Raynal. (Photo by Colin Campbell) Steve Pressman, who lives in Noe Valley, and his partner Lisa Stark, 67, were traveling in Arizona on New Year’s Eve, so they decided to postpone their observation of … | January 24, 2024 | Bill Snyder |
| From Kezar to Levi’s stadiums, No. 1 49ers fan has kept the faith – and the facts | Martin Jacobs at age 13. (Photo courtesy of Martin Jacobs) Martin Jacobs’ love affair with the San Francisco 49ers was in its infancy in 1952 when the nine-year-old entered Kezar Stadium for the first time. He still has that ticket stub and over the years has become a go-to authority on all things 49ers, a collector of team memorabilia, and the author of scores of articles and books recounting the history of the city’s favorite football team. His Sunset District home is crammed with posters, drawings, albums, pins, emblems, banners, helmets, footballs, and uniforms. A living room couch is covered with a red and gold 49ers blanket, situated squarely in front of an extra-wide TV, where he takes in every game. Even though he’s a hardcore fan, Jacobs stays home on game days. Watching from home, he said, avoids the long drive to Santa Clara, unpredictable weather, and the high cost of attending a game. A stub from Kezar Stadium, the first home of the San Francisco 49ers, who played there until 1970. (Photo courtesy of Martin Jacobs) “At age 12, I saw the world in a remarkably simple way, said Jacobs, now 80. “I decided early on that there were only two types of people in the world: those who were … | January 12, 2024 | Myra Krieger |
| After the ‘food shock’ and a challenging beginning in U.S., Mexico City emigre finds her way back to her life of art | When Esperanza Villanueva arrived in Lake Tahoe from her native Mexico City in 1994, her hardest adjustment was to the food. “That was a shock,” she said. “There was no food I liked here, not many Mexican products.” She joined her siblings and their families who’d come years earlier and she laughs as she recalls an early incident. Her brother took her to the grocery store in Lake Tahoe where he lived and worked. He told her to get anything I wanted. “I wanted a papaya to make a salad. We got home and he took a tiny little dried thing from the bag and laughed, ‘Here is your papaya,’ he said. That’s a papaya? I said. Not where I come from.” Esperanza Villanueva (All photos by Colin Campbell) Villanueva, 77, is petite with deep-set dark eyes and wavy silvery hair. She dresses simply with an eye to color, showcasing her artist’s sensibility. An accomplished professional artist in Mexico City in her youth, she now teaches art part-time at the YMCA on Mission Street, the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts, and the On Lok 30TH Street Senior Center. Her students range from age six to 86. “Art has been my constant companion, my life partner,” she said softly, as she watched … | January 7, 2024 | Naomi Marcus |
| What’s in a memory? And why these – random, insignificant things and events – not the big, more important ones? | SENIOR BEAT COLUMN Over 30 years ago, my mother caught sight of her reflection in a shop window. “Who is that familiar old woman?” she asked herself, and she smiled broadly telling me the story. “Suddenly I realized it was me! I was so shocked I could only burst out laughing!” I remember also, when she was maybe 40, that a fortune teller read her palm and predicted she’d live to 75. I was a teen when she shared this, and I freaked out, but she replied firmly, “No, no, Naomi, 75 is a good long life, that’s fine with me.” She died last year at 96 and, in the year without her, I’ve been struck by which memories come up from my 70 years of life with her. Why do certain memories remain? Why these and not those? I remember my father, dead nine years, telling me in anger, circa 1972, that I was the Vietnam of our family. But I also remember the beautiful ballad he wrote for me about my first boyfriend, whom I’d meet on Saturdays. I was 14, 15? He debuted “The Ballad of the Saturday Kid, “accompanying himself on the piano: “That is why I will put in my bid, to keep hanging loose as her … | January 1, 2024 | Naomi Marcus |
| Social worker turned fiduciary finds meaningful career in protecting seniors from scammers | The battle to protect seniors from scammers after their savings or property is a never-ending one. Tom Lucas is one of its warriors. Lucas is a professional fiduciary obligated by law to act in his client’s best interests. In California, fiduciaries are appointed by the probate court to take care of an adult who is incapacitated, overseeing their estate (finances) or personal affairs, and ensuring that they have appropriate health care, food, shelter, clothing, and hygiene. Lucas has done both many times. “Our work is monitored by the court, and our accounts are subject to a bi-annual review,” Lucas said, flashing on the paperwork waiting for him at home. When dealing with hospice patients, Lucas and often his dog Baxter, are with them until the end. (Photos by Judy Goddess) Allegations of financial exploitation made up nearly one-third of elder abuse reports in San Francisco last fiscal year, according to the San Francisco Department of Disability and Aging Services. And those 2,332 are likely only a portion of actual cases. Shame, embarrassment, and fear prevent many elders from reporting they’ve been taken advantage of. The ‘bad neighbor’ Lucas called his first job “the bad neighbor case.” A friend of his had called, concerned about her neighbor, John, an accomplished photographer who … | December 24, 2023 | Judy Goddess |
| SENIORS TALK: What do you do for fun and relaxation? | The On Lok 30th Street Senior Center on Aug. 22, opened in 1979, when a small group of seniors asked for a room in the building to start a social club. Today, in addition to meals, health workshops, bilingual case management and aging and disability resource center, some 6,700 older adults participate in its more than 50 activities and classes, from arts and crafts to exercise and fall prevention to lifelong learning to games and a variety of events. We went there to find out what some of them did for fun and relaxation. (All photos by Colin Campbell) Former phys-ed teacher swims Tanako Hagiwara, 85, Richmond District At 85, Hagiwara continues to teach classes in body dynamics after a career teaching physical education. Swimming is a favorite pastime. “I like the competition,” she says of her participation on the USF Masters swim team. Most weeks, she swims three times. She reads science fiction as a way “to think about the larger universe.” Retired AT&T tech a sports fan Irving Rivera, 70, Mission Terrace Rivera, a former AT&T technician, loves sports. “Ana and I watch games together. We are sports fanatics. It brings us together.” They watch baseball, football, and basketball. He’s learned to silkscreen and makes T-shirts for friends. Online art … | December 20, 2023 | Bill Snyder |
| Intent at eight years old on making art everyone can see, Mexican artist forges path to widespread public acclaim | When he was eight years old, Victor Mario-Zaballa told his family he was going to be a public artist when he grew up. “I wanted to make art that everyone can see and enjoy.” Today, his tile and cut-metal works adorn the entrance to the 16th St. Mission BART station, the gates for the Visitacion Valley Club House, and many more public spaces around the country. Metalwork panels by Victor Zaballa surround the entrance to the 16th Street BART station. (Photo by Judy Goddess) A self-described “self-disciplined nerd,” Zaballa began studying art books when his classmates were still learning to read. Instead of devoting his free time to playing ball or rough-housing, he studied art books at the library or hung out with his two favorite adults. His grandmother made chocolates in her handmade molds. His great-aunt was a toymaker. “They were artists, always creating something,” he said. Zaballa grew up in Cuernavaca. (Photo courtesy of Victor Zaballa) They made an unusual threesome walking to town – two women in indigenous dress and the exceptionally tall, young boy. “My aunt would also be peering around for discarded cloth and metal to make toys,” Zaballa said. “That’s art, you use what you have.” It marked them as something of an anachronism in the … | December 15, 2023 | Judy Goddess |
| San Francisco podcaster and sister-city advocate earned his news chops freelancing for BBC in South America | Jim Herlihy spent years managing investments for major banks in South America. While stationed in hotspots like Chile and Ecuador, he used his insider knowledge to write about the region as a freelance reporter for the BBC and other news services. Years later and pushed into retirement, the 75-year-old New York native leveraged his time in the worlds of finance and journalism to build a podcast found today on nearly 20 platforms. “The San Francisco Experience” is a curated blend of news, interviews, and economic analysis designed to fit into a morning commute. Unlike many of the podcasters and social media stars who have proliferated in recent years, Herlihy says he makes a point of being fact- not opinion-based. and avoids stirring controversy for the sake of ratings: “I’m not Joe Rogan,” he says, referring to the flame-throwing podcaster and martial arts commentator.” Jim Herlihy prides himself on a “fact-based,” controversy-free podcast. (Photo by Colin Campbell) Herlihy, who works by himself, generally produces at least two podcasts a week, and his choice of topics and guests reflects his wide-ranging interests. He covered November’s APEC (Asia Pacific Economic Conference) with daily updates, interviews, and features. In one week in October, he readied three podcasts for distribution, including one on chances of finding life … | December 8, 2023 | Jan Robbins |
| Concert pianist gets a surprise from the past: One of her own compositions, performed in 1980, pulled from university archives for publication | It was 1980 and Katrina Krimsky prepared to perform at the Piano Creative Music Studio in Woodstock, New York. An accomplished, but at the time not widely known pianist, she launched into one of her own compositions, a 42-minute piece called “Soundscape.” Years later, critics praised the difficult, somewhat esoteric compositions she performed that day, one saying “Her solo recital is too much fun to have been unheralded for so long.” In the 43 years between her performance and that review in the New York Times, a recording of “Soundscape” and the other compositions she played that day languished in the music archives of Columbia University. Katrina Krimsky with her newest digital album, “1980.” (All photos by Colin Campbell) Now 85 and living on Potrero Hill, Krimsky was happily surprised when the owner of a niche record company called Unseen Worlds emailed her and proposed to publish the recording on CD. “It was a delightful surprise, as if it came out of the sky,” she said. “One never knows what’s coming.” Because the recording was on old-fashioned analog tape, the producer shipped it to Germany to be digitized. “I had no idea what it sounded like after all this time. I had to hear it.” By February of this year, the CD, … | November 28, 2023 | Bill Snyder |
| Apiarist, Aquatic Park swimmer, and volunteer first-responder is as busy as the bees in her backyard | Beekeeper Gigi Trabant remembers vividly that spring day 11 years ago in the backyard of her Outer Richmond home when she began her new hobby: She got stung 35 times. She had just been delivered her starter package: a bee family, or colony, in a small box: about 10,000 bees with the queen in a little cage. The next step was to install them in a hive – four or so stacked boxes to start, more added as the colony grows. A few days after putting the bees in their new home, Trabant reached into the hive to release the new queen. An angry mob landed on her hand and planted their stingers. Having misplaced the protective gloves that came with the kit, her skin was exposed in the mesh-topped garden gloves she substituted. But, following her training, she stayed calm and moved slowly, withstanding the pain until she got her queen settled. Then, she put the top of the hive back and ran to the kitchen for cold water to stop the swelling. Gigi Trabant has been tending bees in her backyard since 2011, and until recently was president of the San Francisco Beekeepers Association, which today has some 400 members, she said. (Photo by Colin Campbell) But before she could get … | November 24, 2023 | Tom Carter |
| SENIORS TALK: To drive or not to drive, that is the question. | Driving has always been part of the California dream. But as we age, driving becomes difficult or unaffordable for some of us. SeniorBeat went to the Castro Senior Center and asked seniors if they still drive their own cars, how they cope if they don’t, and do they think it would be fair to require seniors to take an additional driving test. (Cover photo Image by Freepik.) No life without cars Sergio Torres, 84, can’t imagine life without his five cars. He takes his convertible to the beach on sunny days and is always available to give a friend or a neighbor a ride. “Helping others is the reason to get up and get out of the house. So I do,” he said. He has plenty of room in his backyard, so parking isn’t a problem. When it comes to required extra testing for seniors, Torres, a retired insurance consultant living in West Portal, said no: “You know yourself when you’re not capable. Being old doesn’t mean you’re not adequate.” Broken nose in minor collision Vicki Lew, 78, hasn’t driven in more than a decade. She misses the convenience of a car and finds that the Muni line nearest her Balboa Park home — the M Ocean View – isn’t always reliable. … | November 20, 2023 | Bill Snyder |
| Gigs at worldwide festivals support entertainer’s humanitarian work: ‘Clowns without Borders’ and the ‘Medical Clown Project’ | Nurses smile and wave as a slim man in an oversized coat strides briskly past them. His wiry hair sticks out, Bozo-like from under his floppy hat, a ukulele is slung over his shoulder and he’s brandishing a gigantic paper sunflower. His nose is bright red and shiny over his KN95 mask. Popping into an elderly patient’s dim room at the San Francisco Campus for Jewish Living, he softly calls, “Hello, hello, so good to see you again.” Doffing his hat, he says, “Shall I put my hat back on?” then deftly rolls it down his leg to his foot and kicks it back onto to his head. “How do I look now? Better?” He gambols around the tiny room waving the sunflower, a cascade of confetti petals pouring out onto the floor. “Sometimes I can balance a flower on my nose,” he says, “it’s not easy.” A badge on his white coat reads “MEDICAL CLOWN. “ Moshe Cohen, team lead, and Calvin Ku, artistic director, for the Medical Clown Project after a recent performance at the Campus for Jewish Living. (Photo by Robin Evans) Moshe Cohen, aka Mr. Yoowho, visits patients at this skilled nursing and residential facility every two weeks. He’s part of the Medical Clown Project, which sends its … | November 3, 2023 | Naomi Marcus |
| SENIORS TALK : Even if they avoided Covid, there is an emotional toll and worries about others | Although the worst of the pandemic has apparently passed, Covid remains an important concern for seniors. SeniorBeat went to the Dr. George W. Davis Senior Center in the Bayview district and asked seniors how Covid has affected their lives, the lives of people close to them, and what they are doing to stay safe. (Photos by Colin Campbell) Was I doing the right things to stay safe? Geri Hill, 83, never had Covid, and although a few of her neighbors came down with the disease, none of her family members or close friends became seriously ill. “Emotionally it was very concerning. I wondered if I was doing the right things to stay safe. I spent a lot of time in my apartment, keeping busy with my painting and working in the garden.” She’s not wearing a mask as much as she did at the height of the pandemic, but said it’s likely that she will get the new Covid booster this fall. A retired elementary school adviser, she lives in the Bayview. Lost 20 lbs. and several good friends Albert “JJ” Jackson, 70, lives alone and became seriously ill with Covid last year. “I was so weak I couldn’t even dial 911. I dragged myself to the street. Luckily, a neighbor saw … | October 23, 2023 | Bill Snyder |
| Ikebana expert explains that a flower is not always just a flower, a stem not just a supporting actor | In the minimalist flower arranging practice of ikebana, certain rules must be followed: flowers are focal points; plant stems are not just supporting actors but lines in a work of art celebrating all of life. Begun centuries ago in China, then perfected in Japan, ikebana could be described as a physical manifestation of the Buddhist philosophy of the interconnectedness of all things. The typical three-pointed structure represents humanity, earth, and heaven. “Ikebana symbolizes the beauty of all components of the natural world, working in harmony. Ikebana practitioners don’t just use flowers and greenery but add twigs, moss, stones, and even fruit,” said Louise Ow Ling, stretching across a conference table to pass her card. Louise Ow Ling puts together flowers and stems in the Japanese ikebana, or shoka, style: triangular arrangements based on three main lines: shin, the central “truth” branch; soe, supporting branches; and tai, branches placed near the base to balance the structure. They symbolize heaven, man, and earth – thus the whole universe. (Photos by Colin Campbell) It doesn’t mention her career in healthcare or her performances with Chinatown’s Grant Avenue Follies cabaret dancers. It simply says, “Professor of Ikebana.” While there are no professorships as such in the art, there are degrees of certification, and Ow Ling has the highest, Level 1, or Nyumon, … | October 10, 2023 | Myra Krieger |
| Growing need for senior models opens unexpected new career for retired executive assistant | The linoleum on the floor of the attic bedroom in Seattle, where Alice Arikawa grew up, was embedded with the image of a prince looking longingly at the blond, blue-eyed, long-legged young woman. She would stare at it for hours. “I wasn’t anything like the blond girl – being short, stout, and Japanese, but I still dreamed that one day I would be gazed upon in that way,” she said. Alice Arikawa poses during a two-hour shoot at Peninsula Del Rey retirement community in Daly City last year. (All photos courtesy of Alice Arrikawa) That day came in 2003 when she was 66. She took her two grandchildren, six and four, to a modeling appointment at Models Inc. in San Francisco. She was surprised but thrilled when the owner, Sherrie Neves, asked if she’d be interested in modeling. “Of course, I jumped at the chance to make money at my age doing something fun and different,” said Arikawa. She had once entertained the notion because she liked clothes and fashion but thought you had to be really tall. She is just shy of five feet. This shot was for an ad for a Napa senior residential community built last year. Of the approximate 60 jobs Arikawa has gotten over the last 10 … | October 3, 2023 | Jan Robbins |
| High school programming prodigy keeps engaged in retirement with bridge, tennis and little spaceships | Bill Char was a tech bro before it was cool to be a tech bro. He learned to program a minicomputer when he was still in high school – back in the late ’60s, and early ’70s. He was so devoted to Star Trek that he conceived and helped develop a first-generation computer game called Trek73, taking it to multiple fan conventions. When he wasn’t programming or following the adventures of Captain Kirk, he played competitive bridge, a game he learned in sixth grade. Now, the retired software engineer teaches seniors to play that cerebral card game. Bill Char learned bridge from his mom when he was in sixth grade. Now he teaches other seniors to play. (Photo by Mary Anne Lewis) He learned from his mother, who raised him on her own. He played bridge with older schoolmates and adults, but other than his mother, he didn’t have any friends who were into programming. She wasn’t a Star Trek fan but did know something about computer languages. She was a COBOL programmer and later in her career a systems analyst for the U.S. Navy. Perfect career match From high school on, Char worked continuously as a programmer, systems analyst, or database engineer. He has an associate degree in computer science from … | September 25, 2023 | Mary Anne Lewis |
| Longtime business owners committed to keeping neighbors happy with chocolates from around the world and quirky packaging | Enter Jack Epstein’s cool, narrow shop and you walk a chocolate gauntlet down a central aisle: bars from around the world line the walls on either side. Individual confections, truffles, and foil-wrapped hearts perch on the lower shelves. No wonder the longtime Noe Valley business is called Chocolate Covered. He sources the sweet-smelling wares from across the globe, offering more than 900 types of chocolates from upwards of 20 countries. A veritable United Nations of Chocolate. “I get visitors from local chocolatiers who spend hundreds of dollars in the name of research,” Epstein said. “I am like a chocolate library.” They also come to talk about their newest creations, which he sometimes includes in his selections. Owner Jack Epstein pulls out one of his more than 5,000 unique tins for boxing chocolates that customers can choose from. He sells more than 900 types of chocolates from upwards of 20 countries. Epstein designs the covers, most of them from his photos of San Francisco street signs, above and, local businesses, below. (All photos by Colin Campbell) At 70 and 78, Jack and his partner, Marilyn Sitkoff, have been in business in Noe Valley for over 40 years, surviving in an increasingly tough retail environment. They have ridden the waves of the boom times, bust … | September 20, 2023 | Naomi Marcus |
| Alcatraz docent wants you to know there’s something special to see on the island – and it’s not just the cells of jailbirds | The 1.7 million tourists who visit Alcatraz every year are typically here to traipse through the cell block that held famous jailbird Al Capone. But in summer, there’s something special few are aware of. “Tourists don’t know this is a bird sanctuary,” said Kimberlie Moutoux, a 61-year-old retired elementary school art teacher and grandmother to seven who’s in her fifth season as a bird docent on this rock island in the bay. Alcatraz Island, a long mile from San Francisco, is a federally protected bird sanctuary and home to an awesome number of nesting seabirds, 30,000 in fact. July and August are the height of their reproductive season, which began in February. Alcatraz is a federally protected bird sanctuary, drawing tens of thousands of seabirds every year during their February to July nesting season. (Photo courtesy of Pixabay) Moutoux is one of 75 to 80 trained National Park Service volunteers. One to four work four-hour shifts any given day in July and August. They offer a brief education while providing intimate telescopic views of birthing activities in some of the thousands of nests in rookeries around the island. But Alcatraz is just one of Moutoux’s activities involving birds. A consummate birdwoman, she’s observing, monitoring, and counting birds – “most every day,” she said. … | September 14, 2023 | Tom Carter |
| Retired AT&T exec and architect of local online literary review has a passion for nurturing other people’s talents | When he was young, Joe Catalano loved to “play with words,” and some of his earliest childhood memories, he said, are of writing. But college, a career, and family intervened and he “put down his pen” for decades. Now 76 and retired after a long career practicing law, Catalano can be found writing, editing, and taking pictures for “Vistas & Byways,” an online literary magazine published out of San Francisco State University’s adult education program. “There are just a few things in life that are more delightful than being published, even though I can’t think of any of them right now,” he said. For that, he can thank Mike Lambert, who founded the magazine in 2015. While Lambert, 89, no longer leads “Vistas & Byways” – he now serves as its webmaster – he remains a well-liked and respected figure. “I’m willing to wager Mike is the only octogenarian webmaster of a literary magazine in the country, and he is funny, quirky, and skillful,” said Catalano. The magazine’s staffers say working on the journal he founded has kindled their passion for writing and publishing and inspired them to continue learning new things. 15th issue goes live The magazine is a semi-annual online journal publishing works of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and photography … | September 8, 2023 | Jan Robbins |
| Only views from his window: Artist overcoming shyness shares paintings reflecting a life of chaos converted to calm | Though Glenn Stultz has evolved from pencils and watercolors to acrylics and oil, his pictures depict the same view: backyards and houses seen from the windows of his Section 8 apartment in San Francisco’s Ocean View neighborhood. Too shy to enroll in a drawing class, he taught himself by studying big, coffee table books. His view – neat rows of houses framed by quiet streets running south to Daly City – became his subject. “I happen to be lucky enough to live somewhere where I have a good view, not a touristy view or anything, but a good view. So that’s what I do.” Glenn Stultz with one of his many paintings of the view from his apartment window. (All photos by Colin Campbell) He doesn’t consider himself a great artist: “Van Gogh, Caravaggio, and Sisley were real artists. While I get a lot out of my art, I’m not that good.” Yet his work is gaining some recognition, even a bit of income, and he’s learning to overcome the shyness born of a troubled background. Two shows at Spike’s coffee shop in the Castro, an exhibit at Café Seventy8 in Bernal Heights, and a fall talk at the I. T. Bookman Community Center in Ocean View, where he lives, are challenging … | September 3, 2023 | Judy Goddess |
| Sock hop celebrates first in-person event for LBFE since Covid amid director’s City Hall win to keep the seniors program going | Poodle skirts, Elvis tunes, and peppermint candy all combined to create a modern-day version of a ‘50s sock hop. But it wasn’t an event for teenagers. Dozens of seniors strutted their stuff on the dance floor, played bingo, and snacked on sweets. The sock hop was the first in-person event Little Brothers – Friends of the Elderly has held for clients since the beginning of the COVID-19 lockdown. LBFE Executive Director Cathy Michalec in front of a video monitor playing ’50s oldies. (All photos by Colin Campbell) It’s all part of the program’s mission, said Cathy Michalec, LBFE’s executive director since 2015. “What we try to do is connect with people who are socially isolated and lonely by providing support services to them and programs that are led by volunteers.” About 40 San Francisco seniors gathered on a recent Saturday afternoon at Calvary Presbyterian Church on Fillmore Street, swing skirts aswirl amid dance videos playing on huge screens and candle-lit tables. It was a setting for fun, conversation, and friendliness, all the things the many seniors who live alone are missing. Seniors and LBFE staff doing the twist. Festive in a red skirt, a white blouse, a red and black polka-dotted scarf, and brown loafers, Michalec hugged seniors as they arrived and … | August 30, 2023 | Mary Anne Lewis |
| For teacher and author whose parents fled both Nazis and Russians during WWII, history is in his blood | An anxious call from Henry Michalski’s mother, Felicia, beckoned him into a world of writing, publishing, book tours and promotion – things he knew little about. Henry Michalski spent 40 years researching his parents’ story. (Photo by Myra Krieger) “She wanted me to write her story and speak to not only the witnesses of the Holocaust but all who came after,” he said. “Apart from my two brothers, she designated me as the family historian. His parents and his mother’s brother survived, but, she told him, no one would believe what they went through, and the world needed to know. Felicia and Joseph, Polish citizens, met in 1938, just a year before their country was invaded, by Nazis from the west and Russian troops from the east. Germany and the Soviet Union had made a pact to split Poland. Felicia and her brother fled Poland on foot but were arrested trying to enter Russia. They were released, arrested again and separated. Felicia, as were masses of Polish citizens, Christians and Jews, was exiled to a slave labor camp in Siberia. Joseph, a Polish soldier, was arrested but later escaped a Russian POW camp. More than the satisfaction of fulfilling a parent’s wishes and completing a challenging task, Michalski’s first book, “Torn Lilacs: … | August 25, 2023 | Myra Krieger |
| Photography instructor says it’s easy – and a way for retirees to get to know their community, meet new people | Jeff Weston, who has been teaching photography part-time at City College of San Francisco since 1988, said people can learn photography easily by watching a video on YouTube. But that, he said can be lonely. Especially for seniors. As for what to photograph, he suggested just walking around the neighborhood. “We all like to think we know our neighborhood really well, but when we walk around and really look, we see new stuff,” he said. Jeff Weston, seated, goes over some photo shots with student Tamir Marder. (Photo by Mary Anne Lewis) “In the process, you may meet some new people and get to know your neighbors a little better. “One thing retired people need is a lot of community. You don’t necessarily have to have a computer. You just need a camera.” For Weston, his love affair with photography began in Bakersfield in the 1960s. He was a 10-year-old who wanted a camera, so he saved up $9.99 to buy one at his local drugstore. “Honestly, I’m not sure why I wanted a camera so much. But I had to have one. I bought the Kodak Hawkeye 44 because I liked the name,” he said. ‘Something magical’ It was when he started taking photos of his friends and his neighborhood that … | August 18, 2023 | Mary Anne Lewis |
| Care, confidence and connections shot portrait photographer to heights of San Francisco and Hollywood social worlds | Russ Fischella was struck by the cover of a Life magazine in the fall of 1970 that featured Martha Mitchell, the flamboyant socialite and wife of then-Attorney General John Mitchell. The glamorized photo transformed the conventionally pretty, middle-aged woman into a beauty, he recalled. Pinterest Naitonal Archives At the age of 20 and with only a few photography classes under his belt, he felt he had the skills and the ambition to do the same. “I knew I had what it takes to create this kind of transformation,” said Fischella, who had worked as a flight attendant and a runway model, and tried his hand at painting. And within the decade, he became one of San Francisco’s best-known portrait photographers. He quickly opened a photo studio, Russ Fischella Photography and Paintings in San Francisco. As he gained recognition, Fischella landed newsworthy clients from places like the Junior League, Nob Hill Gazette, and the San Francisco Opera, Symphony, and Ballet guilds. He became the official photographer for many debutante and cotillion balls. Russ Fischella. (All photos courtesy of Russ Fischella. “Whoever the client was, I made her (or him) look the way she (or he) sees herself/himself,” he said. “There is light in everyone; you just have to look for it. With each client, … | August 11, 2023 | Myra Krieger |
| Aqua aerobics instructor gathers devoted congregation with Motown and gospel music, party mood and empathy for the water timid | There are almost 80 bodies joyfully bobbing and weaving, swaying and swinging –ºmaking waves in the shallow lanes at the Martin Luther King Jr. pool on Carroll Street in the Bayview. Soul music pulses out from a large speaker on the pool deck. Like a queen in her water court, right at the heart of the action, aqua fitness instructor Shari Chadwick calls out her signature throaty whoop, “Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!” Eighty voices follow lustily, deafeningly: “Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!” From 40 to 80 people regularly attend Shari Chadwick’s aqua aerobics class at the Bayview’s Martin Luther King Jr. pool. (Video and all photos by Colin Campbell) Chadwick flashes a radiant smile, “Got to hear you breathing!” Bob, a regular, shouts out, “Men in the house!” The class is exceptionally diverse – men and women, teenagers to seniors, people with disabilities – defying the cliché of aqua exercise being for older White ladies. Raising her arms, glistening with water drops, over her head in what is almost a benediction, Chadwick intones, “Thank you, God, for getting all these beautiful bodies safely here today!” The music picks up as she laughs and calls, “Party over here!” “Party right there,” the aqua congregation jumps and waves in response. Fear of the pool Hard … | August 5, 2023 | Naomi Marcus |
| Running devotee expands friendships and perspectives joining groups for the physically disabled and those in addiction recovery | It’s 5:45 on a cool, damp Friday morning in the Tenderloin and Joe Kaniewski is about to take seven Tenderloin residents on a two-mile jog through the ‘hood. After brief warmup exercises and a sharing circle punctuated with a team cheer, the runners head over to Market Street. Less ambitious members of the group walk to a Starbucks, where they’ll all meet for coffee and conversation. Kaniewski, 57, is a runner. He runs competitively. He runs to build fellowship, and he facilitates running groups focused on the homeless, people with disabilities, and those recovering from substance abuse. “It’s not the running, it’s the friendship that makes these groups work,” he said. Part of the routine for Back on My Feet runners is a team cheer after warmups and before their run. Kaniewski is third from right. (All photos by Colin Campbell) The Friday run is sponsored by Back on My Feet, which has programs in 13 states, including California, and the District of Columbia. The organization focuses on the fellowship of running as a way to support the homeless and those coming out of homelessness. It recruits participants from halfway houses and shelters. Runners who stick with the program for several months are eligible for housing and employment services from Back on … | August 2, 2023 | Judy Goddess |
| Film by Chinatown native and his son continues to bring historic neighborhood’s political struggles and evolution to life | Cleaning out a garage isn’t usually the sort of task that changes one’s life. But when Harry Chuck, then 80, and his son were picking through the junk, they found something that did just that: a dust-covered, lacquered box that contained more than 10,000 feet of exposed film. Poster for ‘Chinatown Rising.’ Eight years later those long-forgotten skeins of film tucked away in a rented garage are the heart of a movie that has been shown more than 150 times in cities around the U.S. and on public television’s World Channel. It’s called “Chinatown Rising,” and it tells the story of that San Francisco neighborhood’s struggle for decent housing, ethnic studies, and equality. It’s a story that’s both personal — Chuck shot much of that footage himself – and political. “If you lose your history, you lose your identity,” said Chuck, now 88. The footage was shot during the tumultuous ‘60s, ‘70s, and ‘80s when Chuck became enamored with film and began to carry a camera everywhere he went – sometimes as an observer, often as a participant. “When I joined a demonstration, I’d just hand the camera to someone else and tell them to keep on filming.” It would be difficult for an outsider to tell the story of Chinatown with … | July 13, 2023 | Bill Snyder |
| Love of Broadway musicals brought Peace Corps volunteer, English teacher and would-be expat back to settle in America | “Bali Ha’i” the ballad from “South Pacific,” one of Tina Martin’s favorite Broadway musicals, beckoned her to “come away, come away … to me … your special island.” She followed that lure – of everything foreign – to live in Mexico in her junior year of college and after college, in Tonga, Spain and Algeria. Broadway musicals became a “good addiction” for the young Martin when she discovered her parents’ collection of 78 RPMs in their home attic. “My mother played the piano at our parties, and everyone sang musical numbers popular at the time,” Martin said, “and I memorized the lyrics to all the songs.” From then on, Martin would break out in song on happy as well as melancholy occasions. At times of parting, she would sing to her youngest sister, Suzy, “God alone knows when we shall see each other again (‘Fiddler on the Roof’).” Suzy would respond: “Then we shall leave it in her hands.” Tina Martin, second from right, with friends at Dear San Francisco, an acrobatic musical playing at Club Fugazi in North Beach. (All photos courtesy of Tina Martin) Her addiction to Broadway musicals was the reason she ultimately decided to settle back in the United States. A romantic dream “When I was 12, I … | July 10, 2023 | Jan Robbins |
| Journalism school coincided with a difficult time in my life – but I went to my 40th reunion anyway | A SENIOR BEAT COLUMN Here is an odd but true distinction: I graduated from Columbia University Journalism School in 1983 – in the last class to use typewriters. The sweet cacophony of the newsroom: Clickety Clickety Clack Clack Clack. Sticky keys, coffee spills, paper stacks. Mimeographs! The most sophisticated among us had Correct-O-Ball Electric typewriters. We used maps, which I never could fold up neatly. We called in our stories to the student newspaper from phone booths. We looked things up in the university’s “morgue file” of yellowed, brittle clippings. It was a terrible year in my life. Two months after I got to New York, my University of California-San Francisco medical student boyfriend broke up with me (in a letter that came in an envelope!) ‘I cried. I typed.’ New York Daily News columnist Jimmy Breslin advised Marcus’ journalism class to “use good verbs.” (Photo by Theresa Maggio) My hair began falling out copiously. I often sobbed. I was eating huge amounts in campus dining halls and Greek diners and weighed over 200 pounds. Still, New York was cool. I would cover the United Nations, refugee asylum trials, and local community boards. Mario Cuomo’s gubernatorial win. Our first day: A Circle Line cruise around Manhattan with Walter Cronkite. Our first week: … | July 3, 2023 | Naomi Marcus |
| With Elvis as a mentor, Salesian Boys & Girls Club leader makes sure all the kids get a ‘big hunk of love’ | Randal DeMartini is growing out his sideburns. It’s not just a fancy for a new look. It’s to raise money for the Salesian Boys and Girls Club of San Francisco. He’s the executive director but also a pretty accomplished Elvis impersonator, though he doesn’t call himself that. Randal DeMartini performing as Elvis at the Silver Legacy Hotel in Reno in 2021. (Photo clipped from YouTube video) The fundraiser will be held Aug. 26 at the Silver Legacy Hotel in Reno, where he performed with a live band and backup singers in 2021 to a crowd of 900. “One of my bucket list items was I wanted to be Elvis for one night,” he explained. He’s got the looks and he’s not bad at the vocals. “It was such a big hit they wanted me to do it again, and I said I’d probably never do it again.” He changed his mind on condition it be a fundraiser for the club. Tickets range from $50 to $100, and he hopes to raise more than $50,000. Located next to Saints Peter and Paul Church in North Beach the club offers a variety of after-school activities, classes, and sports clubs for $10 a year for any child between 8 to 18. Currently, 200 attend. “It’s … | June 28, 2023 | Mary Anne Lewis |
| Gigantic miniature train layout resurrected at Randall Museum by retired seniors, a student and an engineer who ‘thought they could’ | If you like trains, why not take a ride on the Sierra Nevada and Pacific Railroad, or as railroad buffs call it, the SN&P? It will take you over bridges, through mountain tunnels and snow sheds as you head to the foothills of the Sierra, passing through Napa, Richmond, Fairfield, Lodi, Stockton, Sonora, Summit, and Bridgeport. Visitors check out the 2,100-square-foot model railroad train setup in the basement of the Randall Museum at Corona Heights Park. (Photo by Robin Evans) How do you buy a ticket? Well, you can’t. The SN&P is a fictional miniature train layout built by model railroad enthusiasts and housed in the basement of San Francisco’s Randall Museum. But don’t confuse it with the electric trains you might have played with when you were a kid. The 52-year-old layout encompasses more than 2,100 square feet, some 800 feet of track, and more than 200 scale model train cars and locomotives. As many as six trains run at a time, trundling through a landscape of carefully crafted small towns and painted mountains made of chicken wire and concrete. There’s even a representation of a burning building surrounded by fire trucks with firefighters battling the blaze. Fascination hit early The SN&P was created by the now-defunct Golden Gate Model Railroad … | June 23, 2023 | Bill Snyder |
| No more hugs since Covid, but caregiver to chronically ill compensates with art projects, interesting activities, and for himself, a filmmaking sideline | The last 20 of Stan Stone’s nearly 70 years have been devoted to the lives of the chronically ill and dying. It’s a job that can present more than a few heart wrenches. Luckily, Stone is not only caring but upbeat. He’s got a sense of humor. He’s good-natured. If there’s anything that bothers him, it’s some of the changes wrought by Covid. “I’ve been a hugger for as long as I can remember,” he said. “Touch has always been so important, and now there feels like there is too much self-imposed distance between me and the world”. Stone with an art project at the Peter Claver Community. (Photo by Myra Krieger) So, his hugs these days take the form of the entertainment, outings and activities he organizes to brighten the days of the 32 people living with HIV at Catholic Charities Peter Claver Community. In another sense, they can be felt in the sometimes quirky, sometimes poignant short films he produces as a longtime member of barewitness films, an award-winning improv collective, many of them available on YouTube. As activities coordinator at Peter Claver, he innovates art projects, light exercises, movies, bingo, and outings to museums, Stow Lake, downtown plays and live entertainment. He recently brought in an opera singer. Using … | June 19, 2023 | Myra Krieger |
| ‘Dean Scream’ did little to deter first-time campaigner from a life of political activism for social justice and now elder issues | In 2004, when political hopefuls were lining up to challenge incumbent President George W. Bush, Maxine Anderson yearned for someone to really push a progressive agenda. But she’s not a Democrat. “I’m a long, long time registered ‘declined to state,’ ” she said. “I don’t believe either of the two parties serve the interests of regular folk well. I also try to not label myself, so I’d have said that to me, as an informed citizen, Bush the younger’s policies were abhorrent to me. As a person I found him vacuous.” She found what she was looking for when a friend brought up Howard Dean, then governor of Vermont. Here was a strong progressive. Unlike many Democrats, he had opposed the war in Iraq. And although many Democratic presidential nominees favored expanding healthcare access, including John Kerry, who won the nomination but lost the election, Dean’s plan was the most comprehensive. Universal health care was – and still is – a goal of Anderson’s. “He oversaw the expansion of universal health care for children and pregnant women in his state, which made me feel we could get to universal health care in this country,” she said. So, she volunteered with his campaign, her first – and short but not last – foray into … | June 6, 2023 | Jan Robbins |
| Opera veteran helps wartime veterans with PTSD by guiding them to create their own music and poetry | Richard Harrell has studied and thought about the power of music and the human singing voice for much of his 70 years. “There is nothing in life that fires up your brain as much as music—nothing!” he’s concluded. After decades of singing on the opera stage and directing professionally, that insight led him to found and now direct Heroes’ Voices, a nonprofit dedicated to helping veterans cope with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. His tools: Music and poetry created by the vets themselves. Richard Harrell is the founder of Heroes’ Voices, now in its 11th year. (Photo by Myra Krieger) Heroes’ Voices, now in its 11th year, hosts guitar classes for vets, singalong sessions, and poetry readings. Before the pandemic restricted in-person events, music therapists, clinical nurses, and psychologists participated in the classes. It works with numerous veterans-focused organizations and hopes to resume in-person visits to imprisoned vets when restrictions are lifted. Vets are invited to read their poetry during workshops. “It (has been) such a success that we created the National Veterans Poetry Contest, which we ran for three years,” Harrell said. “We were able to publish 40 poems of the semi-finalists, and we made a poetry book.” One of the advisors to the contest was famed poet, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, a vet. Navy … | May 31, 2023 | Myra Krieger |
| Uncle’s stolen Buick, used in gang killing, triggered lifelong interest in crime, for ‘Notorious San Francisco’ author and Crooks Tour operator | The average armchair sleuth or true crime addict thinks he or she knows something about humans breaking the law. They haven’t met Paul Drexler. The Ingleside Terrace man can spew details of a crime that happened almost a hundred years ago, half a world away. But his specialty is San Francisco. Paul Drexler is working on a new book about real-life murders made into movies. (Photo by Mary Anne Lewis.) “San Francisco has a lot of criminals,” he said. “In some ways, it was founded on crime. His fixation on crime led to his 2019 book “Notorious San Francisco: True Tales of Crime, Passion and Murder,” and a San Francisco Examiner column. He has a host of other projects going, from a second book about true crimes in the movies to walking “crooks tours” about historically crime-ridden neighborhoods in San Francisco like Chinatown and a nine-block area centered on a three-block stretch of Pacific Avenue, between Montgomery and Stockton streets once known as the Barbary Coast. Drexler, 75, said his interest in crime started in the mid-1950s when his aunt gave him a book about gang rule in New York from 1900 to 1940. Then his uncle’s 1953 Buick was stolen and used in a gangland killing in Weehawken, New Jersey. “The … | May 24, 2023 | Mary Anne Lewis |
| Launched by a friendly job counselor he still remembers, lensmaker finds the perfect fit for a lifelong trade | When Jose Minor was 16, his Mexican-born parents sent him from his hometown of Richmond, California, to Mexico, where he had never been. It was 1969. They were worried he was getting into trouble at home,” he said. “So, they sent me and my younger brother to Grandpa to get straightened out.” Minor has four siblings, three brothers and one sister, and his parents didn’t have a lot of time to supervise teenagers in the tumultuous Bay Area of the ’60s. His father was a sheet metal worker, his mom a cook. “My whole life she cooked at Gonzales Mexican Restaurant in Richmond,” Minor said. Jose Minor has been making eyeglass lenses for 50 years, nearly 20 of them in San Francisco at the office of Drs. Bruce and David Stamper. (Photo by Naomi Marcus) His grandfather was a retired general in the Mexican Army who had fought with Pancho Villa and later against Villa. “He was tough!” Minor chuckles, “and it worked.” His grandfather taught him to play chess and told him stories of his adventures. “I loved my grandpa,” he said, “and we stayed a year.” Since then, it’s his grandfather who has traveled to visit the Minor family. His grandfather advised him to enlist in the U.S. military when … | May 18, 2023 | Naomi Marcus |
| Writer unearths family ancestry in novel exploring Pacific Northwest when fur traders and American settlers collaborated and clashed on Indian lands | Alix Christie at one of her latest book signing events. (Photo by Colin Campbell) You might say Alix Christie’s first historical novel was inspired by her interest in words. “Gutenberg’s Apprentice” charts the creation of the printing press in medieval Germany and the men behind it. She began her writing career as a journalist. She was a reporter and columnist for the Oakland Tribune and foreign service editor for the San Francisco Chronicle in the late ’80s/early ’90s, as well as a freelance and short-story writer. Her second novel, just out in bookstores, captures the cultural upheavals in the wilds of the Pacific Northwest through the story of one of her own ancestors. “The Shining Mountains,” begins in 1838 as Angus McDonald, the younger brother of her great, great, great grandfather, arrives from the Scottish Highlands at age 21 to work as a fur trader for The Hudson’s Bay Company. Angus McDonald, the younger brother of Alix Christie’s great, great, great grandfather. (Photo courtesy of Alix Christie.) He’s among the many British and French traders building relationships and business with the hundreds of native tribes who have occupied the region for millennia. As American settlers begin arriving, backed by the military in their quest for land, Angus and his wife, a relative … | May 3, 2023 | Tom Carter |
| As kids, we want to be older; when we’re older, not so much. Contemplating our mission as we experience the stages of aging. | GUEST COLUMN My husband’s older cousin, Stuart, told an amusing story some years back. It went like this: As was his usual Saturday custom, he went into his local McDonald’s restaurant and ordered a coffee. The cashier took his order and rang him up. “That’ll be $1.09, sir.” Stuart was surprised. “No, I think you made a mistake. That should have been $1.85.” Smiling widely at Stuart, the cashier said sunnily “Well, sir, I gave you the senior discount!” Stuart was flabbergasted, thinking to himself “No, no, no! I’m not a senior. I’m not a senior yet!” It was a funny story a few years ago. Not quite as funny to me now, I guess. I’ve been retired for almost a year. This experience has changed me in many ways. And since I’ve retired, I’ve been thinking… I talked to an older friend today about this topic. She had been to the doctor yesterday to discuss some physical issues, about which she is embarrassed and emotional. The visit didn’t seem to bring any resolution, with no diagnosis given. Her reactions and our conversation about them started this thought process again. When I get to 25 The passing of years used to be a count-up. When I get to 25, I want to … | April 28, 2023 | Christine Eldridge |
| Potrero Avenue ‘collective’ soup kitchen is the hostess with the mostest: Everything’s free, no government paperwork or religion attached | It’s lunchtime at Martin de Porres House of Hospitality, and the Potrero Avenue soup kitchen is abuzz with activity. A few dozen people are sitting down to a meal of macaroni salad, vegetable soup, and tea. Others are lined up for a shower. A volunteer is distributing socks and other clothes, and a few guests are being treated to foot and leg massages. Volunteer Mim Locke in the courtyard of the Martin de Porres House of Hospitality. (Photo by Bill Snyder) Everything at Martin’s is free. There are no eligibility checks, no proselytizing. There are no paid bosses, no salaries, and jobs are loosely defined. “We’re run as a collective; it’s a get-it-done model,” said Mim Locke, 76, who has been volunteering at Martin’s for some 36 years. Although it’s named after Martin de Porres, a Peruvian Catholic saint who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries, the 53-year-old soup kitchen is non-denominational. “We are a community of people with diverse spiritual practices, although our roots are in and we continue to be inspired by the Catholic Worker Movement,” the group’s website states. Service is the mantra you’ll hear when meeting volunteers here. “Service for me is a joy. You see miracles here every day,” said Abby Lehrman, a longtime … | April 25, 2023 | Bill Snyder |
| Retired teacher who is legally blind memorizes the streets she travels to avoid “trippers” | It’s a walk of only about two-tenths of a mile from Meg Gorman’s apartment on Laguna Street to Geary Boulevard, which she crosses on her way to the Japan Center. But Gorman is legally blind and must contend with more than a dozen places where the sidewalk is broken or raised by tree roots. She calls those spots “trippers,” and tripping, of course, is exactly what she strives to avoid. “I’m so afraid of falling,” she said. As a defense mechanism, the 79-year-old retired teacher has memorized the dangerous spots on the west side of Laguna Street and deftly avoids them with the aid of her white cane and walking stick. The east side of the street “is so bad, I never walk on it.” Gorman getting ready to cross Geary Boulevard on her way to the Japan Center. (All photos by Colin Campbell) Falls are dangerous for anyone, but for seniors, a tumble on concrete can be life-threatening. Laguna is lined with eucalyptus trees, a fast-growing species that develops thick, gnarly roots capable of pushing up and cracking a sidewalk or curb. Most of the broken spots are marked with green paint, a sign that the city is aware of the problem. Yet, in the year or so Gorman has lived … | April 20, 2023 | Bill Snyder |
| Sunset native’s determination to show district past fascinating not boring sparks late-in-life career as San Francisco historian | With the exception of Golden Gate Park, San Francisco’s Sunset District is well off the beaten tourist track. The sprawling neighborhood bordering the south side of Golden Gate Park has its attractions – Ocean Beach, Stern Grove, Depression-era murals – but its foggy weather, wide and sometimes treeless streets, and row upon row of lookalike, single-family homes, and boxy fourplexes hardly make it a travel destination. Lorri Ungaretti has written five books on the history of San Francisco with a focus on its neighborhoods and local notables. (Photo courtesy of Lorri Ungaretti) But Lorri Ungaretti knew of its many pleasures, both simple and sophisticated. She turned a native daughter’s curiosity about her childhood neighborhood into a late-in-life career as a chronicler of the district and its history. “People thought the Sunset was so boring, that it didn’t have any history,” said Ungaretti, now 70. “I proved them wrong.” When she could find no books on the history of the Sunset, Her mother, Dorothy Bryant, a playwright and novelist, told her she should create one. So, at 51, she embarked on a career as a local historian and writer. “I loved spending so much time finding out about it and putting together pieces of the puzzle,” she said. Over the years she’s supported … | April 17, 2023 | Jan Robbins |
| ‘Whatever happened to ‘that girl?’ Traveling while older offers challenges but nothing this former tour guide couldn’t handle | SENIOR BEAT COLUMN Whenever I go through airport security, I light up their machines like a Chernobyl chicken. “Female Assist!” the cry goes up for a pat down and I get that look. I explain that a car wreck in my youth left titanium holding my knee and hip together, but somehow my images show me riddled with hot spots all over. Some “female assists “are gentle, some not so much. Air travel was stressful for me before Covid. So, before flying to a small Central American country for a wedding I had to consider, let’s see: TSA, Customs, Covid, Masks/No Masks), proof of vaccination, bottled water only, and my own recent Covid infection and continuing shortness of breath. Plus being suspended 5,000 feet above sea level. And finally, being, well, older than I was before the pandemic, the question was: To go or not to go. What happened to the intrepid tour guide I used to be? The Naomi of the 1980s who took tour groups on the Trans-Siberian Railroad, and to Azerbaijan, Tashkent, and Samarkand on rickety Aeroflot planes that smelled of sour cream and rode like amusement park rides? Naomi Marcus, left, found her visit to Antigua, a small colonial town in Guatemala, to be relaxing and refreshing despite … | April 13, 2023 | Naomi Marcus |
| Norms never held her back: Championship horsewoman, groundbreaking feminist, daring travel writer | Diane LeBow was a solo traveler when “one was an odd number for a woman traveler,” she has written. And she visited countries and people not on the typical tourist list: Libya, Morocco, Syria, Sulawesi, Indonesia, Mongolia, and Afghanistan. She stayed from weeks to months, got to know the locals, and had romances with some. Today, she is president emerita of Bay Area Travel Writers. Her stories and photographs have been widely exhibited and published. Her first book, the 2021 “Dancing on the Wine-Dark Sea: Memoir of a Trailblazing Woman’s Travels, Adventures and Romance,” is an international Book Awards finalist. LeBow on a camel ride in the Libyan Sahara, 2004. (All photos courtesy of Diane LeBow) LeBow was a daring traveler. She dove with sharks, shared a meal with Corsican rebels, rode a stallion in a blizzard on the Mongolian steppes, assisted in writing a declaration of women’s rights for the 2001 Afghan constitution, and savored a few love affairs. One was with a French baron she met at an airport check-in. He suggested he help her with her luggage and sit together on the flight. “I felt as if we were acting out a Henry James novel,” said LeBow, who speaks several languages including French. Now 82, LeBow is anticipating her … | April 10, 2023 | Jan Robbins |
| Buttons, strings and fabric scraps: Artist creates intricate designs and portraits from bits and pieces | Marie Bergstedt finds art in the everyday: buttons, fabrics, bits of discarded clothing, and string. She combines those mundane materials into expressive representations of a person she’s known or observed. Her subjects range from relatives, friends and associates to street people. A self-described fabric artist, she works with natural and synthetic fibers to create her pieces. Most become wall hangings. The rest take shape in varied configurations – from full-length gowns to colorfully decorated old telephones to portraits made with buttons. Bergstedt with one of the gowns she has created. (Photo by Colin Campbell) “I am not a typical fiber artist,” Bergstedt said in an interview in her Portola neighborhood home. The cheerful, 78-year-old grandmother laughs as she recounts her life’s ups and downs, and the relationships that have inspired her creations. Hand skills and healing She’s wanted to be an artist all her life, but grew up “poor and practical,” she said. Still, she made her first sale – crocheted doilies sold to relatives – at age 8. She learned crocheting, knitting, embroidering, stitching, and sewing in childhood – on her own and from an aunt. Other skills, like photography, which she also uses in her art, came from various classes she took as an adult. It wasn’t until her 60s … | April 7, 2023 | Tom Carter |
| Senior dance troupe keeps cabaret alive in Chinatown; its director hit the world stage as a teen, after a surprise call from a famous landlord | Cynthia Yee’s mother got her started in ballet at the age of 10, getting advice on a teacher from their landlady. Yee practiced every day in her apartment building’s spacious lobby, dreaming of dancing on the world stage. Dorothy Toy and her dancing partner Paul Wing. Seven years later, the landlady, Dorothy Toy, called back. Toy was no ordinary landlord. She was a dancing diva frequently tagged as Asia’s Ginger Rogers, and she needed to fill a spot in her dance troupe. “We had little contact over the years,” Yee said. “She only suspected that I might have the talent.” Cynthia Yee is on the left on the top row in this photo of the Toy troupe. She is third from the right in the photos below. (Photos courtesy of Cynthia Yee) Everything changed for Yee that year – 1963. She passed up college and became a part of nightclubs across the U.S., Europe, Puerto Rico, and Canada. Even today, at 77, those days remain her most joyful memories. “We opened for headliners like Red Skelton and Patti LaBelle. These seven years were the best in my life,” she said. “I felt so privileged.” Just as she had dreamed, she became a dancer on the world stage – for a time. “I … | April 3, 2023 | Myra Krieger |
| Jerry Barrish had a knack for rustling: supplies in the Army, bail for ’60s demonstrators, and scrap plastics for his quirky art sculptures | On a glistening Sunday between January’s storms, Jerry Ross Barrish welcomed a throng of visitors to the opening of his sculpture exhibit at the M. Stark Gallery in Half Moon Bay. The lanky, 83-year-old San Francisco native and retired bail bondsman smiled broadly and said to a guest: Jerry Barrish at the opening of his art exhibit in Half Moon Bay. Visitors line up below. (All photos by Colin Campbell.) “Usually, I know about 40 to 50 percent of people at my openings; this is great, I only know about 10 percent of everybody here.” Tall, with bright eyes and a shock of white hair, Barrish is wearing a long black coat and hat. His hands are scarred from years of melting and molding plastics and mishaps with a hot glue gun. His pieces are generally built from discarded plastics of varied shapes: cylindrical, round, oblong or square. His sculptural assemblages are a kaleidoscope of humanity and the animal world. Check his work and you’re liable to see wild-eyed cellists, jazz musicians, demure brides, banjo-playing cowboys and tangoing lovers — not to mention a menagerie of cool cats, penguins, foxes and sly dogs, all made with found materials. Some are constructed from umbrella handles, takeout containers, car and vacuum cleaner … | March 17, 2023 | Naomi Marcus |
| Educator challenged the status quo at an early age, helped found SF Women’s Building and now active in California Senior Legislature | Anne Warren was never shy. In high school, she shocked school administrators at a public meeting. The integration they were proud to proclaim in her hometown’s sole public high school did not exist. As a young Black woman, she described deeply divided racial and economic divisions. “The kids who gathered in the front hall were all White, athletes, and their families had money. The back hall kids were White and poor and didn’t belong to any school group. The Black kids gathered in the auditorium.” Anne Warren has challenged inequities from high school on. (All photos by Colin Campbell) It wasn’t the first time she encountered the racial divide, and it wasn’t to be the last time she fought for marginalized groups. At 84 years and retired, Warren chairs the Legislative Committee of the California Senior Legislature, which supports about 10 bills a year with roughly half passed. It’s an absorbing job: eliciting issues from the public, interest groups and legislatures, identifying solutions, then crafting legislation and finding legislators to introduce, co-author and carry the bill. One of their successes was the creation of “Silver Alert,” for missing elderly or the developmentally or cognitively impaired. Though seniors go missing every day, the system has rarely been used and a CSL committee is … | March 4, 2023 | Judy Goddess |
| Nonprofit worker/consultant championed community improvements through collaboration with schools and juvenile services | Some people like to fix cars, children’s toy, or broken furniture. Bruce Marcus likes to fix nonprofit organizations. Over a 38-year career in nonprofit work, management and consulting, he initiated innovative programs in juvenile justice and drug and alcohol education, championing partnerships between nonprofits and public schools. Hoping to share his vision of nonprofit managers as agents of change, he wrote a book, “Mastering Your Role as a Nonprofit Manager,” published in 2021. Bruce Marcus shows nonprofit managers how they can be agents of change in his 2021 book, “Mastering Your Role as a Nonprofit Manager.” (All photos by Jan Robbins) One example was a juvenile justice intervention program in Alameda County, a first-of-its kind collaboration at the time between a nonprofit and a law enforcement agency to entice delinquent youth to stay in counseling. Another was a partnership with Oakland schools to help teachers maintain classroom control. He landed in the nonprofit world while attending the University of Massachusetts at Amherst in 1972, with a major in mass communications, and years later, while working on a master’s degree at San Francisco State University. It was in public administration – “the closest you could get to a nonprofit management education in 1982,” he said – after which he was hired onto the … | February 15, 2023 | Jan Robbins |
| Like a Santa Claus for dogs of the homeless, he travels miles, his cart loaded with food, blankets, medications and toys | It’s a chilly January morning, and Paul Crowell is pulling a heavy steel wagon up a street in the Bayview. It’s loaded with hundreds of pounds of pet food, animal medications, blankets and pet toys. He turns south on Selby Street, a desolate stretch of road under the elevated 280 freeway. He’s there to drop off sacks of dog food for three of his “babies,” a trio of pit bulls owned by Amelia, a 34-year-old woman who has lived in a tiny blue trailer on that block for about two and a half years. “Don’t get too close,” Crowell warns. But two of the dogs – Cookie and Mr. Duke — immediately nuzzle up to him as he slips them a handful of treats. Paul Crowell’s donations are a big help to Amelia and her two pit bulls, Cookie and Mr. Duke. Below, she comforts Nyx, who was injured in a dog fight. (All photos by Colin Campbell) A third dog, Nyx, is recovering from injuries suffered in a fight with her litter mates. Crowell soothes her and slips a doggie tranquilizer into a blob of peanut butter to help her calm down. He pulls a blanket from the cart and places Nyx on it. Before he leaves, he drops off … | February 12, 2023 | Bill Snyder |
| Emigre sheds shame of early surgery scars through founding of Chinatown performing arts center, writing scripts and poetry | Clara Hsu’s father owned a music bookstore in San Francisco’s Chinatown. (Photo by Myra Krieger) Clara Hsu is sitting at a studio upright piano in her office at the Clarion Performing Arts Center in Chinatown. There’s a box of crayons and a stack of children’s books on the piano bench. She’s wearing a black and white print dress over long black sleeves, a contrast to her reddish, bob-cut hair She talks about her love of music and the influence of her father, and their power to heal the shame of a disfiguring adolescent surgery that made much of her younger life a painful struggle. “I felt inadequate so much of the time because of the appearance of my body. The scars deeply affected the decisions I made – such as my marriage, which after 21 years, was dissolved.” The office itself is a testament to her recovery. At 66, Hsu is the founder and executive director of the center, a hub of theatrical and musical performances, children’s theater, poetry reading, and Asian-American-focused cultural events. Hsu, who taught piano for years, turned to poetry and other forms of writing as an adult, solace from an unhappy marriage. Her first book of poems, “Mystique,” received honorable mention at the 2010 San Francisco Book Festival. … | January 30, 2023 | Myra Krieger |
| Colorful crates carry arts and communications retiree’s tools to better the brains of children | If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales. Albert Einstein Suzanne Korey loves giving away books to kids. By her latest count, she’s handed off 22,650 over the last two years. She loads her silver, 6-foot-long van with hundreds of books and heads off to spread the words at least nine times a month. She takes her “Book Wagon” to the Mission and Bayview neighborhoods, and nearby parks, schoolyards, special events, and select sidewalks, attracting scores and sometimes hundreds of kids and adults. The books are for infants, toddlers, and children up through their early teens. The books are discards from the San Francisco Public Library’s Community Redistribution Program, which she taps twice a month and sorts into color-coded crates. The colors indicate reading levels: Yellow ones for very simple books with lots of pictures, meant for an adult to read to a child, with titles like “Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus.” Yellow crates hold those with chapters and plots for young teenagers. Suzanne Korey, right, and a helper drag a cartload of books to their next giveaway site. She gets the books from the San Francisco Public Library’s Community Redistribution Program. (Photo … | January 28, 2023 | Tom Carter |
| Longtime Laguna Honda Hospital residents hang on under cloud of relocation from their longtime home and safe haven | When forty-five-year-old Felipe Martinez suffered a massive stroke that left him unable to stand, walk, swallow or handle any of the activities of daily living, the one thing he was certain of was that Laguna Honda Hospital and Rehabilitation Center wasn’t for him. “That’s for the elderly, that’s not me,” he thought at the time. Now in his early 60s and after 17 years of intensive physical therapy as a resident patient there, he’s regained some of those skills and his feelings about the hospital have changed. “I don’t know what I will do if they close Laguna Honda down.” Felipe Martinez, sitting in front of a display of patient art at Laguna Honda Hospital, has been living there the past 17 years. He’s one of many resident patients hoping the hospital is able to correct problems that may still force its closure. (Photo by Judy Goddess) His worry is well-founded. Last Spring, under pressure from federal regulators, Laguna Honda was forced to begin transferring patients to other facilities. At the time, the only available skilled nursing home beds were in Modesto or Watsonville, far from Martinez’s family. “I’m scared. My family lives in San Francisco; they couldn’t visit me. I’d be very lonely.” (After pleas from the city, the transfers were … | January 15, 2023 | Judy Goddess |
| My fashion wants are clashing against the lure of fast clothing and my need to be a good environmental steward | A SENIOR BEAT COLUMN Several recent online purchases of clothing that turned out to be flubs got me to soul searching. Maybe if they had been winners, I wouldn’t but they weren’t. As a woman who enjoys fashion, I want new clothes, but thought: Do I need them? I remember becoming aware of the difference between wanting and needing one day when I was in Walgreen’s. I observed a kid, maybe three or so, screaming at his mother, “I need that (fill in the blank) toy!” OMG, I said to myself, have advertisers accomplished their goal of obsession indoctrination in children? The American obsession with buying things we may not need was brought into focus after 9/11 when President Bush said the best way to heal our wounds was “to go shopping.” Discount outlets like Ross are awash in “fast clothing.” Talk about shopping, a friend who owned a clothing store in San Anselmo said she only wanted customers who had the “disease.” What was that I asked. “Someone who will buy not only the skirt and blouse, but the belt, the scarf, the earrings and the necklace…and a jacket to go with.” I don’t have a full-blown disease, but I’m certain I have a more than mild case. I am … | January 9, 2023 | Jan Robbins |
| Vibrant B&B owner transcended constricted, somber childhood as partygoer and planner, vintage costume designer and decorator | Growing up in a strict Orthodox Jewish family in Brooklyn, New York, Sheila Ash almost never had a birthday party. Celebrations were reserved for the High Holy Days observed in the fall. So, when this youngest daughter grew up, she became a partygoer, a party thrower, an event and wedding planner, hostess, costume designer and fashion consultant – not to mention tour guide. She juggles these roles with her main gig: proprietress of a bed and breakfast, where she also lives, on Guerrero Street called Noe’s Nest. She has run the establishment for more than 23 years, but work does not keep her from play. On one December weekend, the slender, 75-year-old brunette orchestrated a murder-mystery-themed dinner party at Noe’s Nest, attended the Dickens Fair in a crimson gown she designed, went to a gallery opening and then attended a monthly salon (live music and readings) on the 24th floor of the Ritz Carlton Residences. Dressed for the Bay Area’s annual Great Dickens Christmas Fair in one of her costume creations, Sheila Ash poses in her abundantly decorated living room. (All photos by Colin Campbell) As she swans about town, she is often accompanied by her boyfriend, Dave Kong, a musician who works in information technology for a law firm. A story … | January 7, 2023 | Naomi Marcus |
| Retired Fortune 500 development consultant brings home her lifelong interest in improving cities and communities | Renee Berger’s childhood was full of ice cream and Yankee games and parents who had “great faith and trust in me.” They were the first of many who were to guide her on her way to and through a career as a management consultant for Fortune 500 companies, top public and private foundations, government agencies and think tanks. “I had several role models and mentors that guided me and opened doors,” she said. Her father managed Addie Valins, an ice cream parlor/restaurant near Yankee Stadium in the Bronx where the Bergers lived. “I can still remember the names and numbers of some of the players who came into our place after their games for root beer floats and egg creams: Bobby Richardson, No. 1, and Tony Kubek, No. 10,” she said. “My friends were jealous.” Renee Berger, center, with Hilary Schiraldi, right, president of the Glen Park Association, and board secretary Bonnee Waldstein, left, at the September dedication of the “Burnside Mural.” (All photos courtesy of Renee Berger) Berger was a latch-key kid who entertained herself after school taking apart music boxes. When she was unable to put them back together, she said, her father “told me to map out the pieces so I would find my way back and that advice … | January 2, 2023 | Jan Robbins |
| Love of food and baseball frame a life of service to the city of San Francisco | Ricardo Hernandez, a die-hard fan of both the San Francisco Giants and food of all kinds, had no idea that after retirement, he’d have a change of heart. From his youth in Puerto Rico through moves to other countries and settling in San Francisco – where he held positions as city Rent Board director and Public Administrator and Guardian – he enjoyed a lifetime romp through a variety of international cuisines – visible in the 264 pounds on his 5-foot-7 frame. His doctor told him, ”You’re the healthiest fat man I know,” he recalled with a thin smile. He was simply doing what his mother told him back in San Juan, where he was born: “No matter where you are, eat what’s put before you.” The Giants’ health committee had a special reward for its chairman of seven years. (All photos by Tom Carter) At 13, he was shaving and hungry “all the time.” He was chubby as a kid, yet quick on his feet for the daily sandlot baseball games he loved. But he wasn’t much for the long haul. No problema. Baseball was the daily vitamin Hernandez consumed along with a rich Puerto Rican diet. It was a regimen he carried on into adulthood. He has collected 670,000 baseball … | December 22, 2022 | Tom Carter |
| Urban Alchemy helps the formerly incarcerated find stability while as ‘practitioners,’ they help stabilize the Tenderloin | It’s the day after Thanksgiving and Chris Purcell’s corner of the Tenderloin is uncharacteristically quiet. There’s a couple of young men sitting in the gutter smoking weed, a few homeless people pushing loaded shopping carts, and the occasional loud argument on the street. “The weed smokers don’t bother us; we’re not here to bust chops,” he says. Purcell, one of a dozen or so employees of Urban Alchemy who patrol a section of the neighborhood every day, is there to push flagrant drug users and sellers away from the area and do his best to calm the sporadic violence that plagues a neighborhood whose colorful past and troubled present have made it a national symbol of failed urban policies. Holidays tend to be quiet, he said. Nearby Hastings College of Law and City Hall are shuttered. But the quiet doesn’t last. By 10 the next morning, a fatal shooting erupts on a stretch of Leavenworth Street Purcell often patrols but was not staffed that morning. Chris Purcell in the Oasis, a little park maintained by Urban Alchemy at Hyde and Turk streets. (Photos by Bill Snyder) Urban Alchemy is a nonprofit that hires formerly incarcerated people to patrol streets in neighborhoods experiencing high drug use, homelessness, and violence. The company calls those workers … | December 9, 2022 | Bill Snyder |
| Before ‘Riverdance,’ Irish dance school owner was learning the steps as soon as she could walk | “Riverdance,” the phenomenal stage performance of floor-pounding Irish stepdance hit American shores in 1996. But Irish dance had been in Mary Jo Murphy-Feeney’s bones for half a century. “My mother taught me to step dance as soon as I could walk,” she said. For the Irish, step-dancing has been as much a part of life as the sun rising in the East. In Ireland’s Catholic schools, nuns taught step dancing’s cousin ceili, pronounced “kay-lee,” which is something like American square dancing. Both were learned at home or in private classes. Mary Jo Murphy-Feeney with Grace, Jamie, Brendan, Delaney, Zell, Rian and Molly, some of her dance students who participated in the recent Western U.S. Region Oireachtas, or competition, at the San Francisco Marriott on Nov. 18. (All photos and video by Colin Campbell) Both were party fun in family homes, where basement floors were fashioned to accommodate dancing. They were performed at feisanna (festivals, picnics and social events). But competitions, from local to global, focus on step dancing. Despite its sharp, rhythmic sounds, step dancing makes her feel “light as air,” Murphy-Feeney said. Both Murphy-Feeney’s parents danced. So did her sister – and now her sister’s granddaughters. Her husband, an Irishman and PG&E employee who passed away in his 50s, did the ceili and … | December 4, 2022 | Jan Robbins |
| Not inclined to settle down, world traveler has lived from far north to far south and sometimes in between | Brenda Joyce travels light. Her one piece of luggage – a black suitcase – at the ready, the peripatetic 82-year-old divides her time between San Francisco and Chiang Mai, Thailand. They’re just two of the stops on a global itinerary that has taken her to the literal ends of the earth – the Arctic and the Antarctic. “I wanted to travel around the world, I just never thought it would be north to south,” Joyce said of her time in northernmost Alaska and an island near the South Pole. Brenda Joyce sought travel, not a family. (Photo by Judy Goddess) Not for her was the conventional life of a woman born before World War II “I never wanted to marry, I never wanted children.” Sometimes Joyce is a tourist on vacation. Other times, she rents an apartment or room and makes a country her temporary home. Hearing about an unusual way of life, an ancient ruin or historic temple inspires Joyce to see for herself. The youngest of three sisters, Joyce was born on a farm in Kentucky but grew up in Southern California. After graduating from high school in Long Beach, she used her babysitting money to pay for her first trip to Europe before returning to finish college at what is … | December 1, 2022 | Judy Goddess |
| Deciding ‘that’s not who I am,’ heavy drinker quits then uses his experience – of trauma, homelessness, addiction – to help others | It’s not quite six o’clock on a June morning in 2021, and the fire alarm was going off yet again in the building Paul Hickman had called home since 1996. “Stay or go?” he asked himself, remembering the many times he wandered downstairs, responding dutifully to the frequent false alarms. Then came a pounding on the door of his second-floor apartment and cries of “Fire! Fire! Fire.” He stepped into the hall, smelled smoke, and saw a disabled neighbor rolling down the stairs like a tumbleweed as his friend carried his wheelchair behind him. His building, the Sierra Madre Apartments on the corner of Leavenworth and Ellis, was one of the oldest in the Tenderloin, according to its management, The Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation (TNDC). It was built in 1912 and hadn’t been upgraded in 20 years. Hickman grabbed his wallet and cell phone and galloped down to the sidewalk. The building was soon engulfed and destroyed, displacing 60 residents. The blaze started with an accidental fire in a neighbor’s kitchen. Fifteen people were injured, none seriously. At a neighborhood festival, Paul Hickman, right, shares information about the services offered by the San Francisco Community Living Campaign, where he began working part-time after retirement. (All photos by Colin Campbell.) Living in the … | November 28, 2022 | Naomi Marcus |
| Curry Senior Center tech program for low-income seniors turns one into a ‘Zoom-aholic’ and helps another stay on top of multiple medical issues | The consumer technology many of us take for granted is more than a convenience for Dan Jordan: It keeps him healthier, less isolated and connected to friends, relatives and caregivers in a way he’s never experienced. “I’m happier, more efficient and more knowledgeable,” he said. Important chores like staying on top of medical appointments, prescription drug interactions, and test results that used to take hours or even days are now accomplished with a few taps on his iPad. He uses FaceTime to stay in touch with his brother and his friends, stays on top of the news, borrows library books over the Internet and tracks his steps with a Fitbit. Dan Jordan uses a program called My Chart to keep track of his medications and physical health. (Photo by Bill Snyder) Jordan, 66, is one of dozens of low-income seniors participating in the Curry Senior Center’s Senior Vitality program. Seniors who complete the two-year program are given an iPad, home broadband paid for by a federal program, a Fitbit and a digital scale. They learn digital skills in virtual and in-person classes and receive health and nutritional guidance from Curry staffers. Two-year training key to success The hardware and free connectivity are key, but without systematic training, many of the seniors would … | November 14, 2022 | Bill Snyder |
| Life experiences drew her to challenging work: special ed teacher, domestic abuse counselor and senior center volunteer | As a child, Darlene Crisp watched her mother spoon-feed and pillow-prop her brother. Born with muscular dystrophy, he needed care 24-7. Decades later – Crisp is now 79 – memories of David, who died at 28, persist. At a younger age, they led her to a career in special education. “I wanted to be a teacher who works with handicapped students like David,” she said. She got a teaching credential in college, then took a job in the San Mateo-Foster City School district, working with students with a wide spectrum of physical, learning and behavior challenges. “My goal was to help my students to get a good foundation in reading and math, to become contributing members of society – maybe admitted to college or get a good paying job.” She remembers helping a girl with schizophrenia reach her third-grade level in reading math and spelling. “She was unresponsive; did not emote, talk or make connection with anyone,” said Crisp, who worked her one-on-one. “By the end of that school year, she “was teaming with other students at recess and PE.” Daughter of SF butcher Crisp was born in San Francisco and has two older brothers. Her father was born in Jerusalem, Palestine, in 1898, emigrated to the United States around 1915. He … | November 12, 2022 | Myra Krieger |
| Where will I go when I’m gone? | A SENIOR BEAT COLUMN My cousin’s daughter had a baby last week, just a few days before I turned 80. My thoughts exalted, I riffed on baby Zoey’s beautiful new life in London with her American mother and French father. She’ll be bilingual and will be so adored as the first grandchild on both sides. Joyfully engaged, I was shocked when my mind crashed as I glanced at my hands. Protruding blue veins ran like tributaries from my wrists through wrinkly skin territory to my fingers. Let’s get real: Eighty is not the new 60. Turning 80 makes me shaky scared, because I remember what an 85-year-old friend told me, “My friends are either falling or dying,” Yikes! I am going to die, and I better decide what to do with myself I flashed back on having read Jessica Mitford’s 1963 muckraking expose of the death industry. She said death had become overly sentimentalized enabling funeral directors to use mourners’ emotions to stick them with ever-increasing prices. That led me to want to know what was it like before death become a major industry in this country? Buried in the back yard Until the 1860s, body disposition after death was simple, straightforward, and practically costless. People died in their homes. Loved ones … | October 28, 2022 | Jan Robbins |
| Raised in a tiny Illinois town, Walgreens’ pharmacy tech never imagined the life of travel, arts and culture he’s established in San Francisco | When the Loma Prieta earthquake hit San Francisco in 1989, Mack Dudley, a Walgreen’s pharmacy tech, was at his post: the pharmacy counter at the Ocean and Mission store. “I wasn’t sure what it was, but my coworker panicked, and took cover in this empty cabinet we had. The only part of him that fit in was his head, I was like, what’s that gonna do?” Luckily, there was no damage to either the panicky worker or the store, and Dudley notched his first San Francisco earthquake and a good story. When asked how long he has worked at Walgreens, Dudley answers with a wry smile, “Only about a thousand years.” Though it might feel like a millennium, it’s actually closer to 42 years. Dudley is both loyal and security-minded, and his first San Francisco employer has been his only San Francisco employer since he arrived here from Illinois after college. He balances the stress of a demanding customer service career with the calming peace of his artistic avocation – pottery crafting — in a routine that keeps him balanced and content. Dudley Mack with his works of pottery at Ruby’s Clay Studio and Gallery in the Castro district. (All photos by Colin Campbell) Dudley, who admits to being “a few yards … | October 19, 2022 | Naomi Marcus |
| A little walking goes a long way: from neighborhood jaunts to work on Bay Area Ridge, SF Crosstown trails and Walk San Francisco | When Karen Rhodes retired from a career in communications in 2017, she began walking to get to know San Francisco. She walked for exercise. She walked as meditation, to gather her thoughts. While walking, she noticed the many stairways that made it easier to navigate her hilly Bernal Heights neighborhood. Karen Rhodes’ retirement sent her off, literally, on a new path. (Photo by Jan Robbins) Rhodes made a game of discovering where the stairways were and mapping out different routes that would encompass several of them. “I was excited to learn there are over 50 public stairways in Bernal Heights,” she said. Even with that many stairways, Rhodes still noticed hillsides that could use one. Through a connection in the SF Parks Alliance, she met a group already in the process of creating the Tompkins Stairway Garden, situated above the Alemany Farmers’ Market. “An architect and landscape designer had donated their services, but they needed money to put the plans into effect,” she said, “and fundraising was one of my fields of expertise.” Rhodes wrote two grants, and the stairway garden became another community stewardship success story. AIDS fundraising Rhodes has fundraised for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and now Walk San Francisco. After moving to San Francisco in 1988 with her … | September 19, 2022 | Jan Robbins |
| His daughter wanted to play soccer, so he started an all-girls team; last month, they took on the Chinese women’s national team. | Two women’s soccer teams face off at Kezar Stadium. One is local, the other a world-class opponent. With the game tied 1-1, the SF Nighthawks‘ forward head-butts the ball, sending it off at a 90-degree angle. Her teammate corrals the pass and aims a swift kick toward the goal. It misses, but a cheer resounds as spectators lean forward in their seats. The Bay Area women didn’t win, but they held their own against the Chinese Women’s National Team. The July game was the highlight of the Nighthawks’ summer season, said team owner Richard Cross. “Though we lost 6-2, it was an honor to play the first U.S. game with the top-ranking Asian women’s team. We didn’t expect to win but we played a good game. It was the Chinese national women’s team after all.” More than 1,000 people crowded Kezar Stadium to watch the SF Nighthawks take on the Chinese Women’s National Soccer Team on July 31. (All photos by Colin Campbell.) Head plays, kicks, passes – Cross has seen thousands of them over the decades he’s owned and coached the SF Nighthawks, the women’s soccer team he founded in 1995. Since then, over 600 girls and young women have worn the Nighthawks jersey and many have gone on to … | September 16, 2022 | Judy Goddess |
| Radiologist who served his country in public health rather than battleground revisits Vietnam War era in one-man play | If you ask Edward Lebowitz why he went to medical school, you might be surprised by his answer: the war in Vietnam. “This was the greatest influence on my decision to become a doctor,” said Lebowitz, now 75 and a clinical professor of radiology at Stanford University. “I have no idea what I would have become if there had been no war.” The war “threatened draft age men throughout my years in college,” he said. College provided a deferment, but after graduating from Syracuse University in 1968, “the war was hot” and Lebowitz was still at risk. “I felt I would be drafted into the infantry.” So, he went to medical school. It and a two-year commitment of work for the U.S. Public Health Service work offered additional deferments – and a feeling that he’d served the country. There followed a 45-year career that included specialties in pediatrics, cardiology, pediatric cardiology and radiology and the chairmanship of radiology at Santa Clara Valley Medical. Edward Lebowitz. (Photo by Myra Krieger) Lebowitz believes the war “shaped the lives of baby boomers whether they set foot in Vietnam or not,” something he explores in his one-man play at the Exit Theater on Sept. 17. What is courage? In “Dave, Muhammad and I at the Americana … | September 14, 2022 | Myra Krieger |
| Longtime owner of Inner Richmond neighborhood bar keeps the Irish flowing | It’s 5 o’clock on a Friday evening and customers are just starting to crowd into O’Keeffe’s, a no-apologies Irish bar in the Inner Richmond. Annie O’Keeffe, the diminutive owner, is serving up $4 beers and $6 shots of whiskey. It’s not too busy yet, so she takes a couple of minutes to fetch a bowl of water for a customer’s dog. A young woman asks for a cup of tea. O’Keeffe, short, slim and given to wearing loose dresses over leggings, serves it up and brushes off an offer to pay. “There’s no need,” she says with a wave. While putting out a bowl of water for customers’ dogs, Annie O’Keefe gets a kiss from a regular customer. (Photo by Bill Snyder; all other photos by Colin Campbell) Except for the fact that smoking is no longer permitted, that scene might have been much the same any time since 1977. That’s the year the now 71-year-old Northern Ireland native quit her job as a bank teller and started working for the owner, her boyfriend Tim O’Keeffe. Annie began working at the bar in 1977, when it was owned by Tim O’Keefe, who became her husband within a few years. They married a few years later and worked together until Tim, born in … | August 24, 2022 | Bill Snyder |
| Was it the coffee stain, the thick glasses or maybe the Kleenex? Recovering my cool after a brush with feeling old | A SENIOR BEAT COLUMN When I came back from the mall today, I sat down on a bench outside my apartment building, taking in the sun. After a minute, I took off my mask and tapped out a couple of tortilla chip crumbs. I brushed a couple more from the sides of my mouth. Then I noticed a thin trail of coffee on my T-shirt from this morning’s breakfast. At that moment, I felt truly old. I spun off into visions of myself in my mirror that morning: A gray hair on my chin was ripe for plucking. My glasses were thick and magnifying my eyeballs. Kleenex sprouted from my jacket pocket. You’d think I’d be used to it now – being 77. Mentally, I still feel 35. So, what was this all about? What had gotten me so downhearted, I realized, was an encounter I’d just had with a young salesman at the Apple Store. Apple’s fall alert A few days earlier, I had been there to buy an Apple Watch, mainly because it has a fall detector and 911 alert. The guy who sold me the watch was borderline gallant, helping me choose an adjustable wristband and the watch face with the dancing jellyfish. They didn’t have it on hand, … | August 22, 2022 | Mary Hunt |
| Chinese immigrant whose motto is ‘seize opportunity, work hard, take risks,’ finds success as nursing assistant, caregiver | Yanzhen Guo and her family moved to San Francisco in 2011. Like many newly arrived immigrants, they couldn’t afford a home of their own, lacked marketable job skills and spoke limited English. Eleven years later, the family is living in a two-story townhouse in Hunters Point. Guo is now a licensed nursing assistant, works steadily and their son earned a degree in computer science from the University of California-Davis. Yanzhen Guo talks about her life and work in this video by Homebridge. (Video courtesy of Homebridge.) Guo, now 61, sees life as a series of opportunities to be seized, though they may require hard work, luck and a willingness to take risks. “I dare to take the opportunity,” she said. “If I don’t make it, I’ll try again. I’m just a positive person.” Guo, whose full name is pronounced yan-zen goo, works six days a week providing care to Homebridge clients with complex mental and physical issues. And, she has become an active member of a labor union. Winning the lottery When she, her husband and their 10-year-old son arrived in San Francisco, they lived with Guo’s sister in the Outer Sunset, but they wanted their own place. Somewhere, Guo hoped, that was “warmer, sunnier and newer.” Guo studies at home. (All … | August 20, 2022 | Judy Goddess |
| Mom and I had vastly different dress styles: elegant tops and skirts vs. cargo pants and T-shirts. As we’ve aged, we’ve swapped | A SENIOR BEAT COLUMN It got hot in Carmel, and I was wearing my San Francisco fog clothes: jeans, turtleneck, sweatshirt. I’d left the misty, chilly city in early morning darkness and driven 125 miles south to visit my invalid mom, 95, at my childhood home in Carmel-by-the-Sea. Oddly, despite the coastal closeness, it was heating up there, too. I was hot. So, I went to her closet, looking for a light blouse. I wasn’t in the habit of going into her closet; I had never peeked inside. Unsure if her clothes would even fit me, I went through the hangers and found a cotton embroidered Mexican blouse with a square neck, perfect for the day. Naomi Marcus with her Mom, Lotte, into whose collection of elegant clothing she has been dipping. (Photo by Colin Campbell) “That is a nice shirt,” said mom, sipping tea in her bed. “It’s yours,“ I laughed. She did, too, and said, “Well it looks good on you.” Mom is bedridden these days, since she fell and broke her tibia (shinbone) eight months ago. Though it healed and she is in no pain, her orthopedic surgeon said she can’t bear any weight. Sometimes she sits at the side of the bed, but that’s it. She is not … | August 18, 2022 | Naomi Marcus |
| Kent State murders jolted student into lifetime of activism – from campus protests to ‘White Night’ riots to queer youth and adult advocacy | Starting college is one of those life-changing events. For Paul Gross, the transformation began three months before he arrived at Kent State University. Paul Gross today. In May 1970, Ohio National Guardsmen, called in to remove thousands of anti-war protesters at a banned anti-war demonstration, fired into a crowd, killing four students and wounding nine. “I was immediately politicized because of those murders,” he said. It was one of many campus protests across the country, but the deaths shocked the nation, further souring support for the Vietnam War. When he started his studies, he said, “severe restrictions were put on our freedoms, so I started attending demonstrations. You couldn’t walk down the street with more than two people … and you could be arrested if you tried to read the first amendment out loud on campus.” The U.S. left Vietnam in 1973, but Gross’ activism was to continue for the next half-century. While in college, he worked 20 hours a week and volunteered some 50, he said. One of his targets was the school’s program of special education. He wanted to major in the field but was “put off by the ‘negative reinforcers’ taught in the department, such as using vinegar spray on children’s tongues, shock therapy, and giving children drugs like … | August 16, 2022 | Jan Robbins |
| NOT faster than a speeding bullet: ‘Giants Superfan’ dedicates 35 years collecting autographs of ’79 team | Already a huge San Francisco Giants fan at the age of 15, Charles Fracchia Jr. went one better than perhaps any other fan in the team’s history. He attended almost every game at Candlestick Park, had a worthy collection of memorabilia and chattered about his team incessantly. Then in 1979, he decided to collect the signatures of every player, coach and executive in the 95-cent, 1979 “San Francisco Giants Official Media Guide” – all 48 of them. Charles Fracchia Jr.’s friends thought it crazy the lengths he went to to get autographs from ’79 team’s players, coaches and executives.(Photo by Myra Krieger) It took him 35 years. He finished his quest at age 50 with the signature of Hector Cruz, a backup outfielder who lived in Chicago. “There was a plane flight, two street cars, and a 50-minute bus ride,” Fracchia Jr. said, “but I got it.” “The players were, for the most part, good with giving me an autograph. I was not always successful, but I was always persistent,” he said. “Some players were touched that someone did remember their sports career. I don’t think that anyone was particularly dismissive of me, but Giants pitcher Randy Moffitt did tell me though his neighbor to “take a hike.” I was able to get his … | August 10, 2022 | Myra Krieger |
| When life bounced waiter who had just embarked on a new career in nursing, his ‘titanium heart’ pulled him through | When he was 41, Chad Folkers realized he needed to get sober, go back to school and find a new career. After eight years of full-time work as a waiter and full-time classes, he graduated from nursing school with honors. Chad Folkers, top left, with fellow nursing students. (Photo courtesy of Chad Folkers) But within a short time, the future he imagined was derailed – twice. Just after finishing his studies, he was diagnosed with lymphoma and a spinal tumor, then paralyzed from the waist down following an emergency surgery. He was hospitalized for nearly a year, but he used the time to study for – and pass — the licensing exam required of nurses. Regrouping from cancer, Folkers found an apartment and landed a position at a caregiving nonprofit that seemed ideal. But, a year into the job and as his new life seemed to jell, the pandemic forced his employer to lay him off. But Folkers, now 54, hasn’t given in to despair. He’s now in a South of Market studio apartment and learning to manage life in a wheelchair. Chad Folkers has gotten used to his wheelchair, which gets him out of his SOMA studio apartment. (Photo by Naomi Campbell) “I feel like God gave me a titanium … | August 3, 2022 | Naomi Marcus |
| Glen Park book store owner finds Literature and Live Jazz the perfect match for neighborhood communing, musicians staying employed | Twenty-four years ago, Eric Whittington decided that a career as a word processor wasn’t how he wanted to spend the rest of his working life. Then 42, Whittington and his wife maxed out their credit cards and purchased a small, not-very-successful women’s bookstore in San Francisco’s Glen Park neighborhood. They renamed it Bird & Beckett Books and Records. It was quite a gamble. In the late 1990s, Amazon was becoming a juggernaut that devoured independent bookstores, eBooks were on the horizon, and it appeared that only mega-chains like Borders would survive. Bird & Beckett owner Eric Whittington said it all started with a small women’s bookstore purchased with a maxed out credit card. (Photo by Bill Snyder) Bird & Beckett did survive. Now 66, Whittington presides over a business that Chronicle columnist Carl Nolte called “the spiritual heart of Glen Park.” It was an apt observation. “People think of this as their little club and I do nothing to disabuse them of that notion,” Whittington said. In fact, he does the opposite. Whittington, an energetic, casually dressed man with long, graying hair tied back in a ponytail, is a welcoming presence, ready to chat about jazz and literature. Indeed, the name of the store says it all. “Bird” refers to jazz great … | July 28, 2022 | Bill Snyder |
| “80 Over 80”: Interviews with elders is all about fostering respect for long life, endurance and the wisdom available to us | One too many magazines hyping the “30 under 30’”or “40 under 40” jolted a San Francisco geriatrician into countering with an “80 Over 80” project. After three years of interviewing these older city residents, the results can now be seen at 80over80sf.org. “It crystallized something in me: What about seniors?” Dr. Anna Chodos, an associate professor of medicine at the University of California-San Francisco, said of this “passion project” outside of her regular work. She saw it as a campaign to “give attention to older people. I don’t think people really realized the breadth and diversity of older people in the city, particularly the older, older, not the newly initiated 60-year-old.” The 80 Over 80 project will be discussed Thursday on KQED Radio’s Forum (9-10 a.m.July 28). If you want to call or submit comments during the live show on 88.5 FM, dial (866) 733-6786, email forum@kqed.org, tweet, or post on Facebook. Dr. Anna Chodos There were obstacles along the way: the difficulty of identifying 80 elders willing to share their stories, recruiting interviewers and translators, and the pandemic restricting contact to those comfortable on Zoom. A small staff and 27 volunteers conducted the video interviews, wrote short summaries for each and added photographs on some. A book is on the way. Feeling celebrated While … | July 25, 2022 | Judy Goddess |
| A life of wine and orchids: French heritage nurtures ‘Orchid Doctor’s’ love of food and foliage | Wine and orchids have long played a starring role in Paul Bourbin’s life. Paul Bourbin still values the customs of his French grandparents. (Photo by Jan Robbins) When he was just seven, his grandfather would serve him a heavily diluted glass of wine with meals, a custom carried on by the Frenchman who made wine in the old country and later in California.” Eventually, Bourbin, too, became a wine expert, managing tasting rooms and working in the industry for decades. Wine was a “very important food and something for the soul, and for my French and Catholic heritage,” he said. “It wasn’t just a commodity.” Bourbin has always embraced his ancestry; he’s still able to read in French and manage a bit of conversation. His grandparents also taught him how to grow food and cultivate a variety of flowering plants. “My Epiphyllum (Orchid) Cactus, which just bloomed, originally came from cuttings from my Grandmother Alice’s plants in 1957,” he said.After leaving the wine industry, he looked to horticulture for a new career and focused on orchids. If the shoe fits He got a job in the former White Oak Orchids greenhouses near City College and volunteered at the San Francisco Orchid Society. He was soon giving talks there, at area nurseries and at the Conservatory of … | July 1, 2022 | Jan Robbins |
| Of food and community: Bernal Heights Latina shares life stories over a cooking lesson | When Angelina De Anda makes chicken soup, her first step is to dice ginger and garlic into coins, to flavor the water. When her mom made chicken soup, the first steps were to “kill and pluck the chicken!” she recounts with a rueful grin. Angelina De Anda in her Bernal Heights kitchen. (All photos by Colin Campbell.) “Though we lived in the border city of Cuidad Juarez, we had no electricity, no running water, and my mother cooked on a grill over a wood fire to feed us.” Today at 95, Angelina – blithe, agile and funny, with soft grey curls– is a beloved figure in her Bernal Heights neighborhood. She’s a fixture at her parish church, St. Kevin, where she has several roles. “Some weekends, I make 100 to 200 tamales in the church basement kitchen,” she said. “We feed the parishioners after Mass, and we also feed the homeless. Also, I regularly help out counting the money (donations) because the Padre trusts me, I think.” The couple received a Certificate of Honor from Supervisor Hillary Ronen in April for their years of service to the community, going back to their involvement in activities and fundraisers at their children’s school. Jose and Angelina De Anda with a Certificate of Honor from San Francisco … | June 28, 2022 | Naomi Marcus |
| Selma freedom fighter, San Francisco State College striker and anti-war publisher still making ‘good trouble’ | If the stakes weren’t deadly serious, the high-speed car chase through rural Alabama in 1965 might have seemed like a scene from The Dukes of Hazard. Bruce Hartford, then a young civil rights worker, and three volunteers with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference had been holding a workshop in non-violence in Brantley, a town with one stop sign and about 1,200 residents. “Suddenly carloads of White guys come screeching up to us, they jump out and they’ve got ax handles and chains and clubs. All Klan, and they charge right at us,” Hartford recalled in an oral history interview years later. Outrunning the Klan The rights workers jumped in their car, a VW bug, and drove as fast as they could, with the angry Klansmen in pursuit. “Don’t take your foot off the gas,” Hartford warned the driver. And to be sure he complied, he pressed his hand on the driver’s knee to keep him from moving his foot. The VW swerved from lane to lane to keep the Klansman from coming alongside. Organizers – Bruce Hartford is third from left – gather at the Southern Christian Leadership Conference freedom house in 1965. (Photo by John Phillips) After eight hair-raising miles, the rights workers turned off the highway. The Klansmen followed, … | June 26, 2022 | Bill Snyder |
| Glittery red shoes remind artist and teacher of her glamorous days as “Lady Harriet,” dancer and blues singer at her own nightclub in Guatemala | Though she moves more slowly now, and the form-fitting gown and sparkling red stilettos have been replaced by more comfortable clothing, 89-year-old Harriet Sebastian is still a performer. Resting in the satin-draped armchair where she spends most of her days, Sebastian paused mid-story and turned toward the credenza where her dancing shoes were hanging. “I can’t wear my red shoes anymore, but I respect them.” After a well-timed pause, she added, “I’ve had a good life. Some magical things happened.” Harriet Sebastian has hung up her dancing shoes, displayed on her credenza, but still “respects them.” (Photos by Judy Goddess) Sixty years ago, Sebastian was a blues singer in a nightclub she owned in the back hills of Guatemala. Every evening at 7, “Lady Harriet,” dressed in a sequined gown that showed off her curves, would slowly descend the winding staircase that connected her upstairs bedroom with the cabaret. By the time she reached the bottom step, the drunken Australian mercenaries and other male patrons that frequented the bar were shouting and banging on the tables, keyed up for another evening of song, dance and drink. Performing was not her only passion; she often identifies herself as a painter. Her own artwork hangs on the walls of the living room and is … | June 23, 2022 | Judy Goddess |
| Firefighter, professor, runner, wine expert, powerlifter: Sunset District man didn’t want any idle time | At 5-foot-7 and about 160 pounds, Jim Gallagher is a lean, gentle man with a short gray ponytail. You might never guess he holds the international powerlifting record for competitors 80 and older. He’s 86. When he was 83, Gallagher deadlifted 380 pounds, outstripping his nearest competitor by 99 pounds. Even Gallagher was surprised by his success. “I certainly did not expect to be a world champion and record holder when I started training,” he said. That’s Gallagher: accomplishing the unexpected. He spent 30 years as a San Francisco firefighter while holding down university gigs teaching psychology. A wine expert, he taught seminars and wrote columns on the subject. Why so busy? “I like a structured life,” he said. “I don’t want a lot of idle time; that’s the worst thing.” Dedicated surfer A native-born San Franciscan, Gallagher grew up in the Richmond District. “I’ve never been east of Divisadero,” he joked. The oldest of 12 children from what he called “a white-collar, working-class family,” he worked his way through high school, while still finding time to surf before class. Jim Gallagher holds the international powerlifting record for competitors 80 and older. (Photo by Judy Goddess.) Graduation from George Washington High School might have marked the end of his education, but classes … | June 21, 2022 | Judy Goddess |
| Noted illustrator of themes in African American life got his start on a blackboard in his Waco front yard | You might have seen his paintings and woodcuts in a bus shelter on Market Street, the headquarters of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, or galleries and art fairs in the Bay Area and Los Angeles. Others are on display at several San Francisco housing projects, and some have sold for as much as $5,000. The artist is Ira Watkins, an 81-year-old Texas transplant who has been homeless, did time in county jail, supported himself by hustling pool and overcame a drug habit. Ira Watkins’ artwork focuses on African American life. (Photos by Bill Snyder) Painting, he said, is how he turned his life around. “I got to the point where I asked myself ‘what am I going to do? No one is going to hire me.’ The only thing I knew was painting.” His art studio used to be the van he lived in. Now he spends hours nearly every day working in a small studio at the former Hunter’s Point Naval Shipyard. His style is distinctive and often angry, though he said, “I’m not an angry person.” He favors themes of African American life, the evils of slavery and what he sees as the distortions of history and religion by the dominant White culture. Shackles of the mind Consider a painting he … | May 31, 2022 | Bill Snyder |
| A burning desire to forge beauty out of raw materials: North Beach jeweler and metalcrafter carries on family’s legacy business | Dan Macchiarini was just six years old when his father started teaching him how to torch, solder and braze metal. Peter Macchiarini, described by some who knew him as a classic “San Francisco beatnik” and artist, mentored his son through his teen years and into adulthood. Dan – DannyMac to his friends – went on to perfect his metalcrafting skills at John O’Connell Technical High School while attending San Francisco State University as an art student. Macchiarini transports a metallic heart he created for a friend on a Valentine’s day long ago. (Photo courtesy of Dan Macchiarini) In the ’80s, he found jobs at U.S. Steel and Bethlehem Steel, whose San Francisco shipyard was looking for welders for both the BART tunnel and Alaskan Pipeline barges. Welding was his occupation; art was his vocation. Like his father, he created sculptures and jewelry. While a shipfitter at West Winds, a small repair shipyard in San Francisco, he crafted a steel heart for a friend on Valentine’s Day. It was so admired by his fellow workers that within hours, more than 100 were creating their own. Patrons check out the merch as well as wine and cheese at Dan Macchiarini’s shop during a recent First Fridays event in North Beach. (All photos not provided … | May 29, 2022 | Rebecca Rosen-Lum |
| A quintessential American success story: from juvenile addiction and jail to some of San Francisco’s most influential offices | Most longtime San Franciscans remember Bill Maher as a controversial city leader who was a twice-elected president of the school board, a three-term supervisor and then executive director of Parking and Traffic along with other high-profile roles. For the last 11 years. Maher has been the senior advisor to the Executive Director of the San Francisco Airport. It’s a career that belies a back story of youthful self-destruction. But it’s also a story of perseverance and fortunate connections that fueled an unlikely transformation. Bill Maher. (Photo by Myra Krieger.) “Starting out at age 14, I was a heroin addict living in New York and Boston. I was arrested 40 or 50 times for auto theft, petty theft, assaulting a police officer, drug sales, bail jumping,” said Maher, now 75. “I eventually went before a judge who grew to like me. He didn’t want to send me to prison, but the minimum sentence he could give me was 10 to 20 years. Maher, who had previously been jailed in the Tombs in Manhattan and Kew Gardens and Rikers Island in Queens, didn’t to go back to jail either. The Boston judge gave 10-20, he said, but suspended the sentence, ordered him to go into drug rehab in San Francisco, along with “five years’ … | May 26, 2022 | Myra Krieger |
| Threats in Guatemala spark activist’s journey to a new land and language; after homelessness and despair, he finds resurrection in helping others like himself | Gonzalo Guoron arrived every morning at 5:45 a.m., threw open the doors at 6 a.m., and ushered 50 to 90 tired souls up all night in the cold into the warmth of the Episcopal Church of Saint John the Evangelist. Until the pandemic closed those doors, Guoron was a hospitality monitor for the Mission District church’s Sacred Sleep Program. Participants could sleep safely in the pews. “My best moments were welcoming everyone in: ‘Hello, good morning, come in, have a rest, have some food’,” Guoron said, “and I call them by their names. Many prefer their nicknames, so I learned those.” Gonzalo Guoron at St. John’s on Easter Sunday this year. (All photos by Colin Campbell.) “We have Chinese, Latino, Black and White. We even have Mayans from Guatemala, like me.,” he said. “We have old and young. Very old and very young. LGBTQ. Men, women. I put out mattresses on the pews, I make fresh coffee, I cut up the donated bread and pastries, I distribute hygiene kits, I make everyone feel comfortable in the sanctuary.” Guoron’s made it to San Francisco 12 years ago. His journey from Guatemala was a flight from death threats by gangs unhappy with his human rights work. After crossing the Mexican border, he made his … | May 24, 2022 | Naomi Marcus |
| Clowning, singing and comedic skits keep “free spirit” in good spirits | As a teenager in the ‘50s, Juanita Rusev dreamed of becoming an actress in the mold of Marilyn Monroe or Audrey Hepburn. But she didn’t think she had what it takes. “I thought actresses had to be beautiful,” she said, “and I was average looking, big, gangly, and unconfident. So, she put aside that dream and focused on another passion – singing – by joining the glee club. Juanita Rusev. (All photos courtesy of Juanita Rusev.) “I did get my first exciting taste of theater from my senior English teacher when I memorized and recited a Lady Macbeth monologue in front of the class,” Rusev said. Still, she never became a professional performer. But since her late 40s she’s devoted herself to studying singing, acting, clowning, skit writing and musical theater. She taught high school for 16 years, continues to perform in local theater groups and puts on shows for community groups. And she still makes the three-hour trek to Laytonville, Calif., each summer to study, perform and frolic at Wavy Gravy’s Camp Winnarainbow, an adult circus arts camp. Rusev said she initially took the safe Catholic-girl path, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in English – 1964 from San Jose State University – and marrying her college sweetheart. But discovering they were … | May 22, 2022 | Jan Robbins |
| High costs and dearth of financial assistance programs for middle-income seniors leave them in the lurch when help at home is needed | By Judy Goddess and Mary Hunt The Rev. Eileen Kinney never expected a time would come when she couldn’t take care of herself. But her neuropathy, a disorder that causes in numbness, tingling, muscle weakness and pain – typically in the hands and feet, began to worsen and she started having trouble cooking and cleaning. She needed help at home. “I didn’t know anything about the difficulty of being older,” said Eileen Kinney, when neuropathy in her hands worsened and she found she couldn’t afford to hire in-home help. She couldn’t afford the average $45 per hour private, in-home care agencies charge. Rent at the Martin Luther Tower senior living apartments where she lives, groceries from Amazon and a twice daily dog walker absorb most of her income. “How would I manage?” she wondered. Despite her years counseling older congregants facing the challenges of aging, she felt hopeless. “I didn’t know anything about the difficulty of being older,” she said. Kinney is one of the burgeoning number of older adults experiencing temporary or chronic physical challenges who need help at home with some or all of their household chores, personal needs or minor medical care. In-home care has long been seen as a way for seniors to age at home – and … | May 17, 2022 | admin |
| Chinese musicologist brings wide range of instruments and influences to teaching, movie and theater scores, original CDs and local performances | It’s a chilly March evening in Glen Park. Thirty or so music fans have crowded into Bird & Beckett Books and Records, a neighborhood haunt for live jazz and poetry performances. Tonight, though, classical Chinese music is on the menu as San Francisco celebrates Chinese New Year. “How many of you are Tigers?” Betty Wong asks from the stage, noting that 2022 is the Year of the Tiger. The program starts with a quartet playing music from Xinjiang, a province in Western China, known for the mistreatment of its Uyghur population, a Turkic ethnic group that follows Islam. Wong, 83, takes the stage holding a hulusi – a woodwind instrument that looks like a recorder with a gourd on the top. The hulusi, Wong explains, is often used by minority tribes in China, and she proceeds to play an ethnic Chinese folk tune. (You can view the performance here.) Betty Wong playing a hulusi – a woodwind instrument that is often used by minority tribes in China. (All photos by Bill Snyder.) This evening, Wong shares the program with a jazz quartet, a poet and two high school music students. Wong is a pianist, composer, teacher, musicologist and authority on Chinese music. She plays 10 instruments, has composed and conducted movie and … | May 16, 2022 | Bill Snyder |
| ‘I’m too young to need a walker!’ A fall and fracture jolt an independent life in a comfy Stonestown apartment | I didn’t want a caregiver. My daughter and my sisters were determined to get me one. I had broken my wrist in a fall and couldn’t do anything with a sling on my arm. Everyone who stopped by my apartment to see how I was doing had to open a jar or a bottle of Ensure before they left. Laundry was impossible, especially bed linen and towels. Getting dressed was hard, one-armed. Dishes were not getting done as I couldn’t get the sling, and later the hard cast, wet. Showers were worse: I was sticking my hand into a plastic bag and securing it with a scrunchy to keep the cast dry. So, I did need help with some of the details of daily living. The situation was complicated by my Parkinson’s disease and my weight loss over the past year. My family thought I would forget to eat or exist on Trader Joe’s chicken pot pies and mini croissants. To be fair, this was the second bad fall I’d had in four months, and they were afraid I would fall in the bathtub or hit my head on the coffee table. What would they do all day? Still, hiring someone to come into my quiet apartment for five hours a day … | May 16, 2022 | Mary Hunt |
| Tending to aging seniors in their homes a necessary and noble but undervalued occupation – rewarding but challenging, emotionally and physically | By Judy Goddess and Mary Hunt Debbie Gulli, 62, said she’s always loved being around older people. (Photo by Judy Goddess) Debbie Gulli always enjoyed older people – her grandma, her in-laws. So, when slow business forced her to close her gift shop after 12 years, she began taking classes to qualify for a nursing assistant license. She already had a degree in health sciences with a minor in gerontology from San Francisco State University. But little of that training would sufficiently prepare her for the daily chores of caregiving. “Physically, of course, but also emotionally and psychologically. Figuring what the client wants. Thirty percent of the job is interpersonal,” she said. “Particularly since the pandemic there are a lot of depressed people. “A lot of clients went downhill during the pandemic. They gave up. They want to die.” Anna Kivalu, 46, is a registered home health aide and certified nursing assistant who has had special training for lifting patients. But that’s one task she refuses to do anymore, because domestic help is not covered by OSHA for workers compensation claims. “Lifting MS and ALS patients is very difficult as they are dead weight when being moved,” said Kivalu, whose clients have included stroke patients, those with dementia, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s and … | May 15, 2022 | admin |
| Longtime Randall Museum ceramics teacher and SFMOMA docent believes all humans hardwired to be creative | How many teachers do we know whose deepest concern is over-enrollment? That was a worry of Dennis Treanor, a practiced art educator. Through word of mouth and social media, his ceramics classes filled to the brink every term. He worried about limited resources and his ability to give sufficient time and energy to each student. He headed up the ceramics department at San Francisco’s Randall Museum for 35 years, teaching all ages, from pre-schoolers to seniors, before retiring in 2009. In addition, he was contracted by the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, where he has been a volunteer docent for 27 years, to train those who would be working with elementary, middle- and high school audiences. Dennis Treanor headed up the ceramics department at San Francisco’s Randall Museum for 35 years, until retiring in 2009. (Photos by Myra Krieger) Two masters’ degrees from San Francisco State contributed to his expertise, but so did his passion to engage others in creating their own unique work. Treanor, now 74, believes human beings are hardwired to be creative. Art a spiritual act “By early adulthood I came to realize that the creative act is at its core a spiritual act,” he said, “and the moral expression of that act by myself is embodied in … | May 14, 2022 | Myra Krieger |
| Family members make up majority of in-home caregivers due to help’s high cost, taking on all-consuming sometimes overwhelming role | Debbie Aguilar’s husband, Roberto, had a major stroke that paralyzed his right side and rendered his speech almost unintelligible. It happened during the pandemic, so she was allowed in the skilled nursing home only one day for training before he was sent home. “Life turned upside down. My husband used to do everything,” she said. “I never paid bills since I was 18. He even made the shopping lists when I picked up groceries.” The Aguilar family: Diego, Antonio, Roberto, Debbi and Lilli. (Photo courtesy of Debbie Aguilar) Rose Garcia’s first words when asked about the husband she has been tending to for the past three years, were, “I hate him.” She had been married to Alex Sajkovic for 26 years when he was diagnosed with ALS, a progressive neurological disease that ate away at his mobility and strength. He also had a frontotemporal disorder, a type of dementia. Since then, they argue a lot, she said; he is controlling and sometimes rages. “I can’t please him. The illness has made him so angry and hurt. He demeans and belittles me. I try to get myself out of the way.” Margaret Graf, whose husband Paul died after a six-year battle with Alzheimer’s Disease, remembers her years of caregiving as “one of the … | May 14, 2022 | Judy Goddess |
| Neighborhood and ‘village’ networks provide mutual support for seniors as aging makes daily tasks more difficult | Despite bad knees and respiratory problems that take her “forever to do things,” Jay Duchene admits, she is “not good at asking for help.” The retired nurse, now 86, has asked neighbors for an occasional ride, but trips to the doctors wait until one of her three daughters – two on the East Coast and one in Washington state – visit San Francisco. “I’m not maudlin or depressed, it is what it is,” said Duchene, a retired psychiatric nurse who lives on Russian Hill. “I know enough not to slip down so far that it would hurt my children.” Eighteen months after retiring, Glenda Hope, 85, invited some other seniors in her Cayuga neighborhood over for an evening of games. A recently retired widow without family, the Rev. Hope knew she needed to create an intentional family, a community of caring. “I had no one. No family. My friends were younger and still working and didn’t live in the south-central neighborhood. I was afraid I’d be isolated and lonely.” Glenda Hope with her dog, Hal. Neighbors help take him for a walk as it’s gotten harder for her. (Photo by Chris Dillon) Whereas globally, living in extended-family households is the most common arrangement, in the United States, nearly a third of adults … | May 12, 2022 | Judy Goddess |
| SFUSD Phys Ed teacher, Scout leader, coach and professional basketball ref may be retired, but he’s still getting people out to exercise | Searching for a way to stay in touch with friends after retirement, Ralph Pujolar and his college roommate started a walking group. They called it the Aloha Walkers, he said, “because my wife was born and raised in Honolulu, and I was always saying ‘Aloha’ when greeting someone.” The idea caught on. People heard about it through word-of-mouth; others joined after spotting the group on one of its monthly walks. Organizing a senior group dedicated to exercise was a natural for Pujolar, who has spent his life playing, teaching and coaching sports. “I was hyper-focused on sports from the time I could run,” he said. Ralph “Buzz” Pujolar, right, and his wife, Andrea, ran into Warriors President Rick Welts at the Chase Center in 2019. (All photos courtesy of the Pujolars.) Pujolar, now 77, taught physical education in the San Francisco United School District for most of his 31-year career, and eventually became a dean of students. He coached inter-scholastic sports after school, played basketball in recreation leagues, and became a professional basketball referee for 40 years, working high school and college games. Pujolar sees his involvement in sports as a type of “service to others through community engagement.” The Boy Scout code was instilled in him as a young member … | May 2, 2022 | Jan Robbins |
| Senior Beat examines in-home caregiving crisis: High costs leave most middle-income seniors in the lurch; worker supply lags demand | Judy Goddess Because of its importance – and continuing concern – Senior Beat has decided to re-publish in whole this series produced last May by staff writers Mary Hunt and Judy Goddess. Their stories look at a complex health-care system that leaves most middle-income seniors on their own for in-home help affordable only for the wealthy and which the impoverished get through MediCal. It depicts a trend that’s only expected to mushroom as the population ages: that the need for in-home support will far outstrip the caregivers willing to accept typically low pay with few benefits. The result is that the burden of in-home care largely falls on family members – of all income levels. Mary Hunt As of 2020, there were 2.3 million home care workers in the United States, according to April Verrett, president of SEIU Local 2015 in California, the nation’s largest long-term-care union. And if we are to meet the needs of our aging population, she wrote in TIME magazine, we’ll need another 1.2 million by 2028. THE STORIES: High costs and dearth of financial assistance programs for middle-income seniors leave them in the lurch when help at home is needed. The Rev. Eileen Kinney is one of the many Americans, those of middle-income, for whom costly in-home care … | May 1, 2022 | Robin Evans |
| A friend and landlord’s passing reveals a ‘shocking’ bequest – 801 of them. | Dexter Garnier was in the habit of checking on his friend and former landlord, 76-year-old Frank Brown. So when he didn’t return his calls, Garnier went to Brown’s Dolores Heights home and knocked on the door. When there was no answer, he let himself in with the key Brown had given him and looked around. Brown was lying face down on the kitchen floor. “I shuddered, called his name and knelt beside him. I touched his forehead with the back of my fingers. He was cold,” Garnier later wrote. Brown was dead, apparently of natural causes, a paramedic soon confirmed. That sad incident was the precursor of a much happier series of events that changed the lives of Garnier and his then-wife, Judith. Brown, Garnier soon discovered, had left him his $2 million home and a collection of more than 800 paintings by Brown and his longtime partner, William Campbell. Dexter Garnier in the living room of his apartment, where he has hung many of the artworks of his former landlords. The rest are in a garage near the building. (Photo by Bill Snyder) Although Garnier had been on good terms with Brown and Campbell, it was hardly a close friendship. “I’d say it was basically a landlord-tenant relationship,” Garnier said. Over … | April 20, 2022 | Bill Snyder |
| Somewhere between old age and hospice, there’s a phase called ‘docent.’ I’m fulfilling mine at Point Lobos. | Through college and grad school, I successfully avoided science courses. I took only two: astronomy and natural history, which my husband called “Our Friend, Mr. Sun,” and “The Chicken: A Natural History.” A SENIOR BEAT COLUMN When he met me, I was 32, and he was incredulous I’d survived that long, given my complete lack of understanding of how the natural and physical worlds are put together (this after I’d poured hot water into a glass pitcher). Yet here I am, nearly 70, and immersed in intensive tutorials in geology, botany, marine biology, natural history, ornithology and climate science. Why, you might well ask. Because, dear reader, I’ve reached that stage in the life cycle, somewhere between old age and hospice, called “Docent.” And today’s docent is not your grandmother’s docent. First off, you don’t walk in and just sign up. Oh no, no no, no. (Maybe to a museum, but not at Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, where I volunteered.) It’s competitive. There’s a group interview, then a one-on-one with park officials, then fingerprints, background check – a weeding out of inferior grannies. If selected, a half year of intensive trainings ensue. This outcropping at Point Lobos is composed of 80 million year-old granite. Which is where I find myself now. … | April 4, 2022 | Naomi Marcus |
| Bayview seniors and youth work and learn together in award-winning program led by artist whose quilts feature city’s Black residents. | It’s a spring-like March morning in San Francisco’s Bayview neighborhood. A gaggle of preschoolers is busy painting wooden stakes to mark plantings in the garden of the Dr. George W. Davis Senior Center. They’re working under the watchful eyes of teachers from a nearby elementary school as well as Bayview residents, mostly in their 70s and 80s, who live at the center or in the neighborhood. The garden’s raised planter boxes are lush with a variety of herbs, collard greens, lettuce and tomatoes. Preschoolers work with seniors to make garden stakes at the Dr. George W. Davis Senior Center, one of many intergenerational programs formalized under quilt artist and Senior Services Director William Rhodes. (Photos by Bill Snyder.) The weekly gardening sessions are designed to introduce the children to healthy eating and basic nutritional concepts, said Miss Mohammed, who teaches at the Dr. Charles Drew Early Education School attended by the children. “If you teach them at this age, they’ll learn to cook and shop for nutritious foods.” ‘We learn from the children’ But the sessions have a purpose that goes well beyond gardening: They’re designed to put young people in touch with neighborhood seniors. “As older people, we learn so much from the children,” said Gerri Hill, 82, a retired early … | April 1, 2022 | Bill Snyder |
| Nicaraguan refugee makes a life as bank teller, school aide and house cleaner – with some perks from customers who became friends | Guess Elba Balderramos’s job, a gig where grateful clients paid for her to cruise to Mexico, Alaska, Hawaii and the Panama Canal, and one promised to leave her $50,000 in her will. Trusted family lawyer? Investment Advisor? Nope. Balderramos, now 79, is a bank teller at the Bank of America in San Francisco, where she’s been working full time since she started 38 years ago. Elba Balderramos, now 79, has been a bank teller at Bank of America for 38 years. (Photos by Colin Campbell.) Teller is one of three jobs she held concurrently since arriving in San Francisco in 1981 as a refugee from revolutionary Nicaragua. She was a single mom with a young son, Julio Cesar. But she left because “I didn’t want him growing up in a communist country.” After the Sandinistas took over, Balderramos, then a fourth-grade teacher, was ordered to dress in a Sandinista military uniform while teaching. “They terrified us by having us patrol our school at night in case the ‘counter-revolutionaries ‘came to bomb us. Watch duty they called it. And every morning the kids had to chant in unison: ‘Sandino Vive! La Lucha Sigue! Patria Libre O Morir!’” Fleeing revolution They changed the curriculum and created an atmosphere that felt hostile to her and … | March 31, 2022 | Naomi Marcus |
| Seniors may worry about crime on Muni, but the biggest complaints are fellow passengers – rowdy teens, the homeless and the mentally ill | It’s another bumpy afternoon ride on the 38-Geary, San Francisco’s most heavily used Muni line. The bus, with its accordion-like middle, is rattling and bouncing so hard that only riders immune to motion sickness can read. The blue seats reserved for seniors fill up fast. Older people, many toting shopping carts, some with canes, crowd on board. The bus lurches and a white-haired man yells, “Wait! Wait!,” as the driver starts to pull out of the stop. He barely avoids falling. The bus stops and a few seniors get up and gesture for him to take their seat. The 38-Geary is one of San Francisco Muni’s busiest lines and a lifeline for many seniors. (Photos by Bill Snyder.) Sixty-five-year-old Adora is holding tight and getting ready to get off at Masonic Avenue. Bundled against a chilly February afternoon, she heads north, walking quickly on her way to pick up her grandson. “No, I don’t feel safe on Muni,” she said. Like most of the seniors interviewed for this story, she preferred not to give her last name. A few months back, an apparently disturbed man tried to rip off her mask. He backed off when she resisted. “He didn’t know I had a can of Mace in my purse,” she said. “I … | March 29, 2022 | Bill Snyder |
| An ‘open classroom’ spurred a young girl’s creativity. Now she’s offering a similar experience to older adults as head of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute. | When Don van Druten rumbled up to Kathy Bruin’s elementary school in his 1949 truck, she and some of the other fifth-graders piled into the truck’s bed, and off they’d go to his house on Lancaster Road in Walnut Creek. There, he would show them how to whittle wood and his wife, Gale, would teach them how to make costumes, kites, and dolls. “We called the van Druten’s house ‘Lancaster Castle’,” Bruin, now 60, recalled. “The house had a Bavarian-style clock tower; a bell tower with a rope that hung in the living space for spontaneious ringing; turrets and a rainbow painted on the kitchen floor. “We became its loyal subjects. It was a magical time.” Kathy Bruin at the DiRosa Center for Contemporary Art in Napa. (Photo by Graziella Danieli.) That time set the stage for a life of creative endeavors and adventures. She spent part of her childhood in Iran before the revolution sent her family home. She sang in bands with the Blue Bear School of Music. She joined adult circus camp. She started an Etsy store. She majored in international relations, lived in Mexico, and was a project manager for a number of social media and publishing companies. She helped launch a feminist campaign against media images featuring … | March 25, 2022 | Jan Robbins |
| Picking up trash puts Bayview man back on the streets, but this time with a noble mission and hope for the future. | Charles Franks, who dresses neatly in pressed jeans and button-down shirts, said he gets his dress code from his late grandpa, Elmo Gerald McNeal, who “always stayed suited and booted. He’d come home from work at Southern Pacific and change into a suit for dinner.” Born in 1963 at San Francisco General Hospital, he gets his nickname, “The Black Cricket,” from his late grandma, Katherine Berniece McNeal. A super hero? “No, no, it’s ’cause I slept on all fours, knees and elbows, with my butt in the air, and she said I looked like a little black cricket,” he grins. “Even today, anyone who comes up to me and says, ‘Hey, Cricket’, I know they know me from the hood.” He was raised by his grandparents at their home on Mendell Street in the Bayview, and now spends his days as part of the Downtown Streets Team in San Francisco, working the very places he was homeless for a few years. The nonprofit program’s mission is to restore dignity and inspire hope, and provide a path away from homelessness through training, advocacy and housing assistance. For now, Franks stays at a Navigation Center on South Van Ness Avenue, where he has a bed and meals. Starting at 5 a.m. with their “pickers,” … | March 9, 2022 | Naomi Marcus |
| Ocean swimmer chronicling his beloved Dolphin Club, a home with ‘soul’ for eccentrics who like their water icy | Don’t talk to 85-year-old Sidney (Sid) Hollister about retirement. He’s not ready, not while the pages of an unfinished manuscript on the early days of his beloved Dolphin Club crowd his desk. And not while there are still many dips in the icy waters of San Francisco Bay to come. Hollister, a gig worker before “gig worker” entered our vocabulary, has been a writer, editor, translator, potter, photographer and film instructor. He admits he wasn’t as diligent about building a career as he might have been. “I only knew I didn’t want a job where I had to sit down all day.” Chats in the sauna Hollister isn’t sitting around much these days. Although he’s no longer up for a sprint from Alcatraz, he still spends long hours swimming and working out at the Dolphin Club, writing and having long, heartfelt conversations in the club sauna. A childhood near the Atlantic introduced Hollister to ocean swimming. (Photos courtesy of Sid Hollister.) “Sid knows everybody. Some people just swim and leave, they don’t even think of striking up a conversation,” said Laura Atkins, a fellow swim enthusiast who met Hollister at the Dolphin Club. “Sid has time to talk with everybody.” A childhood near the Atlantic introduced Hollister to ocean swimming. But it … | March 6, 2022 | Judy Goddess |
| Violinist turns 1920 house grandpa ‘Moff’ built into center for teaching and performance | A baby grand piano resides regally in one corner of the great room of the white-washed, brick Spanish Colonial that in 1920 was the highest dwelling on Twin Peaks, the second highest hill in the city. It was built by Edward Moffitt, maternal grandfather to Lynn Oakley, its present resident. “Moff’s” house was once the highest dwelling on Twin Peaks. (Most photos courtesy of Lynn Oakley.) “It was like entering a castle and being met with whiffs of an interesting mixture of furniture oil, eucalyptus and red wine,” Oakley said of visits in her youth to grandfather “Moff’s” house. Moffitt was a builder, furniture craftsman, writer, musician, aviator, sailor and model ship maker. He and his wife, Honorah, or “Babe,” entertained luminaries such as writer Sinclair Lewis. Moff’s house is now home to Oakley’s Villa Sinfonia Foundation, dedicated to developing string musicians of all ages and abilities, through the performance of chamber music and chamber orchestra music, assisted and coached by professional musicians. Violin pulled her heart strings Oakley learned to play the violin under the tutelage of her mother, a piano prodigy. “As a young person, when she came home from the symphony, she could just sit down and play everything she heard,” Oakley said. Piano wasn’t Oakley’s passion, and in … | March 4, 2022 | Jan Robbins |
| A Pope’s order reroutes a nun’s predictable routine: From parish schools to Third World deprivation and revolution | When she was 30, Frances Payne’s life was orderly, predictable and sheltered. She was a Catholic nun, teaching second and fourth graders in her hometown parish in Detroit. But her life took a radical and unexpected turn when she was ordered by the Church to serve in La Paz, Bolivia. Now 87, Payne smiles as she reflects on that time and how naive she was. “I thought (Bolivia) was in Africa,” she said. “I was scared and intrigued. I did not know this, but I was on my way to become part of the history of a country and a church, both poised on the brink of revolution.” Payne ultimately became an organizer, builder, researcher and author, spearheading humanitarian and research projects in Achachicula, an impoverished region of Bolivia. She and her sister nuns chose to live simply, with as few comforts as their neighbors. Her life took another radical turn in 1971 when she decided to leave the order. She continued to teach in Bolivia and eventually met and married a Bolivian journalist. When her husband was threatened with death by the military government, the couple moved to San Francisco, where they worked, started a small business. In 2012, she published her memoir, “They Make Us Dangerous (Bolivia 1964 to 1980),” a … | March 2, 2022 | Myra Krieger |
| El Salvadoran community friendships make up for minimum-wage jobs and meager housing over immigrant’s 36 years in San Francisco | Can anyone live in San Francisco on a Social Security check of $350 a month? People do. Jose Mauricio Montes does. He barely manages by selling natural aloe vera shampoos and soaps off a card table near a friend’s bakery. “My sleep is often robbed from me, as my mind worries about paying rent,” he said. The 71-year-old native of El Salvador has lived more than half his life in San Francisco, arriving here in 1986 at age 35. And he worked all the time, often two jobs, sending money back to his three kids until a hip operation five years ago forced his retirement. Jose Mauricio Montes. (Photo by Colin Campbell) Mostly, he was a dishwasher and busser: Fenton’s Creamery in Oakland; Miz Brown’s in San Francisco; the House of Pancakes at San Francisco’s airport; and La Rondalla on Valencia Street. “You know, because of the English, I never advanced in work,” he said in Spanish. “I tried to learn. I started City College for English three times, 10 times, more, but I would always fall asleep in class – you know, working two jobs. “ The highest wage he ever earned? $12 an hour. And tips? “The cooks and the waiters got the tips,” he said with a shrug. “They … | February 20, 2022 | Naomi Marcus |
| She persisted: After chilly entry to San Francisco, disability specialist now on three city commissions and living happily in senior housing. | Terry Bohrer didn’t get the warm welcome she had hoped for when she moved to San Francisco. Like many new arrivals, she found the city a tough place to make friends. She and her husband joined clubs, took adult classes, and even threw parties in their apartment –to no avail. “We were lonely,” she said. She couldn’t even land a volunteer spot she thought would be a good fit. “Volunteering in San Francisco can be really difficult,” she said. With more than three decades of professional experience in issues related to mental health and disability, she thought she’d have something to bring to the city’s Mental Health Board, which advises supervisors on policy and the efficacy of the numerous programs it supports. But, “they blew me off,” she said, having applied twice with no response. Terry Bohrer is on three city commissions. (Photo courtesy of Terry Bohrer.) But that was the past. Bohrer is now 82 and living in a senior community where she says she has “250 friends.” She’s also a member of three city commissions, including the one she tried to join 12 years ago. It’s now called the Behavioral Health Commission. She also chairs both the Shelter Grievance Advisory Committee, which advocates for users of shelters when they face eviction … | February 17, 2022 | Bill Snyder |
| What’s your fashion flavor? I’m happy Birkenstock sandals are back in favor. | The waist has left me. The arms will never meet another sleeveless blouse. But the changes in my body don’t deter me from still being interested in fashion. I dress conservatively in monotones, but I want to step outside my comfort zone and add some flair and – gasp! – color. So, I looked around and this is what I saw on some San Francisco women over 60. Do I dare to follow their lead? Terri Wong, 66, fiber artist, elevates her 5-foot frame with hats and small heels, and accessorizes with Sally Bass jewelry. Her outfits are all vintage Chinese. “Every day I also wear at least one item that is something I made,” she said. Terri Wong and Pattie Gerrie. (Photos courtesy of Terri Wong.) Her friend, Pattie Gerrie, 69, a cosmetologist, artist and fashion maven said, “Don’t wait for a special occasion to have fun with your fashion. I wear my gold shoes with pom poms whenever the spirit moves me.” Gerrie said she made her own clothing in junior high and high school because she couldn’t find what she liked in stores. Today, she loves to mix clothing from different time periods and cultures. She focuses on color, texture, and creating layers. “There are no rules, or rhyme … | February 7, 2022 | Jan Robbins |
| Innovative use of new types of fabric put designer’s creations on the haute couture map | Julienne Weston. Technological innovation, but not the kind built on bits and bytes, helped launch the career of San Francisco fashionista Julienne Weston. Her mastery of the overlock sewing machine (or, serger) and her embrace of cotton Lycra, a stretchy blend of natural fibers and spandex invented in 1980, made her creations stand out as she built a successful fashion design and manufacturing house. “I could immediately see this was the fabric of the future,” Weston said. “The knees and butt of the pants didn’t bag. You looked fabulous and were comfortable at the same time. This was the beginning.” Other innovations followed. The overlock was perfect for stretch fabric because it overcasts the edge of the fabrics while stitching them together – allowing some flex. “If you did a straight stitch with Lycra on a regular sewing machine and you stretched the fabric, it would break because there’s no give on the seam,” she said. Singer Lenny Kravitz in Weston Wear. (All photos courtesy of Julienne Weston.) A second fabric breakthrough for Weston came in the early 1990s when pliant nylon mesh fabric hit the market Weston used colorful prints she found in Europe and imprinted them onto the mesh, giving her fabric the look and feel of a second … | February 3, 2022 | Jan Robbins |
| She can’t see, but guides patients at SF General, dodges the maskless on MUNI and seldom lets obstacles dampen her high spirits | Here’s a thought: If you are blind, how do you know if people are wearing their masks? If you are disabled and blind, it’s scary stepping off the sidewalk to avoid a loud-talking, apparently non-masked person. If you are disabled and blind and riding the 14-Mission, the 38- Geary, or the 9-San Bruno every day, as 61-year-old Susan Vela does, you sure overhear a lot of conflicts about masks, as she tells it: “Those MUNI buses were not without their problems before COVID-19. And now, you must wear masks to board the bus, but people get into fights about it,” she said. “It was worse early in the pandemic; they used all kinds of profanity. The bus driver will stop the bus right in its tracks and say, ‘We are not moving till you put on your mask or get off the bus.’ “Oh, I tell you, it’s a regular soap opera, like ‘Days of Our Lives.’ I just sit there and say a little prayer: Just get me home, just get me home. COVID has definitely made me feel more vulnerable.” 15 minutes of fame Susan never imagined that her larger-than-life-size image would be gracing the sides of those very MUNI buses this winter, part of a public service campaign highlighting the work of the … | February 1, 2022 | Naomi Marcus |
| Orchids a beacon of light for medical researcher/ clinical pharmacologist who switched to patient care during dark days of AIDS | Joanne Whitney sits in a large conference room, eyes focused on an interviewer, arms slightly raised, palms up and in a pronounced Bronx accent says, “What can I tell you; I’m eclectic.” She points to a long list of diverse roles in pharmacy, medical education and public service over a career spanning five decades. When she’s not working, she cultivates orchids, lectures on their medicinal use and leads tours of San Francisco’s Botanical Garden. “There is a great human and monetary cost to educate a pharmacist,” says Joanne Whitney, 84. “So having been privileged to have graduated from UCSF at the age of 52, I intend to practice my profession as long as I can.” (Photo by Myra Krieger) Now 84, Whitney said she follows a particular ethos: “Give back as much as possible.” That is exactly what she did in 1981, when the AIDS crisis hit San Francisco. Having recently earned a doctorate in pharmacy, she felt it was a time to come face to face with the folks who were suffering. She had lost so many friends and colleagues. A light went out “There was a young man who worked in my lab. When he got AIDS, he wanted so much to see Phantom (of the Opera) that his partner … | January 29, 2022 | Myra Krieger |
| Teaching children, students and adults about planets, black holes and asteroids is this astronomer’s true calling | Famous people and even not-so-famous people in San Francisco have streets named after them. But Andrew Fraknoi, a well-known science educator and astronomer, goes those long-dead presidents, generals, and madams one better: He’s the only person in the city to have an asteroid named after him. The International Astronomical Union dubbed a hunk of space rock “Asteroid Fraknoi” to honor his work educating the public and spreading enthusiasm for astronomy over a career that has spanned more than four decades. He’s proud of the honor, of course, and has a photo of it on his wall, though the former Asteroid 4859 only appears as a streak of light in the heavens. Fraknoi, 73, is quick to point out that his namesake asteroid is nothing to worry about. “It orbits peacefully in the main belt of asteroids between Mars and Jupiter, and is not a danger to planet Earth,” he said. Andrew Fraknoi in the classroom in June 2017. (Photo by Michelle Le.) You may have heard Fraknoi on local and national radio, where he’s been a go-to guy for journalists needing an informed but understandable comment on matters astronomical. He retired in 2017 as the chair of the astronomy department at Foothill College and now teaches introductory astronomy and physics for older adults … | January 9, 2022 | Bill Snyder |
| What’s your attitude toward getting older? Do you, like Johnny Mercer, ‘Accentuate the Positive?’ | Next year I’m turning 80. When I thought about the chronological number, I felt scared because that sounded really old. I feel better when I come across reports of 80+ people doing things that seem amazing. There’s the “Nimbleweed Nomad,” otherwise known as M.J. “Sunny” Eberhard, 83, who started walking when he retired 25 years ago, and now is the oldest person to have hiked the entire Appalachian Trail. There’s Virginia Oliver, 101, Maine lobster fisherwoman, still working. How about Marge Carl, 92, who lays one up playing basketball? Her team, Splash, is part of the San Diego Senior Women’s Basketball Association. But on the other side of the coin, I know there are people who don’t do so well in their 80s. As one of my 80+ friends said, “My friends are either falling or dying.” I knew it did me no good to retreat into fear. So, I decided to find out what the experts on aging have to say. As Dr. Gayatri Devi, a neurologist at New York’s Lenox Hill Hospital, said, “Your attitude can make a difference.” Songwriter Johnny Mercer, founder of Capitol Records, released “Accentuate the Positive ” in 1944. ( University of California-San Francisco professor of medicine emeritus Dr. William Grossman, who is 81, told me, … | January 7, 2022 | Jan Robbins |
| A history of struggles and challenges, but El Tecolote, its founder and City College journalism chair persisted | Juan Gonzales doesn’t discourage easily. His high school guidance counselor didn’t think he was a candidate for college. The faculty at San Francisco State University didn’t think he had what it takes to teach journalism. And the Spanish language press in San Francisco’s Mission District didn’t think publishing a bilingual newspaper would be a success. None of those negative prognostications aged well. Among other academic degrees, Gonzales holds a Master’s of Journalism from Stanford University. He’s taught journalism – and chaired the department – at City College of San Francisco for more than 35 years. And El Tecolote, the bilingual newspaper he founded and edited for about 20 years, is still publishing and winning awards after more than 50 years. Juan Gonzales, founder of El Tecolote, sits on the steps outside his home in Daly City. (Photo by Jennifer Hsu, The Guardsman, Aug. 15, 2020.) “My history has always been that of struggle and challenges, hanging in there and fighting,” the 74-year-old journalist and educator said in a recent interview. Gonzales doesn’t fit the traditional model of the journalist as the neutral observer. He’s used his skills as a tool to serve the Latino and broader working-class communities of San Francisco. “I’ve tried to be an inspiration and a role model for … | January 2, 2022 | Bill Snyder |
| Engineer helped make big strides in tech, but also in volleyball, photography, Hawaiian music revival – and neighborhood connectedness | When any one of us does an online or in-person banking transaction, do we wonder about the “what ifs?” What if our funds could not be retrieved? For the most part, we don’t wonder. That’s because engineers like Steve Hayashi and his team at Tandem Computers were among the first to build a fault-tolerant computer system for use in online transactions, ensuring that banking, stock exchange and other commercial transactions continue without interruption when one or more of their components fail. Stratus Technologies was the other Silicon Valley company to design such system but Tandem became the dominant manufacturer. Security in online transactions “In plain words, this was a system that ensured `business as usual’ at all times,” Hayashi said. Now 77 and retired, Hayashi, says that work was a highlight of his 40 years as a high-tech team leader, at Tandem and Cisco Systems. He drove new product designs that led to the next generation of digital devices, including printers, disk drives, and Voice Over Internet Protocol phones. He even worked on surveillance systems for submarines. Hayashi with a compilation of his photographs of rock stars like Joni Mitchell, Andy Warhol, The Jefferson Airplane, and Grace Slick. (Photo by Myra Krieger.) Hayashi, an electrical engineer, has a sophisticated understanding of connectivity … | December 26, 2021 | Myra Krieger |
| Leader of avant-garde, female theater troupe Les Nickelettes back to performing, with Cosmic Elders | If you told 12-year-old Denise Larson that she was going to be the Mama of Les Nickelettes, a feminist experimental theater group with an anything-goes, throw-out-the-rules attitude, she would have stared at you like you had two heads. “I knew I wanted to be a stage actress at 12, but I was painfully shy with no idea how I was going to get there,” Larson said. Denise Larson. (Photo by SRK Headshot Day, San Francisco.) But after landing a small part in a play in San Joaquin Delta Junior College and basking in praise from her acting teacher, Larson was on her way. Larson couldn’t wait to leave the Central Valley town of Manteca where she attended high school. “I only applied to one university – San Francisco State – because San Francisco was where there was theater,” she said. Larson moved to the city in 1967. Needing a steady income that would leave energy for performing, Larson took a position as a cashier in the Mitchell Brothers O’Farrell Theatre, a strip club and porn theater in the Tenderloin. It was there that Lars0n, and two other women actors, “accidentally” founded Les Nickelettes, when they became faux cheerleaders for the midnight nickelodeon movies and cartoons. “We bought old thrift store sweaters and … | December 19, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| Fighting for social justice never gets old: Longtime Greenpeace campaigner & Agape leader opens new door to activism | Despite a lifelong fear of heights, Karen Topakian at the age of 63 climbed up on a gigantic metal crane behind the White House five days after Donald Trump took office. She and six other Greenpeace activists unfurled a huge banner that said, “RESIST.” To prepare for the action and overcome her fear, she practiced climbing ladders. “At every point in your life, there’s a way to make a difference,” she said. “We took this action to give people hope, to show everyone they’re not alone in their resistance.” Karen Topakian (Photo courtesty of Karen Topakian.) That was in 2017. But Topakian had worked for Greenpeace shortly after college. It was the first of many jobs for social justice nonprofits she would have before starting her own business providing communications support to such organizations. Which is what Topakian, now 67, does today. Current clients are Scrutineers, a non-partisan election and voter protection organization, and Immigrants Rising, which helps undocumented young people achieve educational and career goals. You could say Topakian’s bent for social justice was in her genes. Her ancestors are Armenian, whose Christian populations in Islamic Turkey faced oppression and even pogroms over the years. “Both my grandfathers fled Turkey when they realized that government was going to conscript Christians,” she … | December 13, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| Are you in a RUT? Trying a new soup recipe sparked my anxiety | One day a couple of months ago, I realized I was in a food rut. I enjoyed what I was eating, but I also craved something new. Ruts are vastly different. There are serious ones like a job or relationship that isn’t working, where outside help is vital. Then there are perplexing ones like Donna Vallerand is wrestling with. “I love to travel – the discovery of a new place, the learning, meeting interesting people,” she said, “but I can’t travel all the time because I have a dog and other responsibilities. I feel my life in San Francisco is mundane and I don’t know exactly what to do about it…maybe there is nothing to do but be grateful.” I was grateful my food rut was a lot simpler to contemplate. We had had a snap of cold weather, and my thoughts turned to soup. Perfect. I’ll make soup even though I hadn’t made any soup for a long time, and then only chicken soup. Still, I felt mildly overwhelmed. I was going to try cooking something new and I was experiencing irrational anxiety, perhaps the need to be perfect on the first go. I consulted with a friend, a dedicated cook and baker. He gave me a recipe for butternut squash … | December 7, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| San Francisco women at mid-age and older find tattoos an eye-catching way to celebrate values, memories and independence | Cecile DeForest’s tattoo is a sacred, mystical syllable, vocalized in Buddhist and Hindu meditation. Cecile DeForest never pictured herself sporting a tattoo, but when she changed her mind at 67, the San Francisco-based educator had no doubt what she wanted imprinted on the nape of her neck: Om. DeForest is part of an eye-catching trend captivating women in their 50s and beyond. They’re flocking to tattoo parlors and decorating themselves with colorful skin illustrations. “San Francisco is a tattoo mecca. Men have been more visible, but that is changing rapidly,” said Mary Joy Scott, one of the city’s best-known and respected tattoo artists. Scott knows what she’s talking about: She gave her grandmother her first tattoo when the older woman was 87. She is now 96. Tattoo artist Mary Joy Scott. (Photo courtesy of Pinterest.) Tattoos are more common than you might think. According to a recent Harris poll, one in five U.S. adults has at least one tattoo, and women who don’t sport a tattoo are more likely to consider getting one than men. “I think that for older women, in particular, getting a tattoo is just another expression of their newfound independence and self-awareness,” writes Margaret Manning in her popular column, “sixtyandme.” “Women over 60 have been around long enough … | December 5, 2021 | Rebecca Rosen-Lum |
| Age no barrier to firefighting, says SFFD retiree, but staying in shape is essential | Starting a new career at 50 isn’t unusual these days. But when he reached the half-century mark, Steve Muller decided to leave his good-paying job as a painter and become a firefighter, one of the most physically demanding jobs you can imagine. It turned out to be a good career move. Muller retired from the San Francisco Fire Department in July, a few months short of his 72nd birthday. Over his 21 years with the department, Muller was stationed at firehouses all over the city, fought countless fires, saved some lives, and had his share of scary moments. Muller stayed in shape for the physical demands of firefighting by working out for an hour every workday. Photo courtesy of Steve Muller. The native San Franciscan applied for the job on a whim, wanting to find a solid, blue-collar gig. It was that — and more. “I loved it. There are a lot of times you’re just sitting around and then the tone goes off and everyone jumps to it. Your adrenaline is pumping and it’s a thrill,” Muller said. And yes, firefighters still slide down poles – there’s only one one-story firehouse in San Francisco – and leave their boots tucked inside their turnout pants to save precious seconds when that bell … | November 29, 2021 | Bill Snyder |
| Unbound by silence closeting his early years, first chair of City College LGBT Department offered students a symbol of support | Jack Collins found his calling in 1980, when he started teaching “Gay Literature” at City College of San Francisco. “I had come out of the closet in 1974 while doing graduate studies in comparative literature at the University of Cambridge,” he said, “and I couldn’t think of anything better than teaching the literature I loved to students I shared so much with.” The class, developed two years before Collins came out about his sexuality, was one of the first gay literature courses in the country. Its creator was going on sabbatical. Within nine years, City College would establish the first Gay and Lesbian Studies Department in the U.S. – with Collins as its chair. After joining City College, he and other instructors expanded gay and lesbian courses, which were dispersed throughout several departments. They added a campus in the Castro at one of the middle schools, offering evening classes. Within two years, 2,000 students a week were attending, he said. A new film class brought in 100 students. “That really impressed the college,” Collins said. (Photos by Jan Robbins) The popularity of those classes, and the support of a gay board member, convinced City College to coalesce gay and lesbian studies into their own department. As part of the California Higher Education … | November 21, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| Grandfather’s dementia solidified decision to specialize in geriatrics, says On Lok chief medical officer | “Gomer, get out of my emergency room.” Gomer was the code language for ailing seniors used by Jay Luxenberg’s fellow trainees at Albany Medical College in New York. The cruel dismissal, out of earshot of any patient, was Luxenberg’s call to duty. His grandparents, he thought, could be “gomers” in the eyes of these classmates. It was a clarifying moment for Luxenberg: He decided to specialize in geriatric medicine. “I knew I could do better, and I did,” said Luxenberg, 65, now chief medical officer of On Lok, a community-based organization that helps underserved seniors. He volunteered there for a year, serving as treasurer and on the board of directors, before taking his current position in 2011, after a 15-year tenure as chief medical officer and medical director at the Jewish Home in San Francisco. Treating diseases of aging has been his passion since early in his medical career, a passion sparked by his grandfather’s descent into dementia. He learned firsthand what families go through when this disorder strikes. Luxenberg was close to his grandfather. The older man played a large role in his adolescence and entry into manhood, shepherding the high school graduate to numerous colleges and universities as he decided where to apply. But everything changed when his grandfather was … | November 18, 2021 | Myra Krieger |
| ARE YOU GRATEFUL? Giving thanks doesn’t have to wait until the 4th Thursday of November. | Being that it’s November, my thoughts turned to Thanksgiving. Visions of past family gatherings flit through my mind when each of us in turn said what we were thankful for. Expressing gratitude, such a lovely tradition. Then I think, “Why wait for Thanksgiving when I can express gratitude anytime?” I immediately pulled up a recent memory of a woman doing just that. The second week in October, when it was still sunny, 70 degrees with a cool teasing breeze, I left an exercise class at St. Anne’s in the Inner Sunset and decided to walk up a few blocks to catch the N Judah home. As I walked onto the one-step platform, I said “Hi” to a sister senior. She answered, “Isn’t it the most glorious day to be alive? I’m so grateful!” I responded enthusiastically in the affirmative, and our energy rays bounced off one another trading bursts of joyful happiness. Hey, I thought this is good stuff. What’s been holding me back from being a grateful mensch? Perhaps it was a rough ride with my Reformed Jewish religion. In an opinion piece in “The Washington Post,” August 21, 2015, Christopher Kaczor, professor of Philosophy at Loyola Marymount University, said, “All the seemingly random good things in life can be seen … | November 7, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| New director of S.F.’s disability and aging services’ department wants to make its vast array of programs more accessible to public | Shortly before the pandemic shut down the city, Kelly Dearman and her 90-year-old father left their Cole Valley home and headed for Rosa Parks Elementary School. The father and daughter duo were at the school to read stories to a group of second graders. But the elder Dearman, retired Judge John Dearman, has vision problems, and rather than read he sat and told stories about his life for an hour. “The kids were fascinated with the things they had never heard about,” Kelly Dearman recalled during a recent interview. “At the end, he asked for questions and one student asked ‘Will you be back after lunch?’ It was fantastic; we need to do more of that.” Three months later, San Francisco Mayor London Breed named Dearman executive director of the city’s Department of Disability and Aging Services, and the lesson she learned at Rosa Parks has become part of her managerial agenda. Kelly Dearman has a law degree from the University of California-Hastings and a master’s in public policy from Rutgers University. (Photo courtesy of the San Francisco Human Services Agency.) “I think it is really important for us to not lose all the stories and the histories from older adults,” she said. Finding programmatic ways to further the inclusion of seniors … | November 2, 2021 | Bill Snyder |
| Professional dancer adds props and humor to her repertoire and senior caregiving to her career accomplishments | Helen Dannenberg came onstage wearing a beige jumpsuit then danced a duet with a large, old-fashioned, collapsible ironing board. It was part of her first 90-minute solo performance, staged at the San Francisco Repertory Theater. It was 1983 and Dannenberg – modern dancer, choreographer and skit writer – was 41. “Old and New, Borrowed and Blue” was crafted from the daily life of her Jewish parents in the 1940s. The muslin-covered ironing board was reminiscent of the pressing machine used by her tailor father. Helen Dannenberg today. (Photo by Jan Robbins.) It got a glowing review from The San Francisco Examiner, which applauded her use of personal experience in developing the vignettes, highlighting them with “outrageous costumes and a motley collection of props.” It was the first of many such reviews over her 33-year career as a dancer and choreographer. Dannenberg saved them all. She also was awarded four choreography fellowships from the National Endowment of the Arts and a California Arts Council artist-in-residence grant. Along with other dancers, she founded a booking agency for independent dancers, in 1982. But as she approached 50, the pace and part-time nature of the work began to wear. “I needed the security of a full-time job,” she said. She found one as an activity director … | October 30, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| Babysitting dilemma helps carve career path for S.F. Chronicle writer Ruthe Stein | Ruthe Stein’s parents unwittingly imbued her with a love of the movies, a romance that would lead to a lifelong career. Her dad, beleaguered with the responsibility of caring for his daughter on Saturday afternoons, would drop her off at one of Chicago’s giant movie houses. “The movies were his babysitter,” Stein said. “He never checked what the film was about or if it was appropriate for a 12-year-old, so I saw a lot of adult fare.” When she went with her movie-loving mother, ticket takers would argue that Stein was too young to be admitted. Her mother argued back:“`Well, she’s not going to understand it.’” Stein recalled. “I was five.” Photo by Pamela Gentile. By the time she was 25, the youthful movie lover had become a professional movie critic, reporting for the San Francisco Chronicle for 50 years. Along the way, she was a reporter for Jet and Ebony magazines, taught journalism, and wrote a self-help book for singles. It’s easier to make up a roster of A-listers whom she hasn’t interviewed than one that she has. Of course, there are ones who top the queue, like Cary Grant, Princess Grace, George Clooney, Renee Zellweger, Al Pacino, Meryl Streep, Paul Newman and Matt Damon. She’s interviewed about 300 movie stars and … | October 27, 2021 | Myra Krieger |
| Former supervisor and judge – and unstoppable voice of conservatives – Quentin Kopp retains his signature querulousness | The welcome sign at Quentin Kopp’s office is hardly welcoming. “Attention” it says. “You are being watched.” Beyond the sign is a path that flanks the side of a nondescript, one-story professional building on West Portal Avenue. Kopp’s office suite, which he shares with several other attorneys, is in the back of the building. There’s no lobby to speak of, the furniture looks worn, and the computer monitor on his desk is a massive CRT that wouldn’t have been out of place in a late 1990s office. The entryway to Quentin Kopp’s office, in the back of the building. (Photo by Bill Snyder) Given his age – Kopp recently turned 93 – you might expect to find a retired man using an office as a way to get out of the house, maybe seated at a clean desk reading the papers or dipping into a novel. But take a look at his desk. It’s covered with legal briefs and folders stuffed with documents. Kopp, who almost became mayor, served multiple terms on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and the State Senate before becoming a Superior Court judge, is hardly retired. Why hasn’t he? “Because If you retire, you’ll go to hell – intellectually. You’re more apt to suffer from dementia,” he … | October 23, 2021 | Bill Snyder |
| HOW DO YOU TAKE YOUR JOE? My coffee ritual has shifted – for a mid-day lift instead of a.m. awakening | What are your coffee or tea routines or experiences? Have they changed? I don’t remember when I started drinking coffee after my mid-day meal instead of first thing in the morning, but that’s my ritual now, and I really look forward to it: Organic French Roast ground for Chemex; I add almond milk, and it’s oh so good. When I go to a coffee shop, I order a Flat White almond milk. Depending on which place I frequent, the cost ranges from $4.02 to $5.95. Ouch! For one cup of coffee? No, that’s espresso. You can skip the fancy stuff and get a plain Joe for $2.50 to $3. You can pay even less for your daily fix – minus the coffee shop vibe – at Mickey Dee’s or Dunkin’ Donuts. Coffee is a “fix” because it’s both a stimulant and a mood enhancer, providing doses of adrenaline, serotonin and dopamine respectively. As Michael Pollan explains in his book “This is Your Mind on Plants,“ 1,3,7-trimethylxanthine is that tiny organic molecule known to most of us as caffeine,” one of the most studied psychoactive compounds there is. To do his research, Pollan abruptly stopped ingesting coffee and caffeinated tea for three months. When he returned to a “caffeine virgin” state, upon his … | October 11, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| Never did one writer have so much fun: Carl Nolte’s career put him up close and personal with the good, the bad and the ugly | Journalism, these days, is a young person’s game. As newspapers fold or reduce their staffs, veteran reporters, editors and photographers are laid off, pushed into early retirement, or simply give up on the business they love. But not Carl Nolte. At 88, the San Francisco Chronicle columnist is likely the oldest working journalist in the Bay Area, maybe Northern California. He still hits his deadlines, turning out a weekly column – Native Son – that runs on page two of the Sunday paper. And while you might guess that Nolte, a fourth-generation San Franciscan, would use his perch to bemoan the changes that have transformed his city, you’d be wrong “Change, he says, “is it.” Carl Nolte in his home on Bernal Heights. (Photo by Bill Snyder) Whatever San Francisco’s faults, and Nolte is not one to ignore them, he loves his city. After taking a long walk around town in early September, he wrote: “In a couple of hours over a single day, you can see the city in its complexities, shifting, changing, like a kaleidoscope. You have to admit: For all its faults, San Francisco is beautiful to see.” Nolte joined the Chronicle in 1961. He’s been a reporter and editor. He still remembers his first day on the … | September 24, 2021 | Bill Snyder |
| Pharmaceuticals saleswoman pivots to career in naturopathic medicine | While working for a pharmaceutical company selling drugs to relieve hypertension, Victoria Hamman remembers, she read a study that said exercise and diet could cure it. Although a doctor told her people would never follow through, the idea was planted. Today, as a doctor of naturopathy, exercise and diet plans are standards in the toolbox of therapies she prescribes for patients with hypertension and other ailments. But after getting a degree in science from Purdue University, Hamman ‘s first jobs were at pharmaceutical companies. By her early 30s, while a clinical research liaison, a desire to help people outside of medicine began to build. “I knew I wanted to be some kind of doctor, but not THAT kind of doctor,” she said. She wanted something that encompassed more kinds of healing than just drugs and surgery. Hamman and her dog, Otis. If you can take care of them, Hamman says pets can provide company and emotional support, and it has been proven that caring for an animal helps with depression, and even dementia. Owning a dog has the added advantage of forcing you to get out for a walk every day, and all the benefits that entails. (Photos courtesy of Victoria Hamman) She left the pharmaceutical industry after 11 years and went “searching” for something else, exploring nutrition and … | September 21, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| After years running a print shop, émigré ‘choinkan’ player finds youthful memories and soul solace in traditional Chinese melodies | John Choy gets cold when performing outdoors; he’s almost 100. So, he wears a heavy padded jacket with long sleeves. When he plays his butterfly harp or banjo, his long fingers emerge from the cuffs like sea anemones to float effortlessly across the strings. Choy has over 300 songs in a repertoire of traditional Chinese melodies, with lyrical names like Thunder in Hot Summer, Hungry Horses Shake Bells, Fishermen Singing at Midnight, Floating Clouds Flowing Water, and True Love from Childhood. John Choy, center, joins other musicians for a public performance of classical Chinese tunes in Visitation Valley. (Photo by Naomi Marcus) Before the pandemic, he played regularly for celebrations at the Visitation Valley Senior Center and at San Francisco State University’s Chinese New Year’s celebrations. “You know, over 90 percent of the musicians I played with have passed on,” he said matter-of-factly. But Choy is still here and still playing, with the mahogany and snakeskin banjo, or “choinkan,” that has been his companion for over 30 years. He lives in Visitation Valley, and in July, performed on a public plaza near his home, sponsored by the Mission Blue cafe on Leland Avenue, which hosts live music on Saturdays. Music at the Mission Blue cafe on Saturdays in Visitation Valley. (Photo courtesy … | August 29, 2021 | Naomi Marcus |
| BofA offices were set up just like ‘Mad Men,’ recalls Stonestown senior and graduate of the famed Katharine Gibbs ‘white glove’ secretarial school | Kathy Schmidt went to high school in Kansas, where her father taught singing at the college level. Her mother taught high school until she married. Schmidt graduated with a bachelor’s degree in English literature and a minor in Spanish from Wheaton College in Massachusetts. But in the early ’50s, a woman with that kind of education couldn’t do anything but teach, she said. And she didn’t want to be a teacher. So, she went off to Chicago to the Katharine Gibbs School to become a secretary. We talk with her about what that was like. The Gibbs schools were famous for turning out top-notch secretaries and improving the professionalism of the trade. Katharine Gibbs. (Courtesy of the New England Historical Society) The Katharine Gibbs School opened its doors in 1911 with Gibbs as teacher and her sister as manager. Gibbs, a 46-year-old widow looking for a way to support herself and her two young sons, had taken over an upstate New York secretarial school. They broadened the curriculum to include not just stenography but other skills, such as accounting, and how to conduct oneself professionally, according to the New England Historical Society. Students were required to wear hats, heels and white gloves. The goal was to train students for high-paying secretarial positions … | August 22, 2021 | Mary Hunt |
| Child of WWII Germany chooses economics study as a way to learn about and contribute to society | Education, formal and informal – was the air, bread, and water of Hartmut Fischer’s reality from the age four – in a farming village where higher education was dismissed as valueless. “I was the only one in a community of 60 children to reach higher,” he said. For the sons and daughters of the area’s farmer, factory worker, crafts, and refugee families, only grade school was compulsory. Hartmut Fischer helped the former Soviet state of Kazakhstan prepare to become a market economy. (Photo by Myra Krieger) His father, a teacher at the grade school he attended, prodded him to do his homework and study hard. He was transferred to “gymnasium,” the most advanced schools in Germany’s education system, in a nearby town. He was there six years, and then spend another three studying in another town. He graduated with the German Abitur, the secondary education qualification that allowed him to study at any German university. For over 40 years, Fischer taught economics at the University of San Francisco; he is now a Professor Emeritus. That’s the mainstay of his professional life as well as a catalyst for many opportunities, including a prestigious position on the world stage. Taking a three-year leave of absence from USF, he accepted the call to join the … | August 20, 2021 | Myra Krieger |
| Retired tech executive carries the thread, joining friends to create a “mask-making” village at a time of crucial need | Before the pandemic, Joan Lasselle, 74, was enjoying the life of the recently retired. “People would just reach out to me and ask if I would be interested in volunteering. The thing about retirement is when things come along, I can say ‘yes’ instead of ‘no.’” Forty years after founding and being CEO of Lasselle-Ramsay, a company providing Silicon Valley clients with content for sales and support of high tech and medical devices, she decided it was time to pursue the interests she had left behind. Documentary filmmaking was one of them. When she met a young, San Francisco State University filmmaker needed a gofer, she volunteered. She handled emails, researched film festivals, helped with fundraising and feedback on rough cut screenings. The film, Objector, about a young Israeli woman who refuses military duty and is imprisoned for her dissent, is now on the film circuit with Lasselle listed as an associate producer. Community to the rescue Then came the pandemic and in-person activities shut down. So Lasselle was at the ready when a friend recruited her to help make masks. East Bay entrepreneur Shelley Wong had heard from some emergency room doctors that they didn’t have enough. She, Lasselle and other friends hoped to “maybe sew 1,000 masks,” she said. Inspired … | August 16, 2021 | Judy Goddess |
| Dance professional uses light touch, eye contact and dialogue to guide seniors and those with disabilities through yoga movements | When Dina Lisha visited her mother in her board and care home, she was horrified to see how withdrawn and depressed the residents were. So, she went in the day room, turned on some music and encouraged the residents in simple movements. “It was astonishing to see their dim eyes come to life – responding, smiling, awakening – and only after 20 minutes!” said Lisha. With all her dance training behind her, along with an extensive spiritual practice, she formulated an idea: becoming a professional chair yoga and dance teacher for special populations. What sealed the deal was taking a dance class for people with Parkinson’s disease at the Contemporary Jewish Museum. “At 55, I experienced a revelation, and that was to bring healing and joy to elders through movement by teaching classes to low- and high-functioning adults,” she said. So, after a few years of waiting because of lack of funds for the 200-hour yoga teacher training program, Yoga Tree Works in San Francisco offered Lisha a scholarship. She completed her training in 2017, along with an online dance course for people with Parkinson’s. Before the pandemic, she taught chair yoga and dance at the Institute on Aging. “I was teaching people in wheelchairs, with dementia, Parkinson’s, and with other neurological … | August 13, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| KCSM jazz man has been a nightclub owner, Oakland Raiders player , reporter and marriage counselor – but music is what makes his soul sing | It’s a typical Saturday morning for Sonny Buxton. He’s up early, fixes himself a bowl of oatmeal and gathers up a stack of CDs he’s going to play during his morning broadcast at KCSM. By 8.45, his son is at the door of his South San Francisco home, and they drive to the College of San Mateo, where the station has its home. Buxton, 84, has been a fixture in the Bay Area jazz scene for decades. He’s owned a popular nightclub, played the drums professionally, lectured and taught jazz-related courses at Stanford and the Fromm Institute, and worked as a talk show host and reporter for KGO Radio and television. At a time when much of radio is formulaic, Buxton controls his playlists. And while KCSM has an extensive collection of jazz recordings, he prefers to bring his own, emphasizing the work of greats like Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker and Billy Strayhorn. “I call myself the gatekeeper,” he said. Buxton in the KCSM studio. (Photo courtesy of KCSM.) His resume includes a stint as a marriage counselor and five years as a defensive back with the Oakland Raiders. Varied as his career has been, Buxton says the unifying theme has been his desire to meet and overcome challenges. “I have to … | August 6, 2021 | Bill Snyder |
| Parklets are the latest focus of veteran San Francisco transit activist, who highlights barriers to seniors and those with disabilities | A friend said that to understand activist Bob Planthold one might be best advised to start by watching “Crip Camp,” the film backed by the Obamas’ Higher Ground Productions that documents the rise of the disability rights movement. With its theme of “Nothing about us without us” – a protest against policy that affects the disabled but doesn’t seek their input – the journey mirrors Planthold’s own, from a growing awareness of the need for change to building alliances to move it along. Planthold, 72, advocates for seniors, pedestrians and people with disabilities on transit issues and in assuring access to other resources. He participates in frequent meetings – easier now, with Zoom. Planthold, on Church Street, points out the difficulties some parklets present for seniors with mobility issues. (Photos by Jenya Lum.) “It’s his life,” said David Williams, a leader in the California Alliance of Retired Americans and the San Francisco Living Wage Coalition who has worked with Planthold on many projects. “He is very tuned in.” One could say Planthold’s odyssey began at just 14 months old, when he contracted polio. From then to the age of four, “I just didn’t get the exercise most growing kids get,” he said. “My legs were shortened and deformed by not being able … | August 3, 2021 | Rebecca Rosen-Lum |
| WHAT’S NEW WITH YOU? I resurrected a relationship with an old friend: the piano. | For me, the pandemic emphasized life is short, and time is precious. It’s not like I didn’t already know that; it’s just that the pandemic brought my feelings into sharp focus. I began thinking what I could do within my control at this late stage of my life that could bring me pleasure and satisfaction? I thought of my old friend, the piano. I say she’s my old friend because I took lessons as a young girl, but lacked discipline, so I didn’t get very far. I did learn the basics, reading notes. So about 12 years ago, I bought a keyboard and resumed playing. I didn’t know how to approach playing without a teacher, but I thought I should get at that discipline I lacked as a girl. What better way to do that then to limber my fingers playing scales? I did that conscientiously – day in, day out. I played scales before I allowed myself to play my fun rags, blues and jazz. But, by the time I got to the fun stuff, I was played out. Aha, I thought as I decided to go back to the piano during the pandemic. I’m playing only rags, blues and jazz. I made it fun and I’m having a blast. I … | July 30, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| Many ‘angels’ guided gay activist through life’s turmoils, and eventually, to executive roles in counseling and social responsibilty | When he was 15, Duff Axsom said, he met “one of the most important people in my life.” It was Genevieve Fiore, women’s rights and peace activist, and the founder of the Colorado Division of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). A member of one of the UNESCO Youth Clubs, he met young people from all over the world. “I realized what the term ‘community’ meant,” he said, and decided he wanted to serve his country by becoming an officer in the Foreign Service. But during an internship after his junior year in college, in 1962, those aspirations fell apart. He was working in Wash., D.C., with Sargent Shriver’s Peace Corps, which placed 220,000 volunteers in more than 140 countries. And he was just acknowledging he was gay. At the same time, he was learning the State Department was not receptive to people like him. From 1950 onward, Sen. Joseph McCarthy was rooting homosexuals out of the government with the rationale that they were subject to blackmail by the Soviets. “I discovered years later that there had been many gays in the Foreign Service at the time I wanted to join,” Axsom said, “but I was afraid I would be found out.” Still, he got to meet President Kennedy … | July 27, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| One of nation’s first, ordained female Presbyterian ministers can’t stop doing what she thinks is right | Every Thursday afternoon before 5 p.m., the Rev. Glenda Hope picks up her Black Lives Matter sign and walks over to Geneva Avenue for her weekly vigil. Within a few minutes, neighbors and friends arrive, hoisting their signs. While some drivers honk, most do not. “Still, it makes a difference,” she said. Hope has devoted her life to doing what she thinks is right and has no intention of stopping: “Christians are called upon to change the societal structures which inflict harm on people and the rest of God’s Creation.” She is joined in her vigil by her many friends and neighbors from the Cayuga Community Connector’s program, which recently celebrated its eight-year anniversary. Each had their own reasons for being there. But like Hope, and despite the cold, the wind and rain, all are committed to eradicating systemic racism. Cayuga Connector Vigil – Every Thursday at 5PM-6PM beginning at San Jose and Geneva and stretching out a safe 6′ apart wearing masks. Make your own sign. A piece of cardboard works well. “Remember that the history-making Montgomery Bus Boycott saw hundreds of people – young and old – walking everywhere every day for 380 days. One grandmother said: ‘my soles are weary but my soul is at rest. I am doing this for my grandchildren.’ So … | July 24, 2021 | Judy Goddess |
| Storied San Francisco dance school owes its existence to a feisty wife whose legacy is a dance “family” of 70 years | The trajectory of Micky Powell’s career path was lovingly set over 40 years ago by her mother, a professional ballet and Armenian folk dancer. When Ruth Jevarian retired in 1974, she turned her Inner Sunset District school, Star Dance Studio, over to her daughter. “It was a natural thing; the studio was in the basement,” Powell said. “From the age of five or six, I was taught by my mother and I started teaching others at age 16.” Mickey Powell said she owes her career to her mother, who started teaching dance in the late ’40s in a hall above of her father’s Haight Asbury grocery store. (Photos courtesy of Mickey Powell.) It’s a mentorship that’s being handed down to both family members and students. Powell’s daughter, Julie Craig, also teaches and many of the instructors are former students, who started dance classes as early as age five. Powell guides one of her senior class students at the barre bar. She no longer teachers children’s classes after a hiatus caused by knee surgery. Powell tells the founding story: “My older brother and I are first-generation, American-born Armenians with an insular, provincial father and an artistic, gifted mother who loved to dance. She had put together her own troupe, had performed at various … | July 18, 2021 | Myra Krieger |
| What do you find in nature? All I wanted was a little peace. | I wanted spiritual feelings, but I didn’t know what they felt like. I just knew that people said feeling spiritual gives one a sense of peace and I badly wanted that. I was a stressful, anxious person in need of rehabilitation. Religion didn’t move me. Meditation, acupuncture and massage helped me physically, even mentally and emotionally, but no soulful feeing did I discover. But my first time in a deep forest, in Huddart Park in San Mateo County, surrounded by huge Redwoods and Douglas Firs, I found what I was seeking: a feeling of peacefulness that I had never experienced. I didn’t need to understand why I felt so good in the forest primeval; I just accepted that the forest was what I needed to feel calm and settled. But, after reading “Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest,” I discovered what was going on. I had joined a nurturing family. Author and forest ecologist Suzanna Simard reveals that trees living side by side for hundreds of years form a complex, social network fostering cooperation and even mutual defense. Mother Trees, says Simard, who was born and raised in the rain forests of British Columbia, are the hub of these networks, overseeing the forest as one big family. Yes, … | July 17, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| Sculptor & jeweler who finds inspiration in the sea, land and found objects discovers art in her own baldness | Ann Hedges began losing her hair when she was just nine years old. She started drawing to cope, “creating a world that was mine, and one I belonged in,” she said. “Along with having alopecia areata, I was short for my age and painfully shy.” With both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Fine Arts from the San Francisco Art Institute, Hedges, now 73, went on to develop a 45-year career selling her sculpture and jewelry. These days she also does some modeling and creates flower installations for the San Francisco Fine Art Museums. She wears scarves predominantly and the very occasional wig for parties and art openings, but doesn’t shy from posing without them. A one-time student activist, she now supports other sufferers of alopecia areata, helping them and people with cancer with how to wear scarves. She made peace with a friend who inadvertently outed her by posting pictures of her sans hair on Facebook. After her initial upset, Hedges said, “Wow, this is really me; it’s OK to be bald.” Hedges has embraced the unique beauty of her head. (Photo by Randall Whitehead.) Wigs were expensive when Hedges was growing up in Manhattan; they were made from human hair. Her parents had the money to buy one, but there … | July 15, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| Starting over in the U.S. at 62: Her family was exiled by the Nazis then the Russians. Eventually, she followed other family members to America. | It didn’t bother Shulamis Koyfman that her family thought she’d probably fail the California Board of Nursing licensing exam; she thought so, too. After all, she was 65, she’d only lived in the United States for three years and her English was, she recalls, not so hot. “Honestly, I was 100 percent sure I would fail, but I said to myself, ‘Well, I will try, I will try. I can at least say I tried. I was ready to do any work when I came here, but of course I preferred my profession.” Koyfman, a pediatric nurse in her native Moldova for 40 years, arrived in San Francisco with her grown son, Iosif, in 1997 to join her daughter, son-in-law and grandson. She was then 62 and recently widowed. All her relatives had left Moldova. “One sister and family were already settled in Israel; the other was in New York. No one was left.“ A good life in Moldova Koyfman met the challenge of learning English and preparing for the nursing exam with rigor and a complete lack of self-pity, qualities that served her well through her tumultuous life: the war years, antisemitism, hunger, collectivization, poverty and displacement. Shuulamis was born in 1935 in Moldova, when it was part of Rumania. Her … | July 7, 2021 | Naomi Marcus |
| Living through the worst: A personal story of one woman’s quest to regain hope and the genesis of ‘Senior Power’ | We asked Senior Power! founder Margaret Graf to tell us about the biggest challenge she has faced and what helped her move through it. Margaret Graf saved herself by helping her neighbors. She was inconsolable after the deaths of her daughter and her husband. Finding little support in her Parkside neighborhood, where she had lived for 60 years and where she was now among the third of its seniors who lived alone, she began reaching out. Margaret Graf at an informational session with the San Francisco Police Department. (Photos courtesy of the San Francisco Community Living Campaign) She worked with the local merchants association, her District 4 supervisor, Gordon Mar, and the San Francisco Community Living Campaign. Mar asked her to serve on the Advisory Council to the City’s Commission on Disability and Adult Services (DAS). She also serves on its Legislative Committee, reviewing and tracking bills relating to older adults and adults with disabilities. And Graf, now 82, is still running Senior Power!, a free monthly meet-up she started nearly two years ago to bring seniors together to socialize, practice Qi Gong and hear speakers on subjects of interest. When Covid-19 stopped such gatherings, she started a weekly neighborhood newsletter and a weekly Zoom information session with a University of California-San … | July 4, 2021 | Mary Hunt |
| Filipino author who helped spread the culture and history of his country still building community in S.F. and advocating for Asian Americans | When you don’t know the “other,” it’s easy to stereotype. If you want to learn about another culture, said Oscar Peñaranda, Filipino educator, author, and activist, “you need to read their literature, look at their artists.” Education, learning about others, enlarges your world and challenges your biases, and by education he refers to much more than what is covered in a school curriculum. Ever since leaving his home in the Philippines as a young man, Peñaranda, now 76, has used stories to broaden awareness and deepen the understanding of Filipino history, achievements, and culture. He has lived more than half a century in San Francisco, but his influence spans countries. His writings, about his childhood in the Philippines and early life in Canada and the U.S., have been anthologized in the U.S. and internationally. His books include a collection of poems, “Full Deck, Jokers Playing” – he’s an avid poker player – and “Seasons by the Bay,” an anthology of short stories. He is the winner of numerous awards and has lectured and held workshops across the U.S., from Stanford to Harvard. Graduating with a master’s degree in Creative Writing from San Francisco State University, he became one of the first teachers in its fledgling Department of Ethnic Studies. He created … | July 1, 2021 | Judy Goddess |
| WHAT TREATS SWEETEN YOUR DAY? For myself, I find it’s hard to be monogamous | “Sweetmeat” is an archaic term for confectionaries. But it rhymes with treats, and that’s what I’m talking about. Cookies and cakes, custards and ice cream, pastries and pies, puddings, and tarts. Oh my! Throughout this pandemic, one thing that kept me sane, was knowing that after lunch and dinner I would have my sweetmeat with coffee or tea. That delicious flow on the tongue produced a stream of dopamine and it lit up my pleasure centers. Numero Uno for me is chocolate. For quite a while it was just dark chocolate: Ghirardelli squares – raspberry, mint, and caramel. We were in a menage-a-trois. However, Kit Kats got jealous when they observed me scanning the candy aisle in Walgreen’s. I admit, they seduced me. I replaced the Ghirardelli’s and then I was in a one-to-one relationship. I like the Kit Kat’s cakey crunch layers with the milk chocolate dispersed throughout. But I’m a fickle girl and passing by Choux Bakery on lower Fillmore, part of my hood, I observed young women squealing over tiny fanciful cakes. They were ordering them by the dozens for a baby shower. I stopped and looked over their shoulders at the array of Tinker Bell-like confections. Like being slightly tipsy in a bar and spotting an attractive guy … | June 27, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| Reader’s Theater gives people the chance to perform without pressure: no memorizing lines, just building confidence in speaking in front of others | There’s no memorizing lines or pressure to perform in “Acting and Self Expression,” said instructor Kathleen Stefano, “so no stress.” Which makes it a perfect class for anyone who wants to develop self-confidence or just have fun. Photo courtesy of Kathleen Stefano It’s one of the many classes hosted by the San Francisco Senior Center, housed in a 1939 Streamline Moderne structure once known as the Aquatic Park Bathhouse Building. “We do scenes, monologues. People bring in poems, they sing,” Stefano said. “A person tells a lie, and we guess what the lie is. We address people’s capabilities.” For students who want to perform, there is the Aquatic Park Players’ Reader’s Theater productions. The actors read scenes from different plays or monologues. Sometimes there are costumes or props, sometimes song. Reader’s Theater is a perfect format for anyone who has trouble remembering dialogue, said Stefano. A recent performance on Zoom, was “LOVE, LAUGH AND LOUNGE PANTS.” “Lounge pants was a reference to our attire during the pandemic,” said Stefano. One of the scenes performed was “Disney Moms’ Therapy Group,” where the moms of Bambi, Snow White, and Jumbo got to express their feelings. For example, Bambi’s mom was angry she was going to get killed off early. Another performed scene was called … | June 23, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| People over age 51 remain a steady, sizable portion of people living on the streets and in the shelters of San Francisco | Next time you see a homeless person on a San Francisco street, look again. There’s a good chance that person will be a senior. Since 2009, people over the age of 51 have consistently comprised nearly one-third of the people living on the streets or in shelters in San Francisco. In 2019, the last time the city conducted its biennial “Point in Time” count of the homeless, there were 8,035 unhoused people, including 2,009 between the ages of 51 and 60, and 804 over the age of 60. Some 600 Seniors gathered at San Francisco City Hall in May of 2009 to protest budget cuts to programs that benefit them. (Photo by janinsanfran.) Distressing as those numbers may be, there’s a consensus among people who follow the homeless issue that the count likely overlooks significant numbers of the unhoused, including the elderly. “It’s hard to believe they can find everyone in just one night. People might be off the street for a day, crashing at someone’s house and they’re missed,” said Deanna Crespo, crisis manager at St. Dominic’s Catholic Church, which offers a variety of services for the homeless in San Francisco. The good news While the pandemic has had tragic results for much of the population, there has been one positive … | June 22, 2021 | Bill Snyder |
| Master cobbler does it the old-school way: good prices but paper tickets, cash only – and a bit of chaos that for some customers just adds to the quirky ambience. | It takes a leap of faith to drop your shoes off at Alexander’s on Mission Street, near Valencia. Nicolas Torres is a master cobbler (the shop is named for his son) proud of his work and with no plans to retire. Many YELP reviews sing his praises as a meticulous craftsman of the old school. But just as many are less than positive, particularly about his, um, organizational skills. Shoes and boots, heels and shoelaces and strips of leather are jumbled everywhere at Alexander’s Shoe Repair. Wallets, leather bags, belts and luggage all perch precariously on shelves, in tottering piles. Though Torres tags every shoe and meticulously gives clients their half, he sometimes, after finishing a job, misplaces things. Customers occasionally have to go behind the counter and dig through the chaos to find their refurbished items. Some didn’t like that or the treatment their shoes got, and chose not to go back. But others liked the atmosphere, the prices and were happy with the work. According to one review: “Although service is slow, it is very thorough. Nicolas follows the old school way of running a business. Still writing on paper, still one man working, still cash only, but the upside to this is that it’s very homey and you can … | June 13, 2021 | Naomi Marcus |
| Tenderloin resident fled the Nazis as a teen, then fought them as a member of the Soviet Red Army | The train steaming east across the Russian heartland was packed with hundreds of refugees and livestock, crammed into every available space in the freezing cars. They clung to the boarding steps, even the roofs. As it fled the onrushing Nazi war machine, the train was attacked from the air. Several cars were destroyed. Govzman served in the Soviet Red Army during World War II. Fifteen-year-old Yekaterina Govzman was onboard. She and her family had been evacuated from their home in Kharkiv, Ukraine, ahead of the invaders. The journey to Siberia and safety consumed a bitter, terrifying month. “We were all very frightened,” Govzman recalled recently. Now 95, Govzman has lived in San Francisco since 1997. The war ended long ago, but on May 9th she did what she often does on the date that marks the surrender of Germany in World War II: She donned a white jacket covered with medals honoring her service in the Soviet Red Army and its successful fight against fascism. Young as she was when the war broke out, Govzman – called Katya by family and friends – had no hesitancy about enlisting. “We loved our country and wanted to protect it,” she said with the aid of her daughter, who acted as a translator. And to … | June 4, 2021 | Bill Snyder |
| “Just a people person” has been handing out joy for years, getting back smiles at work and at a home for kids with serious illnesses. | You may not be able to see it, but even covered by a Covid mask, Bobby Thomas’s smile lights up the meat counter he presides over at Andronico’s Market. Day in and day out, the 6-foot-3-inch butcher is there with a kind word and helpful suggestions for his customers at the Inner Sunset store. Bobby Thomas juggling sausages to entertain a young customer. (Photo by Judy Goddess) Barry O’Reilly’s two-year-old greets Bobby with laughter, “Bobby, Bobby,” he shouts as they approach the meat counter, his little arms reaching out from the shopping cart in glee. Thomas obliges his young fan by juggling sausages, three at a time. “It’s the highlight of his week,” his dad said. “Bobby is the hero of the neighborhood.” Thomas pulls out all the stops on Easter, Halloween, Mothers’ Day, and Christmas. Ditching his white coat, Bobby the Butcher becomes “Bobby the Bunny” in full rabbit costume. He’s the only Andronico’s worker who regularly “dresses up” for Easter. And he spreads that good cheer beyond the meat counter. For the past 25 years, Bobby the Bunny has been appearing on Easter at The Family House, a home away from home for families of seriously ill children receiving treatment at the University of California San Francisco Benioff Children’s Hospital. … | May 25, 2021 | Judy Goddess |
| HOW ABOUT YOU? Covid put my need for intimate relationships and friends into sharp focus | During the first few weeks of the Covid 19 lockdown, my friend and I called each other daily. What a weird circumstance to be in – physically cut off from family and friends. It was unnatural, like a war zone, the virus being the enemy. I also looked forward to 7 p.m., when neighbors would blow horns and clap for frontline medical workers. I was connecting with strangers expressing the strong emotion of gratitude. I don’t remember how long the initial lockdown went on; most of us adjusted. But not those in hospitals, nursing homes, assisted living and other places were Covid reigned. Nor those who couldn’t be with loved ones suffering and sometimes dying there. But even people not in dire straits, like myself, were suffering, too, from the loneliness that only connecting in person can allay. “I just want a hug,” I thought ever so regularly. Zoom helped but couldn’t replace meeting in person. Cafes and restaurants have hung on to business with outdoor seating and parklets during Covid restrictions.(Photo courtesy of the San Francisco Planning Department.) Abraham Maslow, an American psychologist from Menlo Park, Calif., created a pyramid of five levels of human needs. After the biological needs for human survival and safety, the third most important is for … | May 19, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| ‘Just One Tree’ just one of this dedicated environmentalist’s many accomplishments | “Food banks need citrus and one lemon gives you 75 percent of daily vitamin C requirements,” said Isabel Wade. That’s why “Just One Tree,” the brainchild of Wade and her nonprofit, Urban Resource Systems, is encouraging San Franciscans to plant a lemon tree. Wade, center, with friends and a giant lemon she grew in Sonoma. (Photos courtesy of Isabel Wade.) Just One Tree was launched in 2012 with a goal of 12,000 trees, the number needed to make lemons a sustainable crop. Lemons were selected because they are popular and can even grow in a bright window. So far, they’ve officially counted 1,930 trees, mostly in homeowner gardens, but “we think there are a lot more out there,” Wade said. “We are the turtle of sustainability projects because not enough people know about it.” The trees can also be found in community gardens and apartment porches. Mini-orchard projects have also upped the numbers and helped increase public awareness, she said. The Florence Fang Community Garden in the Bayview has eight potted lemon trees donated by Just One Tree. One at the Juvenile Justice Center has 25. Growing a sustainable crop in cities fits into the overall goals of Urban Resource Systems (URS), which Wade founded in 1981 to develop and support projects … | May 17, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| La Playa Park neighborhood activist coins a counter to NIMBY – ICABY, I Care About My Back Yard | San Francisco often seems divided into opposing camps: the NIMBYs and the YIMBYs. But Steve Ward, the 69-year-old sparkplug of the La Playa Park Coalition, thinks of himself as a partisan of a third way: the ICABY. That odd acronym stands for “I care about a backyard,” and as Ward pointed to a series of improvements in his neighborhood on a recent afternoon, he proudly said, “they were built by ICABYs.” La Playa isn’t an officially sanctioned name for the neighborhood that stretches south from Golden Gate Park along the Great Highway and merging east into the Outer Sunset. It’s a reasonably affordable edge of the city, home to an eclectic mix of older, blue-collar families, recently arrived Millennials looking to finally buy a home, and surfers attracted by the proximity of Ocean Beach. When it’s running, the N-Judah streetcar line provides a direct, if lengthy and often crowded, link to downtown. Steve Ward doesn’t like to call himself an activist – but he’s managed to recruit volunteers to make improvements in his neighborhood. (Photos by Bill Snyder) Ward, a San Francisco native, has lived near the beach for about 25 years and has surprised himself by becoming a neighborhood activist – a term he dislikes. “Activist sounds like conflict and stress. … | May 15, 2021 | Bill Snyder |
| This Sister of Perpetual Indulgence added playwriting to street improvisation: His next piece will be on the iconic sisterhood | I met 73-year-old Cass Brayton when our virtual group, Drama with Friends, had the pleasure of reading three of his short plays last month. Brayton’s plays have been performed by local amateur and professional theater groups around the city. His most recent, “The Boy Who Didn’t Listen to His Mother,” was included in the 2008 “Best of” series by PlayGround, an incubator for aspiring playwriters. Cass Brayton started writing plays nearly 20 years after moving to San Francisco and joining The Sisters. (Photos courtesy of Cass Brayton) “Theatre feeds my optimism,” he said. “It pulls people out of isolation and firms our connection to each other.” Brayton didn’t start writing plays until 1998, 20 years after arriving in San Francisco. But he was already well known around town as one of the original Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, improvisational artists and community activists. Their name comes from the nuns’ robes they wear while interacting with people in the streets. “Our power comes from donning drag, thus foregoing the privilege our society gives white males,” Brayton said. “When society no longer holds the ability to threaten you with loss of power and privilege, you are free to spread joy and humor.” Although their outré antics have offended some segments of the community, their camp … | May 13, 2021 | Judy Goddess |
| S.F. poet laureate promotes citizen poems every day on the city library website; we share three that reflect on aging | Kim Shuck, San Francisco poet laureate In 2020, when Kim Shuck was selected the San Francisco Poet Laureate, the San Francisco Public Library wanted to publish a poem of hers every day during her tenure. Shuck proposed they use the library’s website instead to give voice to lesser-known Bay Area poets. Calls to former poet laureates and poetry instructors brought in thousands of poems. To date, more than a hundred poems have appeared on the library’s Poem of the Day page, including poems by each of the three poets in this article. We’re featuring three poems here – two of them appeared on the library page – that focused on aging. Each uniquely expresses the preciousness of life and our place in the world. Or, as Paul Corman-Robert, the facilitator of the library’s Older Writers’ Lab and one of the many people who helped with this article expressed it, “our growing sense of appreciation, knowing as we do that it could have turned out much worse.” Naomi Cooper, 72 She entered her first LitQuake class only to discover they were writing poetry, which she “hated.” She wanted to leave; she had an unfinished novel to complete. “But I was too polite to get up and go.” She stuck with it and now … | May 9, 2021 | Judy Goddess |
| At ease with older people, she found a career in senior center management; now she’s a senior and walking the talk | Sue Horst believes everyone has a North Star — hers was her mother, who showed her that age is no barrier to creating a new life. Her mother had been a homemaker, raising Horst and her older brother. She volunteered but never had a paid job. Yet at age 61, she studied to become a certified travel agent and went on to develop a clientele that made her the firebrand for AARP members, booking cruises and ushering seniors to destinations around the globe. “I thought it was amazingly cool,” said Horst, who at the time was a senior center manager. “My mother made me feel proud and helped me form a deeper vision that we can do fabulous things no matter our age or disability.” That sensibility is what guided Horst through a long career in senior center management, including the directorship at three Bay Area facilities. She spent 31 years at the Doelger Senior Center in Daly City, eventually becoming director. For the following eight years, she directed the San Francisco Senior Center, which encompasses the senior center at Aquatic Park and the Downtown Senior Center in the Tenderloin district. Family time In 2020 at the age of 67, she retired to spend more time with her family. She and her … | May 8, 2021 | Myra Krieger |
| ‘Great Plates’ helps keep local restaurants open during Covid while feeding seniors who might fall through meal delivery gaps | By Mary Hunt and Judy Goddess In the summer of 2020, Rosa Elena Rivera was fast approaching the end of her rope. She’d had to close her restaurant, Golden State Grill in the Excelsior, twice in the face of the Shelter in Place order and a Covid scare in her own family. Arlene Silverman (Photo by Mary Hunt) Over in Stonestown, 86-year-old Arlene Silverman has a chronic disability and lives alone. She was depending on low-cost convenience foods like frozen pizza or pasta brought in by her caregiver. Luckily, San Francisco signed on to a program made available by Gov. Gavin Newsom that’s helped both of these women. Great Plates Delivered has since last March delivered free meals to 3,600 seniors not able to shop or cook for themselves, according to Shireen McSpadden, executive director of the San Francisco Department of Disability and Aging Services, which handles registration for the program. Andnearly 250 small and medium-sized restaurants received more than $20 million for these services, helping them stay open and rehire many employees. A temporary program supported mostly with Federal Emergency Management Administration funds, Great Plates pays local restaurants hard hit by the pandemic to prepare and deliver meals. Their clients are seniors who could neither shop for groceries nor prepare their … | May 8, 2021 | admin |
| SPEAK TO US: Here’s what I love about San Francisco. What about you? | I’ve lived in San Francisco for 35 years. The one thing that has been a constant pleasure is the weather. Where else can you enjoy the outdoors year-round in the U.S. without freezing in the winter or sweating to death in the summer? I covet my temperate climate where many sunny days, in the 60s, is the most perfect weather on the planet. And no pesky bugs. How healthy to be able to walk through Golden Gate Park or along Ocean Beach, to commune with nature and get a good dose of Vitamin D. I don’t own a car, but it’s so easy to get around. I take the bus most places, or a taxi. Admittedly, the last year has been rough, but that’s not the Lady’s fault. Before the pandemic, I was a single woman in my 70s, enjoying a nice life: sampling the city’s restaurants, going to the movies, the museums and the ballet. I had a standing Friday night date with a woman friend. We’d go to the movies then out to dinner. We had our favorite restaurants near the theaters we frequented – and our favorite meals. Near the Opera Plaza theater for instance, we went to Ike’s Japanese Kitchen on Van Ness Avenue. If it was coldish … | May 8, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| Early Catholic roots returns nurse who joined the corporate world to her ideal job: hospital chaplain | Louise DiMattio spent 20 years in the business world, working for Dow Chemical and PacBell. She capped off her working life as a chaplain at the California Pacific Medical Center. That might seem an abrupt switch, but it was a natural conclusion for someone who spent 12 years in Catholic schools, she said. Personal service was embedded in her consciousness. “Jesus said to give to others,” she said, “I was an idealist; I bought the party line.” In college, she majored in philosophy and theology. She came to embrace liberation theology, a religious political activism marshalled against poverty. She admired social activist Dorothy Day’s Catholic Worker Movement to house those on the margins and the pacifist brothers Daniel and Phillip Berrigan, both priests who protested the Vietnam War. DiMattio was ordained as an interfaith chaplain at The Chaplaincy Institute in Berkeley. (Photos courtesy of Louise DiMattio) Nudged by her father to be able to support herself financially, she chose nursing. Her first job was at the Langley Porter Psychiatric Hospital in San Francisco. After seven years, she got married and stepped into the corporate world – in health- and bio-tech-related jobs. But after two decades at PacBell, DiMattio, at 50, was ready for a new challenge. Offered early retirement packages, she and … | April 16, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| Historic center keeping records and creating community for the Irish-born, Irish-Americans and the Irish-at-heart for last 45 years | In her latest YouTube video, Jennifer Drennan, wearing protective gloves, holds up an original program from the 1898 Irish Fair, held at the Mechanic’s Pavilion at the San Francisco Civic Center. This is the kind of memorabilia and Irish history found in the J. Patrick Dowling Library at the “United Irish Cultural Center of California” on 45th Avenue, three blocks from Ocean Beach. Cover of the Report to the Celtic Union on the 1898 Irish Fair in San Francisco. (Photos courtesy of the J. Patrick Dowling Library at the United Irish Cultural Center of California.) “The Irish Fair was a major fundraising event for the Celtic Union,” the literary society founded in 1853 to publish Irish history, said Drennan. The last live Irish Fair in California was held in 2019 in Irvine; last year’s was virtual. Drennan is the first paid librarian in about 10 years at what was the first all-Irish library in the country. She volunteered for two years before the board decided to make it a part-time position. The job is a natural fit. She’s a sixth-generation Californian with distant Irish roots whose family has been socializing at the center for years. “My ancestors are from County Galway, maybe the city of Belfast,” she said. “My husband has been … | April 1, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| Child of Jim Crow era finds opportunities, advancement, protection ‘from the outside world’ in the U.S. Army | Laverne Simon. Hunger is something Lavern Simon is familiar with. Not for food but for learning. Born into a segregated Washington D.C., her education was less than inspiring. Her school had few resources. You had to bring your own pencil to school or pay for one, she said. Children went home for lunch each day. Reading lessons from “Dick and Jane” or “See Spot Run” came in random shuffles of mimeographed sheets – never a complete text. There was corporal punishment if you misbehaved. Her world was small – and all black. She had little contact with white people. Until she entered an integrated school in New York at the age of eight, she said she imagined white children as aliens from another planet. The family move to Brooklyn in 1955 launched her love affair with learning. Her new school had all the resources her previous one lacked. She did well and set her sights on college. Seven years after graduating from high school, she joined the Army because of its generous education benefits. Loving the Army life A personalized postcard from Simon’s India cruise. Below, Simon and friend at an outdoor Indian laundry. (Photos courtesy of Laverne Simon) She planned to stay for four years; it turned out to be 18. … | March 28, 2021 | Myra Krieger |
| From the jungles of Bolivia to On Lok Senior Center, social justice advocate promotes nutritious meals and healthy programs | The knowledge was hard-won, but over the years Valorie Villela discovered the link between nutrition, health and survival. Villela struggled with bulimia from her teens to her 20s. Painful as it was, her conquest of the disorder put her on a path of service and adventure that took her from her native Oregon to the jungles of South America to San Francisco’s Mission District. She worked on world hunger projects in college, taught nutrition to Bolivian mothers, and was part of a group that protected a Baptist pastor from a Salvadoran death squad. Villela, 67, is now the director of Well Senior Program Development for On Lok, where she has worked to deliver better nutrition and health to San Francisco seniors for 34 years. Valorie Villela in San Francisco. (Photos by Myra Krieger.) Villela was well on her way to a life of service by the time she was 25. She had served three years with the Mennonite Central Committee in the jungles of San Julián, Santa Cruz, Bolivia. She was a volunteer, working under the auspices of a U.S. AID project to teach mothers better nutrition. Volunteers saw children with extended stomachs and hair turning blonde because of a protein deficiency called kwashiorkor, a widespread problem. Villela is not Mennonite, but … | March 19, 2021 | Myra Krieger |
| For retired couple, helping out the kids means setting up their house as a pre-school for their grandson | Asher and his grandfather, David Goldberg, with their makeshift train. (Photos courtesy of the Goldbergs) Two-year-old Asher loves trains. So, his grandfather, David Goldberg made him one. Crafted from cardboard, it was big enough for Asher to sit in and move around. “Grandparenting is so different these days,” said David as he pushed and pulled his grandson around, with Asher making train sounds. “I don’t remember my grandparents getting down on the floor.” Asher also likes to give rides to his animal friends and pile up lemons in the train he collects from the yard. That’s just one of the many activities the Goldbergs, both 76 and retired, engage in every day as Asher’s caregivers while his parents work. They assumed duties in August when their daughter and son-in-law had to physically go back to work. A nanny, daycare or other options were out of the question because of Covid-19. When they took on the responsibility, the Goldbergs went all out. In their big three-story house that Asher likes to explore, they set up the family room like a pre-school and their son’s bedroom with a crib for naps. Asher lives in kind of a Disneyland, and that doesn’t mean he watches the Disney channel. No TV for this kid. The playroom … | March 1, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| Volunteer for program providing host housing for LGBTQ+ youth pays it forward for those who once helped her | Growing up in what she describes as “a not very supportive family,” Lynne Painter, now 59, turned to her friends’ parents for support. “Older people mentored me throughout my life,” she said. “I tend to hang out with them.” When she moved to San Francisco in her mid-20s, it was a friend of a friend, 17 years her senior, who showed her around and introduced her to the city’s many neighborhoods. In the last year, she’s been paying it forward through Host Homes, a year-old San Francisco program serving LGBTQ youth who are homeless or unstably housed. Painter is sharing her two-bedroom condo with a 24-year-old in the Queer Studies department at City College. Before moving in, Hold, who asked not to share a last name, had been living in a converted, windowless garage shared with a rotating group of roommates. “The living conditions were unsafe for me as a Queer/Trans survivor,” Hold said. Nearly half of the 1,145 San Francisco youth under age 25 identified in the January 2019 federal homeless count were LGBTQ+. Not all slept on the streets; 201 had some sort of shelter, whether couch surfing, living in their cars or, like Hold, jammed into cramped quarters with others. Host Homes was launched about a year ago by … | February 20, 2021 | Judy Goddess |
| Crocheting and quilting – a bounteous habit that buoys the crafter, as well as babies, the homeless, veterans and friends | Becky Gordon made lanyards holding keys and charms in the Girl Scouts. In college, she taught herself to crochet and made necklaces of fine gold thread and beads. After moving to San Francisco in 1975, she became an avid quilter and fabric collector. Relentless crafter: Becky Gordon. “As far back as I can remember I’ve done some sort of craft,” she said. She can make something pretty, personal and useful to give someone pleasure, and go into a meditative state all at once. “When I’m crocheting or quilting, all my worries and concerns go away.” She gave the lanyards to friends. In college, she sold her necklaces at the St. Augustine flea market for spending money. She still sells a “Scrubadubbie,” a crocheted swatch of fuzzy plastic yarn that can be used as a loofah or to scrub pots and pans. She calls one of her favorite sewing projects “Pillowcases with Pizzazz,” personalized for family and friends. “There is a coke bottle design fabric for my sister who is a collector; a bicycle for my mountain biker neighbor; Warriors for basketball fans; and cats for my dental hygienist.”In 2010, she taught a class on how to create these pillowcases at the San Francisco QuiltWorks, a charity that continued making them for years, … | January 27, 2021 | Jan Robbins |
| Military kid was no brat; she watched over 10 siblings, later saved herself from drugs and distinguished herself helping others | When her two older sisters left home, 15-year-old Brenda Washington began caring for her two younger brothers, babysitting nieces and nephews and cooking for the family. And the standards were high; things had to be done just right. “My dad was military. We were saluting kids. The nickel had to bounce off the bed.” Mostly, she wanted to please her stepmother. Washington’s own mother died when she was five. Her older sister, 12 at the time, took over cooking and childcare. Her father soon remarried, but her stepmother, a Jehovah’s Witness, was also very strict. And she didn’t work – or cook or clean. Meanwhile, her father and his new wife went on to have five children. By the time Washington took over household duties, she was seeing to 10 siblings. “I wanted my stepmother to be happy so she wouldn’t complain to my father.” And her stepmother was good to them in many ways: “She dressed us nice and combed our hair,” she said. She volunteered the children to work at the church, and if they were good, every other weekend, “we got to do something special, like play miniature golf.” The San Francisco Board of Supervisors honored Washington in 2016 for her work as team leader of the Jefferson Hotel … | January 22, 2021 | Judy Goddess |
| Flight surgeon breaks barriers in ophthalmology career: treating cataracts and president of Taiwan | Wayne Fung visited the doctor twice a week when he was 10. Intravenous injections kept his asthma under control. He warmed to the office nurse, whom he called “Ducky,” because she was the best at hitting the arm vein in his thin torso. Watching these events, his mother proclaimed, “I think one day YOU will be a doctor!” That was 1944 in Vallejo. Fung spent more than 50 years as an ophthalmologist, in private practice and with the California Pacific Medical Center, retiring seven years ago. And it was a stellar career. He was the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from The American Academy of Ophthalmology. He specialized in problems of the retina, the thin layer of tissue at the back of the eye that converts light into neural signals recognized by the brain. He focused on diabetic retinopathy and cataracts. “In humility,” said Fung, now 86, “being one of the first in the area to do small incision cataract surgery, intra-ocular lens implantation and performing vitrectomy surgery (removing fluids within the eye) were where I could be called a leader.” He has published about 32 articles in major, peer-reviewed journals and from 1990 to 1992, he was the elected president of the Retina Society. The president’s personal eye doctor In … | January 20, 2021 | Myra Krieger |
| Retired psychiatric nurse with a yen for drama ponders the future with humor | “100 is the New 80”. Artwork by Susan Evans. Susan Evans doesn’t remember when she first began using humor to deal with the “hard stuff,” but she’s counting on “the great healer” to help her through the aging process. “A major one is wondering what will give out first – my money or my life?” she joked. There are lesser issues as well. “What’s appropriate dress for an older woman who doesn’t feel her age?” Evans has been an artist and photographer, a playwright and actor. Most of her theatre pieces, humorous takes life’s quandries, have been fueled by stories from her career as a psychiatric nurse: the drug addict who will give it all up someday – but not now; the transgender man who equates happiness with a D cup; the numbing experience of working for a health insurance company. But it’s the piece she wrote with acting partner Marleen Smith and performed at the Monday Night Marsh in 2017, that has been hitting closer to home lately. She turns 79 this year. In “100 is the new 80,” she takes on some of the imponderables of aging: Do I have enough money to retire? Where do I want to live? How do I find friends at this stage of my … | January 5, 2021 | Judy Goddess |
| You name the dance; she taught it. Afro-Haitian her favorite, but educator finds inspiration in all cultures. | Valerie Watson started dance lessons at age four and a half. At nine, she created her own choreography, charging friends a nickel for Saturday morning tap classes. “My parents didn’t know that by giving me dance lessons they were preparing me to follow my destiny,” she said. Now 80, she’s still dancing. “As long as I can get out of bed – and walk, I’ll be dancing,” Watson said. Watson continues to study the intricacies of the Hula, which she has focused on since retiring at 73. “Hula was a new dance experience, having to sing and dance at the same time,” she said. She also accompanies the music with a ukulele, one of her childhood instruments. Watson with the members of her dance troupe, the Alafia Dance Ensemble. (Photos courtesy of Valerie Watson.) She returned to dance after the birth of her fourth child. She became performer, choreographer, drummer and creator of a major dance company, Alafia Dance Ensemble, at City College of San Francisco, where she was an instructor for 35 years. At CCSF and elsewhere in the Bay Area, she taught just about every form of dance: jazz, tap, modern, ballroom (swing, foxtrot, waltz, Charleston, lindy), Latin (salsa, chachacha, Argentine and American tango, bachata, merengue), as well as yoga, … | December 30, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| ‘Street-wise, fast mouth’ made this teacher perfect for preparing under-achieving kids for college | The year was 1963 in Sacramento, Calif. Irving Rothstein was pushing, shredding and pushing more paper in a job he didn’t find very interesting. But, as he recalls, “sometimes out of boredom comes birth.” He followed an ad and nailed a tutoring position. That was the incubator from which he realized his life’s work — teaching. Since then, there have been many variations — in settings, subjects and students — but his theme remains the same: the joy of teaching and learning. He lives by the Latin proverb: By learning you will teach; by teaching you will learn. His 2015 book, “It Couldn’t Have Been the Pay,” encapsulates his life in public schools. Within two years of getting the tutoring position, Rothstein had relocated to San Francisco. With the help of a good friend and mentor at San Francisco State, he was soon teaching at Upward Bound, a federally funded program that prepares under-achieving youth for college. As remarked by one his book reviewers, “Rothstein was perfect was for this spot; he was the street-wise fast mouth who could break through.” Said Rothstein: “The kids voted me the best teacher there during these years.” He also worked restaurant and sales jobs and got his teaching credential, having already earned his undergraduate degree, … | December 27, 2020 | Myra Krieger |
| It started with sleeping in the bedroom then attic then garage: Exploring unexpected uses of space spurs architectural career | At an early age, Wendy Bertrand developed a fascination with the use of space in and around buildings, particularly the out of the ordinary. It all started with sleeping arrangements in her childhood and summers spent in Mexico. When she was six, her divorced mother bought a vintage 1918 cottage in La Jolla, Calif. Initially, Wendy and her sister slept in bunk beds in the tiny bedroom, with her mother taking a corner of the living room surrounded by her folk art. When Bertrand was nine, her mother, who encouraged her to make her own decisions, granted her request to turn the attic into her bedroom. But after two years. she wanted to make the detached garage her bedroom, convincing her mother to close it in. She’d had enough of the attic whose ceiling was so low her hair caught on the rough rafters when she sat up in bed. In the spring and summer, she and her sister or a friend slept in a tent on the back lawn. “Changing where I slept made me aware of how places can be used differently,” said Bertrand, now 79. Summers spent in Ajijic, near Guadalajara, with her mother and sister opened her eyes to even more variations on home spaces. In La Jolla, … | December 14, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| Caring for Mom wins out over love of Bay Area for longtime resident still working but long distance | Diane Reynolds relocated to the Bay Area when she was 26. San Francisco is “so accepting of things, I knew this was the home I was looking for.” Four years ago, she returned to Maryland, where she was born, to be available when her mother needed her. It was not an easy decision. Leaving meant walking away from everything she had come to enjoy over the last 40 years. “To leave at 68 years old, when most of my friends and acquaintances were in the Bay Area, even though I was leaving for a reason, how would I adjust? The unknown scared me. Would I meet people? Would I find my niche?” She mulled over the decision for several years, but when she finally committed, “there was no looking back.” She knew she wouldn’t be able to help from across the country. Commuting was not an option She had already been through 14 years of flying back and forth to Maryland every three months, of having “one foot in both places,” to care for a father with a slow-growing brain tumor. Diane Reynolds with her mother, Evelyn Perlmutter, on her 95th birthday. (Photo courtesy of Diane Reynolds.) Though she lived on the other side of the country, while her siblings lived much … | December 5, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| Power comes from doing for others, says Fillmore native who helped bring technology training to Black youth and communities | “Power,” said Chester Williams, “is in relationships and what you can do for others. I flourish by what I do for others.” It’s a lesson he learned from his parents and is one he still strives to live by. Over the years, the multi-talented Williams has opened many doors for San Francisco’s Black community. As a public school teacher, he sought to “present a positive role model to Black youth in predominantly white school systems.” An early convert to the possibilities of computers, he devoted years to bringing the technology to minority communities. Also interested in media, he took Columbia School of Broadcasting courses in San Francisco in the late ’70s, and from there went on to start his own company, Fillmore Media Systems & Services, to film community events and funerals. Most recently, he has been coordinating the Community Living Campaign’s grocery delivery and computer training programs for seniors in the Bayview. When there’s a need, he wants to be there, ready to contribute, ready to open doors. “It’s what we do for others: the doors we open, the people we help,” Williams said. Williams, now 71, was born in the Fillmore, then the city’s largest African American community. The Fillmore was a happening neighborhood in his youth, in the days … | December 2, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| Problem getting those pants on, or arms in sleeves? Adaptive clothing devotee says there’s a solution for every complication | Catherine Bauman began experiencing symptoms four or five years before she received the official diagnosis: multiple sclerosis. First, there were numb spots. Maintaining her balance became a challenge. Then, 10 years ago, the former San Francisco city planner began using a wheelchair – first, a manual (“too much pushing”), then later, an electric. As her illness progressed, that wasn’t the only change Bauman made. Like many wheelchair users, she discovered it wasn’t easy to find clothing that accommodated her mobility challenges — and her sense of style. It’s called adaptive clothing, and it was once very hard to find. “We can’t go to Macy’s and try on things you like,” she said. “It’s not fun to go out to a store and go through racks and racks and racks.” Catherine Bauman says complications from multiple sclerosis have made it difficult for her to put her arms in sleeves. The solution for her is “adaptive” capes. (Photos by Laurence Kornfield.) Bauman and her husband took heart when, in leafing through “New Mobility” magazine one day, they spotted an ad for IZ Adaptive, an online store selling just what she needed. They hadn’t been expecting to find black leather legwarmers, silver bomber jackets or cargo pants, much less natty business suits. But find them … | November 29, 2020 | Rebecca Rosen-Lum |
| Judo teacher puts mind, body and spirit into helping others, including the martial art’s first, highest-ranked woman | On a video tribute friends made to celebrate her 90th birthday this year, one of them called Shelley Fernandez a “warrior for service.” Fernandez has dedicated her life to helping others. She was an innovative educator for disadvantaged youth, a women’s rights activist, a promoter of judo in San Francisco and internationally, a founder of a free medical clinic for Cesar Chavez field workers. Today, after her second hip operation, she can’t wait to get back to her calling. “I want to reopen my Noe Valley judo school as soon as possible.” Two incidents in Fernandez’s youth set her on her path of lifelong service. In the late 1930s, the Fernandez family had fallen into poverty and had to sell their furniture. Sometime during World War II, “a blind man who had escaped Auschwitz came by and asked if we had anything to give his family,” said Fernandez. In an act of defiance she’d never seen in her mother, “My mother told my father to give him their mattress. I saw something in her eyes that affected me deeply.” Then, there was the problem of getting to the West Coast to start college. “My high school teachers chipped in for my air fare,” she said. “Because of what my mother did and … | November 22, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| Cathedral Hill resident tireless in efforts to keep Van Ness corridor development sane and safe | Marlayne Morgan learned about pay disparities between men and women on a research project in graduate school. She learned how to build coalitions to improve conditions for workers during a 20-year career in labor relations. And having lived in San Francisco for 40 years, “where you actually walk through both safe and edgy neighborhoods, take transit and support local businesses rather than spending your life negotiating freeways,” she’s learned the importance of land-use decisions. Pulling on all that experience, she’s been creating community coalitions to make the city safer, cleaner, healthier, less expensive, more accessible and more enjoyable. She works on multiple projects simultaneously: She is co-founder of the Van Ness Corridor Coalition, served as vice president of the Coalition for San Francisco Neighborhoods and presides as president of the Cathedral Hill Neighborhood Association. Most recently she has become a key team member in RescueSF, an organization founded to end homelessness in San Francisco. Co-founding the Van Ness Corridor Coalition is one of her recent ventures. The nine-member group is devoted to mitigating the impacts of development – business, institutional, housing and transportation – on this cross-city boulevard. “No one has advocated for Van Ness,” Morgan said, “Every neighborhood in this part of the city has Van Ness as a boundary, … | November 17, 2020 | Myra Krieger |
| DIY crafts: Never underestimate the power of googly eyes or the potential of hidden treasures in home cleanups | Fragile beauty out of Japanese paper Terri Wong, 65, Sunset District I recently cleaned out my studio and “found” a stash of sheets of Washi (Japanese paper) that my daughter and I collected over the years to make origami boxes. I also found dried leaves my daughter’s grandmother sent her 30 years ago. Inspired by fiber artist and weaver Kay Sekimachi, I decided to make washi paper bowls. Sekimachin is known for her three-dimensional woven monofilament hangings and intricate baskets and bowls. She also created baskets of linen warp ends and rice paper. (Traditional Washi is fine paper made from fibers of the Gampi Tree, the Misumata Shrub, the Mulberry bush, Bamboo, Hemp, Rice and other natural materials. The fibers, bark, flower petals and other inclusions provide great texture and character. ) I looked around my house to see what I could use as molds. I started with porcelain bowls that a friend made me, then a gorgeous glass bowl my stepson gave me, and ended with my Dad’s favorite soup bowl. I even used skeleton leaves to form a translucent candle holder. Each time I unmold a piece, I am in awe of how translucent and fragile they are. EDITOR’S NOTE: See our profile on textile artist Terri Wong here. ‘Feel-good’ wearables out … | November 12, 2020 | admin |
| ‘It takes the hood to save the hood’ – with plenty of push from local Latin jazz icon and ‘mayor’ of the Mission District | Tourists from around the world gape at Richard Segovia’s house. A kaleidoscope of vibrant colors framing the portraits of local Latin rock musicians weave around the corner of 25th and York streets. Locally, it’s known as the “Latin Rock House,” a tribute to the genre’s birth in the Mission District. Bay area legend and Mission district local Carlos Santana introduced Latin rock to the world. By the start of the ’70s, Santana was joined by a host of local bands and performers who fed the country’s hunger for the new sound that crossed all boundaries. Segovia’s house, inside and out, is a chronicle of that movement. Segovia near the side entrance to his house. (Photo by Robin Evans) Segovia in his living room, which is filled with pictures of the musicians and bands he has played with as well as community members and groups he’s worked with. (Photo by Robin Evans) Leading a tour around the exterior, Segovia points to portraits of local music legends like Santana, Malo, the Escovedos, Malibu, Able and the Prophets, the Filipino Latin Rock bands Don Quillo and Sapo, his own band Puro Bandido and so many others. “The Mission District is to Latin Rock what Detroit is to Motown,” he wants you to know. But while … | November 6, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| Former NBA star can credit talent, team-first philosophy for success from USF Dons to Knicks and Bulls to USF director job | In high school, his favorite sport was baseball. But when he watched a teammate hit a big home run over the right field fence, he knew he didn’t have that in him. He turned to basketball, grew to love the game – and reached stardom. Cartwright at his home today. Photo courtesy of Cartwright’s son James. Over a more than 30-year career in professional basketball, Bill Cartwright helped win six National Basketball Association championships, three as a player for the Chicago Bulls then three as assistant coach. He was starting center right out of college for the New York Kicks, then traded after nine seasons to the Bulls, for whom he played another six. After one year with the Seattle Sonics, he returned to the Bulls for another six seasons as assistant coach. Since retiring from basketball in 2014, Cartwright has been director of University Initiatives at the University of San Francisco, lured back to his alma mater by then president Fr. Paul J. Fitzgerald. His job involves fundraising and mentoring students. A country boy makes it big “The biggest thing I learned at USF was about possibilities,” Cartwright said. “I came from a small town, and I didn’t know you could be a CEO of a company or have your own … | November 4, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| Spanish-speaking child in ‘English Only’ era becomes school principal and champion for bi-lingual education and community | Pilar Mejia was born 74 years ago in a small town in Ecuador. As the first grandchild on her mother’s side, she received a lot of attention. “Even at that young age, I recited poetry and was cheery and outgoing.” But that changed when she was six and her family moved to southern California. Although the local public school served many monolingual youngsters from Mexico, students were not allowed to speak Spanish in class or even at recess. Pilar, like most other students, obeyed. “I didn’t understand English so I couldn’t ask questions. I literally and figuratively lost my public voice.” It was not until she became an adult that felt comfortable enough to speak out in public. Then, she went on to earn the degrees that enabled her to create classrooms welcoming all students’ languages and culture. Retired since 2010, Mejia remains active in the schools and as an advocate for bilingual/bicultural education. No longer the mute little girl, she’s determined that other children will not be shamed for speaking their mother tongue. “We advocate for our community in the school district and have given hundreds of thousands of dollars in scholarships,” said Mejia, who remains active in the Latin American Teachers Association. “This year, we granted 36 scholarships of $500 … | November 1, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| Fascination with the subconscious leads woman through two dreamy careers | Much to the chagrin of her schoolmates, she was the girl in the front row with her hand always in the air — asking questions. Naomi Epel is a self-starter driven by abundant curiosity. The questions she has been asking as an adult are about dreams and the subconscious. “Every dream has multiple levels of meaning,” said Epel, who has helped people explore their dreams as individual clients or in classes or large workshops around the Bay Area for over 20 years. “After intensive inquiry into the dream, issues can often be identified, resulting in redress and growth.” Backed by coursework in clinical psychology and her own research, Epel forged a confluence of careers around her interests: a dream consultant; an author writing about other authors and their dreams; and owner of a literary escort business ferrying writers to book signings and events. Her 1994 “Writers Dreaming” relates the influence of dreams on the work of some of the era’s most heralded writers, including novelists Stephen King, Anne Rice, Isabel Allende, Sue Grafton, Amy Tan, John Sayles and William Styron. Her 1998 “Observation Deck” offers tips for kick-starting creativity culled from interviews with John Berendt, author of “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil,” film directors Wes Craven, Anthony Minghella and James … | October 28, 2020 | Myra Krieger |
| Former Gap exec aims to democratize organic food, starting with her line of granola and crackers test | Over 30 years, Theresa Petry vaulted up the rungs of retail, from vice president at Restoration Hardware to director of merchandising at the Gap. She oversaw retail stores that spanned the U.S. – Mervyns, TravelSmith, Joyus.com – most with a focus on fashion. “I was successful throughout my career in retail and in each job was promoted to more elevated positions,” she said. Fast forward a few years and Petry is founder and CEO of Organic Pantry Co., producing artisanal crackers and granola. Petry at an event for new entrepreneurs in San Francisco. (Photos courtesy of Theresa Petry) That’s not as radical a departure as it may seem. “I was always a foodie,” said Petry, 58. “My mother was a great cook.” However, “My mom does not believe in eating organic, gluten free, etc. She grew up on Mexican food and that is the basis of her diet. I grew up on this diet and changed it in college.” While working as an executive, she brought her tantalizing concoctions to work for lunch. “Co-workers would say, ‘Can I have some of that?’” She gave jars of her homemade salad dressing as Christmas gifts. “I called it Salad Blessing,” she said. But she has goals in addition to ameliorating the American diet. “I used … | October 17, 2020 | Rebecca Rosen-Lum |
| Photographer finds cheer and sees art in the colorful combinations of clothing and masks he encounters | Randall Whitehead thrives on beauty and creativity – in the objects, people and environments that surround him. He’s an award-winning architectural lighting designer and author who lives in a magnificently decorated – and lighted – home on Potrero Hill that’s been featured in several magazines. He’s worked his magic on the homes of celebrities, including Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Rita Moreno, Bing Crosby and Jerry Garcia. One of the nation’s top lighting design consultants, he has held seminars across the U.S., Canada and South America and written and been interviewed by many of the premiere architectural and design magazines. As “Randall, Your Lighting Doctor,” he has produced a number of helpful books and videos. He’s also a photographer, who shot for magazines and newspapers after landing in San Francisco right after college – driving straight here from his home state of Delaware. Getting to know his new home and neighbors, he began producing portraiture and fine art photography. He captured city spaces and city people. He published “Lost Dolls,” pictures of long discarded children’s toys he spotted at various flea markets. A rapid fashion evolution Since pandemic shelter-in-place regulations, he’s had more time to expand the targets of his creativity. Senior Beat is sharing here some of what he calls his … | October 12, 2020 | Robin Evans |
| Claire-laure Belt: coloring the neighborhoods | She’s been my walking partner for the last five months. We’d walk for an hour and a half to three hours discovering different neighhorhoods. We would decide what made them different. I’d take pictures and put them up on Facebook so people who couldn’t get out could go on a walk with us. | October 12, 2020 | Randall Whitehead |
| Joszi Meskan: exterior by design | She’s been in the interior design business for a really long time. She’s been selling off everything she’s collected over the years and hired me to photograph them. | October 12, 2020 | Randall Whitehead |
| Mitchell Durkee: displaying the merchandise | I was shopping at F. Dorian on Hayes Street, the best gift store in all of San Francisco, and I saw this salesperson who had put a feather necklace on his head. | October 12, 2020 | Randall Whitehead |
| Nancy & Dave DeRoche: retro Gothic | “I went over to a garage sale in the Oakland Hills. They were selling the torchere lamp. I asked them to pose with it and they were willing.” | October 12, 2020 | Randall Whitehead |
| Sandra Church: dinner with a Broadway star | “I met her by chance at a friend of a friend’s dinner. I liked how her hair, mask and shirt went together.” The former actress and singer played a leading role in the original Broadway production of “Gypsy” – opposite Ethel Merman. She also played Marlon Brando’s wife in the 1963 film version of “The Ugly American,” as well as many roles on television in the late ’50s and early ’60s. Sandra Church, at 22, played opposite Ethel Merman in the 1959 Broadway production of “Gypsy.” Photo courtesy of Friedman-Abeles/New York Public Library | October 12, 2020 | Randall Whitehead |
| Lorraine Tuschen: a chance meeting of reds, whites and blues | “She’s a friend who goes by ‘Peach.’ I went out to visit her in Alameda and we went for a walk. She was wearing all white and she had red and blue in her mask and her hair is all white. I saw this flag hanging really low and it all came together.” | October 12, 2020 | Randall Whitehead |
| Ann Hedges: a surprise at lunch | It was Ann Hedges birthday and I was taking her to lunch. She surprised me with this outfit coordinated around her mask. She’s so inventive in what she puts together. Ann Hedges, model | October 12, 2020 | Randall Whitehead |
| Maker of hand-printed books faces an unraveling, then begins to read the hidden thread in her own story | Like so many young people, Leigh McLellan had not clearly fixed on a career when she entered college. A course in graduate school piqued her passion for creating hand-printed books. It was a career she pursued for 15 years – before suddenly giving it up. McLellan, like many young people, had more to discover about herself. Heading off to the University of Mississippi agricultural school, she hoped to become a veterinarian. She had enjoyed showing her dog in “sanction shows” as a teenager, so it seemed a natural fit. But the science courses were tough and being in a mostly male class of colleagues wasn’t particularly comfortable, she said. So, recalling her mother’s words, she switched to art. When McLellan was four, her mother had looked at her drawings and exclaimed, “My daughter is an artist!” From the wisdom of 70 years, she realizes her mother “was looking for signs of genius,” but McLellan attests her pictures were atypical for a toddler. “I drew in two dimensions. My people had shoulders, fingers, and bodies – not like the stick figures children draw at that age.” September of her sophomore year found her pursuing an art degree at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, “a more hippyish school by southern standards.” From poetry … | October 8, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| From ingenue to ‘old lady,’ veteran Bay Area actress ‘Verry McVerry’ says the roles keep on coming | Her father joked that Maureen McVerry came out of the womb and took a bow. The third girl born to the family in three years seemed destined to be in the spotlight. McVerry was head cheerleader in high school. (Photos courtesy of Maureen McVerry) “At five, I sang ‘St. Louis Woman’ in a show and nailed it,” McVerry said, “and I wasn’t nervous at all.” From her paternal grandmother, McVerry inherited an ear for accents and voices. She imitated everyone – funny people in the store and famous people. She was also highly sensitive, weeping at the drop of a hat. A dramatic child. So, when she dropped out of college after two years, her father suggested she audition for “Man of La Mancha” at the local junior college. With no experience, except having sung in choirs, she got one of the three female roles. “From the audience, my father noticed my comfort level and confidence performing, so when I re-entered college three years later, he encouraged me to study acting,” she said. At 65, she’s had a full and successful career as an actor, musical theater and cabaret performer. Irish poets, singers and storytellers Born into the Irish tradition of poets, singers and storytellers, she grew up in a family that … | September 23, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| Getting seniors to exercise is final and favorite of her many careers, from Levi’s to KRON’s Bay TV newsroom | Sue Mittelman confesses to being a procrastinator. As such, she avows Walt Disney’s wise words: “The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.” It’s advice she wishes her mother had heeded and one she preaches as a leader of senior exercise groups. Mittelman, whose occupations have ranged from promotion and merchandising for Levi Strauss to legal secretarial work to TV news production, is now 70, and for the past 11 years has been a fitness instructor. The notion of this as a career was born as Mittelman observed her mother’s physical decline: She had severe osteoporosis, then broke the same hip twice and never fully recovered. “Unlike my mother, I exercised regularly and knew the heart of the problem was immobility; she did not exercise,” Mittelman said. “She died in 2003 and several years later, I went to work in senior physical fitness.” Later was six years. “I was procrastinating but eventually I got where I wanted and needed to be.” Mittelman at the 2019 Aquatic Park Pier-to-Pier celebration. (Photos courtesy of Sue Mittelman.) Seniors nowadays are much more aware of the advantages of exercise, she said. “I don’t have to drag anyone kicking and screaming to class – they want to do this,” Mittelman said, but … | September 21, 2020 | Myra Krieger |
| Former punk rocker pulls tricks from stage managing at the Mabuhay to fine-tuning the flow at Potrero food pantry | Though one might not see a direct connection between controlling a line of punk rockers eagerly awaiting entry to the Mabuhay Gardens and running a food pantry, for Michael Reid it came in handy. For the past 17 years, Reid, now 64, has been the operating manager of The Food Pantry at St. Gregory of Nyssa Episcopal Church on Potrero Hill. But sometime before that, he had been right in the middle of the city’s frantic punk music scene, booking his own and other touring bands. He played bass. He stage-managed at the Strand, the Warfield and the Mabuhay, a Filipino restaurant and club that became the center of New Wave and Punk with acts such as the Dead Kennedys, Devo, the Go-Go’s, Blondie, The Police, Patti Smith and more. Reid himself booked many of them. The Dead Kennedys at the Mabuhay Gardens. (Photo courtesy of chaira c photography) Fanzine for the Blank Generation. He also wrote for Fanzine for the Blank Generation, the West Coast’s first to focus on the punk rock scene. He also led an early podcast interviewing several fanzine publishers. But along with the music scene went the drug scene and Reid burned out. He took a break to try and reinvent himself. And though he didn’t see it at the time, … | September 16, 2020 | admin |
| UCSF medical students learn how to communicate with older patients – with respect and empathy | Coping with a series of migraine headaches is unpleasant enough. But being patronized and belittled when seeking treatment at an emergency room adds a good deal of insult to an already painful condition — especially if you’re an older adult. That’s what happened to Yael Li-Ron, a retired magazine editor, when she sought treatment at a hospital in Hawaii. “I’ve noticed in the past few years that the ER staff treats me as feeble-minded. Despite the pain, I force myself to talk to them at length so they can tell that I’m intelligent. It’s infuriating,” said Li-Ron, who is now 66. Li-Ron’s experience is hardly unique. Older adults say that medical professionals sometimes talk to them like they’re not very bright and humiliate them by directing questions and statements to younger family members as if they weren’t even in the room. There’s more than anecdotal evidence to support that feeling. For example, a study of older patients in a nursing home in the United Kingdom found that 22 percent of the comments directed at the patients were in baby talk. Fortunately, medical schools are taking note, and many have instituted training programs for medical students aimed at debunking the myths of aging and teaching the budding physicians to treat older patients empathetically … | September 13, 2020 | Bill Snyder |
| In her 89th year, devout and disciplined Bayview super-volunteer keeps on serving her community | Beverly Ann Johnson Taylor, or Miss Taylor as she’s known to the many organizations for whom she volunteers, celebrates her 89th birthday this August. For 40 years, she has taught in the public schools, deriving both personal satisfaction and numerous accolades for her service. Retirement only opened new opportunities to serve her church and community. “She works nonstop; she never says no to a request for help,” said Chester Williams, who works with Taylor organizing seniors in the Bayview for the San Francisco Community Living Campaign’s Community Connectors program. “Commitment to the community describes her; she’s always available to help the betterment of seniors within the community. Beverly has been on a number of committees for years.” The Network for Elders was one of the first of many organizations that came to rely on her commitment and energy. After Taylor introduced herself to Shireen McSpadden, a social worker with the Network and now director of the San Francisco Department of Disability and Aging Services, McSpadden asked her to volunteer and put her on the board. Taylor has served as the Network’s coordinator ever since – leading, mentoring and supporting its members. Her Network meetings are ‘just plain fun’ “Beverly has been a leader and advocate for older women in her community. … | September 9, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| She grew up enjoying symphonies at Stern Grove, then devoted herself as a volunteer after retiring | Native San Franciscan Susan Leurey grew up in an Italian household where the stirring music of Puccini, Verdi and Rossini operas undulated throughout. When her mother took her and her sister to the summer Stern Grove Festivals, Leurey also developed a love of symphonies. “It took about 10 seconds after I retired to decide to volunteer,” Leurey said. “As soon as summer rolled around, I was at Stern Grove ready to work.” Leurey with another volunteer at Stern Grove. (Photos courtesy of Susan Leurey) After graduation from college in Oakland, a successful career in banking and finance, a marriage and the birth of a son, Leurey couldn’t imagine being idle in retirement. So, she began volunteering at the San Francisco Symphony, at the library, in gardens and at Stern Grove, where her responsibilities continued to grow. Over the past 15 years, Leurey, 72, went from collecting donations at the entrance to selling memberships, handling surveys for grants and working at The Big Picnic Event, where generous doors are feted. Five years ago, she got involved with the Grove’s Outreach and Education Programs for children ages five to 10. The weekday workshops – dance, drumming, poetry writing and more – are free. “My favorite role is to act as an appreciative audience member … | September 2, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| Puerto Rican native who revived Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts ‘keeping the house in order’ since Covid-19 | Bringing the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts back to life was a natural fit for Jennie Rodriguez, who became its director 33 years ago. She had experience in many of the issues facing the community: Asylum, tenants’ rights and childcare. But she also had been involved in the arts, business and publishing. She had lived on both coasts of the United States as well as her native Puerto Rico. Jennie Rodriguez took over the Mission Cultural Center for the Arts in the late ’90s. (Photo courtesy of Jennie Rodriguez.) Run by mostly poets and visual artists, the MCCLA was going through a difficult period in 1997: There was no organizational structure. The former board had been dismantled due to fiscal mismanagement. People couldn’t be sure that teachers would show up. “One day,” said Rodriguez, “no one could get in because the doors were locked.” Her first tasks included finding a way to pay for a worker’s compensation lawsuit – the center had no insurance – and restoring funding from the City Arts Commission. At a required public comment meeting – a full house in the center’s theatre – she learned what was lacking. “People had a lot to say. They didn’t feel there was enough community involvement.” Rodriguez paid off the … | August 30, 2020 | Julie Dearborn |
| She had to choose between two loves, but one came back and now showing off at the de Young Museum | Corey Weiner was shocked when her portrait of an elderly woman was selected for exhibit at The de Young Open, an online celebration of the museum’s 125th anniversary. For one, odds were against her; 11,500 individual artworks were submitted by 6,190 artists from the nine Bay Area counties. The work of only 763 artists made the cut. Corey Weiner And while she once toyed with an art career, instead she chose the culinary world. She’d taken up art again once she was settled in that work. “I only went back to my art nine years ago,” she said. Weiner studied fine arts for two years at the University of Michigan. But in 1976 she chose to become a chef, preferring something creative that also guaranteed a pay check. She enrolled in a two-year program the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y. What followed was 13 years of paying her dues in restaurants in San Francisco and in a desert community. Eventually, she landed a job at The Stratford, a luxury senior independent living facility in San Mateo. That experience led her to the position of head chef of the newly established Rhoda Goldman Plaza senior living facility in San Francisco. Now, at 63, she’s their Food and Beverage director, overseeing … | August 24, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| Educator wrings inspiration from chaotic childhood and a classroom failure to show the power of storytelling in teaching and in life | Kate Farrell stood behind a lectern – “her refuge” – at a San Francisco junior high school in 1967 and peered out at the ninth-graders in her stuffy, overcrowded classroom. It was a hot spring day, right after lunch. She had taken to reading to them from the assigned texts: The Arabian Nights, Old Yeller, Great Expectations and Greek mythology. It was her way of getting through to the many who couldn’t read. But as she stood there, bored herself and seeing the rows of glazed eyes, she was struck by the need for something new. Farrell will be presenting a virtual workshop based on her new book on Aug. 22 at the Mechanics Institute. (Photos courtesy of Kate Farrell) She stepped away from the lectern. The students looked at her with apprehension. And she began to tell a story – the tale of Daphne and Apollo, both struck by Cupid’s arrows – in her own words. “The room changed. Suddenly there was nothing else in it except my words and the students’ eyes watching. They were transfixed; the most attention I’d ever received,” she said. “But at the same time, I knew they were not seeing me at all. They were seeing beyond me, into the myth – the far-off green … | August 20, 2020 | Myra Krieger |
| Seniors Say: Covid opens new worlds through Zoom, more time for artist, passion for green in Woodacre, but little change for “homebody” | Leigh McLellan,70, Inner Sunset The COVID crisis is definitely a case of life giving us lemons. However, thanks to Zoom, a lot of lemonade is happening, too, and I am participating in things I might not have done otherwise. Next Monday evening I am reading a part in a play on Drama with Friends. My part is Grace, a crabby old lady. Perfect for me!!! The two other women in the play are well cast and we had a great time rehearsing last Monday. In the final play, we must try not to laugh and smile at each other’s performances! I’ve also decided to revive some neglected skills, this writing class (Writing for Remembering) being one of them. Fifteen minutes of in-class writing is just right for me and I love listening to the amazing pieces that my group mates write. In my 20s I was an art student, so, now in my 70s, I have located some figure drawing groups. One uses a model who makes a little money with a 3-hour drawing class. I draw about half the time and rest up in between. Drawing takes a lot of energy! Last Sunday, I joined SF Sketchers, a meetup group for all levels of ability. We each posed, took screen shots … | August 15, 2020 | Mary Hunt |
| Pitching in to serve community needs a way of life for this Dragon lady | Cynthia Dragon’s mural on the front of Kwik & Convenient, the neighborhood market on Monterey Boulevard near Foerster, shouts “Welcome to the Sunnyside,” in large vivid yellow letters over a bright orange sun, with a colorful flower and bee off to one side. The mural is a labor of love, and it’s a vivid example of Dragon’s lifelong commitment to community service and generous action. It took several early morning trips to Recology to scrounge the paint, donations from neighbors and a local hardware store, and seven days of work by Dragon and her niece to complete the 8-foot by 36-foot mural. Cynthia and Jim Dragon. (Photos courtesy of Cynthia Dragon) “It’s happy art – I meant it to be uplifting,” said Dragon. “I wanted to do it. It’s where my husband picks up our morning paper and the plywood looked like it needed something.” Jumping into a project like the mural is small potatoes when compared to all the generous acts upon which Dragon’s life is built. But it’s a good example of how she seizes the day, whether to help others or simply to embark on a grand adventure. Over the decades, Dragon, 71, fostered 115 children in the tiny bungalow she shares with her husband. Now, she volunteers as … | August 7, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| Find of 2,000-year-old coin puts Potrero Hill artist, author and neighborhood historian on path to explore ancient Silk Road empire | Little over a decade ago while visiting Córdoba, a city on the southern coast of Spain, Peter Linenthal stopped at a small shop to buy stamps. It was an errand that changed his life. He noticed a box filled with old coins. He bought one for just $10. It turned out to be much more than a tchotchke. It was a 2,000-year-old coin, a relic of the Kushan Empire, which ruled over a portion of central Asia near Afghanistan on one of the trade routes of the Silk Road. “I was amazed that for such a low price, you could buy a piece of ancient history that opened a window on an ancient world,” said Linenthal, a San Francisco illustrator and writer. A book to educate and encourage children The find sparked an interest in old coins that grew into a lifetime of collecting figurines from the region and inspired him to write an illustrated children’s book, “Jaya’s Golden Necklace.” Peter Linenthal with a poster of his most recent children’s book. A page from inside “Jaya’s Golden Necklace.” Jaya is a fictional tale of a Kushan girl whose parents are summoned to the royal palace by the king: her father to sculpt the first image of the Buddha, her mother to bake … | August 5, 2020 | Bill Snyder |
| North Beach tour guide builds on her own unique experiences at center of neighborhood’s idyllic ’70s | Blandina Farley arrived in San Francisco in 1971 and fell in love – with North Beach. It was to be a long-term relationship, a kinship of spirits. Home of the Beats, Italian immigrants, musicians, artists, writers and the strip club industry, North Beach in its heyday was flamboyant, full of color and passion. Lenny Bruce, the Kingston Trio and Barbara Streisand entertained at Enrico’s Sidewalk Café, which later hosted live jazz nightly; Finocchio’s Club showcased female impersonators; guests enjoyed chicken cacciatore and spaghetti carbonara at Vanessi’s. Also known as Little Italy, North Beach is home to dozens of restaurants, coffee shops and bars, strip joints, including the first topless dancer. It is also famous as the birthplace of the Beat generation: Poet Alan Ginsburg was published by local bookseller City Lights; comedians Lenny Bruce and Bill Cosby appeared at the Hungry i club. Farley happily fell into life in North Beach, which reminded her of her teenage years studying art and hanging out in Greenwich Village. “I heard a lot about North Beach as a kid and it didn’t disappoint – filled with vibrating motion, art, music and writers.” A great many stories Farley, who had trained and worked as an artist, would go on to sing in a rock band, teach … | August 3, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| Intrigued by her parents’ Communism, activist’s path led to San Francisco, where she and her husband have brought news to the Black community for nearly 30 years. | They thought she might become a professional flutist. When Mary Ratcliff was only nine, she joined the Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra. But by the age of 15, she realized she didn’t have the drive it took to become a professional. More importantly, what she really wanted was to “be with people who discussed the big issues. The world was in a mess and we had to fix it.” Ratcliff was born in 1939 in New York to parents trying to fix that mess. They were communists: her mother a strike organizer and her father a writer for the Daily Worker. By her teens, the Red Scare had taken hold; the government under Republican Sen. Joseph McCarthy was on the hunt for alleged communist subversives. Her parents never talked about it. She learned why much later – on the Internet. “I think they were afraid that if I knew anything, I, and they, might be persecuted. Everyone lived quiet lives behind white picket fences — no discussion, no debate in public,” she said. “People were so afraid they taught themselves not to say anything “dangerous” even in private. But Ratcliff “wanted to know what communism was about, to understand philosophy.” Her search led to a life advocating for the disadvantaged. Since 1991, she … | July 30, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| Her anger broke dishes: Former legal secretary cherishes newfound calm and new life path through practice of Buddhism | Something she said on a date jolted Cindy Fong. And it tossed her onto a path that would change her life. “A few years after my divorce, I was dating a man and I said something profoundly hurtful to him. I shocked myself. I couldn’t stop thinking about what made me say something like that. And I wanted to find out,” she said. Almost immediately after, Fong received a brochure from a Buddhist center in Berkeley that was offering a six-month course on Buddhist Psychology. “I jumped at it,” she said. Cindy Fong at her home in the Richmond District. (Photos courtesy of Cindy Fong.) And thus, the journey into a new life began. It took her to India for more instruction, away from work as a legal secretary in a big law firm and on to three months living in a Nepal monastery, teaching English to young monks, many of whose parents had fled Tibet under Chinese communist rule. Awed by the serenity and beauty of the mountain monastery, she is sure she will return. “The air was so clean. I loved the quiet and spaciousness. Mountains always give me the feeling that there is more to life. I felt like I was in Shangri-la.” When Fong first began exploring … | July 15, 2020 | Julie Dearborn |
| From the Kennedy assassination to New Age practices to medical issues to San Francisco and the Coast, Lithuanian emigree covered it all | Rasa Gustaitis was among 900 other displaced persons who arrived in America in September 1947 on the SS Ernie Pyle. With her own long career in journalism, it now appears serendipitous that she entered the country on a ship named for a Pulitzer-winning war correspondent. Gustaitis touched all the bases in her journalism career —she worked for major newspapers, wrote five book and taught at two universities. And she has another book about to be published. This book captured all the new healing practices of the New Age in California’s coastal cities. From 1960 on, Gustaitis wrote or edited for newspapers including the Washington Post and the New York Herald Tribune as well as the Pacific News Service in San Francisco. She taught journalism at the University California-Berkeley and San Francisco State University. And, she authored five books, including “Turning On.” In this personal romp through the New Age, she explores the iconic Big Sur havens – the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center and the Esalen Institute and its outdoor baths – and experiences new bodywork and healing practices, such as Rolfing. Her last paid job was as Editor of California Coast and Ocean, a quarterly magazine published by the Coastal Conservancy Association. She led the nonprofit’s editorial staff from 1986 until it closed … | July 14, 2020 | Myra Krieger |
| Seniors Say … When did you last go dancing? | We want to share the experiences and opinions of San Francisco adults 50 and over. If you’d like to be one of the people we contact for our next Seniors Say question, send your name and neighborhood to Mary Hunt, maryhunt@sfseniorbeat.com. We’d also like your age and a picture but these are optional. Nancy Ware and Loren: They dance to the beat of their own drum Nancy Ware, 75, Noe Valley The last time I went dancing was two days ago … in my kitchen. We live in a pretty small apartment in the city, but the biggest room is the kitchen. My partner, Loren, and I have been dancing in the kitchen for over 20 years. But just recently, we’ve added something. The end of April was Loren’s 84th birthday. I had gotten him something that I thought he would like, but a week before his birthday he announced, “I know what you can get me for my birthday!” “What?” I asked. “A strobe light, so we can dance in style.” This picture – not Nancy or her partner, Loren – has been hanging in their kitchen for 20 years, providing inspiration. (Photos courtesy of Nancy Ware.) A STROBE LIGHT!! Is he crazy? But of course I went immediately to … | June 30, 2020 | Mary Hunt |
| Family separations the price Burma native paid to escape war, reach the U.S. and finish her medical degree | The hardest decisions Eng Ng ever had to make – though they meant family separations – turned out to be the right ones for herself and her family, she said. Four years after she was born, in 1948, Burma shed British rule to become a newly democratic socialist country. Her father and a partner started their own import/export business and operated a small department store. Her mother opened a hair salon with the partner’s wife. Those were happy times. Eng Ng. (Photos courtesy of Eng Ng.) But the country became perpetually beset by battles for control among various ethnic groups and communist insurgencies, some supported by China. In 1962, the military took control in a coup, but the factionalism and fighting continued. “I remember the racial riots between the Chinese and Burmese with such horrible vividness that even now large crowds scare me,” Ng said. Her dad’s store was confiscated. He couldn’t make a living, so he went to Hong Kong where he had some business connections. “My mom’s hair salon was destroyed. She said we had to leave the country.” ‘She said we had to leave’ It was 1967 and Ng had just graduated from Rangoon University Medical School, married a fellow graduate and was pregnant with their first child. Her … | June 29, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| Potrero Hill Neighborhood House director in a line of generations looking after community’s wellbeing | Turning 60 is often a time for reflection, a time to consider the next phase of your life. The day after that landmark birthday, Edward Hatter, the longtime neighborhood activist and executive director of the Potrero Hill Neighborhood House, sat in his spacious office and pondered: “I’m still trying to define who’s a senior. I feel 40; am I a senior?” Hatter has spent the last 16 years running the Neighborhood House, a fixture of San Francisco’s often-overlooked southeast corner. The Nabe, as the community center is often called, has a history stretching back nearly 100 years. He’s steered it through periods of growth and periods of tight money and controversy. Most recently, he’s had to cope with the fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has forced the organization to suspend its most popular programs for seniors and others and blasted a sizable hole in its budget. Edward Hatter has run the Potrero Hill Neighborhood House for 16 years. (Photo by Bill Snyder.) Has that made him tired? “Tired, no,” he said. “But it is time for me to think about what’s good for the future of the Neighborhood House – and for me. Maybe a new face would be a good thing. Will I be in this office in a few … | June 25, 2020 | Bill Snyder |
| Camera, celebrities, presidents and Panama Canal adventures mark photographer’s extraordinary career | Casinos like the Tropicana, the Sahara and the Sands sprung up in Las Vegas in the 1950s. Big bands backed top entertainment like Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Judy Garland and Elvis. In this heady environment, Tom Zimberoff came of age. Tom Zimberoff. (All photos courtesy of Tom Zimberoff) “My father played violin in the big bands at the time when big bands had string sections,” Zimberoff said. “And I was getting pretty good on the clarinet at 12 when my father introduced me to my idol, Benny Goodman. He let me come to his rehearsals after school. Insane!” Zimberoff, 68, said he loved growing up in that strange and wonderful big sandbox. “I met all kinds of great musicians in Las Vegas like Bob Crosby and the Bobcats, a Dixieland band, and Phil Harris, a jazz bandleader and singer.” He was on the road to becoming a professional clarinetist when his family moved back to Los Angeles. He got a full music scholarship to the University of Southern California School of Performing Arts while attending Beverly Hills High School, he said. Jackie Chan. At the same time, the 16-year-old Zimberoff was becoming friends with the sons and daughters of monied movie people, and admiring their fancy cameras. “My friends had expensive Nikons and … | June 12, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| Coping with Covid-19: Keeping one another safe generates flurry of informal, neighborhood mutual-help groups | Ninety-five-year old Molly McSweeney was recuperating at her daughter Julie’s house in Cole Valley when the Covid-19 shelter-in-place order came through. “My mom had been hospitalized for pneumonia twice since October. I knew I’d be risking her health if I went shopping, I’d feel so guilty if I brought the infection home.” That’s when Julie McSweeney remembered the flyer from Cole Valley Cares. Cole Valley Cares is one of many Covid-inspired, neighborhood mutual-help groups sprouting up around the city to pick up groceries and other essentials for elderly, ill and immunocompromised San Franciscans. It started when Erika Lenkert, a Cole Valley native and founding editor of the food magazine “Gluten-Free Forever,” posted an announcement on the community’s Facebook page offering to be “of service.” Little did she know how big the response would be. A few older people thanked her for her interest, but it was the offer of help from 75 younger people that surprised her. Young neighbors read her message on Facebook and wanted to help. John Plughoff. Photos by Judy Goddess A similar post by artist Bianca Nandzik on the Sunset District Facebook page led to the formation of the Sunset Neighborhood Help Group. It launched with help from her tech-experienced husband, Stefan, and one the first people to answer … | June 7, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| Former Black Panthers’ volunteer proud of its community work: feeding, educating, protecting and lifting up African Americans | Despite winning a hard-fought scholarship to study commercial art at the University of Miami, Katherine Campbell stayed less than a year. It was 1969 and the school had only integrated a few years earlier. A handful of unsettling encounters left her feeling unwelcome and somewhat traumatized, so she returned to San Francisco and enrolled in City College. She felt comfortable again back at home, but a nasty dressing down over a school paper blindsided her. “I was emotionally distraught, flashing back to the events at the University of Miami,” she said. Finding solace in an age of upheaval The ’60s was an era of upheaval and political challenge. Just two years before Campbell went off to college, Huey Newton and Bobby Seale founded The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense to challenge police brutality and build community self-determination in Oakland. It’s where Campbell would eventually find solace and a growing understanding of the social issues of the times. The Panthers’ Free Breakfast Program was one of its most successful. Within weeks, it went from feeding a handful of kids to hundreds around the Bay Area. Campbell’s sister was sending her two kids to its program at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in the Fillmore District. She suggested Campbell volunteer. Katherine Campbell in 1970 in … | June 3, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| Land-use activist fighting SF ‘renovictions’ developed empathy for less fortunate in revolutionary Iran | When the penny Ozzie Rohm dropped into a pond started a ripple, she didn’t know whether she was going to get her wish or not. But she knew she was going to try. As a young woman studying at university in the years around the 1979 Iranian Revolution, she dreamed of a life without conflict. Now, as a citizen of the United States, she’s trying to preserve the character – and peace – of San Francisco’s neighborhoods. At 63, her wish is still a work in progress. “It’s all about the safekeeping of San Francisco’s iconic quality of life. It’s diversity of thought, political beliefs and income levels. It’s diminishing.” she said. Rohm has watched as rising property values sparked rapid development, with high-rise condos and monster homes inserted into neighborhoods of single-family homes and small apartment buildings. She’s not alone in her concern about the enervation of long-staid communities – something that began way before Covid-19 forced a worldwide shut-down. Neighborhoods being enervated “Our commercial strips are not as vibrant. Real estate speculators have driven working people with modest means further and further out of the City, ” she said. Reminiscing about her arrival from San Diego in the early eighties, she said. “It was so refreshing to see every neighborhood … | May 31, 2020 | Myra Krieger |
| Coping with Covid-19: Retired administrator now more productive at home but less worried about getting things done | Senior Beat writers are reaching out to all of the people we’ve interviewed over the past couple of years to see how they’re adjusting to this new, shelter-in-place lifestyle. We asked: How they feel overall about the situation; How their routines have been affected; If they know of anyone who has the virus; If people around them are adhering to the restrictions; If they’re able to get everything they need; If they have any particular concerns; What’s been most helpful during this time; And how they think this might impact our future. Sheryn Klein, retired law firm administrative manager The virus situation reminds me of a forest fire.The fire itself brings death, suffering, misery and devastation. But in the aftermath, new growth emerges from the ashes, the earth replenishes itself. I think this will be the same. I have heard several interviews on the radio with people who said that before Shelter-in-Place, they were always on the go. No time for taking a breather, family, home, hobbies, etc. One woman said she doesn’t want to go back to “living” that way, if indeed that was living. I think the virus will precipitate many changes both for individuals and for society, not only in the U.S. but worldwide. Prior to the virus, I didn’t really have a routine. I retired … | May 29, 2020 | admin |
| ‘Shopping for the apocalypse’: grocery worker offers a peek behind the scenes at beloved Rainbow Coop | Sarah Kennedy does it all as a longtime member of the team that runs the Rainbow Coop, one of the city’s oldest worker-owned groceries. Kennedy, 52, has seen plenty of changes over the years, but nothing compared to the effects of the Covid-19 virus. The one thing she never expected entering the food industry was a sense of danger. The Rainbow Cooperative Grocery specializes in organic, locally sourced produce. (Photos by Robin Evans) News coverage has made us aware of the disease’s ruthless impact on medical staffers and institutions. But little attention is given to the risks to the “essential” workers in grocery stores. “At first you feel like you’re being violated,” she said of the early days of the virus and recommended the store take precautions. “Like too many people are pressing into a small space.” Kennedy is a familiar sight to locals: a long-limbed woman, dark hair tied back in a ponytail, flying through the Mission district on her 10-speed bike to Rainbow, where she has worked for 12 years. Rainbow is nearly iconic in San Francisco. It opened nearly half a century ago in the Mission District in a tiny storefront on 16th Street with 85 workers. The grocery is now at 13th and Folsom streets, to accomodate its … | May 29, 2020 | Rebecca Rosen-Lum |
| ‘I’ll show them:’ After a career challenging sexism, pioneer and icon of underground comix for ‘wimmin’ fends off ageism | Reading comic books leads straight to delinquency. That’s what many parents believed in the 1940s when Trina Robbins, now 81, was growing up. Fortunately, Robbins’ family was not among them. Robbins, who grew up in Queens, N.Y., recalls taking her weekly, 10-cent allowance to the neighborhood candy store and after studying the week’s selection, buying any comic that featured young girls and women. At home, she wrote and illustrated her own comics and dreamt of publication. Robbins insists she did not come from a dysfunctional family. Nonetheless, by the time she entered high school, she had one goal in mind: move to the Village and be a bohemian. A trip worth remembering And indeed, that’s where, in her mid-20s, her career as a cartoonist started. It was an acid trip that opened the door. High on LSD, she and her boyfriend found themselves outside the office of the East Village Other, a beloved hippy underground newspaper. They sought haven. The office was empty except for its publisher, Allen Katzman, who talked them down. The cartoon that started her career. Images courtesy of Trina Robbins. “A couple of days later, I drew a kind of proto-comic to express my gratitude and shoved it under the door,” she said. “They printed it in the … | May 22, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| Those who saw something of value in him helped African-American chemist reach career heights | Charles George had charisma, smarts and a purposeful nature. They propelled him through life despite the constraints of poverty and racism. He was shepherded along the way by people who valued his worth. When George was born in 1923 in Wilmington, N.C., life was hardscrabble for most African Americans. “My father took jobs where he could find them – as a hotel bellman, a clerk, unloading at the dock,” George said. “Some days he’d bring home only a can of food or one dollar in pay.” Charles George rounded out his career at the University of San Francisco, trying to develop procedures to help train chemistry students. His mother added to the family income by teaching reading and math to children at home through a federally sponsored program. Together, his parents instilled in George principles of hard work and determination. Go-getter from the get-go He was a go-getter from the time his father gave George, his eldest son, a parcel of the family’s backyard garden so he could grow his own vegetables. “Black families had their own gardens because they had little access to food,” he said. George sold the vegetables to white families in a neighborhood about a mile away. “I learned about financial transactions through selling those vegetables,” George said. … | May 20, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| Coping with Covid-19: Shanti Project partners with city agency in new program to help the most vulnerable | The Shanti Project, created in 1974 to support people with life-threatening illnesses, has launched a new project to address the coronavirus pandemic, in partnership with San Francisco’s Department of Disability and Aging Services (DAS). The CERV (COVID-19 Emergency Response Volunteer) program provides one-time or occasional practical support to older and vulnerable adults, who are strongly advised to limit their outdoor exposure. This may be grocery shopping, dog walking, delivery of pet food, medication and other essentials, and mail pickup. Carolyn Hanrahan, accounting manager, and Judith Harkins, director of the Margot Murphy Women’s Cancer Program (right), demonstrate six-foot social distancing. All photos courtesy of the Shanti Project. Founded at the UCSF Cancer Institute, Shanti was one of the first volunteer organizations in the United States to make sure no one with a life-threatening illness had to go through it alone. In the 1980s, it was one of the world’s first community-based organizations to help support people with HIV/AIDS. The Shanti Project went on to add programs for women facing cancer, LGBTQ persons with aging or disability issues as well as partnering with PAWS (Pets Are Wonderful Support), to provide for family animals during a health crisis. In addition to CERV, Shanti is working to support public housing tenants as the Potrero View projects … | May 11, 2020 | Myra Krieger |
| Coping with Covid-19: Perspective, resilience and optimism buoys seniors’ apartment building | It takes a lot to scare 90-year-old Esther Goldberg. She survived the Holocaust, hiding for years from the Nazis who occupied Brussels. Martin Pennisi, 82, has a high threshold for fear as well. He spent more than a decade in a combat zone during the Vietnam War – with shrapnel scars to prove it. And 86-year-old Nancy Stevens knows a thing or two about anxiety: She’s been battling multiple forms of cancer for years. In this time of pandemic, when seniors are known to be the most vulnerable segment of the population, you might expect the next line of this story to be something like: “But the coronavirus terrifies them, and they’ve huddled in their lonely apartments for two months.” But that’s not the case. Goldberg, Pennisi and Stevens are three of the 20 or so tenants of a senior-focused apartment building in San Francisco’s Richmond District. They worry and take precautions, of course, but they defy the stereotype of the weak and terrified senior waiting out the epidemic. And so do a surprising number of their neighbors. Experience begets optimism Interviews with about a third of the tenants reveal a resilience and optimism earned from, well, lengthy lives and sometimes difficult experience. Most are in their 70s and 80s. They keep … | May 11, 2020 | Bill Snyder |
| Seniors Say … Our favorite movies with seniors in the leading roles | We want to share the experiences and opinions of San Francisco adults 50 and over. If you’d like to be one of the people we contact for our next Seniors Say question, send your name and neighborhood to Mary Hunt, maryhunt@sfseniorbeat.com. We’d also like your age and a picture but these are optional. It’s no surprise that we’re watching a lot of movies, quarantined as we are in our home “theaters.” We asked people what movies they had seen that had meaty roles for older adults. Photos by Florencia Aleman. Brian Goggin, sculptor of “Defenestration” and other works Like many of his fellows, Brian gives high marks to “On Golden Pond” (Katherine Hepburn, Henry Fonda) 1981. “I love that movie,” he said. “And I’ve been into Sydney Poitier, too, because in his films, he’s cool — cool in the midst of chaos” – appropriate for our times. “And Noir. Those are a great distraction. The Criterion Collection has some great ones! Sign up for that now and you get a month free. I’m going to watch ‘The Grey Fox.’ It has the best mustache.” Lois Martin, talent acquisition specialist Lois favors “Driving Lessons,” 2006. “It’s a wonderful British comedy about a 17-year-old – Rupert Gint, and an aging actress — Julie Waters. … | May 11, 2020 | Rebecca Rosen-Lum |
| Architect embraces ‘the magic’ of chocolate in a second career where he blends creativity with science of the craft | That year in Paris. It was everything 32-year-old David Upchurch had dreamed of. The streets, the galleries, the shows, the people. A charming apartment not far from the Moulin Rouge. A chocolate shop at one end of the block, a patisserie at the other. “That first truffle was magical. I spent all my money on chocolate. European chocolate, what we call craft chocolate, tastes so different from our own.” Upchurch rents kitchen space in Jack London Square with two other candy makers. Photo by Chef Evan Brittell. Upchurch is older now. He’s 56, but the memory of that year has only grown stronger. While Upchurch always loved chocolate, it was many years before he gave himself permission to turn his passion into his vocation. Initially, he worked as an architect designing custom homes and commercial properties. When the market for his skills collapsed with the recession of 2008, Upchurch found himself scrambling for jobs to make ends meet. Today, he shares commercial kitchen space, where he makes bonbons and truffles and a “surprisingly popular” pate de fruit, made with California fruits and wine. For now, Upchurch is relying on sales via email and social media to keep his new business going. Photo by Chef Evan Brittell. It’s a passion project for sure; … | May 2, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| Older adults grappling with layoffs and rising costs of living swell the workforce | EDITOR’S NOTE: If you know of any seniors who are, for whatever reason, still working – in the public arena or at home – and willing to share their experience, please contact robinevans@sfseniorbeat.com. Once, or so the story goes, a cake and a gold watch signaled the end of one’s working life and the beginning of retirement. While you might have felt some sorrow at leaving your colleagues and a bit overwhelmed at the prospect of limitless free time, visions of sleeping late, pursuing hobbies, travel or time with grandchildren overrode your hesitations. That’s not the case any longer. More than half of older U.S. workers are pushed out of longtime jobs before they choose to retire, enduring devasting physical and mental crises and suffering financial damage that is irreversible, according to a recent data analysis by ProPublica and the Urban Institute. The Great Recession of 2008 increased the probability that those in their mid-50s would be laid off, says a 2015 report by the National Bureau of Economic Research. Involuntary job separations, across all racial and ethnic groups, increased sharply as workers grew older, according to a report by the Urban Institute, a Washington D.C.-based policy research nonprofit. Your chances of being laid off between age 50 and 55 is six … | April 25, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| Coping with Covid-19: Volunteers, donations help Meals on Wheels keep delivering to clients | For 50 years, Meals on Wheels San Francisco has been serving home-bound seniors who, even in the best of times, cannot access nutritious meals due to health issues, financial situations or both. Meal delivery also connects seniors to a network of services that allows them to live in their homes with dignity and independence. In 2019, MOWSF, which is funded by a 50/50 mix of both government contracts and private donations, delivered 2.2 million meals, serving nearly 4,500 home-bound older adults. There is a city-wide wait list that is administered by the Department of Disability and Aging Services. San Francisco residents age 60+ can call 415-355-6700 for more information. Have you been able to continue helping all your clients so far? Many of our clients are already isolated, and about 70 percent live alone. By the end of the first week of March, we knew the pandemic was going to heavily impact our clients, who are at most risk for contracting the virus. Our mission had to be: Take care of our workforce so they can take care of our clients; ensure that current meal and delivery services do not experience service interruption; expand meals and delivery services to meet increased need for populations we already serve. We have been very effective in doing … | April 23, 2020 | Myra Krieger |
| Recology driver not ready to recycle his customers, though he’s eligible for retirement | Bernard Lewis walked to his car, opened the door, unlocked the glove compartment and pulled out a Ziploc bag. “These,” he said, “are some of the letters and photos my customers sent me.” Crayoned notes from young children, photos of smiling families on vacation, ‘thank you’ letters. He handled them carefully. Lewis drives for Recology Sunset Scavenger, operating one of those one-person trucks that picks up and empties the blue recycling bins. This September marks his 20th year, which means he is eligible for retirement. Though he’s 61, he’s not so sure about that step. “They’re like my family,” he said, raising the plastic bag. “I don’t know what I’m going to do.” This September marks Bernard Lewis’ 20th year with Recology, formerly Sunset Scavenger. (Photos by Judy Goddess) Recology has no mandatory retirement policy, but the ability to retire feels like it’s come up fast. The decision is “creeping up on me,” he said, before mentioning that one driver didn’t retire till he was 80. “I feel like I still have the energy of a 25-year-old,” he said. “I don’t see any signs of slowing down.” Although he bought a home in Las Vegas for retirement, moving would mean leaving his customers, some family and his friends. A boy from Bayview … | April 23, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| Coping with Covid-19: Futon maker shifts SF factory production to masks; and she’s ‘frankly overwhelmed’ | During World War II, auto plants stopped making cars and instead churned out tanks. Factories designed to produce washing machines retooled and started manufacturing aircraft parts, and clothing manufacturers turned out uniforms by the millions. That’s what a country does when it faces an existential crisis. Now there’s another crisis: the coronavirus pandemic that has already killed thousands of Americans and tens of thousands around the globe. And like the crisis the country faced in the 1940s, the pandemic caught the U.S. unprepared, short of even the most basic equipment needed to protect healthcare workers, first responders, and vulnerable individuals. Sue Diamond with piles of precut fabric ready to be made into masks. Photos by Robin Evans And that’s where Suzanne Diamond, the 65-year-old founder and CEO of the San Francisco-based Futon Shop, comes in. Realizing that masks are in critically short supply, Diamond decided to shift production at her factory and showroom on Cesar Chavez Street from futons, mattresses and pillows to masks. “People on the front lines are dying, the elderly are afraid to go out, they have no protection. I felt horrible and I needed to do something,” she said. Diamond’s team of five sewers and two helpers cranks out a triple-layered, cotton mask every 90 seconds. That amounts … | April 23, 2020 | Bill Snyder |
| Coping with Covid-19: A previous disease flattened him; helping create the Sunset Neighborhood Help Group lifted him up | Covid-19 has changed everyone’s life in some way. But Frank Plughoff’s most life-altering experience dates back two years – to another disease. It was a bad experience. Little did he know that the disease currently ravaging the world would provide him with a good one. Two years ago, a rare neurological illness robbed the 63-year-old of his independence, sending him into a severe depression. “Before that I was working, trying to make enough money to move where it doesn’t cost as much.” After it hit, “I couldn’t work, couldn’t drive. I don’t have family and I didn’t have any close friends. The woman I had lived with for 16 years returned to Idaho because it was ‘just too much.’ I was all alone, scared, just looking at the ceiling.” Frank Plughoff. Photo by Judy Goddess Things were so bad, he said, “I went on Facebook to ask for money to buy food and pay the rent.” Friends, friends of friends and former business associates responded. “The charity I received from other people I can never pay back.” Like many during the widespread shelter-in-place orders, Plughoff retreated to the Internet. A post on the Sunset District’s Facebook group by Bianca Nandzik got his attention: “If you are scared to go out, because you … | April 23, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| Summers of Love and a once unlikely relationship: Couple bonded over rhythm & blues and music nightlife | When a black man asked her out in San Francisco in 1960, interracial dating just wasn’t being done and Marty Harper was no pioneer. But as the ’60s rolled on, things were being done that hadn’t been before. Young people were bucking the establishment’s war, work and cultural ethics. The Civil Rights movement spotlighted racial discrimination. Rock and folk music were bringing people together. Harper, too, was meeting new and diverse people in the “hippie” culture, through hangouts like Vesuvio’s in North Beach. She met David Harper in 1969, just two years past San Francisco’s iconic “Summer of Love.” A friend introduced them at Winterland, a concert hall Bill Graham had just moved to because the Fillmore couldn’t hold the crowds that came to see some of rock’s most famous acts – The Rolling Stones, The Jefferson Airplane, Janis Joplin and The Grateful Dead. Lined up for Winterland, 1970. Photo courtesy Dave Randolph, The Chronicle, 1970 Harper was 10 years her junior and a musician. She was smitten, she said. Five years later, they married. It was a partnership that lasted for 29 years until he died, said Harper, now 83. But being an interracial couple in the early 1970s had its difficulties. “We didn’t have much trouble in San Francisco because … | April 18, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| Acting was her desire; burlesque jobs kept her employed, honed her theater skills and earned her respect in the industry | Judy Roe didn’t choose stripping; it chose her, she says. It was the fallback that filled the gaps in much of her working life. Gigs in burlesque and nightclubs, along with other work, kept her fed and helped her hone a wide array of stagecraft skills that garnered respect and credibility in what was once a flourishing industry. She got her first taste of theater in 1942 at age 17, touring with a troupe doing unauthorized Gilbert & Sullivan plays. She had learned enough from high school drama classes to land this acting, singing and dancing job. Judy Roe. Photo by Myra Krieger. But the troupe disbanded after bookings dried up. So, she began singing folk songs, posing for artists and performing in a variety of venues to earn a living. But by her 20s, her agent could no longer find her any bookings as a singer. He encouraged and she succumbed, she said, to accepting a two-week booking as a stripper at the Hollywood Burlesque Theatre in San Diego. It was a time when burlesque in the Mexican border town was booming. Community theater, print shops and strip joints “It wasn’t as scary as I thought,” Roe said. “I felt encouraged by the raucous enthusiasm of the audience, especially as my recent attempt … | April 11, 2020 | Myra Krieger |
| Work remains a passion for labor activist, union organizer and community builder | We are living in difficult times, said Conny Ford. So, at 70, she has no intention of sitting back and putting her feet up. “I continue to work because it is what I have done for almost 40 years and what I believe in.” Nationally, things are pretty messed up, but locally, she said, “I have an avenue to be part of making the change that is necessary to counteract those who are trying to continue to turn San Francisco into a city for only the wealthy.” Conny Ford in her offices at the San Francisco Labor Council. (Photo by Judy Goddess) Ford is actually retired from paid work but is just as busy as vice president for community activities for the San Francisco Labor Council. The position gives her the opportunity to commit her full energy to the causes she loves: union organizing, community building and creating a more humane society. She supports herself with a pension, Social Security and income from SF Clout, a labor education nonprofit she started. Through more than 35 years of union membership and community organizing, she has logged some significant successes. Ford recounts the struggle to unionize workers in homeless agencies, many of them formerly homeless themselves. While the churches and nonprofit organizations that provided … | March 24, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| ‘Mostly’ retired photographer shoots for meaning after hurly-burly of Grateful Dead concerts | One of the best things about his work as a cameraman and sound engineer was that it enabled him to “meet people and go places other people don’t,” said Dennis Minnick. A self-acclaimed “Deadhead,” Minnick was on the crew filming those New Year’s Eve concerts with the Grateful Dead, and at the 1982 show, Vietnam Veterans for Bill Graham Presents. He’s shot commercials for Comcast, became an expert on angioplasties after an eight-year stint with a medical equipment manufacturer, flew to the Vatican to assist in documenting the transition of books to tape and was part of the video and audio crew for numerous corporate meetings. “If those suits knew that half the guys behind the camera learned their skills filming rock and roll,” Minnick mused. 45 years of packing, parking and photos It sounds glamorous, but as he looked back, Minnick recalls “45 years of packing my car, driving to a shoot, looking for parking places – which has become increasingly difficult in San Francisco – carrying my equipment, shooting and editing.” Dennis Minnick For some of his overseas shoots, his crew booked two full containers, each holding 2,000 pounds of gear. And while he always wanted to visit the Vatican, the trip was not easy. “I arrived in Rome on … | March 24, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| Unable to get a real job, a young Marty Nemko set about to reinvent himself; now the career advisor is famous | Marty Nemko was on a fast track to become a professor. He earned a doctorate in educational psychology from the University of California-Berkeley, was nominated for the school’s “Dissertation of the Year” and was looking forward to a long and storied career. But after sending out over 100 resumes, he only got offers for temporary, part-time jobs. “I finally landed an interview for a tenured-track position and I was elated,” Nemko said. “It was a dream interview, everyone joking around and laughing.” But it was not meant to be. “When I didn’t get that job, I went limp, cried a lot and contemplated my future.” Trying to figure out what to do, Nemko thought about what he valued. He started with his father, a Holocaust survivor. “He had a small retail store in the Bronx where I grew up. He worked very hard to support his family.” Nemko, too, valued hard work and productivity, and using your intelligence to gain insight. “I thought about what I cared about, and what I might do well, and somehow I thought about the concept of career counseling,” he said, also realizing that “If no one was going to hire me, I better be self-employed.” It wasn’t until after he did some research that he discovered … | March 23, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| Searching for ways to cope, twice laid-off worker envisions role for community libraries | Mimi Tong, 67, didn’t plan to stop working when she was laid off from her job as an administrative assistant at the University of California San Francisco, but after three years in the job market, she became what economists call an involuntary retiree, a pushout. With the job search behind her, Tong started building her new life. She took art classes at City College; began attending the West Portal Senior Center for line-dancing, lunch, and friendship. She enjoyed cruises with friends, and regularly visited her local library. It’s there she discovered a new mission: making neighborhood libraries more useful for seniors. Mimi Tong (Photo by Judy Goddess) “There are books on what to expect at school and at work, but there aren’t any books on what to expect when you retire. The lack of structure, how to meet people. You listen to your parents and your teachers when you’re young, but no one instructs you on this next stage. Where is your mooring? How do you structure your time? Your life? Your finances?” Libraries offer great programs for children, teens and young adults, but not for seniors, she said. With the support of the head librarian, Tong helped her local branch, the Parkside library, develop arts and crafts programs for seniors. … | March 22, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| Kaiser manager took early retirement to lock in changing benefits and look for new job | John Edmiston knows what it’s like to look for work and be rejected. At 66, he’s savvy enough to know that seeking “someone with less experience” was a way of saying he was too old. But that experience has proven valuable in the job he eventually found. He’s now a job placement specialist for SF ReServe, an employment program for those 65 and older run by the San Francisco Community Living Campaign, a nonprofit advocate for seniors and people with disabilities. Edmiston took early retirement from Kaiser Permanente in 2016 to lock in health benefits that were being phased out. Having spent 20 years as a manager in the Community Benefits Department at Kaiser Permanente, he was confident his experience and wide network would lead to a good position. John Edmiston in his SF ReServe office. (Photo by Judy Goddess) But what seemed effortless in his 20s, 30s, and 40s – when he held jobs as varied as barista and waiter on private yachts to hair stylist to marketing manager at an environmental science firm – wasn’t working for him in his 60s. “I’d pass the phone interviews, and then I’d walk in for the interview and could almost see it on their face: ‘He’s old.’ Of course, they never said that. … | March 22, 2020 | Judy Goddess |
| Seniors Say … senior? elder? old person? What’s in a name? | EDITOR’S NOTE: In this series, we get the thoughts and reactions of people 50 and older to a variety of everyday issues. If you or anyone you know would be willing to field some questions, email maryhunt@sfseniorbeat.com or rebeccalum@sfseniorbeat.com. Story and photographs by Mary Hunt and Rebecca Rosen Lum Question: You’re over 55 – old enough to qualify for many senior discounts, but also old enough to be aware that you’re being treated differently, sometimes in ways that aren’t comfortable. We asked several seniors what they prefer this stage of life be called — elderly? mature? — and which of these identifiers drives them up the wall. What is in a name? The term “golden years” was coined as an advertising pitch for the Sun City development in the 1950s, although seniors today may be more likely to associate it with rock star David Bowie. “Why should I need to be called anything?” said Marilyn Chow, after her class at the San Francisco Ballet. “I’m a person. I’ve always been a person, and I’m still a person. “On reflection, growing older is about growing wiser,” said Chow, who declined to divulge her age. “It’s a continuing growth and learning opportunity every day…an opportunity to integrate life lessons along the way and to … | March 22, 2020 | admin |
| Employment lawyer fighting to ‘balance the scale between the powerful and powerless’ | Roderick P. Bushnell never faced age discrimination himself. But he has dedicated the latter part of his legal career to defending people who have. Still, he has experienced what it does to older workers when they lose their job. He was a teenager when his father was fired at the age of 50. “My father struggled. Even though he had worked hard for 15 years, he could not find another job.” Bushnell has been representing clients since 1981 in all types of employment discrimination, particularly against older workers. “When my father got fired there was no remedy for age discrimination. Now there is.” Bushnell said he doesn’t know why his father was fired, only what happened afterward. He has empathy for what his clients go through. Roderick Bushnell remembers the impact on his family when his father was fired at the age of 50 from a job he’d had for 15 years. Bushnell was 14 at the time. Photo by Myra Krieger. “Their families fall apart,” Bushnell said. “Who is going to pay the mortgage, the car payment, the college tuition? They have to move. They have to downsize. For many workers, this is a time when they have more debt than they ever have had in their lives. It’s enormous. Many just … | February 26, 2020 | Myra Krieger |
| Foster grandparent goes extra mile to help at-risk children – whose determination ‘never fails to amaze’ | When Carol Chuo retired in 2017, she decided to “take what I know and turn it into pure fun.” Having spent 23 years working and playing with children as a teacher’s assistant for the San Francisco School District, raising two daughters along with five grandchildren, she volunteered to be a foster grandparent. She said it was the perfect balance of everything she loves with everything she does well. She is a mentor, tutor and overall advocate for at-risk children in reading, language and arts development along with socialization. “It has been a great experience. I’ve found new friends, earned some extra money and created a solid structure after I retired,” she said. “And most significantly, I help kids become better citizens.” Carol Chuo in the classroom at the Spring Valley Elementary School . (Photo by Robin Evans) The foster grandparent program is run by the Felton Institute, a federally funded Bay Area social services organization dedicated to helping low-income families, adults, the elderly and people with disabilities in an array of 46 programs in 11 languages. It was created in 1965, under the auspices of War on Poverty legislation, crafted with the notion that older adults are valuable resources in their communities. The program plays a vital role in the well-being of elderly adults while … | February 10, 2020 | Myra Krieger |
| Filmmaker keeps crafting winners, despite loss of Academy Award-winning partner – her mentor and husband | It was not Allie Light’s first brush with an Academy Award. But the first one without her husband, a noted filmmaker and her mentor. In 1991, Light and Irving Saraf won best documentary for “In the Shadow of the Stars,” which explored the lives of the San Francisco Opera chorus. This year, 28 years later, a film she produced without him was considered for an Academy Award. “Any Wednesday” portrays the relationship between an older woman with dementia and a young army veteran with PTSD. Allie Light with the Oscar she and her husband won in 1991. Photo by Jan Robbins Saraf, who died seven years ago, was a film producer, editor, director and academic. He had more than 150 film and television production credits to his name. He founded the documentary film division at KQED and helped producer Saul Zaentz build his Fantasy Films studio. “Irving and I were partners in life and in the movies,” said Light, 84. “He taught me everything about filmmaking.” Light and Saraf met in Noe Valley, while neighbors in separate marriages. They became friends through their children. And she and Saraf shared an interest in poetry. Years after Light’s husband died, of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma at the age of 33, and Saraf had divorced, they reconnected. … | February 3, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| Architect with a hankering for history documents the work of earlier Bay Area women in her profession | Inge Schaefer Horton was helping set up an exhibition of the work of European women architects when one of her American friends told her “it is a shame” female architects in the United States had only Julia Morgan as a role model. That was 1987 in San Francisco, when the Organization of Women Architects was putting on a show at the American Institute of Architects gallery. “I just couldn’t believe that was true,” said Horton, who has a degree in architecture from the Technical University of Berlin. Inge Horton at home. Photo by Jan Robbins. Knowing that Morgan, an American architect and engineer, designed more than 700 buildings in California, Horton reasoned there must have been more American women architects. “In history you rarely have a singular event, you generally have clusters,” she said. A long gestation Horton set out to prove her European colleague wrong, but it took over 20 years of research. Her magnum opus, “Early Women Architects of the San Francisco Bay Area: The Lives and Work of Fifty Professionals, 1890 -1950,” was published in 2010. “I was proud of the results of my research: a data base with about 300 names of women architects who had graduated before 1951 or started their residential design practice,” Horton said. However, … | February 2, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| ‘Wandering bard’ delivers care and calm through ancient tales of adventure and delight, fidelity and hope | Once upon a time, before the written word, there was the oral tradition. Skilled storytellers addressed people’s hopes, fears and dreams by weaving a good tale. “Fairy tales, also known as ‘wisdom tales,’ were told to adults in olden days,” said Olive Hackett-Shaughnessy. “Life was hard and in the magical delight and adventure of a well-told tale, there was care for the soul.” Hackett-Shaughnessy, 69, has been offering care for the soul since 1986 as a professional storyteller. Describing herself as a “wandering bard,” she made her living for more than 20 years through storytelling workshops. “I told stories five days a week for one to three hours a day.” Although semi-retired, she still conducts some workshops. Participants include students, teachers, parents, writers, nurses, patients, accountants, veterans and senior citizens. “When I give workshops at San Francisco Village, the participants feel known by the stories,” she said. “They remember their innocence, which doesn’t go away. This gives them a strong feeling of connection.” Olive Hackett-Shaughnessy sometimes uses puppets to illustrate the stories she tells, particularly when the audience is mainly children. (Photo by Jan Robbins) She also continues to share the magic at the Sunset Cooperative Nursery School, where she honed her storytelling skills while a volunteer teacher’s aide from 1982 … | January 19, 2020 | Jan Robbins |
| Parkinson’s patients gain strength in darkened boxing gyms as well as light, airy ballet studios | Rebecca Lum never thought she’d find herself in a boxing gym. But there she was in a dark room, one wall plastered with pictures of “mean-looking” boxers and heavy metal as background music. But it’s where she first found relief from the stiffness of Parkinson’s Disease. After years searching for a diagnosis for the wild tremors she began experiencing in her right hand and foot, she found a doctor who recommended she give it a try. “I loved boxing at the beginning,” said Lum. “It’s such a good workout and I felt so energized afterwards.” Rebecca Rosen Lum at HitFitSF. (Photo by Robin Evans) Rock Steady Boxing, now available in 300 gyms nationwide, was founded in 2006 by an Indiana prosecutor who developed Parkinson’s and designed by his friend, a Golden Gloves Boxer. It was the first program of its kind in the country to specifically address Parkinson’s Disease. But it took Lum seven years to discover it. She had consulted several neurologists, all of whom said they didn’t know what was wrong with her but it definitely wasn’t Parkinson’s. It wasn’t until 2015 that a neurologist identified it as the source of her problems. “I mostly felt relief, because now I could pursue treatment,” she said. Lum, practicing her swing. (Photo … | December 12, 2019 | Mary Hunt |
| At 86, veteran travel agent still cruising along, with special advice for seniors | When people ask “What’s next?” Martha Nell Beatty responds, “Where’s next?” The consummate world traveler has visited more than 110 countries and five continents in her 86 years and still has many miles to go. When interviewed she had two trips booked back to back — first off to Portland and then to Cabo San Lucas. She’s no vagabond; travel is her business as well as her pleasure. As an independent consultant with the international travel agency FROSCH, she has slowed down a bit, working out of her home office. Now she only sells leisure travel with an emphasis on cruises–whose advantages she can particularly appreciate. “Cruising is ideal for seniors, especially those with challenges to their mobility,” she said. “Handrails everywhere, a swimming pool for low-impact exercise and even access to on-board doctors.” “Keep traveling,” says Martha Nell Beatty. “It’s good for your head and your heart.” (Photos by Myra Krieger) She reminisces about a certain client who went on a cruise (Christmas in the Caribbean) at the age of 102. “She is now 107. I actually went with her – as a friend, not a caregiver. Because she was the oldest person to ever sail on Silversea, the captain had us to his quarters for a special celebration. She didn’t have a cane at that point.” Another popular variation on senior travel is tours. … | December 9, 2019 | Myra Krieger |
| Reframing Aging – ‘Older ≠ Lesser’: City embarks on effort to squash aging stereotypes | If it’s Wednesday, you’ll find 76-year-old Annie Biderman at her Spanish class –unless the retired nurse has decided to go birdwatching or spend extra time working out on the elliptical machine in the basement of her Glen Park home. If it’s Thursday, Susie Tyner, 73, is playing the steel drums in a band she organized, a highlight of a week that includes conducting an exercise class in San Francisco’s Bayview district. Reframing Aging: Read the whole series. Leadership never gets old: Retired youth counselor helped families overcome ‘disconnectedness’ Sharing joy never gets old: Bayview woman brings steel drumming and other ‘feel good’ activities to community’s seniors Courage never gets old: A journey from drugs and destitution to role in Apple commercial Caring never gets old: Bus stop chats with lonely seniors – of all ethnic backgrounds – fulfill Navajo elder’s ideals Determination never gets old: Energetic knitter who once fled war finds fruitful work and friends in U.S. On Fridays, you’ll find 70-year-old Dennis O’Brien cutting hair and giving perms in his Noe Valley salon before organizing a dinner party or planning an outing to a movie or restaurant with friends. These three San Franciscans exemplify a new generation of older adults who accept the inevitable aging process but have made a … | December 9, 2019 | Bill Snyder |
| Reframing Aging – Determination never gets old: Energetic knitter who once fled war finds fruitful work and friends in U.S. | Every morning at about 8:10, Xue Ya Yu leaves her Visitacion Valley home and catches Muni’s 44 O’Shaughnessy. After a transfer and an 80-minute ride that takes her across San Francisco, the 84-year-old grandmother is at the Jackie Chan Senior Center, ready to go work. Yu, a bit frail but energetic and cheerful, has been a mainstay of the Self Help for the Elderly program for more than a dozen years. The senior center on Geary Boulevard is one of several run by the nonprofit. When she’s not helping to organize the utensils for lunch or keeping track of fruit and other items, she might be exercising in front of a video screen, playing mahjong or handing out the scarves, pants and hats she knits and sews for her friends at the center. “She has many friends here; she is loved,” says Lance Ma, a worker at the center who served as Yu’s Cantonese translator during a recent chat with Senior Beat. Xue Ya Yu at the Jackie Chan Senior Center. (Photos by Bill Snyder) The handmade items – Yu says she knits them at home while watching television – have a finished, professional look, the product of 14 years working in a San Francisco garment factory. Knitting and sewing “keep my … | December 8, 2019 | Bill Snyder |
| Reframing Aging – Leadership never gets old: Retired youth counselor helped families overcome ‘disconnectedness’ | Mario Martinez is not a lonely man. He’s married and has four daughters, four sons-in-law and nine grandchildren. Yet the 65-year-old retired family therapist talks and thinks about loneliness quite a bit. “Sometimes isolation is forced upon us by health concerns, but a lot of times isolation is a choice,” he said. “And if you can choose to not be alone by giving of yourself — whether it’s at a senior center or a volunteer position — that’s a counter to aloneness.” Martinez has spent years helping others. His most recent job was with the San Francisco Health Department, counseling delinquent youths and their families. “I loved it. It was a chance to see people make positive changes.” It’s especially gratifying, he says, when people he treated years ago recognize him on the street and tell him that their lives are now on track. Mario Martinez (Photo by Bill Snyder) The scores of youths he worked with had been arrested on charges ranging from misdemeanor shoplifting to felony assault. His emphasis was on the family, teaching the parents new ways to approach their children. Helping families move into positive social relationships and getting beyond feelings of isolation and “disconnectedness” was a big part of the therapy he practiced, said Martinez, one of … | December 7, 2019 | Bill Snyder |
| Inveterate socializer helps infuse St. Francis Square with activities and now, a special celebration of that work | Jimmye Bynum was such a talkative, sociable person that one of her employers told her she should have been a lawyer. Her natural gift to engage with others led to choices that always seemed to benefit others, as well as herself. “I always loved to talk and help people and maybe that’s why my life has been so beautiful,” said Bynum. From dancing with pal Maya Angelou in the heyday of the ’40s jazz and blues scene in the Fillmore, to forming social and philanthropic clubs in the early days of her marriage, to joining every committee in her housing cooperative, Bynum is still talking, organizing and giving to others. Jimmye Bynum (Photo by Jan Robbins) This month, the 92-year-old is busy co-chairing the celebration of a decade of organized community activities at St. Francis Square. Bynum and her husband bought an apartment in 1963, the year it was built – 299 units in 12 buildings around shared courtyards. Construction was sponsored by two unions with the aim of providing affordable home ownership, particularly for African Americans, who faced housing discrimination in many quarters. The community activities were initiated 10 years ago by several residents with the support of the Community Living Campaign, a nonprofit created in 2007 to support grass-roots efforts … | December 5, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Reframing Aging – Caring never gets old: Bus stop chats with lonely seniors – of all ethnicities – fulfill Navajo elder’s ideals | It was one of those “aha” moments. Marianne Spencer Harvey was watching a concert on KQED some years ago. She was singing along and really enjoying herself when the camera panned across the audience: “And there were all those people with white hair. And it finally hit me. I’m in this generation,” she recalled. Still, the 67-year-old’s life is not defined by her age – but by her Navajo heritage. That means a desire to support fellow Native Americans and neighbors of all ethnic backgrounds. A one-time apprentice baker, Harvey frequently cooks at Native American community events. As a Navajo elder, she feels strongly about her responsibility to pass on knowledge and tradition to the younger generation. Marianne Spencer Harvey is a member of the Navajo Nation. (Photo by Bill Snyder) She feels responsible for other San Franciscans as well. When she sees older adults sitting alone at bus stops, she’ll often join them. Sometimes to chat. Sometimes to offer help. “For some, it’s their living room. I’ve come across people who watch the world from the bus stop,” she said. Near what she calls her “Upper Tenderloin” apartment, she’s met people who are torn by grief over the loss of a partner or an illness. One woman was suicidal, Harvey recounts, … | December 2, 2019 | Bill Snyder |
| Despite its challenges, wife and mother says hearing loss a lesson in human nature that brought family closer | Blanche Capilos has severe hearing loss. It has its advantages, she said wryly. In noisy places like a mall or in restaurants, she can turn down the volume on her hearing aids. And she no longer has to hear her husband snore; she takes them out at night. “It’s my secret to a long, happy marriage.” Capilos said. But she’s happy to have her hearing aids while hiking in nature, listening to birds or when at the ocean. And in the long run, adversity has strengthened her marriage and taught her to set boundaries. Capilos, 66, and her husband, Roger, 71, both now wear hearing aids. His loss has been mostly age-related. Hers began in middle age due to a genetic condition. Together, in the last 10 years since she began losing her hearing, they have worked as a team to ease its impacts. Blance Capilos (Photo by Jan Robbins) “We agreed not to yell through the walls, but rather talk face-to-face.” They stopped going to movies and watched films at home, listening but also reading closed captions. “Sometimes actors speak really quickly, and we weren’t catching all the dialogue.” Hearing loss is a prevalent chronic condition among older adults. According to the National Institutes of Health, nearly 25 percent of those … | November 18, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Under cover of Self-Help for Elderly job, fund director is Cantonese Opera star | Josephine Ma had been explaining her agency’s nutrition programs when she suddenly stood up. “Wait, I’ll be right back.” A minute later she returned holding a stack of photographs. One showed a dainty maiden with a chalk-white face, dark black eyebrows and lashes, vivid red bowed lips and a magnificent headdress. “Here’s me, and here, and there’s another one,” she said. Ma is the fund development director at Self-Help for the Elderly, a multi-county agency offering a variety of programs and services. After working hours, the 72-year-old Ma transforms into the female lead in the Duen Fung Ming opera troupe, the local company that performs at Self-Help’s annual winter benefit. Ma not only stars in the productions, she also created the troupe and produces and directs the shows. It’s a role she’s held for the past 34 years, ever since moving to the Bay Area. Josephine Ma, above and below, in two of her many costumes. (Photos courtesy of Josephine Ma) Ma’s troupe is joined in these annual performances by the renowned Hong Kong opera troupe, the Sun Kwan Ying Production Company. “Siu Ming Leung, the male lead, is an idol in Hong Kong,” Ma said, pointing to another photo in the stack. These two well-known Chinese Opera stars will offer three … | November 13, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| Help Senior Beat #EndAgeism: Our mission is simply to tell the stories of this diverse city’s older adults | By sharing the stories of San Francisco’s older adults, the San Francisco Senior Beat is hoping to change societal views of aging that are often negative. And we could use your help to do more of this kind of storytelling. Please donate to Senior Beat’s GoFundMe campaign. In addition to our regular features, we are participating with the San Francisco Community Living Campaign and the San Francisco Department of Aging and Adult Services in a campaign to #EndAgeism. Read more in Senior Beat about the campaign and the people helping to “Reframe Aging.” The Senior Beat is an online magazine featuring people over 50 in San Francisco – a kind of People magazine about older adults. We dip into this population to show readers the reality of senior life in this incredibly diverse city. We focus on profiles of people who have faced challenges or are coping with new ones, but also those who are exploring new opportunities for learning, giving back or simply reinventing themselves. Sometimes we bring attention to a particular program, but through the eyes and experiences of the people it is helping. We are a small staff of part-timers, largely funded through SF Reserve, a program of the Community Living Campaign. We would like to be able to expand … | November 10, 2019 | Robin Evans |
| San Francisco’s ‘Woman Lawn Bowler of the Year’ touts age-old sport that’s got something for every age | Christine Raher had never won a trophy in her life, despite being a team competitor in tenpin bowling throughout college. But within eight years of taking up lawn bowling in San Francisco, she has twice been named Woman Lawn Bowler of the Year by the venerable Golden Gate Park club. Raher has been a member and active player at the 130-member San Francisco Lawn Bowling Club since 2011. She claimed this year’s top honor for women lawn bowlers just four years after she first garnered the title. “While I am thrilled to once again be the Woman Lawn Bowler of the Year, the 2015 win was one of the best thrills of my life,” Raher said. “During the 2015 season when I kept winning or coming in second (in tournaments), I had no idea that I was in competition for the title.” A locker full of memories – and “bowls.” (Photos by robin Evans That year, her friends and family joined in the celebration. Her three sons were especially proud, said Raher, now 71. “My middle son, who was an NCAA athlete (basketball at Cal), was perhaps the most elated. He said, ‘Mom, at your age, there aren’t many athletic activities where you can place first.'” He eventually bought a huge trophy and … | November 10, 2019 | Myra Krieger |
| Reframing Aging – Sharing joy never gets old: Bayview woman brings steel drumming and other ‘feel good’ activities to community’s seniors | Is 73 too old to feel beautiful, travel the world, learn a musical instrument or lead an exercise class? Ask any of those questions to 73-year-old Susie Tyner and you’re likely to get a rather astonished look and a firm “No way.” Tyner, who is one of five older adults featured in the city’s recently launched Reframing Aging campaign, leads a high-energy, no-time-for-naps schedule that has her bouncing around San Francisco from her home in the Bayview — that is, when she’s not helping to lead a foreign tour venture that has taken her to every continent save Antarctica. Susie Tyner (Photos by Robin Evans) Her weekly to-do list includes leading exercise classes – she brought the popular Always Active program to the Bayview – steel drum band practice – another activity she brought to her neighborhood – and helping with a host of other activities at the George W. Davis Senior Center, an “aging campus” offering a multitude of health, recreational and supportive services for the neighborhood. If her regimen seems tiring, Tyner says she wouldn’t have it any other way: “I am living the good life,” she says during a chat in the sunny courtyard of the Davis Center. Being content with one’s life is hardly noteworthy, but what makes … | October 31, 2019 | Bill Snyder |
| Reframing Aging – Courage never gets old: A journey from drugs and destitution to role in Apple commercial | On a fine spring afternoon earlier this year, Chet Peeples found himself on Apple’s futuristic Cupertino campus. He wasn’t there as a tourist or a job-hunting techie. Peeples, a 64-year-old recovering addict, was there to appear in a promotional film as a stand-in for Apple CEO Tim Cook. Standing beside Tim Cook seemed utterly unexpected to him and anyone who had known him. His life had been filled with suicide attempts, homelessness, a near-fatal bout with MRSA, numerous overdoses and jail time. “How do you explain that? Trying to figure it all out would put you in a psych ward,” Peeples says. Peeples, one of five older adults being featured in San Francisco’s Reframing Aging campaign, is now an up-and-coming actor. He’s landed parts in commercials, done voiceovers and played small roles in indie movies and has a part-time gig as a tour guide. He works with other recovering addicts and has been a counselor in a number of city programs. Chet Peeples, up-and-coming actor. The video shoot at Apple was emblematic of a journey from an addicted and miserable past that nearly killed him, to a comfortable and satisfying life. Peeples is grateful for his recovery. And because his own journey to sobriety taught him so much, he has chosen to … | October 31, 2019 | Bill Snyder |
| Habit started from thrift leads Chinese singer to vintage dress, fabrics career and reunification with her culture | She’s walking down the street in a stunning vintage Chinese outfit and you think she’s off to model in a fashion show. But that’s typical of Terri Wong. She owns no jeans or sweats. “Since 2013, I have dressed daily in either Chinese or western fashion, or my own knitwear, always with a hat.” Photo by Ari Seth Cohen. She has worn only antique or vintage outfits since working and going to college, during a short career in opera, while a legal secretary and owner of her own fiber art business and today, as live-in partner to Ken, a jazz sax and flute player. Both are sustaining donors for San Francisco’s Conservatory of Music. Wong, 64, began to explore her own fashion interests and personal style when she left home at 17. She started with western clothing, and eventually embraced the vintage and antique styles of her heritage. “The oldest Asian pieces I own are from the late 1800s through the 1930s. My vintage Western pieces date from the 1940s to ’80s,” Wong said. In general, clothing is deemed vintage if it is at least 20 years old; antique, 100 or more: A dressing gown from the turn of the century might be considered antique. Designer gowns from the 1960s through 1980s … | October 28, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Filmmaker mines lessons for aging well in documentary on the lives of older lesbians in a NorCal health study | Deborah Craig has a certain empathy for older lesbians: She watched her mother come out at age 50. Vulnerabilities felt in aging can be magnified with worries of being accepted, she learned. That was in some part the impetus for Craig’s most recent film, “A Great Ride,” which explores the lives of lesbians aged 69 to 83 in three different California communities. The award-winning documentary was shown recently at the Legacy Film Festival on Aging in San Francisco. “I definitely thought about my mother while making the film and think (hope) she would have loved it,” said Craig, who came out in the 1970s. “I think she was very happy that I was a lesbian as she could talk with me about the challenges she faced. The idea for the film evolved from a study on lesbian health that Craig, a lecturer in the Department of Health Education at San Francisco State University, worked on. Deborah Craig Through that study she met Brenda, a former Oakland resident proud of her African-American heritage. She moved to Vallejo for more affordable housing and now lives by herself in a house in a multi-ethnic community. Shirley Liberman lives alone in Oakmont, a retirement community of single-family homes in Santa Rosa, as do couples Sue and … | October 27, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Meals on Wheels CEO favors low-key style – but with occasional outbursts of ‘unique statement’ pieces | Ashley McCumber, the CEO of Meals on Wheels San Francisco, sported one of his “fun” jackets at the 2019 Norma Satten Community Service Innovation Award. Meals on Wheels CEO Ashley McCumber. Photo by Robin Evans He describes himself as a casual dresser who likes a periodic injection of unique statement pieces. “I’m a gray, blue and brown person with colors like pink and purple thrown in for fun,” he said. McCumber doesn’t believe in spending a lot of money on clothes, so he tends to shop the clearance aisles. “That sometimes that leads me to the statement pieces – i.e. no one else would buy it.” Still, he tries to support local businesses when possible, “but my go to store for basics is Macy’s.” To learn more about McCumber, read our profile of him. The September awards event, sponsored by the San Francisco Community Living Campaign, honored the executive director of Swords to Plowshares, Michael Blecker. | October 24, 2019 | Robin Evans |
| Colored paper and fabric swatches help women consider new style choices for a new stage of life | They sat at tables topped with fabric swatches, pieces of paper in a variety of colors, scissors, glue and colored pens. But it was a group of older women not kiddies getting set to dig in. The women mixed and matched colors and fabrics, gluing their choices on heavy paper. “This is just like kindergarten, it’s so much fun,” said one participant. The two-day workshop included an exercise in choosing and matching colors and fabrics. Photos by Gene Cohn. The event was “Aging in Style,” a two-day workshop held at the Cornerstone Trinity Baptist Church in the Miraloma neighborhood. Their instructions were to put together colors and fabrics to create a personal style blueprint. While the first workshop focused on concepts and self-awareness, the final session delved into colors, patterns and resources. “I came home with some terrific combinations for future outfits,” said Patricia Shanahan, who found the exercise helpful in coordinating colors and accenting with patterns. Julia Scott-Jackson said she gained a “better understanding of how color can be used to brighten my wardrobe and influence my style.” The event concluded with a clothing exchange, from which the women assembled outfits for a fashion show. The goal was opening the women up to the possibility of renewal at a new stage … | September 29, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Hilton manager fills the needs of the neighborhood with the excesses of city hotels and commercial buildings | Thousands of used mattresses, blankets, pillows, decorative bolsters, linens, furniture, and unclaimed swag from conferences – hotels produce a mountain of waste. What to do with it? For many hotels, the answer was, and remains, sell it to a liquidator, hold an employee sale or haul it to the dump. Hilton Community Project Manager Jo Licata. Photos by Judy Goddess. Holger Gantz, general manager of the San Francisco Hilton Union Square from the mid-80s to 2003 and an icon of the hospitality industry, offered a different response: Pay it forward. Employee Jo Licata, who eagerly took the challenge, recounted his words. “Our hotel is in the neighborhood. We’re part of this changing neighborhood. We’re here and we want to be a good neighbor.” There are thousands of items hotels need to give away, said Licata. “Furnishings, mattresses and bedding. Tote bags and T-shirts from conventions, pens, paper, sandwiches and salads from our catering service. Some group can make use of them.” ‘A great neighborhood’ “The Tenderloin is not just a holding pen; it’s a great neighborhood,” she said. “We are home to 5,000 children, 3,500 frail elderly, three wonderful school and after-school programs and countless agencies. A good neighbor makes sure nothing is wasted.” She had been working at the Hilton for … | September 21, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| First-ever celebration of all abilities joins Sunday Streets at the Civic Center Plaza | Sunday, Sept. 8, the day of the first annual Getting There Together: a Celebration of All Ages & Abilities dawned bright and beautiful. By the opening hour, 11 a.m., the resource tables were greeting the first fairgoers, the morning exercise leaders had warmed up, and the earliest audience members had taken seats in front of the main stage on the Larkin Avenue steps of the Public Library. Dignity Dog (of the Dignity Fund Coalition) and others start the day with some stretches. Photo by Judy Goddess. The speaker program was kept short, befitting a day dedicated to celebrating the talent of local seniors and people with disabilities. State Senator Scott Weiner addressed the need for housing and food. San Francisco District 7 supervisor Norman Yee spoke of the importance for safe streets and the need to provide more services for seniors and people with disabilities. The main stage featured performances by both professional and non-professional groups, including the Samahang Pinoy group from the Curry Senior Center, the Sunny Line Dancers from the OMI Senior Center, the San Francisco Dance Group, dancers from the Richmond Senior Center, andLos Rumberos from the Mission Neighborhood Center. The Curry Senior Center booth. Photo by Judith Sandoval. Just before noon, Marc Brew, the artistic director of … | September 20, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| Beauty is in the eyeglasses of the beholder; retiree’s eclectic style requires many pairs | Mary Novie, seen at an SF Jazz concert with her granddaughter Autumn, says her style is classic but eclectic. The 70-year-old confesses to be an eyeglass junkie. She has many pairs, she said. It doesn’t hurt that the retiree works part-time at OPT Optometric on Valencia Street. As for clothing, she shops at boutiques such as UKO in Hayes Valley and Ruti on Fillmore as well as UNIQLO and Zara. Mary Novie and her granddaughter Autumn. | September 19, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Army medic settles into good life and his own home after leaping discrimination hurdles | Dugal Mitchell spent five years in the Army as a medic, two in the Korean War. After all he did and saw, his passion was to become a doctor. But when he came home and applied to the University of Texas Medical School, he was turned down. It was the early ‘50s and segregation was at its height. “They told me I had to go to my own school,” said Mitchell, now 91. “I was heartbroken.” Dugan Mitchell faced housing discrimination when he began looking to buy a home for his growing family. He was fortunate to get one of the units allotted to African Americans in the newly built St. Francis Square Cooperative Racial discrimination was a blow to his ambitions then and later. But chance, determination and a few key choices put him back on a career track, earned him a respected place in society and settled him in a supportive community in which to raise his family. “I picked myself up and followed a family friend to San Francisco where I got a job in the U.S. Department of Defense as a medic at Letterman Army Medical Center.” Mitchell fell into the medical field when he enlisted in the army in 1949 right out of high school. To avoid … | September 17, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| San Francisco’s first-ever Older Adult Hiring Fair was so popular, they might just do it again | Sel Butler worked concessions for the Warriors in Oakland. A San Franciscan, he wanted a job on this side of the Bay. Angela Lee, an experienced cook, was looking for a cooking job that paid more than minimum wage. Maureen Sansburn has been looking for work for the past eight months, since leaving her job at the Summit Medical Center to care for her 101-year-old father. Photos by Kate Kuckro They were among more than 300 people to attend a job fair organized specifically for seniors and people with disabilities, based on a campaign promise by Mayor London Breed. Whether you were considered a senior depended on who was hiring. For city jobs, it’s 65. For others, it was 50 and still others 60. The Older Adult Hiring Fair was sponsored on Aug. 5 by the Mayor’s Office of Economic and Workforce Development in partnership with the Dignity Fund Coalition, Felton Institute, the San Francisco Department of Aging & Adult Services, Jobs Now! and a network of other organizations. “I’ve done the work, I have the experience, I hope to get a job,” said Butler, who is in his 50s, before walking into the interview room. Twenty minutes later, a big smile on his face, he walked out, “I got it,” he … | September 12, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| ‘Mayor’ of Tenderloin turned his troubles into blessings for the neighborhood | Del Seymour has seen the Tenderloin from the bottom as a street addict and later from the top, as executive director of Code Tenderloin, a jobs program for neighborhood residents, and as co-chair of the city’s homeless coordinating board. “I like the position I’m in now, but I learned how to help others from my experiences,” said Seymour, now 72. Moving to the Tenderloin in his mid-40s, Seymour spiraled down into drug addiction. “I continued to work at legitimate jobs for most of my time on drugs, but I also bought and sold drugs. My habit was $200 to $300 a day.” Seymour was in and out of jail and chronically homeless while he was using. Then, at age 62, Seymour got clean. He spent the next three years overcoming drug addiction. “You’re still a full-blown drug addict until you don’t want it or need it anymore. Those years were miserable, but during that time I also started to re-build my life.” In 2010, Seymour started Tenderloin Walking Tours. “There’s a rich history here. I show what’s vibrant in a neighborhood that’s considered ‘gritty’ and ‘seedy.’” Seymour started Code Tenderloin in 2013. The nonprofit provides training and emotional, financial and legal support to get people up and working. Three years later, he … | September 10, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| He fought for our country, then battled for dignity and justice for its veterans | Michael Blecker joined the army in 1967 to get out of Reading, Pa. “Our generation’s model of manhood was the early John Wayne war movies: Wayne never flinched and always won, that’s what we wanted. Plus the GI Bill made the Army very attractive.” Nine years later, as a law student at the activist New College of California School of Law, he started an internship at the newly founded Swords to Plowshares. He never left, and in 1982 was appointed executive director. Blecker, 69, has always been mission-driven. Michael Blecker with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Veterans’ Day in 2012. He also co-founded the California Association of Veterans Service Agencies and was one of the founders of the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans. Whether recounting stories from Swords’ early days or the continuing struggles of Vietnam veterans and the veterans of the post-9/11 wars, he is a tireless advocate for justice and dignity for the country’s veterans. “War causes wounds and suffering that last beyond the battlefield,” he said. “The question remains: how do you care for those who served?” Blecker is being honored with the 2019 Norma Satten Community Service Innovation Award, which will be bestowed on Sept. 26 by the San Francisco Community Living Campaign, a nonprofit that advocates for seniors … | September 10, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| Chance encounter with a Curry Center worker lifts bipolar sufferer back to engaged life with a new friend | CREATING COMMUNITY – Depression and confusion marked the first decades of Ray Walsh’s life. Only recently has the 66-year-old begun to feel free from the demons that controlled him. A San Francisco native, Walsh dropped out of school at 18, hoping to make it as a musician. He studied piano as a child and picked up the guitar as an adolescent. To some degree he succeeded. Several of his solo guitar performances made it into the San Francisco Chronicle’s entertainment listings. For some years Walsh supplemented what he earned playing in clubs by working as a legal secretary. But his music brought neither peace nor enough money to live on. He has bipolar disorder. Friendship with Michael Belmontes, right, opened up something in Ray Walsh, who had become something of a shut-in. Two years ago, after a stay in a mental institution, Walsh’s brother found him a room in The Granada, a retirement hotel in Upper Nob Hill, where he could recover after knee replacement surgery. One day, sitting by himself in the hotel’s community room, he was approached by Michael Belmontes, one of eight Curry Senior Center outreach specialists. Belmontes was visiting a client at the hotel. “I had seen him sitting there in the same place, by himself, for weeks, … | August 19, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| Child of sharecropper and housecleaner in segregated Alabama felt destined for a better future | Mary Crenshaw came of age in segregated southern Alabama in the ‘50s, just prior to the turbulent Civil Rights Era. Her father was a sharecropper on a white person’s farm and her mother did day work for white people. But Crenshaw saw different a life for herself. “I’m a believer in that some things you are just destined for. I wanted better,” she said. “I am the fourth of seven children. The others felt the struggle for a four-year higher education was too much.” She also had a friend whose parents made sure all their kids went to vocational school or college. She realized that she could go to college, too. Mary Crenshaw She set her sights on a career teaching physical education or math, eventually becoming a physical education teacher in the San Francisco Unified School District. Unmarried, she focused solely on work, home and church during her working years. “I didn’t even have time to get to know my neighbors.” That all changed when she retired in 2004. “That’s when I got involved in my community.” After retirement, working for her community She devoted herself to giving back to her Bayview Hunters Point community. “I wanted to help others in every way I can, as I was helped.” Crenshaw is … | August 16, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Stanford business grads launch service so busy young adults can help aging parents | Mon ami is a matching service for older adults. But it’s not for romance; it pairs them with college students for companionship. The start-up launched on the Peninsula and recently expanded to San Francisco and the Bay Area. Joy Zhang’s and Madeline Dangerfield’s project at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business honed in the needs of young people who want to help their parents but never feel they’re doing enough. Founders Joy Zhang and Madeline Dangerfield met at an orientation for new students entering Stanford’s Graduate School of Business. We knew how “heart-breaking it can be for someone caring for their parents,” said Zhang. “They want to do good, but they feel they’re never doing enough. “We honed into the challenge of that place fraught with pain.” Zhang and Dangerfield devoted their school years to developing and testing their business model. When Zhang posted on Next Door, a social network based on neighborhoods, and received three immediate responses, she knew they were on the right track. Their first customer wanted someone to play Scrabble with a parent in a residential facility. It was their second customer who gave them their business name, which is French for my friend. It was a French professor who wanted to write a memoir. “We found a … | August 15, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| Vision loss ‘like moving to a foreign country’ – but plenty of help available to learn the language | When Susan Kitazawa started losing her sight 15 years ago, one of the first things she started to do was self-monitor her driving. She restricted herself to places she felt more comfortable driving: only in the daytime, not in the rain, not on the freeways. And she asked for help. “I asked three friends of mine who rode with me regularly to assess my driving.” She told them to report her to the Department of Motor Vehicles once they thought she’d become a danger to herself and others, if she didn’t stop on her own volition. “It’s really hard to give up your license.” Susan Kitazawa in her garden. Kitazawa believes there are a lot of people visually impaired like her who are driving when they shouldn’t be. Her doctor signed the DMV form saying she could drive with caution, but the DMV gave me a five-year, unlimited license!” She drove for only three years after that. There are nearly 15,000 people who are blind or have low vision in San Francisco, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2017 American Community Survey. Kitazawa thinks the majority are not out and about because they haven’t gotten the skills-training they need to navigate their environment. “I can go for days and not see another … | August 15, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Get testing, counseling, training then go shopping at Lighthouse’s store for low- and hi-tech vision aids | I kept looking for the brightness button on my TV to lighten up scenes that seemed to be filmed in the dead of night. Unfortunately, there’s no “time for cataracts surgery” pop-up message on the screen, even on the smartest TV. Apparently I’m not alone. About 10 percent of adult Americans 18 and older (some 26.9 million) reported they either “have trouble” seeing, even when wearing glasses or contact lenses, or that they are blind, unable to see at all, according to the 2017 National Health Interview Survey. Of those,7.8 million are 65 years and many report experiencing significant vision loss. The Adaptations shop has a host of devices and aids for a wide range of vision issues. (Photos by Gene Cohn) Fortunately, there are a number of organizations in San Francisco that exist to help people with “low vision” to “no vision.” The most well-known is Lighthouse for the Blind. Founded in 1902, it promotes independence, equality and self-reliance by offering assistance for all gradations of visual impairment, from mild myopia to difficulty seeing shapes and colors to the inability to see light, the definition of blindness. Services include counseling, vision testing and training on accessible technology. Workshops are offered on everything from learning how to read a tactile map or hiking … | August 15, 2019 | Mary Hunt |
| Feistiness and array of support services keep senior active and independent despite damages of diabetes | Diabetes has ruled Marlene Hunn’s life since she was diagnosed at age two. But not wanting to become isolated or housebound, she has made a point of getting support from her friends – and the wide range of services available to her in San Francisco. She may have her bad days and crying jags, but she’s best described as feisty. “I’ve got an active mind, and I’m engaged with life,” said Hunn. “I’m still taking classes. I’m independent.” Not much was known about the disease in Hunn’s youth. Daily insulin injections kept it under control. But it eventually left the now-71-year-old blind. It also forced the removal of a leg, some toes and a finger. “I take dozens of medications, it takes me two hours every morning to put on my leg, and I’m dependent on help from so many agencies,” she said. She gets around with a walker, crutches and a wheelchair. But she needs help with meals, with shopping, doing laundry, cleaning and, throwing out the garbage. Marlene Hunn, seated with her friend from Covia Social Calls, Yvette Connolly. Photo by Gene Cohn. But it’s not all work and no play. She takes classes at the Fromm Institute for Lifelong Learning, learned to use a computer at the Lighthouse for … | August 4, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| Smart phones and devices offer seniors new skills to thrive in the digital world | Tindy Lee, 66, learned how to use YouTube to connect to the TV so she didn’t have to pay to stream shows anymore. And now she’s an avid user – connecting with Facebook, calling family and friends on WeChat, checking the weather, taking photos and using calendar alerts to help her keep track of her mother-in-law doctor’s appointments. “Before I took this class, the only thing I did with my phone was turn it on and off,” she said. Now, when Lee leaves town, she takes her phone and buys a card. Tindy Lee acquired her digital skills through a class at the OMI Senior Center. Una Johnson uses her iPad and email to stay connected to friends, family and her native Jamaica. Since settling in the Bay Area in 1979, the 82-year-old has seen many friends move away. Her family lives in England and Canada. On the iPad, she’s able to view her brother’s street in London and enjoy virtual walks around her old neighborhood in Kingston. Una Johnson got her iPad lessons from Jane Day, right, her friendly visitor from Little Brothers-Friends of the Elderly. In myriad ways, seniors not raised in the digital age are finding technology can be of help. Because social engagement is important to seniors’ health … | August 4, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| Chronicler of ’60s rock still nurturing a passion born at age 5 | Richie Unterberger was only a child when the counterculture ‘60s were blossoming. But he had three older brothers who introduced him to the music. By the age of five, he was a Beatles fan, asking for their records at every gift-giving opportunity. He was seven when Woodstock took place. At eight, he bought his first single, “Hey, Jude.” He was particularly proud of his purchase. “I thought it was really good value,” he said. “It was seven minutes long and had ‘Revolution’ on the B side.” By the age of 11, he owned all the Beatles records. Richie Unterberger teaching a rock music class at College of Marin in Kentfield, Calif. in 2015. Photo courtesy of James Cacciatore/Special to the Marin Independent Journal. His family didn’t stand in his way or prohibit any types of music from being played in the house. But he does remember overhearing his mother tell a neighbor that “I was just going through a phase.” That phase has lasted for 52 years. In nearly a dozen books, he has documented the ‘60s folk-rock revolution, digging through obscure press cuttings and interviews with engineers, producers and fans to collect little known details, facts and film clips about the counterculture movement’s top bands and music. Reliving Woodstock 6-7:30 p.m., … | August 3, 2019 | Mary Hunt |
| Chasing down the family tree: tripping over software, relatives’ impatience – and longevity | Rose Mary Mitchell decided to trace her mother’s family tree; someone had already done her father’s. Little did she know the challenges she would face. And not just the genealogy research. Over eight years, she struggled to find the right computer software on which to build the tree. Family members she asked to do research grew frustrated with how long it was taking. Engaging younger and more distant relatives wasn’t easy, and she worried about connecting with aging ones before they were no longer around. “I put up with all the frustrations because I believed strongly that after I created the genealogy of my extended family, they would all see the value,” she said. Despite a career working on computer interface at Sun Microsystems, Mitchell faced a different set of puzzles creating the genealogical tree. She and her cousins first tried building it in Microsoft Word, using its organizational chart. “A couple of my cousins, my sister and I tried … it was too hard to do.” Pictures added to the tree came out too small, and the application didn’t allow music, which Mitchell sorely wanted to include. That included her parents’ favorite love song, “I Don’t Want to Set the World on Fire,” a song she remembered her aunts always sung … | July 12, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Attitude about growing old has impact on actual aging, says author, geriatric expert | Like many doctors, Louise Aronson went into medicine to “help people.” And like many medical students, she quickly discovered that medical education is less about humanity and healing than chemical structures and biology, diseases and organs.” It was only when Aronson began taking care of patients during her residency that the practice of medicine became exactly what she had hoped for – an opportunity be useful to people in need and hear their stories. Louise Aronson, author and recently appointed Integrative Aging Expert at the UCSF Osher Center for Integrative Medicine. Photo by Anna Kuperberg. She has recently published a book that calls for a new – and more positive – view of our later years. “Elderhood” traces her path from internal medicine to geriatrics, and the realization that the role of a geriatrician, defined as the management of disease and geriatric syndromes, wasn’t what people needed most. What they needed most, even or perhaps especially once good health was no longer attainable, was well-being in the form of purpose, meaning, and relevant options, said Aronson, a geriatrician, educator and professor of medicine at the University of California-San Francisco. She has received numerous awards for her teaching, educational research and writing and was recently appointed the Integrative Aging Expert at the UCSF … | June 25, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| As actor ages, more roles come in for moms and grandmas in commercials | Maya Mahrer says she “popped out of the womb wanting to be an actor.” She is still popping, finding herself at an age when “Ma” and “Grandma” roles in commercials are coming her way. While many in their later years are finding jobs elusive, Mahrer, 81, said, “Aging is providing me with more work.” Maya Mahrer. For most of her life, Maher has supported herself as a legal secretary and assistant. But she worries that her current employer, who is 76, might retire sometime soon. Her aspiration is to be able to support herself as an actor on a “commercial that has legs.” “My dream is to get a national TV commercial for a product I love, like the Mrs. Olsen character for Folger’s Coffee.” First aired in 1965, that commercial ran for 21 years. It featured the likeable Mrs. Olson, ever ready to bring a little happiness to young married couples with her freshly brewed cups of “mountain grown” coffee. After a divorce in her 40s, Mahrer moved to San Francisco in 1978. Free of family obligations, she started studying acting seriously – mime and improvisational comedy, commercial acting and acting for stage. Mahrer studied commercial acting for almost a year with the late Gregg Snazelle, a nationwide leader in commercial … | June 24, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| S.F. Deputy marriage commissioner: a busy job basking in the happiness of others | Officiating weddings at San Francisco City Hall can be a busy, busy job. But the reward: basking in the happiness of others. City Hall marriages are performed by trained volunteers, called deputy marriage commissioners. Last year, about 30 performed over 9,000 weddings. Ceremonies start as early as 9 a.m. and continue through 4 p.m. weekdays, with the exception of holidays. Volunteers typically work one two-hour shift per week, during which they might marry 12 couples. About 20 volunteers keep a regular schedule, others fill in when necessary. James and Ruth Cabuloy pose for photos after getting married by Jim Illig at San Francisco City Hall. The marrying-est volunteer is Jim Illig. He was among the first people trained as a volunteer marriage commissioner in 1993. He estimates he has conducted about 500 weddings a year over the past 26 years. Several years ago, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors awarded him a commendation for having married over 13,000 couples. 2004 was a particularly busy year. That’s when then-Mayor Gavin Newsom declared gay marriage legal in San Francisco. “Don your robes. All hands on deck,” Illig recalled Newsom announcing. “We married people for nine hours straight,” he said. “We were marrying them all over City Hall. Couples drove in from all over to … | June 22, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| Retired hospital nutrition scientist savors new challenges as an art museum docent | Carol Porter was conducting a docent tour in the American collection of the deYoung Museum when a married couple of Iranian descent, recent emigres, asked her a question. “What is the difference between Protestants and Catholics?” She answered the question to the best of her ability, trying to keep it concise in deference to her other tour guests. Afterwards she reflected on how thrilled she was to live in a place where such a discussion was welcome. “The biggest joy to me of being a museum docent in San Francisco is to be able to have these kinds of discussions with diverse groups of people,” said Porter Carol Porter trained for two years to become a docent with the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco. Photo by Jan Robbins She started thinking about becoming a docent towards the end of her career as director of Nutrition and Food services for the University of California San Francisco Medical Center. “The favorite part of my job was teaching and the people,” she said, along with research, and outside of work, travel and art – all important factors for a successful docent. She was accepted into the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco docent program in 2011, after waiting five years from retirement for a … | June 18, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Later-in-life learners credit Project Read, national one-on-one tutoring project | Ollie Smith grew up in the rural south. School wasn’t easy for him and he dropped out at the end of fourth grade to work on the family farm. Project Read tutor Arleen Godwin works on a crossword puzzle with Ollie Smith. Photos by Judy Goddess. In 1967, Smith and his wife moved to San Francisco, where he drove a truck and found a job in construction. He was a good worker and in his early 60s was promoted to foreman. But there was a catch. He was now responsible for a lot of paperwork, and he still couldn’t read very well. His wife and children helped him with the paperwork, but he knew it was time to learn himself. “I felt bad relying on them,” he said. It was his wife who found Project Read. “We came down (to the library) together to find help for me.” He was still working when he enrolled in Project Read, free state-sponsored, individual tutoring for adults offered in public libraries across California. Participants are asked make a one-year commitment. But the time was not right and after a short while he dropped out. Holding a full-time job, taking care of a house and helping with the children left no time to study. But Smith … | June 18, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| Casual Bohemian fits this former social worker, now Zydeco dance teacher | Julia Scott-Jackson FASHIONISTAS – Casual Bohemian is this 70-year-old’s style. Julia Scott-Jackson, formerly a social worker, is now a Zydeco dancer and teacher. Her hobby is portrait photography. She lives in Pacific Heights. Her favorite places to shop are the Gift Shop at Mt. Zion and Citrine on Fillmore. | June 13, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| New literary & art review showcases the works of Osher Lifelong Learning students | A suburban yogi signs up for a spiritual experience, but gets a little more spirit than he’d bargained for. A young man hitches a ride from an older Texan in 1968 and prepares himself for the inevitable clash of viewpoints. A young woman from Indiana who settled in San Francisco in 1968 remembers her precarious living situation and the influence of Stephen Gaskin, a bona fide guru teaching a class at San Francisco State. Home page of Vistas & Byways literary periodical. These are some of the stories you will encounter in the sixth issue of Vistas & Byways, a twice-yearly publication by members of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at San Francisco State University. An online periodical of members’ writing and visual art, the magazine highlights fiction, non-fiction, poetry, interviews, painting, collage, and photography. As you might tell from the stories mentioned above, this Fall issue includes a retrospective on 1968. In the poetry section, several writers have experimented with haibun, a Japanese form that incorporates haiku. Lighter weight fare includes odes to the slash, pigeons, an inspiring street sign and Peoples Park in Berkeley. The visual arts section contains a photo essay of 1960s Berlin, paintings and collage. We recently talked to V&B Founder Mike Lambert, Editor-in-Chief Charlene Anderson, … | June 10, 2019 | Mary Hunt |
| Creating Community – From San Francisco to Japan, officials embracing programs to build human connections, curb isolation | CREATING COMMUNITY – In his younger years, Charles Francis was fearless and unconventional, open to trying new things, many of which he recounted in his memoir, “Encounters.” A writer and photographer for NASA and the Veterans Administration, he would regale his friends with stories of his travels and the unusual people he met. Now 92, his interactions are largely limited to his partner, Mary Helen. Chronic back pain and walking problems have confined him to the house. When he isn’t waiting for visitors, he said he feels lonely. Charles Francis with Mahdu Manivannan and Wendy Jian, two volunteers paired with him in the MISCI study. “If you don’t have people around, you’re just sitting, waiting to die,” he said, staring out the window of his Haight district living room comfortably ensconced in his big leather chair. Loneliness isn’t exclusive to older people or those with disabilities. But with the senior population growing, it’s an issue that’s caught the attention of health organizations and government agencies. There’s growing awareness of the impact of isolation and loneliness on health and health care costs. Health and government officials are trying to get ahead of the game through intervention programs and studies. It’s not just an American problem, and the responses are varied. The United Kingdom … | June 9, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| Young adults find interesting tales and sometimes new family through senior storytelling program | CREATING COMMUNITY – Tiffany Hasker has been listening intently to Harry Wong over the past several months. She’s going to write a book about him. The two have met at least 10 times in a private room in the Rosa Parks Senior Center. A former editor and now full-time mom in her 40s, Hasker was paired with Harry through a new nonprofit called “My Life, My Stories.” In matching younger generations to record the stories of vulnerable seniors, the program hopes to build a more empathetic community. Wong told Hasker he grew up feeling alone despite having six siblings. Raised in a one-bedroom Chinatown apartment by a father who was a gambler and a mother who was a hardworking seamstress, he said, the siblings just went to school, did their homework, helped their mother sew and never really talked with one another. Harry Wong and Tiffany Hasker “This has been just as wonderful for me as for Harry,’’ Hasker said, “so rich. There’s so much there.” As for Harry, it’s been life-changing. “I went in with an open mind and it focused me on my powerful loving self,” he said. “What a wonderful, positive, self-awakening and examining experience. I love it and my new friend Tiffany. “ While Harry’s story may be haunting, his … | June 9, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| Too many Americans are lonely, not just the elderly. But the costs may be higher. | CREATING COMMUNITY – A 2018 survey by Cigna found that nearly half of Americans feel lonely sometimes or all of time. And the loneliest group, according to the study, is Generation Z, adults ages 18 to 22. And social media use alone is not a factor. By comparison, in a national poll of 2,000 adults aged 50 to 80 last year, only a third said they lacked companionship or felt isolated. But for older adults, the health implications are greater. Research shows that chronic loneliness can impact older adults’ memory, physical well-being, mental health and life expectancy. Health and government officials are taking note, creating and sponsoring new programs to fight isolation and building human connections. Those of the 2,000 respondents to the University of Michigan’s National Poll on Health Aging who reported being lonely were more often women, the unemployed or people living in lower-income households or those who live alone. They were also more likely to report fair or poor physical health and sometimes mental health. Medicare spends an average of $1,608 more per year on each older person who has limited social connections than for those with more robust connections, according to a 2017 joint study by AARP and the Center on the Demographics and Economics of Health and Aging … | June 9, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| Senior center in the cloud creates family of friends across 41 states | Thursdays are Nicolette Noyes busiest days. She’s on the phone from noon to 7 p.m. And when she’s not at home, she’s listening all day. “I listen in the car. I hear it in the background when I’m folding laundry or just doing stuff around the house, said the San Francisco senior. You could say she’s “Well Connected.” Formerly called Senior Center without Walls, Well Connected is a free, national membership program for older adults that offers virtual conversations through lectures, classes and interest and support groups 365 days a year – by phone or online. Most classes last 30 minutes to an hour. Small classes – frequently no more than 12 members – encourage conversation. Registered members can even choose to lead their own groups or classes. Director Amber Carroll said the program is committed to a focus on aging that builds on the positive rather than being “deficit-oriented.” “We leverage the time, passions, and skills of people 60 and older to both participate and facilitate the bulk of our activities.” Group focuses on gratitude Noyes heard about the program while volunteering for the Lighthouse for the Blind, which she joined when her father began losing his vision. “I always wanted to read aloud to the elderly. She added brain games … | June 9, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| City College professor and new author mostly just wants to keep on teaching | Alexandra Nickliss is thrilled to have published her first book – and even more thrilled to still be teaching U.S. History at City College San Francisco. That puts her in good company with other older adults who want to keep working, such as U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein, 85, television journalist Lesley Stahl, 77, and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 86. Nickliss is 75. Her book, published last May, “Phoebe Apperson Hearst: A Life of Power and Politics,” is the first biography of one of the Gilded Age’s most powerful women and has gotten favorable reviews from ordinary readers to the Wall Street Journal. But her livelihood has been under pressure for a number of years now, as accreditation and financial problems at City College led officials to cut classes and offer instructors retirement incentives. City College Professor Alexandra Nickliss. Photo by Jan Robbins. She turned down a “Golden Handshake;” she’s by no means ready to retire. “I have a passion for teaching. I am young at heart, in good health, and my students help keep me that way. I have great rapport with my students this semester. “ In fact, her right to continue working past age 40 is guaranteed by the Age Discrimination Act of 1974. Nickliss wants to keep … | June 9, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Well-made products and funny frogs brighten collector’s home – and the weekly lunch crowd | Larry Boysen’s 1919 yellow Inner Sunset bungalow holds collections of radios, phonographs, records, kitchen appliances, furniture, light fixtures and telephones from the early 1900s. “I love the craftmanship, history and engineering of items from the 20th century – the everyday stuff that made people’s lives easier.” He also has hundreds of new and old glass, ceramic and metal frogs, an interest kicked off by childhood gifts from his mother. “I always loved frogs as a child even though I didn’t want any live ones to take care of. They are friendly creatures and I like the variety.” Larry Boysen shares his humorous frog collectibles with fellow lunchers at Calvary Presbyterian Church. (Photos by Jan Robbins) Boysen gets a kick out of the creativity and humor that goes into many of them. And he likes to share that. When he volunteers to collect the $2 for Tuesday lunches at the community center at Calvary Presbyterian Church, he puts one of his frogs on the sign-in table. On holidays, he makes sure they match the occasion. “I get a kick out of bringing the frogs to the Calvary programs,” he said. “It if makes a person smile, it makes my day.” And he can usually count on Sheila Conn, with whom he shares his … | May 16, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Study proves harmonic: Lonely newcomer fills her life with one choir then two | CREATING COMMUNITY – Five years ago, Judi Lewis moved to San Francisco from Nebraska to live with her daughter. It was a big move, and for many months Lewis “spent a lot of time walking around the house, humming.” She was lonely. “I had left all my friends behind. I was kind of timid and while tried to get to know my neighbors, it wasn’t the same. I wanted to be active and do things, but I didn’t want to always do them by myself.” Jayne Ross and Judi Lewis Lewis’ daughter was worried. One day her daughter saw an article in the local paper about a choir for older adults at the senior center just around the corner. She suggested her mother check it out. Although the last time Lewis sang was in high school, she loved music, so she walked over to the Richmond Senior Center and enrolled in the Community of Voices choir study. It is one of 12 choirs created for a University of California-San Francisco research project studying whether weekly participation in a community choir promotes the health and well-being of older adults. Funded by a grant from the National Institutes of Health, it was conducted in partnership with the San Francisco Department of Aging and Adult … | May 10, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| Former cruise ship performer offers fashion fun and neighborly guidance to her consignment shop customers | Jane Willson once sang and danced on cruise ships, dressing in glamorous outfits, including ones once worn by “Dynasty” star Joan Collins. She had a ball, she said. Since 2001, she has also had a ball helping others experience the fun and joy of style and fashion. Her Clement Street shop, JANE Consignment, is more than a clothing and accessories shop. She’s made it into a community where people shopping for pre-worn couture can also get fashion advice and guidance. Working alone, she spends as much time as she can getting to know the desires, needs and tastes of her customers, mainly women but a few men. “I love dressing women to make them feel special.” One of her favorite things is to share the history of different pieces of the outfits she creates for customers. She starts by asking for color and style preferences and takes it from there. “You’d be surprised how many women don’t like to shop and welcome suggestions.” Some women drop by every other day to see what’s new, and some come in once a year for a total wardrobe makeover. “I guess you can say I’m a fashion stylist, confidant and motivator all rolled into one. I always say, this store is not about need, it’s … | May 3, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| City workshops aim to arm every resident with a plan for a personal medical crisis | Tomi Cunningham didn’t want her daughter to have to go through what she experienced last fall. She had to step as medical surrogate during a health crisis that that put her mother in the hospital, unable to make decisions. “It worked out well; she made good choices, but she had to guess what I wanted,” said Cunningham. “She told me she was really frightened she was making the wrong choices.” A crisis is the worst time to make decisions about medical care or select a proxy when you can no longer speak for yourself. Yet, only 37 percent of U. S. adults have made plans to address end-of-life issues, according to research by the University of Pennsylvania. Cunningham decided she needed something official – ahead of an emergency. So, she signed up for a workshop to create an Advance Directive, a document giving a chosen person medical power of attorney to make decisions when you can’t. “I want it to be easier for her next time,” she said. Tomi Cunningham and David Volansky fill out advance health care forms at the Inglewood Public Library. (Photo by Judy Goddess) Her workshop was one of many held in neighborhood and senior centers, residential facilities, the Veterans Administration and public libraries last month as part … | May 3, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| Matchy matchy is not this styler’s first consideration | SENIOR FASHIONISTA – When shopping for clothes, Kathleen Massoni’s mantra is “fun.” “I buy fun pieces because I like them, not to match. I make everything my own.” SENIOR FASHIONISTA – The 76-year-old Pacific Heights resident says she shops mostly in second-shops. Her favorites are Goodbyes, Jane’s Consignment, Crossroads, Goodwill, the Symphony Store and Seconds to Go. Massoni has worked in a number of occupations, from hair stylist and interior designer to landscape designer and construction manager. “I loved all my jobs!” | April 27, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Poet’s interest in herbs and healing leads to growth of Kitchen Herbalism workshops | When Marina Lazzara was 13, she held a tea party for friends with herbs she picked from her backyard in Easton, Pa. The problem was the plant she had so carefully prepared was not peppermint, as she thought, but poison ivy. One of her guests got a rash, and Lazzara’s eyes swelled up, but her mother stopped them before most of the tea was consumed. “It was my first existential crisis – I had poisoned my friends! “ In spite of an inauspicious start, Lazzara, after earning a master’s degree in poetics, decided to return to her interest in plants – and healing. “After weaving working with plants in and around my life, I’m in a happy place now with work, family and my other loves.” Marina Lazzara On a recent Saturday morning, Lazzara, 53, held her Kitchen Herbalism class at the monthly meeting of the Older Women’s League of San Francisco. Lazzara passed around packets of fresh herbs such as rosemary, thyme, parsley and basil for everyone to feel, smell and observe. Lazzara conducting a workshop in the Inner Sunset neighborhood. Lazzara’s class is not about cooking but herbs that heal. She calls it Kitchen Herbalism because many are used in recipes all the time. “I’m only just reminding people of … | April 27, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| It’s a honey of a job, but the payoff is in saving the creatures who foster our food | When she was 15, on a beautiful sunny day in Toronto, Canada, Terry Oxford was enjoying an outdoor jazz concert when the sky went dark. Everyone looked up as a gigantic swarm of migrating monarch butterflies made their way across the sky. Even the band stopped playing. People were so awed they applauded when the butterflies were gone. Today, more than 90 percent of the monarch butterflies that migrate from Mexico to Canada have disappeared. Oxford, a woman now in her late 50s, finds this intolerable. Terry Oxford (Photos courtesy of Terry Oxford) Butterflies are just one of many species, including birds, bats, native bees, honeybees (which are not natives) and many insects, that pollinate plants and are responsible for bringing us one out of every three bites of food, according to the Pollinator Stewardship Council, a nonprofit dedicated to the protection and promotion of managed and native pollinators. “Without pollinators,” says Oxford, “life on this planet would be unrecognizable.” Since 2010 when she started her company, UrbanbeeSF, Oxford has been lining up local restaurants to help pollinators by letting her keep bees on their roof. “It’s never about the honey. But they really appreciate it when the bees make extra,” she said. It’s well documented that bee as well as Monarch … | April 14, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Emergency alert devices go modern, but old TV ad catchphrase won’t fade away | SENIOR TECH – Almost everyone remembers the 1980s commercial in which an elderly woman lies on the floor next to her toppled walker crying “Help! I’ve fallen and I can’t get up.” Sitcoms from the Golden Girls to Fresh Prince of Belair used it as a reliable laugh line into the ‘90s. It was also fodder for plenty of memes. In 2007, the ad was trademarked by the Life Alert mobile emergency response system. So you know you’ve reached a certain age when younger relatives tell you to get one. To that original simple pendant connected to a base has now been added cell phone apps and smartwatches with an alert system. The old device might still suffice for people who spend most of their time at home However, the unanimous response to my question, ‘‘Which type of emergency alert system would you prefer?” was: “It’s a great idea, but I don’t need one yet.” Attractiveness is not one of the pendant’s selling points How many people have you seen wearing a pendant? Possibly none, because most people wear them under their clothes. You must be wearing the pendant for it to work. Disadvantages? It needs to be connected to a base, and both base and pendant need charging. They’re not … | April 6, 2019 | Mary Hunt |
| Colorful couple share passion for tango – and thrift shopping | Elaine and Carlos Lucha on the dance floor. (Photos by Jan Robbins) Elaine and Carlos Lucha, married for 27 years, share a passion for tango – and shopping vintage, consignment and thrift shops, one of their favorite past-times. “We can get just as good or better at slashed prices,” she said. Carlos is also an artist, who likes to paint his shoes, ties, you name it in bright colors. The Pacific Heights residents met at a salsa club in 1992 but devote most of their two to five dance nights a week to Argentine Tango. Both retired in 2008, Carlos from the U.S. Postal Service and Elaine from executive assistant positions in the legal and corporate worlds. She is from Maine – “with a French background” and moved to San Francisco in 1975. He is from El Salvador but has lived here most of his life. Elaine calls their going-out style “high end,” whether just going out or to dance at the Verdi Club on Thursdays, Genesis on Fridays and Sundays and either the Russian Center of San Francisco or Allegro in the East Bay on Saturdays. Carlos Lucha Elaine Lucha | April 6, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Chinatown native and tour guide is a history whiz who helps local filmmakers | Despite growing up in the neglected ghetto of San Francisco’s Chinatown, where most Chinese lived until the 1940s, Dorothy Quock extols its vibrant history and culture in her work today. For the past 28 years, Quock, now 85, has been working for Wok Wiz Chinatown Tours, leading small groups of tourists through its mysterious alleys while regaling them with stories both personal and historical. Quock grew up in a single-room occupancy building on 35 Spofford St., in the heart of Chinatown, where four or more families lived on one floor, sharing a bath and a kitchen. She was the fifth child out of eight. “My parents were poverty-stricken and my father took whatever work he could get, she said. That included delivering sacks of rice and rolling cigars and working as a fisherman and a dishwasher. Above, Dorothy Quock waves from the entrance to her childhood home, where she and one of her younger brothers were born. Below, a picture taken after she won a Gruen wrist watch when her older brother, Edward, entered a contest sponsored by the 1940s radio show, “Terry and the Pirates.” He had sent in many entries and the one with her name won. Photo by Robin Evans. Hearing the call of “Gold Mountain,” as the Chinese … | March 18, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Maintaining that ‘je ne c’est qua’ into age 60 and beyond | SENIOR FASHIONISTA – Mark Allan Davis, 57, is a musical theater specialist born in Rochester, N.Y. He says his work in dance and theatre took him to Europe, where he learned that “being fashionable and being stylish aren’t mutually inclusive. I collect clothes, then get rid of them, then look for new bargains. Successfully, I might add!” He’s in fashion transition right now, from dressing too young for his age, he said. “As I’m approaching 60 like a bullet, I’ve begun to notice that some of the younger fashions really are only for 25-year-olds. But I’ve slowly been finding more comfort in the clothes I enjoy wearing now, and trust that I’m evolving.” Mark Davis David shops at Banana Republic, Plato’s Closet consignment shop for gently worn name labels (not in CA), H&M, Nordstrom rack and Goodwill. If he could afford it, he’d love to shop at Valentino, Yves St. Laurent for men or Scotch and Soda on Fillmore. When he’s in his 60s and beyond, he says, “I hope to maintain some flair, style or ‘je ne c’est qua.’ I’d love to be wearing St. Laurent for men, but unfortunately his clothes don’t reach Ross! | March 15, 2019 | Mary Hunt |
| Obstacles prove plenty for active woman when a wheelchair enters her life | Peggy Coster’s life at 69 is full and busy. But hers requires a lot more planning – and patience than most people’s. At the age of 39, after having lived a relatively healthy existence, she was diagnosed with post-polio syndrome. Since then, she has had to rely on a wheelchair to get around. And sometimes pure faith. Just crossing the street can be frustrating when unaware pedestrians stand in the curb cut, she said. Often when dining out, she gets seated near the kitchen. At social events, she often gets overlooked or treated as invisible. She recognizes that making space for the wheelchair can be inconvenient, but it has discouraged her from volunteering. “When I usually really get upset is when I’m forced to sit in a certain spot when my friends are across the room or moving around the crowd. Peggy Coster, shown here at Fisherman’s Wharf, creates videos for fun and work. Paratransit vans or taxis can take her to places too far away for a wheelchair, but she said it’s hard to be spontaneous with reservations required 24 hours ahead of time. And there’s not much room for unexpected delays. “When the van comes, I have only five minutes to get out to it, or it leaves without me.” … | February 27, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Pop-Up pairs ‘perennials’ and millennials for conversation– and possible friendships | CREATING COMMUNITY – Manny’s cafe on the corner of 16th and Valencia streets was noisy and crowded. Scattered among the predominant millennials were a handful of perennials – a new term for seniors, as in enduring or existing for a long time – who nervously waited for the announced event to begin. Millennials and perennials learn about one another at an Intergenerational Friendship Pop-Up at Manny’s cafe and civic space in the Mission District. (Photos by Caroline Gutman) Most of us had never participated in a meetup, and we appeared ill at ease waiting for what was billed as an Intergenerational Friendship Pop-up. It was initiated by a Kasley Killam, a member of the San Francisco hub of the Global Shapers Community, a national membership organization of young people passionate about social issues. One of its many projects is aimed at loneliness. She had seen surveys showing that up to 50 percent of Americans often feel lonely or lack companionship. Moderating a recent panel on loneliness, she learned loneliness can have health impacts as serious as those of diabetes or smoking. Pairing 15 young adults (ages 21 to 35) with 15 adults 60 or older in conversation was her way of doing something about it. It was the first such meet-up organized … | January 15, 2019 | Judy Goddess |
| Chinatown native crafts couture from rice sack once used by deliveryman father | SENIOR FASHIONISTA – Dorothy Quock was born in San Francisco’s Chinatown. Now 85, she conducts tours of her neighborhood for Wok Wiz Walking Tours. She made this rice sack dress, which she wore at the American Society on Aging Conference in San Francisco this summer – and will perhaps at celebrations if “Forever Chinatown,” an Emmy-nominated documentary she helped on, takes the prize. The sack was one remaining from her father, who delivered rice to customers during the 1930s in 50- to 100 lb.-bags. She said she started from what she thought to be a simple project: “By removing stitches from a 100-lb. rice sack, just enough room for my head & arms (some grains actually fell out ), it was a snug fit. “But it had little wiggle room and certainly I would not be able to dance in celebration at film festivals, if not the Academy Award event. That is why I added red netting on the side seams, so it can flair out when I twirl.” | January 15, 2019 | Robin Evans |
| Matching outfits for him and his sister inspired lifelong interest in fashion | Jerry W. Brown describes his style as “I don’t like paying full price.” So he always picks his clothes from items on sale. SENIOR FASHIONISTA – Actually, his interest in clothing all came from his mother,” he said. “Me and my sister always had matching outfits for church. She hated it but I loved it.” A 35-year resident of San Francisco, he lives on Nob Hill and is the senior director of Covia Affordable Communities. | January 14, 2019 | Robin Evans |
| On the road again: Singer on search for last traditional piano bars for documentary | From the time she was a little girl, Kathy Holly’s mother would take her to piano bars to join in the singing in its convivial atmosphere. As a child and performer still going in her 7th decade, she has lived through the piano bar’s heyday as well as its decline. Kathy Holly has performed around the world and appears in San Francisco clubs. She also hosts a local television show, interviewing performers. Her career has taken her all over the world, but she started performing as a musician, singer and actor while growing up in San Francisco. She still appears periodically at supper clubs such as The Villa D’Este, and restaurants such as The Bistro SF Grill and Ristorante Jeanne D’Arc as well as private engagements. She also hosts a Pacifica television show, interviewing performing artists. She’s also filling her time with a new project, a documentary titled “The Disappearing Piano Bar.” She has been raising money with a Kickstarter campaign to travel to Chicago, New York and Los Angeles to find remaining traditional piano bars. “As a child, I was exposed to a love of music,” Holly said. “After parties, we’d gather around the piano and sing all the standards.” The creation of the piano bar was undoubtedly an extension of … | January 14, 2019 | Jan Robbins |
| Coffee shop regular never fails to sport carefully selected attire and adorable dachshund | Wilma Winston visits Farley’s coffee shop on Potrero Hill several times a week, enjoying a cup and conversation with her neighbors. SENIOR FASHIONISTA – The 25-year resident of Potrero Hill, known at Farley’s for her elegant style and devoted dachshund Hexley, is a native of Germany. Now retired, she was the West Coast representative for Wedgewood. She buys her clothing from Hong Kong, she said. | January 12, 2019 | Robin Evans |
| Artists’ community working and aging together in shared space – for now | Lakshmi Karna and Jennifer Ewing share a passion for creating art. What makes their work possible is their address, which they also share. “Before I moved into this artist community, I couldn’t afford to rent an art studio. Now, I can live in the same place I make art,” said Karna, 70, who has lived for the past 37 years. The first occupants of this three-story, former fruit-canning factory at 540 Alabama St. were essentially squatters. In the late 1960s, a group of artists found the building empty and moved in. They improvised separate studios with cloth barriers and tents. They named themselves “Project Two,” or P2, after a fully occupied artist building on Howard Street called Project One. Landlord with a heart When the owner of the building, Ken Royce, became aware of their presence, he did something amazing: He chose to help the artists rather than evict them. With his advice and assistance, they obtained a low-interest loan to finance improvements: sheet rock walls, electrical wiring, plumbing, lighting and the installation of a sprinkler system. In 1972, Royce issued residents their first lease. Lakshmi Karna is one of 38 residents in an artist’s live-work building on Alabama Street. Most are over 50 and have lived there from 25 to 35 … | December 29, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| Keeping the city clean, one candy wrapper, cigarette butt and newspaper flyer at a time | Melanie Grossman regularly picks up litter on the streets of Russian Hill. But when she does, she said, “people look at me like I’m insane.” That baffles her: “Don’t people care about their neighborhood, about making San Francisco a more livable city?” When Grossman and her family moved to the neighborhood about 20 years ago, litter was a nascent problem. “The neighbors formed a broom brigade, sweeping the streets in solidarity.” When her neighbors stopped participating, about 15 years ago, Grossman carried on. “I started picking up litter on my own, mostly newspapers, flyers and wrappers.” Melanie Grossman regularly picks up litter on Polk Street near her home. What she is doing is one of the many ways that the nonprofit Livable City encourages residents to better their neighborhoods. Through a variety of programs, the nonprofit works to improve transportation, land use, open space and environmental policies in San Francisco. Grossman, 75, was one of 25 seniors at a recent Older Women’s League meeting where Livable City’s president, Karen Allen, was making a case for people to help keep their streets clean. “Walking and picking up litter is great exercise,” Allen said. San Francisco spends about $35 million a year on street maintenance, substantially more than most other large cities, according to … | December 16, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| Lonely or troubled seniors find support, companionship on the Friendship Line | Eva was 80 when she called the Friendship Line. She was agitated. She believed her daughter wanted to take control of her finances and put her in a nursing home. Her daughter had begun calling her on a regular basis, insisting she move to Southern California to live with her. Yet they had been estranged for over 20 years. When asked how she handled those calls, Eva (not her real name) responded, “I drink a lot.” That concerned the volunteer, who asked if the Friendship Line could check in with her on a daily basis. Daily or frequent wellness checks provide the emotional support that can prevent an issue escalating into a crisis. Over time, volunteers gently urged Eva to speak with her primary care physician about her fears and increasing reliance on alcohol. She did eventually and was referred to a psychiatrist, who assessed her for depression and began treatment. He also prescribed attendance at 12-Step Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. The combination of treatment and support helped Eva drink less and gain the confidence to tell her daughter not to contact her anymore. For the next seven years, she lived a relatively comfortable life until she died from a stroke at the age of 89. Serving the nation since 1973. When older … | December 12, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Meals on Wheels a force against senior isolation, not just a food provider, CEO says | Ashley McCumber is on a mission to make San Francisco an age- and disability-friendly city. “It’s hard to grow old in San Francisco,” said the Meals on Wheels CEO and executive director, noting “the breakdown of neighborhoods, declining community participation in clubs, low voter turnout, all the way down to the way we treat others on the street.” Twenty years ago, when he moved here from Boston, the sense of community seemed stronger, he said. “It’s different now. The city is less hospitable for seniors. It’s harder to age in a place that feels so young. There’s a sense that technology is the answer to every problem.” As the largest provider of nutrition and supportive services to homebound seniors in the city, Meals on Wheels bears witness to this increasingly challenging environment. Drivers interact with about 3,200 people a day, delivering groceries to those who can’t shop or cook for themselves and prepared meals to 2,500 homebound seniors. The majority, 68 percent, are white and African American. There are somewhat more men than women. Ages range from under 60 to over 85. Nearly a quarter live on less than $990 a month, and more than half have uncertain or unsteady incomes. More than two thirds live alone. Often, the only people they … | December 8, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Plenty of assistive devices to help those with ‘fumble fingers’ get through the day | SENIOR TECH – Do you use a credit card to pay for everything because digging into your wallet for the right bills or coin purse for just the right change has gotten too cumbersome? Is it impossible to pluck keys off the bottom of your purse without turning it upside down? Do you have trouble stuffing a sandwich into a plastic bag? If so, you could be suffering from arthritis, tremors, loss of dexterity or, to use the common term, “fumble fingers.” One of the most maddening tasks for the fumble-fingered is buttoning. I used to leave the house with my cuffs flapping in the breeze in hopes that a more nimble-fingered friend would button them when we met up. Lately, however, nobody else can button them either, even with two hands. Luckily, there is a whole industry out there that offers gadgets to provide work arounds for uncooperative fingers, not to mention un-bendy joints, and stiff backs. I’ve found a few that are especially helpful in getting yourself dressed and out the door in the morning. My favorite is the button hook with a zipper pull at the other end. P How to use a button hook lace the wire around the button and pull it through the buttonhole. To connect … | December 1, 2018 | Mary Hunt |
| Startups pitching products at Aging 2.0 conference focus on keeping people at home | Mid-November brought the Aging2.0 OPTIMIZE conference, a global network for innovators in aging to San Francisco. The conference attracted tech start-ups looking for partners and funding, and venture capitalists in search of new projects. As someone accustomed to the format of 90-minute presentations and roundtables at conferences addressing societal needs, Aging2.0s schedule of 5-minute pitches was exhilarating. It seems that an astonishing amount of information can be conveyed in a 5-minute pitch.Stu In the earlier days of technology, say the 1980s, technology for seniors focused on helping nursing homes manage the care of their frail, elderly patients. However, as more seniors decide to age at home and remain active in their communities, the industry is being forced to adapt. This evolving focus was evident at the conference. While some start-ups focused on systems for improving patient monitoring, others were designed for the seniors aging at home – such as watch and pendant alert systems, home robots, a fall-cushioning belt, and powered clothing. Keynote speaker Dr. Joseph Coughlin, founder and director of the MIT AgeLab, and author of The Longevity Economy, summarized the challenge facing the field: Technology for the elderly must move beyond its focus on treating disability and sickness. Certainly seniors need help with some tasks, but where do fun, sexuality, … | December 1, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Upper Haight shopper says his favorite styles are vintage and ethnic | SENIOR FASHIONISTA – Thomas Kennedy, 49, is the manager at La Boulangerie in Noe Valley. He’s from Cape Cod, Mass., but has been in San Francisco for 22 years. Describing his favorite styles as vintage and ethnic, he said he tried to shop locally. Most of his clothes come from three stories on the same block in the Upper Haight. “Always dress how you want to, not how others think you should,” he advises. | November 30, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| Eclectic is the style guide for retired Municipal Railway employee | SENIOR FASHIONISTA – Do you know an older adult whose a sharp dresser? We might want to feature them in this column. Email janrobbins-sfseniorbeat@gmail.com. Martha Huey, 74, lives in the Lower Pacific Heights and shops on Fillmore Street. Her favorite stores are Mio and Ruti. She calls her style eclectic. Retired from 45 years of work for the city of San Francisco, she was one of the first African American women to work at MUNI. She started as a claims investigator in 1980. | November 30, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| In dress, artist-sculptor-photographer-curator keeps it simple | SENIOR FASHIONISTAS – We found Sue Kubly, 73, at the DeYoung Museum, at an event celebrating dancer and performance artist Anna Halprin, who turned 98 this year. Kubly, who describes her style as simple, is wearing a blouse from Target, pants from H&M and pearls from London’s Portobello Road Market, the world’s largest antiques market The Pacific Heights residents is an artist, sculptor, photographer and curator of art exhibitions – and also dabbles in real estate. Her last curated exhibit was “The Imagination of American Poets” at the San Francisco Public Library. | November 30, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| 115 city benches: public space enthusiasts giving back – and building community | Chris Duderstadt founded the Public Bench Project six years ago. On the second Sunday of the month, people gather on Irving Street at Ninth Avenue to enjoy the Inner Sunset Flea. For folks listening to jazz, needing a respite, or talking with friends, Duderstadt’s colorful benches provide a place to sit. “There is enough space on the six-foot long benches for strangers to share, and with a little luck they will be strangers no more,” said Duderstadt. “I see public benches as a way to build community, to bring people together. Sharing a bench is a way to meet neighbors, make new friends and share experiences. Our benches add an artistic piece of furniture to a neighborhood.” Providing a way to bring the community closer has been Duderstadt’s philosophy since he built his first bench in 1977. He formalized his bench-making process when he founded the Public Bench Project, which is maintained by a loosely affiliated group of Inner Sunset–based public space enthusiasts. Duderstadt underwrites the project, but those who contribute usually cover more than the $50 cost of each bench. The Public Bench Project has installed 115 benches, gracing public property all over San Francisco. Duderstadt has built most of them, but the website also offers exact details on how to … | November 26, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| Green burials, space burials, ash tokens: More options – and more decisions – for your final frontier | “Life is pleasant. Death is peaceful. It’s the transition that’s troublesome.” – Isaac Asimov. Doulas, green burials with wicker caskets and corpse location monitoring devices, space burials, resomation, diamonds colored by funeral ashes: Death’s vocabulary is expanding. New – and old – ways of dealing with dying and death are emerging in this century. Traditional funeral patterns and religious ceremonies are still in vogue. But a new consciousness is arising due to a range of new choices that is allowing people to be more in control of their final days and death in ways not possible in the past. With more choices around life’s last process there are more decisions to be made. They necessitate being introspective about personal values and spiritual feelings as well as aesthetics and practical matters. It can be confounding. Starting the conversation Conferences on dying and death have become annual events for health and civic organizations. More intimate “death cafes” are another new trend. Originating from the “café mortel” movement that emerged in Switzerland and France around 2000, these are facilitated forums in a confidential setting where people feel free to talk philosophically and practically about death. “Both my Mama and my dog were having health problems and in danger of dying and I could talk about them … | November 24, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| Linda Ronstadt on her new fall shows, modern life – and getting older | Last week I had the opportunity to interview Linda Ronstadt at her home in the Richmond District. Her home is not rock star huge as might befit a legendary singer of the ‘70s and ‘80s, but is cozy and warm, even in the fog. She met me in her living room and immediately organized the making of tea – properly, in a teapot. lhow the Queen likes her tea” She brought a teapot and cup and saucer on a tray with a silver creamer and sugar bowl. We tried to remember whether the royals put milk or tea in the cup first. (Google “how the queen likes her tea” for the definitive answer.) Ronstadt’s conversation ranges from Henry James and 19th century literature to a 12-year-old composer and piano-violin prodigy she has been following lately in the U.K. named Alma Deutscher, to the perils of parallel parking in the city. She’s lively, funny and very smart. Her light and airy living room is relaxed and feminine, with large comfortable furniture suitable for lounging. The long wall opposite the couch is one big bookshelf. Flowers abound – on the coffee table, in the guest bathroom and around the garden outside. The dining room table is covered with laptops and headphones. I’ve come in … | November 21, 2018 | Mary Hunt |
| Texas upbringing launched this progressive’s volunteer political career | Susan Pfeifer has volunteered for political causes and elected officials since she was a teenager. Her first political action was wearing a John F. Kennedy button to high school in 1960 – once. “It didn’t raise my popularity profile, let’s just say that.” Pfeifer grew up in Dallas, a conservative bastion in the 1950’s and 60’s, in which it was difficult to express liberal leanings. Today, she’s a leader in the San Francisco FDR Club, an organization that promotes the interests of seniors and the disabled. In 2014, the club worked with the Disability Caucus in the state senate to block a vote on a bill that would have allowed a municipality—San Francisco —to charge disabled people for parking at meters. One municipality’s ability to do so would have opened the doors for all other cities in the state to do the same. Now, her focus, and that of the FDR Club, is turning out the vote across California in the upcoming mid-term elections. “The June election ensured that a Democrat will run against a Republican in almost every district in November,’’ she said. “Next strategy is to increase voter turnout, to give the Democrats a better chance of winning.” Susan’s parents were political junkies and she says she inherited the gene … | November 12, 2018 | Mary Hunt |
| Muttville a place where seniors can find their late-in-life soulmates – or just come for a cuddle | Leah Grant wanted a dog companion to help her deal with her health issues. Muttville brought her “Gloria,” a pretty, white fluff of fur with a copper-colored topcoat. It was love at first sight for both of them. “I sprint down my hill now after I passed my cardiovascular test.” said Grant. “I owe it all to Gloria.” For Grant, 67, Gloria is an antidote to anything that happens that’s not so good. Many seniors find that same feeling through their association with the Muttville organization either by adopting, fostering or volunteering with senior dogs. Muttville Senior Dog Rescue, a non-profit organization, dedicates itself to saving senior dogs over seven years old, many slated for euthanasia simply because of their age. Sherri Franklin, CEO and Founder of Muttville, said, “From having worked in shelters, and watching senior dogs spend their last days in a cold loud place, it made me realize that all these dogs need is the opportunity to give the love they still have left.” Grace while grieving a pet Celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2017, Muttville had rescued 5,000 dogs from all over California. So far this year, Muttville has rescued 744 senior dogs, including those from areas where recent fires struck. As soon as Muttville receives rescues, it … | November 8, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| Litquake Elder Project writings borne of experience, sharpened with wit and wisdom | Published poet Lisa Galloway is the person who added the Elder to Litquake. A spinoff of the popular, annual Bay Area Litquake Festival – Oct. 11-20 – the Litquake Elder Project is a writing program for seniors that offers instruction, community and the opportunity to share their voices. On Oct. 17, a Litquake Elder All-Star reading is free to the public, from 11 a.m. – noon at Bethany Lutheran Church, 2525 Alemany Blvd. The Litquake Elder Project was birthed two years ago,, soon after Galloway moved to San Francisco from Portland, Ore. While interviewing for a job with Litquake, she learned that it offered writing programs for kids and teens but not seniors. She had worked with seniors, recording their stories as part of making end-of-life videos for Kaiser Permanente. She knew they had lots to say and were eager to share. Litquake took her suggestion and agreed to offer a program for seniors if she could find the funding to support it. Galloway, fortunately also an experienced grant writer, accepted the challenge and secured funding from the California Arts Council for a demonstration project at the Oakland Senior Center. When logistics made it difficult to offer a second session there,, Galloway brought the project to San Francisco. It has since been … | November 5, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Bayview breast cancer group offers support – and an annual celebration lunch | OUR COLUMNS African American women who have survived cancer gathered at the Lutheran Church of Our Savior on Oct. 11 not just for support – but for the annual lunch celebration sponsored by the church and the Bayview Imani Breast Cancer Support Group. It was a day to greet old friends, enjoy good food, and be inspired by speeches from Pastor Evered Cohen the Rev. Carolyn Ransom-Scott. The OMI breast cancer group meets the third Thursday of the month, from 11 a.m.– noon. The group takes on different projects – murals, paintings and placemats – some of which were on display at the church. But their primary task is supporting one another and the newly diagnosed, said Barbara Tate, program director at the church. “When we hear of someone who’s been newly diagnosed, we try to visit and talk with them. We go with them to the doctor if they want us to do that. We listen to their story and tell our own. Whatever the person wants, we’re available.” Though African-American and white women are diagnosed with breast cancer at roughly the same rate, the former are 42 percent more likely to die from the disease. There seem to be several reasons for this: African-American women are more likely to be … | November 4, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Neighbors giving back make the world a better place – for themselves, too | CREATING COMMUNITY – Al Crowell arranges speakers and dinners for Sierra Club meetings.Margaret Graf advises the city on senior issues and launched “Senior Power!”Ed Mason monitors Google commuter buses for violations of city regulations.Ellen Zhou searches for seniors to serve on San Francisco’s Civil Grand Jury.Arete Nicholas answers community questions and teaches workshops on gardening.Jerry Ferraz plays guitar as book lovers scan the shelves at a neighborhood bookstore. These seniors are improving the life of their community while helping themselves. Studies show that when individuals give, they get back – in increased well-being. A 2006 study published in The Journal of Positive Psychology by professors at the University of Missouri, Columbia, and the University of California-Riverside, found that people who gave to others tended to score much higher on feelings of joy and contentment. Randy Lewis, a corporate executive and author of “No Greatness without Goodness: How a Father’s Love Changes a Company,” says we have a responsibility to make the world a better place for everyone, including those with disabilities. He came to this worldview by watching his autistic son grow up. There are many people who give back – from hand-making cards to send to kids in the hospital, to participating in community events and fund-raisers, to planting a tree. … | October 31, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| Experience, maturity give senior volunteers a leg up and new life in San Francisco supervisors’ offices | “It’s good to be around people and around the supervisor. I’m honored to be in his office. This is the happiest I’ve ever been in my life.” – Nancy Young Jesus Barragan remembers a caller to Supervisor Hillary Ronen’s office who had received a notice from Medicare saying her payments were going to be reduced. “She was so frantic she hadn’t noticed that there was a call-back number on the letter.” Barragan kept her on the line until she found the number. She called later to let him know it worked out fine. “I always think, ’What if that was me on the line’ ” he said. “I try to treat all our callers with respect and courtesy.” That woman is just one of dozens of citizens who call their local representatives when they have a problem. Barragan is just one of many volunteers who provide support to San Francisco supervisors. , who are only budgeted for three full-time legislative aides. But he is one of only a few volunteers who can offer something that others can’t. He’s a senior, and that can make a difference in dealing with older constituents. “A lot of seniors call with problems,” said Alex Long, the retired founder of a software company and a volunteer … | October 26, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Kids, parents, grandparents and all kind of trucks: Enjoying the magic at McLaren Park | It was a big day in McLaren Park– warm and sunny – perfect for parents and grandparents to enjoy the magic combination of children and trucks. The Park and Recreation Department’s second annual Big Truck Day, on Oct. 10, drew more than 400 children and nearly as many parents and grandparents. Beeps, hums and roars filled the air. Kids and adults had the opportunity to sit in the driver’s seat of all kinds of trucks: fire, garbage and recreation department trucks. A Public Library bookmobile was stocked with picture books on transportation. The tennis court had been converted to a proving course for child-sized cars and trucks. Nearby, children loaded sawdust into toy dump trucks, sat enthralled listening to stories of trucks, colored and engaged in other creative activities. | October 26, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Homeowner seeks lodger. Renter seeks home share. Home Match puts them together. | Joyce Calagos, 71, a homeowner in the Crocker-Amazon neighborhood of San Francisco, is determined to live out her days in her own home. Social Security isn’t going to cover all her expenses. So, she began looking for a roommate. On the other side of the coin is David Reffkin, 67. He’s looking for a room to rent. “I had my own perfect home-sharing situation for 28 years,” he said, “but the homeowner decided to sell her house to move into senior housing.” Both turned to Home Match, which helps homeowners with extra rooms connect with people who need an affordable place to live. Now in its second year, it is funded by the Mayor’s Office of Housing and Community Development. It is a program of the nonprofit Covia in partnership with the Northern California Presbyterian Homes and Services. They run similar programs in Fremont, and Marin and Contra Costa counties. After a disastrous go-around trying to find a suitable housemate on Craigslist, Calagos signed on with Home Match. In addition to needing financial help, she also wanted companionship. She’s happy with the results. “My housemate now is Catholic and was a teacher. I was involved with education and I’ve studied theology.” There are many reasons homeowners decide to sign on with Home … | October 10, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| Accumulating wisdom: from teen Olympian to gay pioneer to new discoveries at 67 | From reaching for gold at the Olympics at age 14, and coming out as gay in Portland, Ore., from letting go of a 30-year marriage to walking 500 miles along Spain’s Camino de Santiago, Carolyn Wood has accumulated some wisdom. That was in evidence Tuesday, Aug. 28, at the Institute on Aging, when Wood read to an audience of about 45 from her newly published book, “Tough Girl: Lessons in Courage and Heart from Olympic Gold to the Camino de Santiago. Wood, 72, recalled her first trepid steps at swimming to turning herself into a 14-year-old Olympic gold winner. “I was struggling until my mom went into the hospital for major surgery, “said Wood. “She told me that she might not always be there to help me, and I needed to learn to swim to be safe.” Realizing the need to “grow up,” Wood persevered with her swimming and found out something amazing in the process: “Once I learned to swim, I realized I was a speedster,” she said. “I had great coaches, involved parents and a supportive community at the Multomah Athletic Club where I trained. All that added up to help make me successful.” The culmination of her success was supposed to be a gold medal in the butterfly competition … | October 10, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| Dedicated China volunteer eventually adopts, now hoping for grand-panda kids | Carol Magidson, having no children of her own, adopted a giant panda. And someday, she hopes to be a grand-panda-parent. In the late 1960s, Magidson and her mother went to London specially to see the giant pandas and became entranced. After many trips to China to visit and work in the panda reserves, Magidson,78, adopted her very own panda in 2017. “Adopting a panda in another country is a unique situation,” she said. “But I feel a special affinity for these creatures and I want to see them thrive.” Magidson’s involvement with animals started a few years before she retired in 2001 at age 60. She was a volunteer at the San Francisco Zoo’s Animal Resource Center, working with small animals. “These animals go to schools and children can play with them, so we had to socialize them,” she said. The position proved to be meaningful in more ways than one. “I was a flight attendant for TWA and it was abruptly bought out by American. We were thrown into limbo,” she said. “It was lucky I had my volunteer position. It was grounding for me.” Walking the ferrets and possums In the morning, volunteers would do the “dirty work” – clean out the cages, disinfect them, and put them back together. … | October 8, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| Collage artists use found objects to capture neighborhood identity and history | OUR COLUMNS On the fourth floor of the downtown San Francisco Public Library, a collage exhibit teased my mind _ and my fancy. More so, when I realized I knew one of the artists. David Cox and Molly Hankwitz, of the Bivoulab Studio collective, have glued, pasted and duct-taped everyday objects in ways that are oddly provocative – for example, a miniature space capsule made out of a Christmas tree ornament, an aluminum soda can, safety pins, paper clips, and silver paint. A wooden airplane their 16 year-old son, Simon, made years ago at a summer camp at the Randall Museum, sits plaintively among more warlike objects. The title of the exhibit, “Collapsing of the Axes,”refers to the state of the world today, where the adhesives of nation, religion, other certainties that used to bind us together are collapsing and being replaced by loyalty to streets and brands. Cox describes his method as “the drift. I follow my feet. I wander through the city without a particular purpose, looking for ways of using the city that are not commercial. It’s amazing what can be found on the street. The more resourceful people have become, the more likely we are to find odd things. Things fall off buildings, cars, people.” He pointed to a … | October 6, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Pickleballers rejoice! Six new courts just for their beloved sport | San Francisco has opened its first courts solely for pickleball, a blend of tennis, badminton and ping pong that has been called the fastest growing senior sport in the United States. San Francisco pickleball enthusiasts have been angling for dedicated courts for some time. Although there are a number of courts around the city where people can play, they are shared with tennis players. The San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department recently resurfaced two tennis courts at the Crocker Amazon sports complex to be used for pickleball and volleyball – serving both the young and older populations. This time they completely converted two under-utilized tennis courts at Louis Sutter Park, off University Avenue in the northwest corner of McClaren Park. “We’re really crowded on Saturdays and Sundays,” said Wellington Chen, who lives near the courts and is locally known as Mr. Pickleball for his ardent advocacy of the game. “The more experienced players use the courts from 7 a.m. to noon; beginners come in the afternoon when instruction is available.” Freddie Nadarisay, now president of the Golden Gate Pickleball Club, encourages newcomers to visit the courts.“We have racquets and people here to teach you. It’s hard work, but a really awesome sport.” | October 5, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Bay Area Senior Games: Running, swimming, you name it, San Franciscans are winners | Partners in life Bob Callori, 75, and Chris Goodwin, 66, also share a passion for Track and Field. Both competed in the 2018 Bay Area Senior Games in May – and both were front-runners. Both ran in the 400-meter and the 800-meter sprints, but in their different age groups. “I won Gold in both and Bob won Silver in both,” Goodwin said. “My times place me in third place in the U.S. for my age group, 65 to 69.” “We both race in in the 400-meter sprint (one lap around a standard outdoor track), the 800-meter sprint (two laps), and the 4 X 100 relay (four runners who each complete one lap),” said Goodwin. Running is their life and their athleticism shows, not just in their physiques, but in their home. Goodwin has about 65 medals and Callori between 80 and 100 for coming in first, second and third. “My first event competing I came in fifth, but was only 2/100ths of a second behind to be tied for third in the 400-meter,” Goodwin said. He was one of 530 athletes representing California at the 2013 Summer National Senior Games in Cleveland. A special plaque in their family room, framed with a letter signed by Gov. Brown, marks the achievement. Today, Goodwin … | September 25, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| Celebrating Mexican Independence Day – at a mostly Asian senior center? | OUR COLUMNS Most of the 60 or more seniors who regularly attend the OMI Senior Center are Asian, but that didn’t prevent Tiffany Huynh, the program coordinator, from organizing a celebration for Mexican Independence Day. Five, maybe 10 of our members are Latino, but everyone enjoys celebrations,” Huynh said. “We love celebrating everyone’s holiday. The ethnicities really mix here,” said Flordeliza Nagar, one of the regulars and a Filipina. “We celebrate so many holidays: Filipino Independence Day, African-American holidays, Chinese New Year, Filipino New Year, Christmas, July 4, and every month there are birthdays with cake and a party.” The center celebrated Mexican Independence Day on Sept. 14. The large community room was decorated with Mexican paper banners, while sombreros and miniature Mexican flags graced the tables. Lunch was fajitas, black beans and tortillas. Huynh had recruited a speaker to talk about the holiday and had translated his material into a fact sheet in Chinese for those who wanted more information. After lunch and the presentation, volunteers and staff dished out Mexican party food: taco chips, salsa and guacamole. Unlike some senior centers where there are two distinct crowds – the lunch crowd and those who only participate in the activities – most of the seniors at OMI stay for the full … | September 21, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Little Free Libraries sprouting up in Outer Mission neighborhood | You may have passed a little free library in your neighborhood on your way to the bus stop: a small house-shaped box atop a post in someone’s front yard. A sign, “Take a Book; Leave a Book,” invites passers-by to pause and unlatch the clear front door to more closely inspect the books inside. Little Free Libraries is a nonprofit organization that inspires a love of reading, builds community, and sparks creativity by fostering neighborhood book exchanges around the world. It also has a number of other reading programs, such as the Action Book Club. And they sell little libraries boxes and posts. This spring, Cayuga Community Connectors unveiled four new little libraries, bringing the number of free libraries in the area to more than 10. I’m uncertain about the exact number, since not all “stewards” as the people who own and maintain the libraries are called, choose to register on the website, www.littlefreelibrary.org, and thus become part of the official count. One library owner said that everyone who walks by smiles when they see the sign. Some take a book; one asked if she could leave a book. The Rev. Glenda Hope talked about the little boy next door who always checks her free library for new children’s books and has … | September 9, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Impromptu barbecues, book sales and flea markets bring Inner Sunset neighbors together | Nothing brings a community together more than a neighborhood party where everyone is invited. And none so much as the eclectic and sometimes eccentric gatherings hosted by Inner Sunset residents Barbara and Paul. No one was surprised earlier this year to hear that Barbara was throwing another shindig. Barbara and her late husband started hosting backyard happenings in 2007. (Now 60, she prefers for security reasons to keep her last name to herself.) Her invitation to a barbecue was posted on the fence: “Bring finger-sized desserts, drinks and I will supply the meat. Enjoy our friendly guitar-duo.” Anyone who saw the sign was welcome. The variety of these often impromptu get-togethers tickles the imagination. Everyone remembers the Haunted House, said Martha Etherton, director of the Inner Sunset Park Neighborhood Neighbors association. It “was so scary – someone reached out and grabbed my ankle.” Magical exterior, mysterious backyard A passer-by might suspect something or someone special lies behind the big blue house near Sixth and Irving. Signs of this would be the numerous mobiles, chimes and other hanging art, tickling and chiming over lovely flowering plants. Of all the events she and her husband sponsored, Barbara is most fond of the Book Blast. “We had so many helpers, sorting books every Thursday night … | September 6, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| When designing products for older adults, senior supervision is advised | The walking sticks Dr. June Fisher uses buffer her struggles with severe arthritis. And they might just give her an inside edge on the usefulness of products for older adults and those with disabilities. One of those retired but busy people, she spends a lot of time mentoring design students and professionals. And she is determined to imprint her mantra, “Design with us, not for us.” Too many products miss the mark, she said: shopping carts without brakes for hills, kitchen products and gardening tools that defeat a person with arthritis, monitoring devices that sit in a drawer. “Products need to reflect the needs of people they’re designed for,” Fisher said. “While I appreciate the technical skills of design students and professionals, I don’t want a 23-year-old telling me what I need. It has to be a mutual relationship where elders set the agenda and participate in the development of those products.” Designing winners For the past four years, Fisher has mentored teams in the advanced product design course at San Francisco State University taught by professor Ricardo Gomes. In 2016, her team won first prize in The Stanford Center on Longevity International Design Challenge, a global competition that encourages students to develop products and services to improve well-being across the lifespan. … | September 6, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| West of Twin Peaks: In love with her neighborhood, writer explores its history | Jacqueline Proctor’s love of her neighborhood inspired her two books: “San Francisco West of Twin Peaks” and “Bay Area Beauty: the Artistry of Harold G. Stoner, Architect.” Proctor’s first foray into writing started in 2001. “I was experiencing ‘empty nest syndrome’ with my son having left for college. In addition, I was suffering anguish as a result of 911,” she said. “I needed something to dig into that would distract me.” She found the very thing – researching and writing about her family’s history. She traced her lineage back to County Armagh, Ireland, to her great-great-great grandfather, James M. Liggett. Her family’s story is classic American pioneer: Liggett landed in Philadelphia as an indentured weaver and later moved westward to homestead in Nebraska. His grandson migrated to California. “I derived many benefits researching and writing about the Liggetts,” said Proctor, “I had the pleasure of getting to know members of my extended family here and in Ireland.” In her next writing project, she tackled her neighborhood west of Twin Peaks. “When I visited San Francisco as a child, I fell in love with San Francisco’s architecture and natural land preserves,” said Proctor. “When I completed my family’s genealogy, I began to seriously explore the west of Twin Peak’s history.” It all started … | September 5, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| What a pickle! Sporting seniors seek more space for latest fad in San Francisco | The Crocker Amazon sport complex recently unveiled two, newly resurfaced pickleball/volleyball courts. Volleyball is really popular with 8- to 13-year-old girls, said Facility Coordinator Gerald Reader. But pickleball? Pickleball has been called the fastest growing senior sport in the United States. It’s a blend of tennis, badminton and ping pong, usually played on converted tennis courts – one can be divided into four pickleball courts. “The game is particularly popular among boomers looking for an activity that offers good aerobic exercise without being as strenuous as traditional racket sports,” said Excelsior resident Wellington Chen. The pickleball court is about one third the length of a tennis court, so there’s less running – good for boomers discovering their knees aren’t what they used to be. Games are shorter, too. At about 12 minutes, everyone gets a chance to play. Meet Mr. Pickleball Less than three years ago, bringing pickleball to the area courts was just an idea. “It’s low impact and easier on the joints. I knew it was something that should be introduced,” he said. He just needed to find the resources. Today, he’s known locally as Mr. Pickleball for his advocacy of the sport in San Francisco. So, Chen invited the U.S. American Pickleball Association to come tell them more. About a dozen volunteer … | September 5, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Solo aging: Plan ahead so you’re not growing old without support | “Who’s going to sit by your bed when the time comes?” asks eldercare consultant Betty Burr. If you’re a solo ager, that question may be hard to answer. A solo ager is someone who doesn’t have a spouse or children, or their children are geographically or emotionally unavailable, and there is no other family member close by, Burr said. According to estimates by The American Community Survey, part of the U.S. Census, 31 percent of people age 65 and older live alone in San Francisco County. That age group represents 17 percent of the city’s total population, but 28 percent of those who live alone. A management trainer for most of her working life, Burr went back to school in her 60s to get a master’s degree in gerontology from San Francisco State University. “After working as a mid-life transitional counselor, I found that solo aging was the vital issue for me,” she said. “I have a house with stairs which might be a problem as I age.” Burr now puts on seminars to help people like her plan for how they’re going to get help when they need it. “There are several areas of care that we all need to pay attention to, but for solo agers the challenges are greater,” said … | August 27, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| First new, affordable senior housing breaks ground in the Mission | Tears and cheers greeted the speakers at the June 20 groundbreaking ceremony for Casa Adelante–1296 Shotwell, the first, new, 100 percent affordable housing project built in the Mission District in the past decade. When completed, the nine-story building will provide 94 units of affordable housing, with on-site supportive services: 74 apartments for low-income seniors, 19 for seniors experiencing homelessness, and one for the building manager. The project is a partnership between the Mission Economic Development Agency (MEDA) and the Chinatown Community Development Center (Chinatown CDC). The building is expected to be completed by 2020. It will also have staff offices, four rooftop terraces, landscaped garden courtyards, a spacious community room with a kitchen, 22 bicycle storage spaces, solar hot-water system, a community laundry room, and an enhanced security system. “Finally, finally, it’s taken a long time to get here. It doesn’t get much better than this,” said District 9 supervisor Hillary Ronen. “It’s very special that this first project is for seniors who have given so much to the community and who deserve to age in dignity and safety. More housing to come “Housing should be a human right and we’re hell bent on making it a human right in San Francisco,” Ronen continued. “My goal is 5,000 units in the next decade.” Olinda Orellana, a … | August 26, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Love of exercise and volunteering leads couple to become team Zumba teachers | Ana Silvia and Irving Rivera, who met in an exercise class at City College, now teach Zumba at the 30th Street Senior Center. Married for 38 years, their love of exercise is matched only by their dedication volunteering. Their volunteering started in their kids’ schools, from kindergarten through high school. Now they teach the Zumba class as well as a Stanford-designed Healthy Living class. Mrs. Rivera also volunteers in the center’s programs department, compiling volunteer statistics. “Giving back to the community is in our DNA,” she said. The Rivera’s path to volunteering and exercise began where they met – at City College San Francisco in the 1970s. Both were taking exercise classes to fulfill requirements for their Associate Arts’ degrees. After their children went off to college in 2000, the Riveras returned to the school to take dancing, yoga and swimming classes. “How I got to love yoga was the result of stress on the job,” said Mrs. Rivera. “When I changed jobs, I began to experience headaches. The doctor prescribed therapy and Vioxx.” She never took the pills, instead listening to her therapist, who said there was nothing wrong with her and advised yoga for stress reduction. Life was good for the Riveras as they became more proficient in many different … | August 25, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| Community group friends give Miraloma Park resident motivation to keep going | Miraloma Park Community Connectors was set up to provide neighbors a place for exercise, conversation, to share skills and hobbies, It’s also a place to make and deepen friendships. For Hildegard “Hilde” Rolfes, it was the key to recovery. A stroke five years ago wiped out her memory, but she has come back strong. And she credits credits her recovery and current health to her son, who moved from Los Angeles to take care of her – and now lives with her, her two daughters, who live nearby, frequent visits by friends and Community Connectors exercise classes. “Family and friends are my main motivation to keep going,” Hilde said. She and her husband moved to San Francisco from Germany in the early 1950s, and took over his brother’s bakery. Her family sold the business and moved out of the Haight toward the end of the ‘60s when hippies and drugs arrived. They moved into a house near Mt.Davidson. “I thought I was moving to the country, it seemed so far out of the city,” said Hilde, ”but i love this neighborhood.” She still lives in the house where she and her husband raised their family. Luckily, the stroke didn’t paralyze her limbs, but she said she couldn’t remember anything, not even where … | August 25, 2018 | Mary Hunt |
| Covering the American Society on Aging Conference: Badge a symbol of belonging to this ‘sea of humanity’ | Our Columns My first session was Monday morning at 9 a.m., so I set my iPhone alarm for 6:30. But I had never used the alarm and didn’t trust it would work – I’m such a Luddite. I woke and 5 a.m. and dozed and woke off and on until the alarm went off – as scheduled. The conference was held at the Hilton Union Square, which I was sure was right on Union Square. So I got off the subway at Stockton Street and walked up the hill to discover not the Hilton but the Hyatt. The doorman pointed me toward Mason Street. Heading up Geary Street, I worried I was getting too far afield of Union Square. This time, I asked a woman on the street for directions. “I’m from out-of-town, honey, why don’t you look it up on your phone,” she said. “Oh, sure,” I stammered, quite abashed. Then there it was – right around the corner at 333 O’Farrell. Frazzled but jazzed By that time, I was frazzled, but glad I had set out early. Monday was registration day. I envisioned long lines – and wasn’t disappointed. The next question on my conference journey: Is there a special line for the press? The monitor I asked didn’t know, so she … | August 3, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| True grit – and a good car – gets her through farm life, earthquakes, tsunamis and an overseas job | In March, 1964, a 9.2 earthquake and multiple tsunamis hit Kodiak, Alaska. Fran Roberts was 38 and working there as draftsperson for the government. She was as much concerned about saving her car as her life. “You had to have a car to get around, and I had just been to the States to buy a new Volkswagon Bug and have it shipped up there,” she said. “If my car was ruined, I’d have to wait a year to buy a new one.” So, as Roberts was running hither and yon following military orders to get to higher ground, she was also pleading with military vehicles to help pull her car. “At one point I was sitting in my car and water came up to my chest. I thought I was going to drown.” After the tsunamis stopped, Roberts started bailing saltwater out of her car. “It was then that I got to work,” she said. “The VW Bug came with a packet of tools. I took out each piece of the motor, cleaned it, and laid it out in the order I removed it. When they were all cleaned, I reassembled the parts from last to first.” Roberts succeeded in restoring her car with the same grit and determination that had … | July 24, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| Life after polio? For this mother and activist, not a missed step | From the time she contracted polio at four, Susan Suval has never let the disease that took the use of her right leg define her life. “My mother thought she’d have to take care of me her whole life,” said Suval, now 73. “I proved her wrong.” Her mother fought to send her to public school, where Suval developed the impetus to fight for herself. “They wanted to put me in a special education class. My mother said, ‘It’s her leg that’s paralyzed, not her brain.’ That set them straight.” Suval’s mother wheeled her to school in a wagon. At that time she wore a brace and used crutches. From then on, Suval demonstrated the spitfire and grit that motivated her in school, gave her an adventuresome spirit – and led her to marry, raise a family and become incredibly active in her community. When her kids were young, she joined their nursery school board. That led to membership in the local PTA, then the San Francisco District PTA. Then, she turned her sights back to her Sunset District neighborhood, where she helped organize its first community coalition. In 2003, Suval was honored by The San Francisco Board of Supervisors as a “Woman Making History” from District Four. Later, “to keep from … | July 13, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| Fifth-graders learn what it’s like be older – by interviewing seniors | Once a week, a group of fifth graders visits some of the seniors who live at Valencia Gardens, down the street from their school, for games and conversation. “People think that seniors are cranky, grumpy and mean. They’re not,” said student Jaxon Howard. “It was special to hear them talk about their lives.” That’s just the kind of lesson the San Francisco Friends School hopes to impart. Learning in and from the community is an essential component of the curriculum at the Quaker school. Eighth-graders study homelessness and volunteer at St. Boniface Catholic Church. Fifth-graders explore aging: what it feels like to be older – problems with seeing, hearing, pains, and loss of mobility. “The idea is to develop empathy and connection. Quaker education is all about relationships and developing connection,” said Guybe Slangen, director of community engagement. So it was that in mid-April, a group of seniors from Valencia Gardens and other community groups sat down to be interviewed by students. In May, each student shared an elder’s story in “performances” in the school auditorium. The senior subjects were given front row seats, while parents, friends and some first-graders fanned out behind. “I’m surprised that the seniors opened up to tell their stories to people they didn’t know instead of keeping … | July 1, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Mayoral candidate forum draws record crowd of seniors and adults with disabilities | EDITOR’S NOTE – Senior Beat Staffer Judy Goddess contributed to this report. In wheelchairs and on foot, navigating with canes and guided by seeing-eye dogs, they funneled through the Herbst Theatre’s narrow entranceways to fill its venerable auditorium in April. Candidates for San Francisco mayor were going to answer their questions. Adults with a variety of physical challenges were among almost a thousand of the city’s nearly 220,000 seniors – a quarter of the total population – who packed in for the first-ever mayoral forum focused on their needs. Sponsored by the San Francisco Dignity Fund Coalition of more than 40 nonprofit advocacy groups, it was also one of the most accessible. People in wheelchairs took up the first two rows. Those who were deaf or hard of hearing were offered American Sign Language interpretation and Assisted Listening devices. Non-English speakers could hook up to live interpretation in Spanish and Cantonese via wireless headsets. “When planning large community events, it is important to consider all aspects of access. From wheelchair access of the venue to the need for language access. It all factored into the planning of the event,” said Coalition Co-Chair Fiona Hinze. “One of the most important, unique aspects of the event was the live stream. This allowed members of … | June 30, 2018 | Robin Evans |
| Advocates rally for justice for the vulnerable in City budget | June is budget negotiation time at City Hall. On June 18, after receiving a draft budget from the mayor, the Budget and Finance Committee of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors invited comments from the community. Activists making up the Budget Justice Coalition rallied on City Hall steps to highlight the need for increased funding for for the poor, the homeless, seniors and people with disabilities. The coalition is a broad based collaboration of more than 30 community-based and labor organizations serving impoverished people working towards a City budget that prioritizes poor communities in San Francisco. Inside City Hall, advocates were allowed one minute to plead their case. They testified on the need for increased funding for homeless services, rental subsidies for seniors and people with disabilities, and food programs. Funds were requested for employment programs for seniors, after-school programs, free summer school at City College, and pedestrian safety. After a representative for the senior community choirs program finished speaking, 30 choir members rose and serenaded the supervisors and audience. (Photos by Mary Hunt) | June 25, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| 30th Street center takes steps to battle senior-on-senior bullying | But some seniors do bully. And it starts early. “Young bullies just become older bullies,” said Dr. Patrick Arbore, founder and director of Elderly Suicide Prevention & Grief Related Services at the Institute on Aging. “Bullying is a learned behavior. Unless someone called a stop to this behavior or the bully is fortunate enough to develop insight into what is considered relational aggression.” Recognition of senior-to-senior bullying has been slowly surfacing in retirement homes and senior centers across the country. It was first formally identified as a phenomenon in 2013 by Robin P. Bonifas, an assistant professor in Arizona State University’s School of Social Work. Identifying troubling behavior A couple of years ago, staff at San Francisco’s largest multipurpose senior center – more than 300 seniors attend the center each day – began struggling with how to handle behavior they were starting to notice: gossip, seniors refusing to allow those with disabilities to sit at their lunch table; loud remarks about a frail elder’s appearance; unkind comments about a new member’s outfit; nastiness to staff. Often, but not always, the person being picked on was older and frail; sometimes, they were just different or seemed vulnerable. At the recent American Society on Aging conference in San Francisco, Valorie Villela, director of The 30th … | June 8, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Director of I.T. Bookman wants to widen community center’s embrace | Felisia Thibodeaux, the new executive director of the I. T. Bookman Community Center, had been on the job just over four months when we talked, and she had already developed some big plans. “We need to redirect I. T. Bookman … for the whole community, including people with disabilities,” she said. “We want to offer something for everybody to engage in.” Founded in 1985 by I. T. Bookman, a member of the neighboring Pilgrim Community Church, and largely supported by the church and its members, the center provided a multipurpose space for Sunday School classes as well as community events. The center currently receives most of its support from the San Francisco Department of Aging and Adult Services (DAAS) and the Stonestown YMCA, which operates its after-school program. In the years since its founding, new families have moved into the Ingleside. Where once the community was primarily African-American, today it is 52 percent Asian. “The neighborhood has changed,” Thibodeaux said, and “we’re not reaching them. Only eight percent of our members are Asian. We need to reach out to that community. We need to add a Chinese-speaking person for outreach and engagement to the Asian community.” She also plans to bring Asian foods and art into the building in addition to celebrate … | June 1, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| From Tea Garden to internment camp to Berkeley degree: Fitness instructor now 80 and still teaching | After age 80, more people are attending classes than teaching them. Yet, Tanako Hagiwara, who joined City College as a sports coach in 1967, is still at it – 51 years later. “I have no plans to stop teaching as long as my health allows and students want my classes,” said Hagiwara, 80. She wanted to be a teacher – to help people since third grade. “The reason I still love teaching is because it’s a learning process.” Hagiwara, who has a Ph.D. in kinesiology, exercise physiology and higher education from the University of California-Berkeley, was a tomboy as a child. “My Japanese parents didn’t know what to make of me. But they allowed me to be who I was even though they worried I wouldn’t acquire the necessary homemaking skills to get married.” Perhaps her parents didn’t have time to worry as they were living in a 17-room house, built by her great-grandfather, in Golden Gate Park’s Japanese Tea Garden, helping to maintain and oversee its function. From Tea Garden to internment camp Hagiwara’s great-grandfather, Makoto Hagiwara, was the official caretaker of the garden from 1895 to 1925. A Japanese immigrant and landscape architect trained in Japan, he personally oversaw the modification of the temporary Japanese Village exhibit at the 1894 … | May 5, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| Most older adults want to give back to society; the trick is finding the right niche, new study shows | The majority of older adults want to contribute to society. And about a third actively do. That’s according to a collaborative study by researchers at the Stanford Graduate School of Education and the San Francisco-based non-profit Encore.org. Findings and recommendations from the Pathways to Encore Purpose Project were presented at the recent 2018 American Society on Aging conference by Encore Project Director Jim Emerman. For the past two decades Encore, an organization dedicated to connecting people in later life with work opportunities that benefit society, has been looking at the role of purpose. In 2005, its predecessor, Civic Ventures, initiated The Purpose Prize for midlife adults whose volunteer commitments were making significant contributions to contemporary life. The study defines purpose as a “sustained commitment to goals that are meaningful to the self and that also contribute in some way to the common good, to something larger than or beyond the self.” Purposeful living is “a stable and generalized intention to accomplish something that is at once meaningful to the self and of consequence to the world beyond the self.” Study participants were asked to rate 10 life goals in terms of importance, and answer questions about their ongoing commitment to their top three. One of those had to be a beyond-the-self goal, and backed … | April 26, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Chronicling seniors upended author John Leland’s notion of happiness in later life | After I read John Leland’s new book, “Happiness is a Choice You Make,” I went out and bought copies for my children. I don’t want it to take them as long to learn what he did: that the years after middle age are just another chapter in a long life. What happens to an aging body is not tragic, but it might mean some adjustments. Most seniors, as Leland discovered, don’t focus on their infirmities. We’re too busy enjoying the pleasures of the day and what we’re doing right now. An award-winning journalist with the New York Times, Leland in 2015 began an assignment that was to change his life. His series “85 & Up” looked at what it was like to be elderly through the lives of six New York City residents. What he experienced upended his own notion of aging, along with his relationship with his mother and his way of being in the world. And it evolved into his latest book. When Leland began the assignment, his own life was presenting challenges, leading him to question the meaning of life and relationships. His mother had moved to senior housing near him after his father died, but he didn’t visit as much as he thought he should have. The few dinners … | April 20, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Editor and reporter has written about her neighborhood for the past 20 Years | Rae Doyle has introduced her West Portal neighbors to a variety of local people they might never have noticed. As associate editor of the West Portal Monthly over the past 20 years, she has treated readers to a panoply of profiles of interesting neighbors and small business owners, from the Vietnam War dog handler Dr. Alan Walden to David Neumann of Orthodox Chews, the not-especially-kosher salt water taffy. Doyle came to journalism after raising five children, retiring from AT&T, and earning a bachelor’s degree in Liberal Studies from San Francisco State University. What to do next? The answer lay right across the street from her. A builder began developing Edgehill Mountain, and Doyle’ss first news articles for the West Portal Monthly chronicled the neighborhood’s desire to keep it an urban forest. The Greater West Portal Neighborhood Association eventually had Edgehill zoned as a park to stop further building. Blockbuster a kind of booster Then, an attempt by Blockbuster Video to establish a store on West Portal Avenue pointed the way toward her series of neighborhood profiles. “City neighborhoods at this time were trying to preserve the ‘village feel’ of the neighborhood shopping streets by keeping chain stores at bay,” she said. Chains generally had very little window appeal, tended to attract other … | April 14, 2018 | Mary Hunt |
| Negative views of being older can be hazardous to your health; coalition aims to ‘reframe’ aging | With the development of the assembly line and his Model T car, Henry Ford revolutionized transportation. His motto was, “Whether you think you can or whether you think you can’t, you’re right.” Psychologists agree that actions are a direct result of a person’s beliefs and thoughts. The mental picture of oneself is of the utmost significance in determining success and life choices. American culture, unfortunately, perpetuates a discouraging image. Americans see aging largely through a negative lens. Older people are seen as the “other,” separate from the general society. They are thought to be in a state of constant decline, experiencing loss of control and dependency. Through a glass darkly One conversation gaining momentum the field of aging is how to remedy this one-sided view, in part because of the growing elder population. Each day in the United States, 10,000 people turn 65, and that’s expected to continue for the next 15 years, said JoAnn Jenkins, CEO of the American Association of Retired Persons. And they’re expected to live another 30 years. Another impetus is the barrier it puts in the path of progress. A society exposed to a constant stream of messaging that depicts aging as all about decline will have difficulty implementing productive policies and practices for its senior population, … | April 12, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| When the plants hug you back: Volunteers maintain splendor of Golden Gate Park | For Wayne Hiroshima and Bill Rafferty, working as assistant gardeners in Golden Gate Park around plants, animals and birds, places them regularly in the life cycle. They feel how plants, animals, birds and humans are interdependent. “Working on these gardens is like working on my house,” Rafferty said. “When I garden, I feel like the area hugs me.” Along the Lincoln Street side of the park, in the Inner Sunset, Hiroshima and Rafferty, both in their mid-60s, have given their time for a collective total of 17 years to sustain a healthy park environment. “The area on Fifth and Lincoln was overgrown and littered with discarded bottles and needles,” said Rafferty. “People were afraid to walk in that entrance.” Added Hiroshima: “We are happy people can now walk in this area of the park, enjoying its beauty, using it as a picnic spot.” Observant caretakers Under the supervision of various San Francisco Recreation and Parks gardeners, the pair do everything from pulling weeds and planting grass to pruning and watering. Once familiar with their designated area, they become observant caretakers. Rafferty noticed a crack in one of the bigger branches of a towering pine tree, and mushrooms growing 25 feet up, which indicated dead wood. “We cut the tree down before it … | April 7, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| Creativity never gets old: In S.F., they’re singing, dancing, writing, curating film, shooting video | Negative stereotypes about older adults persist even today. But when it comes to creativity, old age defies the myths. Tony Bennett, singer at 91, is still touring, standing for 90-minute performances. Rita Moreno, actress, at 87, is starting the second season of her Netflix show, “One Day at a Time.” At 90, Queen of Suspense Mary Higgins Clark is still turning out two books a year. Studies show that older adults not only exhibit creativity, but when they do their brains become more flexible, enhancing health and well-being. Participants in a community-based art program, part of a two-year study in 2006 by the National Endowment for The Arts, reported better health, fewer doctor visits, less medication usage, more positive responses on mental health measures, and more involvement in overall activities. Creativity in the closet “Creativity has always been there with aging, but many have not recognized or searched for it in themselves in later life because society has so denied, trivialized or maligned it,” Gene Cohen, a pioneer in gerontology research who conducted the “Creativity and Aging Study,” wrote in his 2000 book “The Creative Age: Awakening Human Potential in the Second Half of Life.” Looking back, there are many examples of creativity marching in on older age. Irish playwright George Bernard … | April 7, 2018 | Jan Robbins |
| McLaren Park champions continue to fight for needed improvements | Jeanne Crawford and her family live down the street from the Gambiner Plaza entrance to McLaren Park. Recently retired from teaching, Crawford begins each day with a three mile walk in the park. “I need the exercise, but even more, I need that dose of nature, the quiet and wildness of it.” Crawford is an active member of Help McLaren Park, one of several neighborhood groups committed to helping the S.F. Recreation and Park Department improve and maintain the Park. Her neighbor is one of its founders. Chuck Farrugi grew up playing in the park and wanted his children to be able to enjoy it – with some improvements. Until they organized, he said, the park was largely ignored by the city, he said. “Families wouldn’t let their kids play there. The sand pits were empty, the playgrounds couldn’t be used.” They reached out to the mayor’s office and their supervisor, but were told they were too far from the tourist area. Eventually they finally got support to improve the Peru Street playground. “Peru street playground was our first victory,” Farrugia said. “We finally proved we could get something done.” Rec and Park has done some good things,” said Crawford. “The Peru Street playground, a new picnic area, the amphitheater, and they … | April 4, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| OMI Senior Center holds annual Lunar New Year celebration | The Ocean View-Merced Heights-Ingleside Senior Center held its annual Lunar New Year celebration on Tuesday, Feb. 27. The full day’s program included OMI seniors performing New Year’s songs in English and Chinese, dances by the San Francisco Guangchang Line Dancing Group, a raffle, and a sumptuous 17-course lunch. After lunch, a troupe of retired members of the San Francisco Police Department’s Lion Dance team entertained the crowd, who happily followed them around the hall. The troupe has been performing for 30 years and certainly knew how to work the crowd, many of whom clustered around the two lions with their iPads and smartphones. (Photos by Judy Goddess) Retired members of the San Francisco Police Department’s Lion Dance team. | March 1, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Fire Department NERT training gets residents ready in case of an earthquake | We all know the “big one” is coming – an earthquake, a fire – some disaster that will wipe out a section of the city. We also know that when it does, emergency services will be overwhelmed. It may be three to five days before help arrives. The key to survival is being prepared. The SF Fire Department’s Neighborhood Emergency Response Team encourages everyone to take their free, 20-hour training program. “You need to know what to do,” said Grace Chidmart, who signed up after the 2004 Indonesian tsunami. She and Susan Lai, a 10-year volunteer, are co-coordinators for the Ingleside. “Much of NERT training is hands-on. Where to turn off your water and gas; how to use a fire extinguisher; what to pack in your to-go bag, where the safe staging area is in your neighborhood,” Lai said. “After the ’89 quake, a lot of people wanted to volunteer, but they weren’t trained,” said Chidmart, “NERT prepares you. But we need more people volunteers from our community.” By the end of last year, almost 25,000 San Franciscans had enrolled in NERT training, only 86 lived in the Ingleside. As a senior, I don’t see myself physically carrying someone out of a burning building, but as Grace reminded me, “being a NERT … | March 1, 2018 | Judy Goddess |
| Neighborhood Circles create community for San Francisco seniors | Most seniors, 87 percent, want to stay in their homes as they age, according to the American Association of Retired Persons. Fortunately for San Francisco seniors, the San Francisco Village’s “neighborhood circles” help them do that. The nine-month-old Sunset Circle is one of 13 in San Francisco, including one for LGBT seniors, where neighbors meet regularly in a member’s home to share stories, exchange ideas and build rapport. “The getting to know is exciting. You meet fascinating people. Not just the members, but also the volunteers,” said member Steve Hayashi, 73. The circles are one aspect of the San Francisco Village program. Membership also includes access to a network of professional service providers as well as educational programs, group activities, intergenerational exchanges and volunteerism. The idea of community collaboration to help seniors age at home was conceived in 2002 in Boston’s Beacon Hill neighborhood. The Boston model became a prototype for the “senior village” movement, which has spread across the country. It takes a village San Francisco Village was launched in the Richmond District in January, 2009 through the efforts of a group of community leaders, residents and health care experts. The circles are an avenue for seniors to create activities specific to their own needs. All circles are initiated by member … | December 7, 2017 | Jan Robbins |
| Miraloma Park Neighbor Fest focuses on safety, building neighborhood resilience | In late October, the Miraloma Park Improvement Club threw a Neighbor Fest. Some 450 neighbors came. Like other Neighborfests around the city, the purpose was to gather people together and turn “strangers into neighbors and neighbors into friends.” This Fest, however, also included extensive disaster preparedness information along with the hotdogs, coloring books, and camaraderie. The Neighborhood Empowerment Network, one of the co-sponsors, promotes the idea that neighborhoods can become more resilient in the face of disaster if the residents are prepared to handle emergency situations, especially if they’re already looking out for each other on an everyday basis. To that end, Miraloma Park Improvement Club members and the Neighborhood Emergency Response Team manned booths, along with city agencies and the firefighters from Station 39 on Portola, to help people learn specific ways to maintain safety during and after a disaster. NERT members demonstrated how to pack a “go bag” for adults and kids to keep under family members’ beds – at the ready if you have to leave in a hurry in the middle of the night, as Santa Rosans did recently in the North Bay wildfires. Darlene Ramlose, NERT team leader, showed how the tightly packed plastic bags fit into the capacious red go bag. You must have clothes, shoes, … | November 15, 2017 | Mary Hunt |
| Art With Elders Program Harnesses Creativity and Yields Greater Health | Many of the students in the Art with Elders program have overcome significant physical and cognitive obstacles to produce their art, including the loss of the use of their dominant hand. “One of our objectives is to promote how our students use their wisdom and experience to overcome these obstacles. It’s tough!” said Mark Campbell, executive director of the program. “And we want to let people know how they do it.” An annual exhibition –most recently in October celebrating the program’s 25th anniversary – offer the artists a public display of their work, as well as the experience of having their art go through a jury process. What does the jury look for in the submitted artwork? First, Campbell said, they evaluate the level of risk that a student takes, either by using materials in a different way or by choosing a political or socially conscious subject. Next, the jury considers the level of virtuosity demonstrating the students can learn skills and progress as an artist. Finally, the jury considers the overall aesthetics of the piece, how it works as a whole. AWE now provides 2,000 art classes per year for more than 400 seniors in long-term care facilities throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Students gather in small classes for two … | November 1, 2017 | Mary Hunt |
| Sunset seniors get pumped up putting their power into Taiko drumming | At the Cole Valley Fair in September, 11 members of the Kotobuki Taiko group demonstrated that seniors can drum energetically and with passion. They can also get healthier doing it. The Kotobuki (longevity) Taiko group was formed nine years ago at The Stonestown Family YMCA Annex, under the leadership of volunteer teacher Carol Ayers, 73, a longtime Taiko drummer. “I had some surgeries, and couldn’t play up to my best level, but I wanted to continue with Taiko so I went to the Y and offered to start a class,” Ayers said. Today, Ayers oversees three levels of classes, with 45 students ranging in age from 60 to 85; 40 women and five men. She and another teacher, Fumi Spencer, age 89, teach the seniors and watch them thrive. “Having an infirmity is no barrier to playing – people can sit and play,” Ayers said. The performance was a chance for the Kotobuki group to share its art form. Andrea Lai Pujolar, 73, loves to bang on the drum. “I enjoy performing because I can beat as hard as I can. I love the energy that it produces in me!” she said. Rhythm: a basic human function “Because the response to rhythm is basic to human functioning,” says neurologist Barry Bittman, “it’s no wonder that drummers and observers alike are uplifted. Drumming has been a sacred act since ancient times.” It was believed that by imitating the sounds of thunder, the spirits of rain would … | October 5, 2017 | Jan Robbins |
