Writing checks to pay the family bills doesn’t seem out of the ordinary. For most of us, it’s a monthly chore to which we don’t give much thought. For Virginia Cheng, that routine task is a symbol of recovery from a crippling auto accident and a measure of her willingness to lend a hand to ...
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. When she got to the ritzy store, a man standing by the entrance stopped her ...
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: “Usually, I know about 40 to 50 ...
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. ...
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 ...
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 ...
