Richmond Roundup

Community celebrates traffic light's debut
After a year and a half of fighting for improved safety at the intersection of 12th Avenue and California Street, a new stop light was installed and turned on in December in front of students, teachers, neighbors and community leaders who advocated for the safety measure.

Five serious accidents had occurred at the intersection, including an accident involving a teacher from Sutro Elementary School. About 250 students attend the elementary school and many cross the busy intersection daily.

After collecting 300 residents' signatures, holding large community meetings and making arrangements with the SF Department of Parking and Traffic, the community was finally granted its wish for a safer neighborhood.

In attendance at the event were the San Francisco Organizing Project, a grassroots federation of congregations and community groups, as well as representatives from the Star of the Sea Church, Sutro Elementary School, Supervisor Jake McGoldrick, and the director of the Parking and Traffic Department, Gerald Norman.

Community Hero Nominations Available
Each year Crissy Field Center recognizes community heroes for their efforts to protect and improve the community and urban environment of the San Francisco Bay Area. These local heroes include the teens at the local community club who spend each weekend planting trees and the teacher who spends his or her own money for supplies and educational excursions for their students. Now there is an opportunity to nominate an individual or organization that has made a difference.

The recipients of the 2004 Crissy Field Center Community Heroes Awards will be honored at an awards ceremony and their work illustrating how individuals and grassroots groups can make significant changes will be highlighted in an exhibition that greets visitors to the center's cafe and bookstore.

To nominate an individual or group, fill out a Community Heroes Award nomination form, located at the website www.crissyfield.org, or call 561-4313. The deadline for nominations is Friday, Jan. 30. A ceremony to honor the winners will be held in June 2004.

Art, Music and Dance Featured at Russian Fest
The Russian Center of San Francisco hosts its 16th annual Russian Festival at the end of January.

The festival's spotlight will be on Russian artists, dancers and performers. Various Russian foods and drink, including a vodka-tasting bar and tea from antique samovars, will be featured.

The event will be held at the Russian Center, located at 2450 Sutter St., on Friday, Jan. 30, from 5 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. (with a D.J. from 9:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m.); Saturday, Jan. 31, from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; and Sunday, Feb. 1, from 11 a.m. to 7:15 p.m. Admission is $8 for adults, $5 for students and seniors and children under age 12 are free.

For more information, call (415) 921-7631 or go to the Russian Center's website at www.russiancentersf.com.

Richmond Author Recognized
Richmond District salesman-turned-author, Don Surath recently won the Bay Area Independent Publishers Association (BAIPA) Award for Best Business/Sales Book of 2003.

The book sold out of its first printing. A second one is on the way.

Local 'guardian' honored
On Sunday, Dec. 14, a reception was held at the 18th Avenue home of Judge Julie Tang to honor Phillip Poon, the "guardian angel of 18th Avenue."

A representative of Mayor Willie Brown Jr. was at the event to present Poon with a scroll declaring appreciation for his good neighborliness. Jake McGoldrick was also there to present a similar award signed by all members of the SF Board of Supervisors.

At least 50 neighbors and family members were present to honor Poon and thank him for all his kindness over the years. A recounting of some facts and good deeds includes:

Poon, born in San Francisco's Chinatown, has resided in the Richmond District in the 700 block of 18th Avenue for nearly three decades.

While raising his son Derrick and daughter Michelle with his wife Nancy, Poon has been a responsible and caring neighbor and friend.

In 1992, he thwarted a burglary at one neighbor's house by quickly calling police when he saw the stranger break a windowpane and enter the residence. In the 11 years he has been retired from the SF Controller's Office, Poon has been of great assistance to elderly neighbors. Poon picked up groceries weekly for John Mara, a retired police officer who resided at 20th Avenue and Balboa Street until his death in 1996. Poon also helped Charlie Kacocha (700 block of 18th Avenue) in numerous ways, from taking him to doctors' appointments and haircuts to changing his fuses and bringing in his mail everyday. Kacocha died in 2003 at age 97.

Even when not so actively helping his neighbors, Poon serves as a lookout and provides a good example as a homeowner by maintaining his property. Poon is a model San Francisco citizen who is willing to do whatever is needed for the safety of the neighborhood, particularly for his elderly neighbors.

With his sense of civic responsibility and pride, he is the kind of citizen that all San Franciscans should aspire to be.

Poon's reception was hosted by Tang and Jenni Parrish.

Artist teams up with Santana
The work of Richmond District artist Sal Garcia, who lives on California Street and is a longtime member of the Chicano art movement, has been chosen by Carlos Santana for the cover of the musician's latest album, "Ceremony: Remixes and Rarities." The exclusive new release, which features an original painting of a jaguar, is being offered as a limited edition with only 100,000 copies available.

Garcia first began working with Santana in 1988 when he co-curated an exhibit at the Mission Cultural Center that documented Santana's career and rise to cultural prominence. Over the past several years, Garcia has also created handmade amulets that Santana has presented to special friends and dignitaries.

Awards for increased recycling
In early December, San Francisco's Department of the Environment announced an extensive community outreach program aimed at educating the public about the benefits of using the green cart for collecting food scraps, soiled paper products and yard trimmings.

To increase people's incentive to recycle and participate in composting efforts, SF Environment has promised to make a donation to neighborhood service organizations. If Richmond District residents increase composting by 25 percent, it will give $5,000 each to Self-Help for the Elderly and Friends of the Urban Forest for programs in the district. Extending and promoting the program is crucial to meeting the City's goal of 75 percent recycling by 2010. For more information, call 355-3700 or visit www.sfenvironment.com.

Local Concert Series to Open
Congregation Emanu-El announces a new concert series, "Music at Meyer," scheduled to run from January through May. The seven-concert series, made possible by the Drs. Ben and A. Jess Shenson Music Fund, will launch on Monday, Jan. 12 with a gala recital featuring the 2003 Grammy-nominated Mezzo Frederica von Stade and SF Opera Center Director Sheri Greenawald.

All concerts will be held in the Martin Meyer Sanctuary at Temple Emanu-El, 2 Lake St., Monday evenings on Jan. 12, Feb. 9, March 8, March 29, April 19, May 10 and May 17, at 7:30 p.m. Series subscriptions are $90-$112 and single concert tickets are $15-$18. For more information, call 863-1245.

RSVP Volunteers Wanted
Are you 55 or older and looking for ways to help? Retired and Senior Volunteer Program and San Francisco School Volunteers invite you to volunteer in a public school. Help is needed in elementary, middle, and high school classrooms, at elementary schools' lunches and recesses, and after school. Tutor, mentor, help small groups of children, or even assist teachers with activities for a whole class. Volunteers must commit to helping for at least one half of a school year.

Call the RSVP Office at (415) 731-3337 to find out more about volunteer opportunities.

Student 'recognized'
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors and the San Francisco Youth Commission recently honored Robert Daniel Wong, a member of the Richmond Village Beacon of the Richmond District Neighborhood Center, Inc., at the Third Annual San Francisco Youth Recognition Day.

Wong, a senior and Beacon member at George Washington High School and a youth aide at the Roosevelt Middle School Beacon site, was selected as one of the 11 young people recognized throughout the City.