Life in the Later Lane
Childhood bond with an older neighbor steered law officer’s choice of career and community work
A tarnished silver coin from 1964, likely worth only $10 to any dealer, reminds Richard Lyons Corriea...
August 2, 2026
As a teacher, playwright & screenwriter, Cary Pepper has lots of inside Hollywood info to share
You probably stream most of your movies. But if you happen to rent a film on old-style...
July 15, 2026
All-women punk band still on stage thanks to leader’s career, which started in a mortuary
Invite Klara Lux somewhere, and she’ll always show up early – except on the rare occasion when...
July 6, 2026
Playwright Lynne Kaufman, the author of two dozen plays and five novels, is still going strong, despite some hiccups
The day after Lynne Kaufman retired in 2005, she woke up in tears. “What had I done?”...
June 29, 2026
A win for people power: Supervisors and mayor restore millions of dollars in cut to services for city’s most vulnerable
A months-long campaign by advocates for seniors, the disabled and other vulnerable populations has convinced San Francisco's...
Following in the footsteps of heroes: My visit to the cradles of Civil Rights
SF SENIORBEAT COLUMN – March 17, 1886. A date you probably never considered. Carroll County, Mississippi. A...
June 4, 2026
Couple’s script for their own movie? Shared creative passions and a bent for banter
“I'm Chiquita Banana, and I'm here to say, bananas have to ripen in a certain way,” Margot...
May 28, 2026
Social justice lawyer and activist infusing others with her love of SF’s Great Blue Herons and dedication to conservation
One day in 1993, on her daily walk from her Richmond District home to Golden Gate Park’s...
April 29, 2026
Nonprofit director is happy to bug you, whether you’re 2 or 92, about saving the wild
If you grow up in Los Angeles, where do you find the wild? Norm Gershenz is not...
April 14, 2026
Bass playing lawyer takes on the landlords when seniors call for help
During the day, you’ll find Thomas Drohan in court or at his law office on Mission Street....
April 5, 2026
Former SFSU teacher shifts to helping union workers build leadership abilities
Like some people need coffee, Joan Wong needs to walk – and talk. Mornings, she puts in...
March 25, 2026
Joe Edley, a three-time national champion, has been racking up great Scrabble scores for decades
Joe Edley tucks his co-authored book, “Everything Scrabble,” under his arm and surveys the room. Around him,...
March 16, 2026
As the city’s older population swells, seniors who can no longer live at home face high costs, limited choices
EDITOR'S NOTE: See full profiles of the seniors interviewed by clicking links within the story. A panoply...
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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 ...
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 ...
‘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 ...
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. Over a more than 30-year career in professional basketball, Bill ...
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 ...
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 ...
