September 19, 2024 edition of the Bay Area Reporter

Russian River Pride

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New head of SFHRC

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'Legally Blonde'

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Baldwin Birthday Bash

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Vol. 54 • No. 38 • September 19-25, 2024

Mayor signs Castro Pride flag landmark ordinance

John Ferrannini

San Francisco Police Chief William Scott, left, walked along Castro Street with new Mission Station Captain Liza Johansen.

by John Ferrannini

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SFPD looks to move Castro out of Mission precinct

an Francisco Mayor London Breed gave powerful remarks as she signed legislation landmarking the late Gilbert Baker’s rainbow flag installation at Harvey Milk Plaza in the Castro during a ceremony Friday, September 13. The oversized banner at Castro and Market streets serves as a welcoming beacon to the LGBTQ neighborhood.

See page 10 >>

by John Ferrannini

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he San Francisco Police Department is considering moving the Castro neighborhood from the boundaries of its Mission Station to Park Station. The proposal would put all of the LGBTQ neighborhood under the jurisdiction of one police precinct; it is now split between the Mission and Park stations.

The idea is one of 15 proposed changes to police station boundaries throughout the city.

“By making some adjustments to our station boundaries, our officers will be more efficient and effective as they continue to do a tremendous job policing San Francisco,” Police Chief William Scott stated in a news release.

There are a number of opportunities for people to provide feedback, either by joining a focus group or at upcoming meetings in October.

There are 10 police districts in the city; the proposals affect the boundaries of eight of them.

Currently the Castro area is divided. Mission Station, the precinct of which is located at 630 Valencia Street, covers the Castro south of Market Street. Park Station, the precinct of which is located at 1899 Waller Street in Golden Gate Park, covers north of Market Street.

Evan Sernoffsky, director of strategic communications for the SFPD, told the B.A.R. September 17 that “the whole idea is we are improving police services to each district.”

“I think the Castro is one of the most visible changes – obviously a very iconic and important neighborhood in San Francisco, so we want to be sure to make sure just like everywhere we are delivering the best service possible,” he said in a phone interview. “My understanding is a lot of resources in the Mission are on the southern end and eastern end of the station boundaries, and we feel we can get resources to the Castro quicker and more efficiently from Park Station.”

The proposal was made in consultation with people on the ground, as well as experts in the field, he added.

“We consulted all the district station captains and other subject matter experts for the analysis and we will be taking this to a variety of community meetings as well, but basically, we analyzed the resources for each station, streets that officers travel down to respond quickly, as quickly as possible, for priority calls for service,” he stated.

See page 11 >>

A new oversized rainbow flag is unfurled at Castro and Market streets September 13 after the late artist Gilbert Baker’s flag installation was officially declared a city landmark.

Rick Gerharter

SF to LA AIDS/LifeCycle fundraiser to end after 2025

by John Ferrannini

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he final AIDS/LifeCycle bicycle fundraiser will be next year, according to the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the Los Angeles LGBT Center, bringing to an end an event that has brought in $300 million to the two organizations for their HIV/ AIDS services over three decades.

The reason is that it has become “financially unsustainable,” according to a news release sent to the Bay Area Reporter prior to a virtual town hall September 11.

“In the aftermath of the COVID pandemic, production costs for the 7-day event have skyrocketed, while fundraising has been on the decline,” the release stated.

Earlier this year, the 545-mile bike ride fundraiser from San Francisco to Los Angeles’ Pride weekend raised $10,984,492 between June 2-8. Next year’s goal will be to exceed the event’s record of $17.8 million, which was in 2022. The 2025 iteration will run June 1-7.

The San Francisco Standard reported last month that ridership was down this year, and with it, money raised. The outlet also reported that the AIDS/LifeCycle had to lay off some staff members.

Courtesy LA LGBT Center

The San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the Los Angeles LGBT Center announced Wednesday that the 2025 AIDS/LifeCycle bicycle fundraiser would be the last.

The decision to end the biking fundraiser means Congressmember Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) will need to clear his calendar next June if he wants to become the first U.S. senator to participate in the weeklong event.

The first member of the House to participate in the ride, back in 2014, Schiff had told the

B.A.R. earlier this year that he would like to claim that honor as a member of the U.S. Senate, as he is expected to be elected this November as California’s junior senator.

AIDS foundation officials praised the ride and what it has accomplished over the years.

See page 6 >>

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Your healthcare provider will need to do tests to monitor your health before and during treatment with BIKTARVY.

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BIKTARVY does not cure HIV-1 or AIDS. HIV-1 is the virus that causes AIDS. Do NOT take BIKTARVY if you also take a medicine that contains:  dofetilide  rifampin  any other medicines to treat HIV-1

BEFORE TAKING BIKTARVY Tell your healthcare provider if you:  Have or have had any kidney or liver problems, including hepatitis infection.  Have any other health problems.  Are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. Tell your healthcare provider if you become pregnant while taking BIKTARVY.  Are breastfeeding (nursing) or plan to breastfeed.

Talk to your healthcare provider about the risks of breastfeeding during treatment with BIKTARVY. Tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take:  Keep a list that includes all prescription and over-thecounter medicines, antacids, laxatives, vitamins, and herbal supplements, and show it to your healthcare provider and pharmacist.  BIKTARVY and other medicines may affect each other.

Ask your healthcare provider and pharmacist about medicines that interact with BIKTARVY, and ask if it is safe to take BIKTARVY with all your other medicines.

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GET MORE INFORMATION  This is only a brief summary of important information about BIKTARVY. Talk to your healthcare provider or pharmacist to learn more.  Go to BIKTARVY.com or call 1-800-GILEAD-5.  If you need help paying for your medicine, visit BIKTARVY.com for program information.

BIKTARVY, the BIKTARVY Logo, GILEAD, the GILEAD Logo, and KEEP BEING YOU are trademarks of Gilead Sciences, Inc., or its related companies. © 2024 Gilead Sciences, Inc. All rights reserved. US-BVYC-0502 07/24

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Person featured takes BIKTARVY and is compensated by Gilead.

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BIKTARVY® is a complete, 1-pill, once-a-day prescription medicine used to treat HIV-1 in certain adults. BIKTARVY does not cure HIV-1 or AIDS.

Ask your healthcare provider if BIKTARVY is right for you.

*This information is an estimate derived from the use of information under license from the following IQVIA information service: IQVIA NPA Weekly, for the period week ending 04/19/2019 through week ending 05/19/2023. IQVIA expressly reserves all rights, including rights of copying, distribution, and republication.

Please see Important Facts about BIKTARVY, including important warnings, on the previous page and at BIKTARVY.com.

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<< Open Forum

4 • Bay Area Repor ter • September 19-25, 2024

Volume 54, Number 38 September 19-25, 2024 www.ebar.com

PUBLISHER Michael M. Yamashita Thomas E. Horn, Publisher Emeritus (2013) Publisher (2003 – 2013) Bob Ross, Founder (1971 – 2003) NEWS EDITOR Cynthia Laird ARTS & NIGHTLIFE EDITOR Jim Provenzano ASSISTANT EDITORS Matthew S. Bajko • John Ferrannini CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Christopher J. Beale • Robert Brokl Brian Bromberger • Victoria A. Brownworth Philip Campbell • Heather Cassell Michael Flanagan •Jim Gladstone Liz Highleyman • Brandon Judell • Lisa Keen Philip Mayard • Laura Moreno David-Elijah Nahmod • J.L. Odom • Paul Parish Tim Pfaff • Jim Piechota • Adam Sandel Jason Serinus • Gregg Shapiro Gwendolyn Smith • Charlie Wagner Ed Walsh • Cornelius Washington • Sura Wood ART DIRECTION Max Leger PRODUCTION/DESIGN Ernesto Sopprani PHOTOGRAPHERS Jane Philomen Cleland Rick Gerharter • Gooch Jose A. Guzman-Colon • Rudy K. Lawidjaja Georg Lester • Rich Stadtmiller Christopher Robledo • Fred Rowe Shot in the City • Steven Underhill • Bill Wilson ILLUSTRATORS & CARTOONISTS Christine Smith

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These 4 for SF school board

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he San Francisco Unified School District is in trouble. From a massive deficit to looming school closures, the seven elected commissioners have their work cut out for them. In November, city voters will elect four commissioners to the Board of Education and it’s telling that Matt Alexander is the only incumbent seeking reelection. Queer Commissioner Mark Sanchez and his colleagues, Kevine Boggess and Jenny Lam, have opted not to seek reelection.

That means voters will have an opportunity to remake the board. (Gay Commissioner Phil Kim, whom Mayor London Breed appointed in August to replace former president Lainie Motamedi, is not up for election this November but will face voters in the local election thereafter.) Of the candidates who returned our endorsement questionnaire, we recommend the four below.

Matt Alexander

A former longtime teacher and principal in the district, Alexander, a straight ally who has two adult sons, now Courtesy the candidate works as a bilingual comSchool Board munity organizer. CurCommissioner rently board president, Matt Alexander returning Alexander to the body would ensure some continuity as members grapple with the fiscal and school closure issues, among other matters. He noted that the district’s track record when it comes to shuttering schools has been “deeply flawed, with a disproportionate impact on the Black community and low-income residents.”

“Because of this, I’ve been skeptical about school closures – but it’s also true that in 1996, the year I started teaching in SFUSD, we had 64,000 students, and this year we have 49,000,” he wrote.

“Fewer students means less state funding, so we have to decide if we want to keep spreading our resources thinly across over 100 campuses, or if it makes more sense to have fewer schools which are each better resourced. We should only move forward with mergers or closures if we can get the process right and avoid the negative impacts of past closures.”

He stated he would follow the lead of students, families, and educators in the process. District Superintendent Matt Wayne recently stated that the district would name schools recommended for closure in October. (He was to release the list this week.)

On support for LGBTQ students, Alexander stated that on a policy level, the district is very supportive of trans students. “We need to keep advocating to ensure that those policies are carried out in practice, every single day, in every SFUSD school,” he stated.

In terms of the district’s budget, Alexander pegged the problem largely to a structural deficit, meaning its long-term projected expenses exceed revenue. Since 2021, the district has had fiscal experts assigned by the California Department of Education, he noted. The state agency has moved the district to a “negative” certification, indicating that progress must accelerate, he stated. The state does not see SFUSD as being close to receivership, which is a good thing. Still, there are problems with the district’s ability to track budgeted, filled, and unfilled positions, and the district still does not have a functional integrated payroll system. The board must address those challenges.

Alexander has a solid sense of the issues facing the district and has institutional knowledge. He has our endorsement for reelection.

Jaime Huling

Huling is running on a slate with fellow candidates John Jersin and Parag Gupta. A bi married mom of two Courtesy the candidate children, one a second grader in the district, School board Huling would bring a candidate Jaime Huling welcome additional LGBTQ voice to the board.

She’s a former staff attorney for the National Center for Lesbian Rights and previously served on the San Francisco Human Rights Commission’s LGBTQ Advisory Committee. In January, she left the city attorney’s office to take a job as a supervising deputy city attorney with Oakland’s city attorney.

Huling stated in her questionnaire that school closures will be difficult. “I’ll push to ensure that resource alignment results in fully-staffed, fully-funded schools in historically underserved neighborhoods, especially those in the southeast,” she stated.

“As schools do close, I would work to ensure that teachers and staff at affected schools are supported in finding new roles within the district. We’ve got too many vacancies at our schools now, and filling those with experienced United Educators of San Francisco educators ensures that all of our students receive the enrichment opportunities and supportive resources that our kids deserve.” She agrees with the criteria set by the district that any closures are based on equity, excellence, and effective use of resources.

One idea she has regarding LGBTQ students is that the district may consider offering resources for trans and queer students as they prepare for college to ensure their rights are protected, especially if they are considering campuses out of state. “Helping all students pick post-graduation options that will set them up for success is a key part of college and career readiness,” she added.

Huling welcomed the addition of Kim to the school board in her endorsement questionnaire last month. “Although my family appears outwardly straight, I have come to personally identify as bi,” she stated. “I’ve spent my entire life in queer and queer-adjacent spaces as an LGBTQ-rights activist, and hope to be a resource and listening ear for LGBTQ students, faculty, and parents. Having worked at NCLR and Lambda Legal, I have connections to many experts in the field who I can reach out to as issues facing the community continue to evolve.”

Huling would bring a wealth of knowledge to the school board and she has our endorsement.

John Jersin

Jersin, a straight ally who has two kids with his wife, works at LinkedIn and stated in his endorsement questionnaire that Courtesy the candidate one of his signature projects removed bias from School board the recruiting search procandidate John Jersin cess at thousands of employers. “The ‘LinkedIn Recruiter Representative Results’ project, as covered

by MIT Tech Review and elsewhere, was a project I led to prevent discrimination based on gender identity,” he stated. “To this day, it’s the only effort of its kind on any hiring platform, and I have been vocal about the need to remove bias from other platforms.”

Jersin eventually became a parent and that’s what got him interested in seeking a school board seat,

t

he stated. “Now, as I see my kids about to spend the next 10+ years in SFUSD, I see the challenges our district faces – the financial crisis, the staffing crisis – and I see how my skills and experience are a direct fit. I would be the only member of the board with significant financial experience,” he wrote.

On the district’s staffing shortages, Jersin was direct. “We talk far too little about the staffing crisis,” he stated. “By some estimates, on the first day of class this year 20% of classrooms didn’t have a teacher.

Roughly 25% of the teachers we do have aren’t qualified to teach, and we’ve taken away credential pathways.” He added that pay must improve and that due to his experience at LinkedIn, he knows about effective recruitment methods.

Jersin, the brother-in-law of a teacher in the district, noted he’s been appointed to a panel tasked with overseeing the district’s facilities spending – another experience that sets him up to be an effective board member. “I found millions in potential savings after my very first meeting,” he stated. “After investing $5,000,000 in a central kitchen, SFUSD wasn’t using it to its full capacity. We could have and should have been producing more nutritious, better tasting meals for students, and saved loads of money.”

As a parent, Jersin stated the school closure process so far “has been unclear, and anxiety inducing.”

“While the district must consider school closures in light of decreasing enrollment, we have failed to optimize our budget before making such drastic cuts, and closures will not solve the problem on their own,” he added.

Jersin has a lot of good ideas and his fiscal background should be a benefit. We endorse him for the school board.

Parag Gupta

Gupta, a straight ally whose daughter attends a district school, was elected to the San Francisco Democratic CounCourtesy the candidate ty Central Committee this year. Now he wants School board candidate Parag to help the beleaguered Gupta school district. He’s an executive at Mercy Housing, the largest affordable housing organization in the country, with $4.4 billion in assets. (Mercy partners with Openhouse on its affordable housing for seniors, including LGBTQs.) On school closures, Gupta stated he attended two resource alignment town halls, as the sessions are being called.

“The announcement on which schools will be closed will occur in a few weeks,” he stated. “I appreciate the three criteria that have been identified: 50% equity, 25% excellence, and 25% effective use. ...

I recognize that potential school closures will result in meaningful disruptions to impacted students, teachers, and families and that is why thorough stakeholder engagement must continue.”

Gupta is committed to dramatically reducing bullying as one way the district can help LGBTQ students: “I remember being bullied because of the brown color of my skin and being called racial epithets. It hurt and made me feel like I did not belong. … If elected to the San Francisco school board, I will monitor and ensure enforcement of a zero tolerance policy concerning LGBTQ discrimination with a strong set of procedures to deal with bullying.”

Gupta brings a solid background in fiscal management that should be welcomed by the district.

We endorse him for a seat on the school board. t

City College board endorsements L

ike the San Francisco Unified School District, City College of San Francisco has had its issues with fiscal stability. While the situation is OK now, problems are on the horizon with the 2025-2026 fiscal year if enrollment doesn’t increase. This November, four seats on the college’s Board of Trustees are up for election. Trustee Shanell Williams, a bi woman, and Murrell Green, Ph.D., are not seeking reelection.

In fact, Green recently resigned and Mayor London Breed appointed Luis Zamora, a gay Latino man, to the seat, potentially giving him a leg up in the race as he was already a candidate.

Below are our recommendations.

Luis Zamora

Courtesy the candidate

Trustee Luis Zamora

Zamora was just sworn in as a trustee earlier this month. In his endorsement questionnaire, Zamora explained the funding problem. “While CCSF

has achieved short-term stability, the looming end of ‘hold harmless’ funding poses a serious threat,” he stated. “In a nutshell, aside from student enrollment, community colleges receive funding from the state based on full-time equivalent students, or FTES. As you can imagine, the number of FTES has dropped dramatically starting even right before the pandemic. The state enacted ‘hold harmless’ funding, in which it decided to fund community colleges at 2017-2018 student levels. In a sense, if community colleges were below 2017-2018 FTEs, the state would pay the difference. For several years, CCSF has been funded for more students than it has had.

That funding runs out in 2026.

“In light of these looming shortfalls, I would advocate for developing a long-term fiscal plan to align with the state’s new Student Centered Funding Formula,” he added.

Zamora also called for more transparency around the college’s budget process.

There is also the need for more students. City College is well-known for its programs, and Zamora

would like to revamp its marketing, as well as “revitalize our course offerings by working with the academic senate around innovative programs around emerging technologies like AI, reinvest in pipelines like skilled trades, and provide the support our students need,” he stated.

City College must also hire a permanent chancellor. Interim Chancellor Mitchell Bailey, a gay man, is expected to serve for about a year. Zamora outlined some of the things he’s looking for in the permanent hire. “I would be specifically looking for someone with financial acumen, someone who has strong leadership skills and a vision for CCSF outside of just stabilization, a person who should be adept at community engagement, and someone with a clear understanding of shared governance principles,” he stated.

These are good ideas, and voters should elect Zamora to a full four-year term.

See page 5 >>

Politics >>

t In Walnut Creek, Patch runs to be 1st out council member

by Matthew S. Bajko

R

unning two years ago for a seat on the Walnut Creek City Council at age 33, Laura Patch faced questions about her youthfulness and lack of political experience from voters in the suburban Contra Costa County city.

Unsurprisingly, she came up short on election night.

“Walnut Creek voters like people to serve eight, 10, 12 years on a city commission before they will support them as candidates for City Council. I got a lot of that two years ago when I tried to run,” recalled Patch, a senior product manager and process improvement specialist for the Sierra Club.

Undaunted, Patch remained civically engaged and determined to win election to one of the council’s five seats that are voted on citywide. She volunteers with the Walnut Creek Community Cleanup Crew, Walnut Creek Downtown, and Sustainable Walnut Creek.

She also sings lead with the Diablo Vista Chorus and the Sweet Adelines, a barbershop style chorus, both of which she joined in 2019. Last year, Patch became an inaugural board member of the University of San Francisco’s Women in Leadership Program for those midcareer and seeking executive and managerial roles.

Earlier this year, when an opening came up on her city’s transportation commission, Patch successfully sought appointment to the seat in May. Another change since her first council candidacy came with Patch coming out of the closet as queer. As such, should she win election this November 5, she would be the first known LGBTQ council member in the city.

“I’ve always known I am not a zero on the Kinsey scale. Recently, talking with some of my friends in the community, it felt disingenuous to say I am straight when I am not,” said Patch, who is single and started her coming out process last year.

Her sexuality has not, as of yet, been an issue in this year’s campaign. In fact, it hardly comes up, Patch told the Bay Area Reporter during a recent phone interview to discuss her candidacy. (https://www.laurapatch4wc.org/) “In our candidate forums and such, people ignore the queer issues in a fascinating way to me. I am not experiencing direct attacks; they are ignoring the issue because they don’t want to address it,” said Patch, who gave an example of what happened at a recent event. “At one forum the other candidates were asked about DEI and how the city can be more accepting of diversity. My question was how to get young people involved in the city.”

She is one of five candidates seeking the three council seats on this fall’s ballot.

Two incumbents are seeking reelection, City Councilmembers Kevin Wilk and Cindy Darling, thus the race is largely expected to come down to which of the three newcomers will win the open seat.

“People for the most part are happy

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Editorial

From page 4

Alan Wong

Wong, a straight ally, is currently the board president. He said Courtesy the candidate enrollment is up and he has Trustee Alan a more positive Wong outlook on the budget, though he acknowledged the change in state funding that’s coming in 2025-2026. “To qualify for more state funding, City College must increase enrollment in line with the new formula, freeze expenses for several years,

Courtesy the candidate

Laura Patch is running for a seat on the Walnut Creek City Council.

with Walnut Creek so there is not a lot of sentiment to get rid of people currently in office,” said Patch, a condo owner near the city’s Walden Park who lives with her Chihuahua mix breed rescue dog Sookie, named after the chef Sookie St. James from the TV show “Gilmore Girls” played by Melissa McCarthy. “I think it is really coming down to what can me and the other two non-incumbent candidates offer this city in terms of different viewpoints.”

At 35 years old, Patch would be the youngest person on the council and the only member who doesn’t live in a single-family home.

She also comes with a career in community activism versus owning or working at a business.

“For me, it is important we are making sure there is representation of different viewpoints on the city council.

Studies have proven diversity leads to better choices and decision making,” said Patch.

She is running against two straight married dads, real estate broker Brendan Moran (https://www.electbrendan.com/) and John Muir Walnut Creek Emergency Department Dr. Craig DeVinney. (https://craigdevinney. org/) Among Moran’s endorsers is gay Contra Costa County Supervisor Ken Carlson, while gay former Hayward city councilmember Kevin Dowling is among those backing DeVinney.

Patch’s endorsers include the Contra Costa Labor Council, the Democratic Party of Contra Costa County, of which she is an elected member, and gay Pinole City Councilmember Devin Murphy.

She serves as external vice president of the Contra Costa Young Democrats and secretary of the Diablo Valley Democratic Club; both groups have also endorsed her in the race.

Patch is awaiting word on if the LGBTQ Victory Fund will endorse her.

The national LGBTQ political group endorsed Murphy’s bid for a second term last December and in late August endorsed bisexual Palo Alto City Council candidate Katie Causey. It is also supporting the reelections in November of bisexual South San Francisco or both,” he stated. “Assuming no more enrollment growth, City College might not be eligible to receive increased funding until the 2031-32 fiscal year. However, if City College grows 8% in annual enrollment in the coming years, it could be eligible for increased funding as soon as the 2028-29 fiscal year.” As for enrollment, Wong stated, “As of May 14, 2024, the spring 2024 semester credit FTES has increased by 509 (or 12%) over the spring 2023 credit FTES at the same point in the semester.”

Wong stated that to further grow enrollment, “City College has increased its marketing efforts using new digital platforms and traditional methods to communicate its affordability and array of courses for potential transfer students, mid-career professionals and lifelong learners.”

City Councilmember James Coleman and gay Berkeley City Councilmember Terry Taplin.

Three other out city council candidates in Contra Costa County have also yet to be endorsed by the Victory Fund. Lesbian BART director Rebecca Saltzman and gay single dad William Ktsanes are running in El Cerrito, which already has two out council members, and gay tech leader Pablo Benavente is running for a second time in Concord to be its first out council member.

Patch grew up in the East Bay county in the leafy hamlet of Orinda on the other side of the Oakland Hills; her older brother now calls Florida home.

Her parents divorced in 2012, and her mother now resides in Danville and is retired from owning a business that sold office furniture. Her father moved to Redwood City and is an attorney and partner at the San Francisco law firm Coblentz Patch Duffy & Bass LLP. After high school Patch left to attend UCLA, graduating in 2011 with a B.A. in political science then returned to the East Bay to serve as an AmeriCorps member for a year. Afterward, she enrolled in George Washington University for graduate school, leaving in 2014 with a master of arts in communications, culture and technology.

Over the next four years she bounced around the Bay Area, living in Sunnyvale, Danville, and San Jose, until buying her condo in Walnut Creek in 2018 the same year she was hired by the Sierra Club. Based out of its Oakland headquarters, Patch has worked remotely since the start of the COVID pandemic four years ago.

Come October 21 through Election Day Patch will be on sabbatical in order to focus on her campaign. Among her platform priorities are allowing for dense infill housing developments near the city’s downtown and two BART stations, incentivizing new construction to add solar and wind installations to provide energy for tenants or residents, and providing local financial resources for affordable housing and homeownership.

“Walnut Creek is becoming a great regional center in Contra Costa County.

It offers great shopping and great dining as well as activities to do in the evening,” noted Patch. “I think it provides a safe city for youth to not participate in destructive activities, if you will. To embrace that, I think, is really important.”

Asked if she would run a third time for a council seat if she again falls short in this year’s contest, Patch told the B.A.R. she would be unlikely to do so.

“If having run twice and the voters decide I am not the right fit for council, I would look at other opportunities to serve my community,” said Patch.

For now, she is focused on connecting with residents and earning their vote.

Patch has been hitting up local farmer markets, community events, and knocking on doors to promote her candidacy.

“For me, it is getting out into the community and talking to voters,” she told the B.A.R. when asked what she sees as her path to victory this year. t

September 19-25, 2024 • Bay Area Repor ter • 5

Let’s talk cannabis.

CASTRO • MARINA • SOMA C10-0000523-LIC; C10-0000522-LIC; C10-0000515-LIC

Barry Schneider Attorney at Law

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But problems are likely for this popular program, as Wong, a former legislative aide for former District 4 supervisor Gordon Mar, stated the city has cut back on its funding. He stated that if reelected, he would continue negotiating with the city to preserve the Free City College funding.

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<< Community News

6 • Bay Area Repor ter • September 19-25, 2024

t

Gay man takes helm at SFHRC after director resigns

by John Ferrannini

S

an Francisco Mayor London Breed named a gay man as acting executive director of the city’s human rights commission late last week as allegations of potential wrongdoing in her administration sent shockwaves through the mayoral race.

Mawuli Tugbenyoh was tapped as acting executive director September 13, according to a news release. He’d most recently been deputy director in the San Francisco Department of Human Resources, where he helped with reforming the city’s hiring process, according to the release. He is a co-chair of the Alice B. Toklas LGBTQ Democratic Club, which solely endorsed Breed in the mayor’s race.

“My focus will be on rebuilding the community’s trust through transparent, accountable actions that allow us to advance the transformative work of the Human Rights Commission,” Tugbenyoh stated. (SFHRC didn’t return the Bay Area Reporter’s request for an interview.)

The news came after the San Francisco Standard reported September 12 that Sheryl Davis, who first went on administrative leave and then resigned September 13, signed off on $1.5 million in contracts with a local nonprofit, Collective Impact, run by a man with whom she shared a home address and a car. Davis was required to disclose this and allegedly didn’t.

A San Francisco Chronicle investigation also revealed alleged financial mismanagement at the city agency, reporting that people were overpaid tens of thousands of dollars, that expenses were approved without documentation, and that one nonprofit director received a reimbursement for a $10,000 Martha’s Vineyard rental.

A Standard reporter last Friday

Courtesy Mawuli Tugbenyoh

Mawuli Tugbenyoh has been named the acting director of the San Francisco Human Rights Commission.

asked Breed – who has described Davis as a friend – if she knew about this relationship. The mayor said, “Not right now, not right now.”

During an editorial board meeting September 16, the B.A.R. asked Breed when, then, could she answer that question.

“Right now, everything is under investigation,” she said. “There’s only been one reporter that has been as aggressive, in my face, the way I was treated. I would have been happy to take him outside and have a conversation and answer a question but he was completely out of line. I have said I am very uncomfortable, you know, with people violating my personal space, and he was out of line and he asked me the same question at least four times and it was just inappropriate for a reporter. I’ve never had – other than one, kind of, gotcha reporter, get in my face like that since I’ve been mayor. I just want to say that for the record.”

Breed added, “I will answer whatever question is appropriate for me to answer based on the fact that this thing is under investigation. It involves personnel issues, it involves contracts and other things. It is definitely important that I don’t say anything that’s going to put this investigation in jeopardy. And when it is appropriate and what is appropriate for me to answer, I will do so at that time because I have no problem in answering it. … I have known and worked with Sheryl Davis for many, many years, many, many years – I consider her a friend and have always appreciated the incredible work that she has done to support and uplift community.”

On September 17, Breed issued a statement about Davis and her male friend. “I was aware that Sheryl Davis and James Spignola were very close.

That’s why I made it clear to former Director Davis on multiple occasions that she needed to wall herself off from all decisions related to Collective Impact. While protective measures were put in place, they weren’t implemented soon enough or to the extent necessary. As mayor, I take full responsibility because the buck stops with me.”

A main issue has been Davis’ oversight of the Dream Keeper Initiative, a priority program that Breed started in response to the police murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis back in 2020.

The Dream Keeper Initiative is a citywide effort launched in 2021 to reinvest $60 million annually into San Francisco’s diverse Black communities, according to its website. The initiative was housed in the human rights commission office, with Davis overseeing day-to-day operations.

“This really hits hard,” Breed told the B.A.R. “After the tragic death of George Floyd, there was an uprising

not just in this city – in this country – to do something. There were so many people and organizations that promised change and support to the African American community and San Francisco did something. We did something, and I’m proud of that work and of what that could mean and has meant in terms of the investments and the success of all the good things that it’s done, but I am devastated over the fact that now, it is in jeopardy and there are some real concerns over the mismanagement of the program.”

Breed said before the revelations she had already ordered a hold on further resources going to Dream Keeper “until there was a full and thorough and transparent investigation to ensure the public these dollars are being used for the purpose intended.”

Peskin, Farrell call for investigations

Most of Breed’s top opponents in November’s mayoral election wasted no time pouncing on the situation.

One challenger, Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin, announced his intention to hold hearings on Dream Keeper and related matters at the Government Audit and Oversight Committee.

“Millions of taxpayer dollars are being siphoned off and lining the pockets of corrupt administrators and their associates, instead of being put to work to strengthen our neighborhoods and improve the quality of life for the people of San Francisco,” Peskin stated. “With news of each scandal, the public trust in local government erodes further. This type of corruption has plagued this administration: I’m calling for immediate accountability.”

Former interim mayor Mark Farrell, who is also running, called for a federal investigation.

“For $120 million in public resources that should have been used to address our officer staffing and public safety crisis, we now know that funds went to pay for a home rental in Martha’s Vineyard, cigars, bourbon, and motorcycle rentals in Lake Tahoe, and to services provided to residents in Oakland,” Farrell stated. “There are now multiple reported, reoccuring examples of the misuse of public resources and cronyism. Enough is enough.”

A recent Chronicle article detailed that Urban Ed Academy was awarded $1.2 million under the program to place Black teachers in public schools, It turned out that after three years, only five people were placed in San Francisco schools. Most of the people who got jobs through the program ended up working for youth-focused nonprofits or teaching in Oakland, the paper reported.

Candidate Daniel Lurie, an heir to the Levi’s fortune who later became founder and CEO of the nonprofit Tipping Point Community, tied the scandal to separate allegations about a Farrell mailer in support of Proposition D and a Chronicle story about his actions in support of an effort to open school yards on weekends.

“In a matter of hours these two insiders have eroded public trust for years to come,” Lurie stated. “It’s time to turn the page on corruption in San Francisco. Our residents and taxpayers deserve accountable, effective leadership – no more backroom deals, conflicts of interest, or pay-to-play schemes. We won’t get the change we need by replacing one corrupt insider with another. They spent their careers building up a broken system that they’ve been caught exploiting, repeatedly. It’s sheer arrogance for them to claim that they alone can fix it.” t

Supes panel supports transit board nominee Chen

by Matthew S. Bajko

G

ay transit advocate Mike Chen is closer to being seated on the oversight body for San Francisco’s transportation agency after a supervisors committee voted Monday to recommend that he be confirmed. The full Board of Supervisors is set to take up the matter at its September 24 meeting.

Chen’s appointment to the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency Board of Directors has been pending since May. Mayor London Breed had nominated Chen to succeed Lydia So, whom she had named to fill a vacancy on the city’s planning commission. Chen would ensure the transit body has both LGBTQ and Chinese representation on it if confirmed to fill out So’s term through March 1.

Its last out commissioner, gay Mission cafe and event space owner Manny Yekutiel, resigned in the fall. The mayor appoints the seven members of the SFMTA board, while the supervisors have confirmation power over her nominees.

<<

AIDS/LifeCycle

From page 1

“AIDS/LifeCycle has existed as a beacon of strength and hope for people living with HIV and LGBTQ+ communities for more than 30 years,” stated Tyler TerMeer, Ph.D., a gay man who is the CEO of the foundation. “As a person living with HIV, participating in this event for 16 years has been life-changing in the best ways – as it has for so many other past and present participants.

“We have built an incredible community, and supported so much more than an annual bicycle ride

Screengrab from SFGovTV

Mike Chen spoke at the Board of Supervisors Rules Committee Monday, September 16.

The supervisors’ Rules Committee delayed voting on it in late July in order for Chen to meet with Chinatown leaders and others. Board President Aaron Peskin, who represents the historic neighborhood as the District 3 super-

– we have made an impact on the HIV epidemic,” TerMeer added.

“The work of SFAF and the center remains as important as ever, and we look forward to working with the AIDS/LifeCycle community to find meaningful ways to continue the ride’s legacy.”

Los Angeles LGBT Center CEO Joe Hollendoner, who is also a gay man and previously was CEO of the AIDS foundation, stated “funds from this event helped change the trajectory of the AIDS epidemic.

No longer is HIV the death sentence it was when the ride began thanks to the advancement in treatments,

visor, had requested the postponement due to “radio silence” from Chinatown transit advocates on Chen’s appointment.

Peskin is one of the three members of the Rules Committee along with District 10 Supervisor Shamann Walton, the rules chair, and District 11 Supervisor Ahsha Safaí its vice chair. (Peskin and Safaí are both running against Breed in this year’s mayoral race.)

With Walton absent from the committee’s September 16 meeting, Safaí served as acting chair. He and Peskin both voted in support of seeing Chen become an SFMTA board member.

Safaí told Chen he believes he “will do the job to the utmost of your ability, so I am happy to support your nomination today.”

Peskin thanked Chen for meeting with Chinatown leaders, whom he said had recommended afterward that he approve his nomination, “and I am ready to do that today.”

Chen had told the B.A.R. he had spent the last several weeks meeting with various Chinatown representatives, from residents and transit advocates to

business owners and nonprofit leaders.

At the hearing, he noted he had “been very busy” during August reaching out to various groups in the neighborhood.

“I have committed to the groups to provide consultation,” Chen said on the myriad transit issues of concern to them.

Safaí requested of Chen that he also confer with the Transport Workers Union Local 250A, which represents Muni operators.

“Not many commissioners interface with them or talk with them, so I encourage you to reach out to them,” he said.

Chen also had strong support from groups concerned about street safety issues, such as Kid Safe SF, Streets For People and Streetsblog SF, which has published editorials written by Chen.

Walk San Francisco also has called for Chen’s confirmation.

“We believe Mike Chen will be a leader that prioritizes the City’s Vision Zero policy and efforts, and focused especially on vulnerable populations like seniors, children, and people with disabilities. He has a strong dedication to reliable and comfortable public transportation, which we believe is absolutely

necessary to end severe and fatal traffic crashes,” wrote Jodie Medeiros, the organization’s executive director, in a September 12 letter to the Rules Committee.

Chen, 33, is a data engineer at Coda Project Inc. He and his boyfriend live in a one-car household in Lower Pacific Heights along the Van Ness corridor.

A member of the SFMTA Citizens’ Advisory Council since January 2020, Chen highlighted his role as a transit advocate during his successful campaign for a seat on the Democratic County Central Committee on the March 5 primary ballot. He then was elevated to the role of director of internal operations for the governing body of the San Francisco Democratic Party.

The DCCC members voted to support Chen’s SFMTA board nomination at their July 24 meeting. It passed with 21 members in support, three against and eight abstaining.

He needs at least six votes from the 11 supervisors to be confirmed. If seated, Chen will need to be reappointed next year to a full four-year term as an SFMTA commissioner and again go before the board for a confirmation vote. t

and new cases of HIV are declining thanks to interventions like PrEP.” “We are incredibly proud of the impact the ride has had on our local communities and the HIV epidemic nationally,” Hollendoner added. “With every mile ridden and every dollar raised, the AIDS/LifeCycle community has brought us closer to the end of AIDS. I could not be more grateful to the AIDS/LifeCycle community for all they have done for the clients served by the center and SFAF.” In a statement made briefly before the town hall, an AIDS foundation spokesperson stated, “SFAF and the center remain committed to HIV

services and will continue to explore ways to fund those services. At this time, we do not know what our future fundraising efforts will include, but we wish to preserve the legacy of ALC and hope that Riders and Roadies will remain engaged with the agencies.”

Cleve Jones, who co-founded the AIDS foundation back in the early days of the epidemic, said AIDS/ LifeCycle ending is part of a much larger trend.

“I am very concerned that HIV/ AIDS organizations across the country face some very serious challenges and significant corporate and

philanthropic partners have reduced or ended their support in San Francisco and across the country,” he said in a phone call.

For example, the Levi Strauss Foundation announced last year it was “winding down its HIV/AIDS grantmaking program by the end of 2023, reallocating efforts and playing a pioneering role in supporting other critical issues of the day – namely in the areas of democracy, reproductive justice and immigrant rights” after working on HIV/AIDS since 1982.

See page 10 >>

Our past doesn’t define

our future.

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) from your past — like abuse, neglect, or family substance use or incarceration — can cause toxic stress that impacts your life and relationships today.

They don’t determine what happens next.

You can learn how to live beyond ACEs.

Start healing at livebeyondCA.org.

© 2024 Office of the California Surgeon General. Funded under contract #2022-238-OSG.

<< Business News

t Sacto couple creates online LGBTQ marketplace 8 • Bay Area Repor ter • September 19-25, 2024

by Matthew S. Bajko

W

ith the upcoming holidays fast approaching, shoppers in need of gifts who also want to support LGBTQ businesses can utilize the online marketplace at the website Famm. Its owners have curated a list of nearly 400 LGBTQ-owned companies from across the U.S. Among those featured are several food and beverage brands based in the Bay Area, such as Sincere Cider, Equator Coffees, Cowgirl Creamery, Kokak Chocolates, and The Chaga Company. As for queerowned home goods purveyors, there are candle company Matthew Dean Stewart from Brooklyn, New York, and Humboldt House that features items from Chicago-based makers and artisans.

Then there is the online gift boutique Fruitloots based in West Hollywood, California. The queer-owned company curates gift boxes filled with goods made by LGBTQ+ and people of color producers. Not only does Famm provide links to the websites of the different brands it highlights, it also posts to the blog section of its own website interviews with various company founders.

“With us, we really felt it was important to be more intentional in where we are spending our dollars, and we wanted to spend our dollars with the queer community,” said Famm coowner Cat Perez.

Another “big part,” noted Perez, was sharing the stories of the LGBTQ business owners. The write-ups offer visitors to Famm a way to better familiarize themselves with the LGBTQ entrepreneurs.

They were sparked by Marianna Di Regolo, Famm’s other co-owner who is also married to Perez, often doing her own online searching to learn more about the brains behind a business.

“It is an opportunity to share more info about them,” explained Di Regolo to the Bay Area Reporter in a joint interview with her wife to discuss their own backstories and business plans for Famm.

They include the planned launch later this year of the Famm Connect app, intended as a business-to-busi-

Famm

Famm co-founders and spouses Cat Perez, left, and Marianna Di Regolo look to expand their listings of LGBTQ-owned businesses on their website.

ness match-making service for LGBTQ entrepreneurs. It is an extension to the list of LGBTQ+ service providers that can already be found on the Famm website.

Nearing 100 featured under the website’s “services” page, the LGBTQ providers run the gamut from offering financial services and interior decorating to home organizing and family building.

Eying to go live with the app in October or November, the couple is already compiling an early access sign up list for LGBTQ-plus identified professionals who want to use it.

“Really what it is – I don’t like using this but it is essentially what it is – is the queer LinkedIn so to speak,” said Perez. “It is where LGBTQ-plus professionals or business owners sign up and connect with each other in a more intentional way. It was born out of the conversations and connections we have made meeting these entrepreneurs and professionals while building Famm.”

Founders have Bay Area roots

The queer couple, who have a 3-year-old son, Nico, whom Perez gave birth to, is trying to have a second child, whom Di Regolo will give birth to hopefully next year. They recently moved out of downtown Sacramento into a larger home in Gold River in anticipation of growing their family.

Perez, 43, who is Puerto Rican and Korean, grew up in New Jersey and moved to San Francisco nearly 20 years ago after graduating from Adelphi University on Long Island with a B.A. in art. One of her first jobs was with Williams Sonoma as a brand packaging designer.

Di Regolo, 37, who also identifies as pansexual, is Iraqi and Irish and was born in San Diego and grew up in Sacramento. After enrolling in San Diego State University and finding the LGBTQ community there wanting, she transferred to San Francisco State University, graduating in 2019 with a B.S. in business administration and marketing.

Fifteen years ago, the women had first met at the now-closed lesbian bar The Lexington Club that had been on a side street in the Mission district. Di Regolo had dated a friend of Perez’s and they often ended up at the same events.

By 2017, they were both working for the technology platform HealthSherpa, which Perez co-founded.

Two years later Di Regolo left her job with the health care company and began dating Perez.

In 2021, the couple married and, in 2023, they quit their corporate jobs to focus full time on building out Famm.

The business name is a nod to LGBTQ people forming chosen families due to being estranged from their

birth families. The couple has created their own queer family with the people they have befriended in the Sacramento region.

“Just having that family, that queer family, is really, really important to us.

We wanted to build that in our business,” said Di Regolo.

She was adopted into an Italian and Lithuanian family who five years earlier had adopted her brother. Their father grew up in San Francisco and had family in the East Bay. At age 19, Di Regolo met her birth mother who now lives in Texas and has four sons with her husband. She has never met her birth father, who met her birth mother in Europe and followed her back to Southern California, where she grew up and he now lives in San Diego.

Perez recalled having a “pretty messy” coming out process with her religious family – her dad was raised Catholic, while her mom began taking her and her siblings to a Korean church – and not speaking to her parents for a time. (They are now the closest they’ve ever been, she said.)

“Getting older as queer folks, finding community or re-finding that was important to us,” said Perez.

Those familial relationships and experiences led them to feel Famm was a perfect name for their business venture.

“We want to build support for each other within this idea,” said Perez of the couple’s goal with Famm. “We want to build a foundation here for queer folks and LGBTQ-plus folks to create their own table, and not just have a seat at the table, to build up wealth and a legacy.”

As for how they earn an income via Famm, the couple charges a fee – $15 per month or $150 per year – to the LGBTQ service providers who want to have a page featuring them on the Famm website. (The brands selling products do not pay a similar fee.)

“These pages are much, much more robust than the brands pages,” said Di Regolo, adding they also offer quarterly virtual meetups for the service

providers to connect. “It has been really fun and really rewarding. A lot of service providers have been connecting afterwards, becoming friends or partnering and buying from each other. That has been really cool.”

Their aim is to sign up at least 100 service providers by the end of the year. When the Famm Connect app goes live, it will be free to use at first.

But the couple is looking to monetize it in 2025, with a goal of bringing in upward of $25,000 after the first six months of operation.

As for the brands they feature, they do not earn a commission or share in the proceeds from sales made by customers who find them via their Famm listing. The couple will reach out to business owners about adding them to the website and welcomes companies to reach out to them about being included.

“Any e-commerce brand selling a product interested in being listed, or a service provider who is interested in getting their own page on Famm, they can literally go to our website and click the ‘get listed’ button,” noted Perez.

Famm was born from the couple hunting online for LGBTQ-owned companies to support and wanting to make finding such businesses easier for everyone.

“We wanted to see it in the world and use it ourselves,” said Perez.

One idea they have tossed around is to host summits or more regional in-person events for the business owners listed on Famm to meet each other as well as Perez and Di Regolo, who have connected with most of them only virtually. As for opening their own Famm brick-and-mortar shop stocked with goods made by the LGBTQ makers, the couple hasn’t made it a part of their business plan.

“That is an amazing idea,” said Di Regolo, “and would be so cool. But it isn’t something we pictured.” t Got a tip on LGBTQ business news? Call Matthew S. Bajko at (415) 829-8836 or email m.bajko@ ebar.com.

Festive Russian River Pride returns compiled by Cynthia Laird

Pride After Dark, a dance party, takes place at 9 p.m. at the River Theater, 16135 Main Street. Tickets start at $28.52.

Finally, an intergenerational brunch will be held Sunday, July 22, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Solar Punk Farms, 15015 Armstrong Woods Road. Tickets start at $17.85.

For more information on Russian River Pride events, go to russianriverpride.org.

T

he annual Russian River Pride parade and festival returns this weekend to Guerneville, with parties and other events celebrating the LGBTQ community. The parade starts Saturday, September 21, at noon at the intersection of River Road and Mill Street.

Following the parade, the festival will be held in the parking lot of Lark Drugs, 16251 Main Street, featuring DJs, drag performers, and musicians, a news release stated. This year’s theme is “River Proud.”

“We are so excited to once again celebrate this wonderful festival in Guerneville,” stated Dan Samson, co-chair of the Russian River Pride Board of Directors. “Guerneville has such a rich history of acceptance and inclusion of all people, and it’s long been a home to a thriving LGBTQ+ community. This pride festival will be a special opportunity to recognize and celebrate everyone who contributed to that amazing legacy.

While this is a moment to celebrate our past, it’s also an important opportunity to look forward to the future.”

Due to a groundswell of dedication and passion for Pride in the community, a group of volunteers reintroduced this local, small-town parade to Guerneville last year, with a mission to help support the Lower Russian River Area, the release stated. That mission is supported by local leaders, among them Sonoma

SF LeatherWalk coming up

Gooch

Drag nuns from the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence rode in last year’s Russian River Pride parade.

County District 5 Supervisor Lynda Hopkins, who will be speaking at the Pride festival, according to the release.

Last year’s event raised $32,500 for grants to local nonprofit organizations as they strive to make headway after the COVID pandemic.

“Like many communities throughout California, this region is still struggling in many ways to recover from the pandemic,” stated Buddy Russell, co-chair of Russian River Pride. “This celebration is about uplifting the LGBTQ+ community, but it’s so much more than that. We were so honored to be able to support a number of great local organizations last

year and we are looking forward to doing more of the same this year.”

Other activities taking place include Prom Redux on Friday, September 20, at 7 p.m. at Surrey Resort, located at 16590 CA Highway 116. DJ Rotten Robbie will be spinning. Tickets start at $39.19.

After the festival on Saturday, people can head over to the R3 resort for a Pride Variety Show from 6:30 to 9 p.m. The R3 Hotel is located at 16390 Fourth Street at Mill Street. Tickets start at $12.51.

(The R3 Hotel, one of the last LGBTQfocused resorts in Guerneville, was put up for sale in June for $4.564 million, as the Bay Area Reporter noted.)

The San Francisco Leather & LGBTQ Cultural District will hold the annual LeatherWalk, Sunday, September 22. The event kicks off Leather Week ahead of the Folsom Street Fair on Sunday, September 29.

This is the fourth year that the cultural district has overseen the event. The walk starts at 11:30 a.m. outside San Francisco City Hall, on the Polk Street steps. Participants then proceed through the South of Market neighborhood, ending at SF Eagle Plaza for the Leather Pride Fest.

The event is free, but people can opt to walk as a fundraiser or join a team.

The cultural district is raising funds for its Leather Legacy Landmarks sidewalk plaque initiative, which honors 77 “iconic and sometimes raucous SOMA locations that began serving our community

in the 1960s,” a news release stated. The district has a goal of raising $22,000 to install the first 17 plaques, all on Folsom Street, the release noted.

For more information, go to leatherwalk.org.

Local LGBTQ+ Media Giving Day October 8

News Is Out, a collaboration of six LGBTQ+ media outlets representing more than 250 collective years of experience covering the community, is launching the first Local LGBTQ+ Media Giving Day Tuesday, October 8, during LGBTQ History Month. Interested people don’t have to wait until next month and can donate now, a news release stated.

The first gay publication in the U.S. started 100 years ago this year – 1924’s Friendship & Freedom, produced by Chicagoan Henry Gerber and his peers, the release noted. The newsletter was shut down by police after just two issues. Later publications included ONE, Mattachine Review, The Ladder, Gay Community News, and hundreds of other LGBTQ+ media over the past 50-plus years, including the Bay Area Reporter, which started 53 years ago in April 1971. Currently, according to News See page 11 >>

t

Obituaries>>

September 19-25, 2024 • Bay Area Repor ter • 9

Gay former SF Examiner publisher Ted Fang dies

by Cynthia Laird

T

ed “Teddy” Fang, a gay man who was the former publisher of the San Francisco Examiner and other newspapers, died September 9 in his Dolores Heights home. He was 61.

Mr. Fang is survived by Tony Thompson, his husband of 27 years, and his mother, Florence Fang.

An obituary prepared by the family did not indicate a cause of death, but a spokesperson said it was due to natural causes. It noted that Mr. Fang, who was born on March 13, 1963 in San Francisco and lived in the city all his life, was a brilliant student. He attended Lowell High School in San Francisco and UC Berkeley, where he was an ethnic studies graduate.

Mr. Fang became a leader in the Bay Area’s newspaper industry. He negotiated the 1999 acquisition of the San Francisco Examiner, and was pioneering as the nation’s first Asian Pacific American publisher of a major metropolitan daily. He oversaw the difficult transition of the daily from a paid to a free circulation business model while sustaining its ability to be an avenue for some of the community’s major voices, the obituary noted. Mr. Fang was publisher of one of the nation’s largest free distributions of neighborhood newspapers, the San Francisco Independent and San Mateo Independent, the obituary added.

He served as editor and publisher of AsianWeek newspaper in the 2000s, according to his LinkedIn profile, and also worked at the paper as circulation manager and general manager from 1980-1984.

Thomas E. Horn, a gay man who is the former publisher of the Bay Area Reporter, called Mr. Fang “a dear friend.”

“When Bob Ross died in 2003 and I was left at the helm of the B.A.R., I turned to Ted for advice,” Horn wrote in an email, referring to the founding publisher of the LGBTQ newspaper.

“Ted was publisher of AsianWeek.

He was so gracious in walking me through all the nuts and bolts of newspaper publishing. I will be forever grateful. I will miss him enormously.”

Returning to his family’s Chinatown roots, in 2023, Mr. Fang published the archives of AsianWeek. com, 30 years of print and online content from the paper, dubbed the “Voice of Asian Pacific America.” The weekly was started by his father; Mr. Fang published it with his mother and brother, James, from 1979 to 2009.

Community work

Mr. Fang is also known for his many contributions to the city and communities of San Francisco, the obituary noted. Mr. Fang was focused on improving the health and well-being of his community. Most recently,

2024 Election Endorsements Begin September 5!

Courtesy the Fang family

Ted Fang owned and published the San Francisco Examiner newspaper.

he advocated for urban farming at federal and state levels as president of the San Francisco Farm Bureau and, since 2014, directed the Bayview’s Florence Fang Community Farm – the city’s largest sustainable farm. The Florence Fang Community Farm is the city’s first farm certified by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as a model for national efforts in creating food sustainability, the obituary noted.

In 1990, Mr. Fang chaired the old Mobilization Against AIDS, a California-based national advocacy and lobbying organization working to safeguard civil rights and to assure adequate treatment for all HIV-infected individuals, the obituary stated. He went on to co-found SF Hep B Free Campaign in 2007, enabling Asian Pacific American communities to test themselves for hepatitis B. In 2010, the organization launched a new ad campaign, “Which One Deserves to Die,” which gained national recognition when it was featured on PBS NewsHour, in the New York Times, and was a winner in the 2010 CLIO Healthcare Awards. The success of this campaign encouraged other cities to launch similar hepatitis B awareness campaigns, the obituary stated.

Mr. Fang was the second son of the late John and Florence Fang, a devoted brother to the late former 24-year BART director James Fang and his wife Daphne; brother the late Douglas Fang and his wife Angela; and uncle to his nephew Sean and niece Allison.

“The family shares their deep appreciation for the many who inspired Ted’s devotion to making life better for all communities and neighborhoods,” the obituary stated.

Services will be held Saturday, September 21, at Third Baptist Church, 1399 McAllister Street in San Francisco. Viewing will be from 8 to 10 a.m., with the service taking place from 10 a.m. to noon. Attendees are urged to wear masks due to the ongoing COVID and flu season. t

Obituaries >> Donald Bruce Chambers June 26, 1946 – July 22, 2024

Donald Bruce Chambers died peacefully and gracefully at home in the arms of his loving spouse, Patrick Horay, on July 22, 2024. His courage and calm nature endured throughout the 30-year challenge of progressive Parkinson’s disease. He was 78.

Born in Quincy, Massachusetts, he held degrees from the University of Virginia and his Ph.D. was from UC Berkeley. He retired from the UCSF Center for AIDS Prevention Services.

Moving to Berkeley, California in 1976, he met Horay, his love, and began a 48-year relationship that

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embraced family and friends. Their home and garden were a sanctuary and gathering place for many celebrations, retreats, and neighborhood events. They created a chosen extended family, and Don worked actively and served on the board of directors of both the Metropolitan Community Church of San Francisco and New Spirit Community Church of Berkeley.

In addition to his spouse, Don leaves behind his brothers, Richard Chambers and spouse Larry Deymude; and Tim and Christina Chambers; (Ken Chambers preceded him in death in 2001); and a special goddaughter, Katie Martin-Stutzman and her daughter, Kiera.

A Zoom memorial will be held.

Please consider a donation to pdactive.org in honor of Don.

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10 • Bay Area Repor ter • September 19-25, 2024

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Terry Asten Bennett, said she was grateful for the role she played in the landmarking.

“I am so grateful to have been part of the process in getting us to this point,” she stated to the B.A.R. after the ceremony. “I love our community and want the whole world to know there are places where you will be accepted and free to be who you are and love who you love. I worked with our community to raise this now landmarked beacon of hope. I am so grateful to everyone who made this day possible.”

As the B.A.R. previously reported, Baker co-created the first rainbow flag with friends Lynn Segerblom, a straight ally who now lives in Southern California, and James McNamara, a gay man who died of AIDS-related complications in 1999. Baker and his friends came up with a rainbow flag design that had eight colored stripes, with one version also sporting a corner section of stars to mimic the design of the American flag. It debuted at the 1978 San Francisco Pride parade.

“It really is a three-person, not a oneperson, flag making. Everybody played their part and then some,” Segerblom told the B.A.R. in a 2018 phone interview from her home in Torrance, southwest of Los Angeles.

Baker would go on to eliminate the stars and reduce the number of colored stripes to six. Over the ensuing years, Baker turned that standard six-color banner into an international symbol of LGBTQ rights.

Baker died unexpectedly in 2017 at the age of 65, and the foundation created in his name donated a segment from one of the first rainbow flags that flew in front of San Francisco City Hall during the 1978 parade to the GLBT museum, where it is now on public display.

The historical society is looking for a site for a larger, permanent museum.

Wiener, who helped appropriate state funds for this purpose, said in his remarks, “We are going to ... create a much larger and amazing LGBT history museum in this neighborhood.”

In July, the Board of Supervisors accepted a $5.5 million grant from the state for an LGBTQ history museum but finding a site has been elusive, so far. Wiener had secured the state funds, which have a deadline of March 1, 2026 to be spent, as the B.A.R. reported.

LGBTQ leaders and the GLBT Historical Society would like the museum to be located in the Castro, potentially kitty-corner from the flagpole site on the property of a long vacant commercial building. t

footing post-COVID. “Our fixed costs to ride have skyrocketed while participation and fundraising have not kept pace,” TerMeer said. “In recent years, too much of those costs have been going to the production costs.”

According to TerMeer, between 2019 and 2023, the cost of producing the event doubled. He did not provide dollar amounts.

“To keep ALC in its current form would result in us thinking about a fundraising cost that is much higher than the industry standard or is even ethical for events like ours,” TerMeer said.

consistently declined to a point where it is no longer financially sustainable for us to continue producing the ride.”

$3,500 this year.

TerMeer stressed that this isn’t the end of “our collective fight for this community.” He said that having been involved in AIDS/LifeCycle has been life-changing.

“In short, I think this ride and experience has really helped me find a sense of belonging and pride and acceptance over the years and I’m just so grateful to be in this community,” he said.

Gilberto Mendoza Jr. stated in the webinar chat, “It’s been my pleasure to help out with this ride since CAR3,” referring to the old California AIDS Ride, which the LifeCycle supplanted. “We all have done so much to help end HIV/ AIDS. For that I am truly grateful. I will always keep in my heart all those who have stepped up and did something. I participated each year to honor my two partners who passed away during the early years. I will always honor their memory and all that we have done to help others and remember those no longer with us. As a HIV+ person for at least since 1987, I am thankful that I have stayed healthy to have been able to help others. I will certainly miss the LOVE BUBBLE.” t

Free City College, Chisti has some experience that will be vital as the college works to renegotiate its agreement with San Francisco officials. “As the former Free City analyst at the Department of Children, Youth, and Their Families, I have an extensive understanding of this program and if reelected I will use my expertise to lead the negotiation process to protect the Free City program for our community,”

she stated in her questionnaire.

She added that while the program covers tuition, other expenses are not included. “Free City only covers $46 per unit for students that are SF residents and meet the California one-year and one-day residency requirements per education code for in-state tuition fees,” she explained.

“We must continue to address basic needs for students and total cost of attendance,

such as expenses for books, transportation, food, and housing.”

The search for a permanent chancellor will be critical, she stated.

“City College has had 10 Chancellors in 12 years, which has led to instability at the college,” Chisti noted. “A long-term commitment to City College’s success is

From page 1

Rick Gerharter

San Francisco Mayor London Breed signed legislation designating the oversized rainbow flag and flagpole as a city landmark during a September 13 ceremony at the GLBT Historical Society Museum.

Mandelman, a gay man who represents District 8 – including the Castro – on the Board of Supervisors and who got the landmarking proposal passed this year, thanked his predecessor in office for spearheading the idea.

“It was Jeff Sheehy who started us down this path in 2017, and Jeff has been dogged and persistent in ensuring we do this right and so thank you, Jeff, for that,” Mandelman said.

Sheehy, also a gay man, was friends with Baker and was appointed supervisor by the late mayor Ed Lee in January 2017. He lost to Mandelman in a special election for the District 8 seat a year later.

Sheehy told the Bay Area Reporter after the event that his involvement goes back even further than that – to when the flagpole was first installed.

“Gilbert was my friend. I helped Gilbert put up the flag back in 1997,” Sheehy said. “I was president of the [Harvey] Milk [LGBTQ Democratic] Club, and he and I were wandering the Castro Street Fair and we saw [thenmayor] Willie Brown and so Gilbert gave his pitch on the idea.”

Brown was in favor of massive public art projects in the city at that time, Sheehy said.

“He wanted San Francisco to be like Paris,” Sheehy said.

Brown was initially scheduled to attend the ceremony but could not make it.

Baker’s flag was installed November 8, 1997 – the 20th anniversary of Milk’s historic election to the Board of Supervisors, which made him the first openly gay elected official in California.

Milk and then-mayor George Moscone were assassinated in November 1978, just 11 months after Milk took office.

AIDS/LifeCycle

From page 6

“As I understand it, individual contributions only make up less than 5% of San Francisco AIDS Foundation’s total revenue with major events like AIDS/ LifeCycle and AIDS Walk and the various galas returning less on investment, it seems to me like we all need to step up, so that’s exactly why my birthday party is a fundraiser,” Jones continued.

Jones was referring to his October 11 birthday bash at the Hibernia, which will mark the debut of the Cleve Jones Community Fund, which will help support the AIDS foundation and the AIDS Memorial Quilt, which he also co-founded. It takes place on Jones’ 70th birthday.

Asked how much his birthday fundraiser would be able to come up with, Jones said it won’t solve the shortfall but would “be a start.”

Virtual town hall

At the town hall webinar, which officials said was viewed by just under 900 people, TerMeer and Hollendoner

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to access bathrooms, sports teams that corresponded to their gender identities, and gender-affirming care for minors.

Beal had to blink back the tears as he intoned “even though the narrowminded bigots there are saying ‘you can’t fly that flag,’ the people of San Francisco, here, are telling them, ‘yes, you can.’”

Gay state Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) who has faced death threats and false accusations from antiLGBTQ forces, as the B.A.R. previously reported, also reflected on this point.

“They’re saying anything that represents our community is something harmful to children,” he said. “When it’s in fact the opposite – it’s about saving the lives of our kids.”

Mandelman and Beal thanked the late Tom Taylor, the keeper of the key to the Castro flagpole, and his late husband Dr. Jerry Goldstein, for their years of support. Taylor died in 2020, as the B.A.R. reported, and Goldstein passed away in 2023.

Taylor’s niece, Angela Traeger, 48, was at the ceremony, and stated to the B.A.R. afterward her memories of her late uncle in an email.

“My memories of Gilbert and Tom were mainly in Tom’s shop on Isis St.,” she stated. “Gilbert walked in one day while I was working with Tom and his friend, an honorary auntie of mine, on my wedding invitations. The wedding invitations included dried ferns and a sheer baby blue cloth wrapping. When Gilbert saw us trying to cut the sheer cloth without threads fraying out, he threw up his arms, grabbed a pair of scissors, and gasped, ‘STEP ASIDE!’” She continued that “for as much as Tom accomplished, I was impressed at how whenever I called his cellphone, he always picked up and took my call.”

“From my earliest memories Tom & Jerry were my uncles,” she stated.

“There was never an alternative cover up story. They were a couple, loved each other, and were the glue in our family. If you didn’t call them for a few months, guaranteed one of them would call you. They sat in their fair share of traffic driving up to my house for family parties in Marin. I am so thankful they were safe to be out for my entire life.”

The flag is now changed quarterly by the Castro Merchants Association, which happened September 13 as the neighborhood prepares for the Castro Street Fair October 6. Begun by Milk and marking its 50th anniversary this year, the outdoor festival helps raise funds to pay for the flags flown on the flagpole.

The association’s president, straight ally

Castro flag

“Even if we have political differences we can all agree that uplifting and supporting and recognizing and investing in our LGBTQ community will always be at the forefront of our values here in San Francisco,” Breed said at the ceremony, which was at the GLBT Historical Society Museum on 18th Street. “So I am proud to be here today and to sign this legislation and to share it and tag every anti-LGBTQ elected leader in the world and tell ‘em to bring it because this is San Francisco and we will never back down.”

The mayor, who is facing a tough reelection in November, also called attention to her administration’s efforts on behalf of the LGBTQ community, including supporting plans to renovate Harvey Milk Plaza, where the flag has flown since 1997. Some of the mayor’s accomplishments include that also appointed the inaugural drag laureate in the city, appointed LGBTQ heads to the fire and health departments, and declared a public health emergency over the mpox outbreak in 2022 to mobilize city resources in fighting it.

While D’Arcy Drollinger became the first drag laureate in the world when Breed appointed her in May 2023, the city of West Hollywood, California actually approved the position first, but didn’t name Pickle, its drag ambassador, until June 2023.

“What I appreciate the most about being here in the Castro community is that we work together, Supervisor [Rafael Mandelman], to make those unprecedented investments in the things to address the disparities that we know have existed in San Francisco,” Breed said. “We talk about our values but when we put policy in dollars into those values, we demonstrate our strength as a city and our commitment to showing the rest of the world how it should be done. … We need to make sure that San Francisco is a place you get to see that when you come to the Castro and you land in Harvey Milk Plaza you need to see that, not just hear it.”

Joining Breed and community leaders at the signing was Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin, who is one of four major candidates hoping to oust Breed from Room 200 at City Hall.

After the landmarking ordinance was signed, a number of Castro community stakeholders walked the newest flag up to Harvey Milk Plaza, where it was installed.

Courtesy SFAF

SFAF’s Tylor TerMeer, Ph.D. thanked the riders and roadies for their support since the event started in 1994.

“This was a time our community was dying from a highly-stigmatized virus and very few resources existed to fight HIV,” Hollendoner said. “We raised awareness about HIV and the LGBTQ+ community in the communities we rode through.”

TerMeer said that “specifically cycling events have struggled to return to pre-pandemic levels” and that AIDS/ LifeCycle is one of several cycling events that have tried to regain their

Aliya Chisti

Editorial

From page 5

sions instead of unilateral; a commitment to sound financial planning and fiscal stability; and a commitment to student success.

Wong has done a good job on the college board and voters should reelect him.

Courtesy the candidate

Trustee Aliya Chisti

The other incumbent running is Chisti, a straight ally and the first Muslim elected to public office in San Francisco.

Concerning

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Mindful of anti-LGBTQ climate

Mandelman also thanked Bevan Dufty, a gay man who was Brown’s director of neighborhood services at the time, before he himself became District 8 supervisor. Dufty, now serving his last term on the BART regional transit agency board, told the B.A.R. after the ceremony “what a day” – but was mindful of the increasingly tense political and social environment in which LGBTQ people operate.

“As we celebrated, we are very aware that Republican forces are again trying to erase us by banning Gilbert’s flag.

This current crop of [Donald] Trump, [JD] Vance and [Ron] DeSantis should join John Briggs, Jesse Helms, William Dannemeyer, and others in the dustbin of history,” he said, referring to the current GOP presidential ticket, the Republican Florida governor, and past anti-LGBTQ political leaders.

Charley Beal, a gay man who is president of the Gilbert Baker Foundation, also spoke on how renewed homophobia and transphobia in the 2020s have led to the flag being banned from flying in government buildings in some school districts and local municipalities. He said he received a letter from a student in a Pennsylvania school district that became the 54th to enact a Pride flag ban.

Last year, a Gallup survey showed a decline in the number of Americans who felt homosexuality morally acceptable (64% agreed, down from a record-high of 71% in 2022, as conservative-led states passed laws restricting transgender people’s ability

The foundation cited the end of the SMART Ride in Florida as an example of another bicycle event impacted by increasing costs.

A foundation spokesperson stated, “We have taken action to contain expenses, including re-evaluating vendor contracts, reimaging Orientation Day, minimizing staff travel, reducing the size of the ALC workforce, and more.

Even with these efforts, expenses have risen dramatically, and participation has

TerMeer also stressed that peer-topeer fundraising “from other bicycle events to walks that are happening” have suffered.

“We’ve been finding other ways to fill in gaps at our agencies in the best ways that we can,” TerMeer said. “Depending on the outcomes in various races in the years, in the months, ahead, our funding could be in jeopardy.”

Hollendoner said that leaders are continuing to have conversations about an attenuated ride, or something similar, in the future.

“We do not think it will look like the current form of the seven-day, 545mile, and for that reason we needed to have that proper closure,” he said.

There will be kick off rides, usually around 20 miles, for the 2025 event in the East Bay October 5, in the North Bay October 6, and in Sacramento October 12. For more information, go to aidslifecycle.org.

Cailin Corbett, the director of AIDS/ LifeCycle, stated in the webinar chatroom that the fundraising minimum is

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Community News>>

News Briefs

From page 8

is Out, there are more than 100 LGBTQ+ media of some kind in the U.S., and they, like many forms of media, are looking to diversify their support to continue to do the important work of covering the community.

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SFPD

From page 1

Gay District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman told the B.A.R. that “we are consulting with neighborhood stakeholders.”

“We have built a strong relationship with Mission Station and work closely with the officers there on Castro public safety issues,” he stated. “I want to make sure Park Station will be given the resources they’ll need to maintain or improve on existing service levels.”

Mission Station just got a new captain a few weeks ago, straight ally Liza Johansen, who told the B.A.R. that among her priorities are addressing the sex trade and dirt bikes on a recent walk-along in the Castro.

Greg Carey, a gay man who is chair of Castro Community on Patrol, a longtime volunteer safety group, stated to the B.A.R. that his board “has discussed the idea of moving the Castro neighborhood from the Mission to the Park SFPD precinct for over a year.”

“The Mission District is very large and has one of the highest rates of seri-

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Editorial

From page 10

crucial. Our next permanent chancellor must have a proven track record of successfully overseeing the financial health of educational institutions, particularly community colleges. Strong leadership and collaboration skills are equally essential, as the chancellor must be able to work effectively with the board, faculty, staff, and students, fostering a culture of mutual respect and transparency.”

Chisti’s experience, particularly with the Free City program, will be important

September 19-25, 2024 • Bay Area Repor ter • 11

With one tax-deductible donation, people can support six of the top LGBTQ+ outlets: B.A.R., Dallas Voice, Philadelphia Gay News, Tagg Magazine, Washington Blade, and Windy City Times. News Is Out plans to expand the campaign in year two, the release stated.

“We are proud to be part of this historic initiative, celebrating a century of

resilience and dedication in LGBTQ+ media,” stated Michael Yamashita, a gay man who is publisher of the B.A.R. “Local LGBTQ+ Media Giving Day is a testament to the vital role our publications play in the community. Your support will help ensure that we continue to provide essential news and amplify LGBTQ+ voices for years to come.”

News Is Out is supported by the Local Media Foundation, a 501 (c)(3) organization. Donations are tax-deductible and will be used to directly fund journalism through the LGBTQ+ Journalism Equity Fund.

To donate, go to https://givebutter. com/LGBTQequityfund.

For more on News is Out, and to sub-

scribe to its free newsletter, go to newsisout.com.

The LGBTQ+ Journalism Equity Fund, a component of the Local Media Foundation, enhances queer-owned local news media by offering essential journalism resources to News is Out, a collective of the abovementioned six LGBTQ+ publishers.t

ous service calls in the city. In addition to responding to major crimes in the Mission, officers are often pulled to assist other districts such as the Bayview or Ingleside with shootings or other investigations,” he stated.

He is in support of the idea also because the current borders divide the neighborhood.

“We also feel a boundary adjustment would simplify the confusing coverage of Market Street,” he stated. “Mission Station currently covers both sides of the street but as soon as an event moves north of the sidewalk (as is the case for the many events held on Noe Street) [Department of Emergency Management] dispatchers must often reassign a call that requires a response on the other side of the boundary. We understand that the Park precinct currently has a lower staffing level than Mission Station, but hope adjustments are made if the Castro is added to Park’s coverage.”

Terry Asten Bennett, a straight ally who’s president of the Castro Merchants Association, can see the upside but said

she has some concerns to be kept in mind.

“I think it could be advantageous for the business district to all be serviced out of one station,” she stated to the B.A.R..

“My biggest concerns are around making sure that the Castro still has dedicated beat cops, that we have a direct relationship with the captain of the station and that historic information about events in the Castro and how they are handled are shared with the new station.”

Andrea Aiello, a lesbian who is the executive director of the Castro Community Benefit District, stated to the B.A.R. that the CBD “has not yet taken a position on the proposed change.”

“There is certainly an advantage to the core Castro business district being in one police station rather than split between two stations as it is now,” she stated, but she wants to make sure that the neighborhood still has cops walking the beat.

“Is Park Station going to staff up to cover the extra territory and also staff beat cops during the daytime hours as we have now?” she asked. “It is not clear at this point, but maintaining our beat

cops is imperative. The CBD clean and safe teams depend on the Castro’s beat cops to assist with a variety of quality of life and public safety issues. They are critical partners in maintaining the safety and security of the Castro.”

She added, “The CBD already has a relationship with Park Station, and Captain [Jack] Hart is very supportive of the work we do in the community. If the change does move ahead as proposed, I certainly look forward to building closer relationships with the leadership at Park Station.”

Also, it’s “critical” Park Station officers “understand the rich history in the Castro of community celebrations, events, and protest,” she added.

The Duboce Triangle Neighborhood Association, which is currently served by the Park Station, didn’t respond to a request for comment.

The SFPD release states that “the new boundaries aim to improve workload balance across the city, increase resources to high-need areas and enhance officers’ ability to respond to calls for service more quickly. The changes affect eight

districts with no changes proposed for Ingleside or Taraval stations.”

The proposal was also made in light of the SFPD officer shortage, according to the release. SFPD is currently short about 400 sworn officers.

Other changes include moving the boundary of Tenderloin and Southern stations back to Market Street, and making Van Ness Avenue the boundary between Northern, Central, and Tenderloin stations.

People interested in providing feedback on the proposed changes can sign up for a focus group the week of September 23 (sign-ups end on the 20th) on the SFPD’s website . There will be two public meetings on the subject – one virtually Tuesday, October 8, at 5:30 p.m. (people can sign up on the SFPD’s website) and one in person at the Koret Auditorium at the San Francisco Public Library main branch at 100 Larkin Street Tuesday, October 15, at 5:30 p.m. The proposal is expected to then be referred to the police commission. People interested can learn more at sfpdboundaryanalysis.com. t

as City College works to make itself fiscally sound. We endorse her for reelection.

McCarty, who identifies as queer, would bring Courtesy the candidate out representation on the Candidate Heather McCarty college board to three if she’s elected.

(Trustee Vick Chung, who is nonbinary, is

not up for election this year.) A longtime community college professor in history and gender studies at Ohlone College in Fremont, McCarty has a lot of good ideas regarding finances and other issues. She stated in her endorsement questionnaire that she’s a member of the Ohlone Budget Committee and has “developed a deep understanding of financial challenges facing community colleges.” McCarty has also served in numerous roles in Ohlone’s faculty union and faculty senate, she noted.

McCarty discussed the upcoming end of the “hold harmless” state funding.

“As a result, additional cuts will not solve CCSF’s long-term fiscal issues. CCSF must come into alignment with the Student Centered Funding Formula,” she stated. “My vision for fully funding CCSF is to ensure stable, sustainable, and diverse revenue streams that support high-quality education and services for all students.

While many funding decisions are made by other entities, the board of trustees can take strategic actions to support this vision.” Those include state advocacy, funds from external sources, internal resource management, and maintaining the Free City program.

For a permanent chancellor, McCarty would seek someone with strong fiscal management skills; proven experience in community college leadership; demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion; a collaborative leadership style; a vision for academic excellence; and strong community engagement skills.

We’re impressed with McCarty’s depth of community college experience and her ideas for City College. She has our endorsement in the race. t

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404257 The following person(s) is/are doing business as GAMEDAY MEN’S HEALTH DOWNTOWN SAN FRANCISCO,465 CALIFORNIA ST #610, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94104 . This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed BATH WELLNESS PC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/18/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/23/2024.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404272 The following person(s) is/are doing business as CATO CREATIONS LLC , 515 GOETTINGEN ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94134. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed CATO CREATIONS LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/29/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/26/2024.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404230 The following person(s) is/are doing business as SAFENEST, 2108 N ST #4284, SACRAMENTO, CA 95816.

This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed ORIGINAL CONSTRUCTION CORP (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/21/2024.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404275 The following person(s) is/are doing business as TELVE, 2163 UNION ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123.

This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed NOA PURE LLC (DE). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/26/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/26/2024.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-559071 In the matter of the application of ZOEY AXTON MILLER, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioner ZOEY AXTON MILLER is requesting that the name ZOEY AXTON MILLER be changed to ZOEY AXTON. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 10th of OCTOBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404245 The following person(s) is/are doing business as DAVID CATALANO MINISTRIES, 67 RIVERTON DR, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94132. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed LIVING WATER FELLOWSHIP (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/22/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/22/2024.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404284 The following person(s) is/are doing business as SUTTER DENTAL COLLECTIVE, 450 SUTTER ST #1919, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94108. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed JD STEIN DDS, A PC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/29/2021. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/26/2024.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404107 The following person(s) is/are doing business as SF HOUSE OF NAILS 3, 1908 FILLMORE ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94115. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed SF HOUSE OF NAILS FILLMORE INC. (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/05/2024.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-177973 The following person(s) is/are doing business as THE GODFREY HOTEL HOLLYWOOD, 1400 N CAHUENGA BLVD, LOS ANGELES, CA 90028. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed RREF III GODFREY LLC (DE). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 06/2022 . The statement was filed with the City and County of Los Angeles, CA on 08/23/2024.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404218 The following person(s) is/are doing business as EL MERCADITO, 1712 OCEAN AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed MVJJ, LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/20/2024.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024

STATEMENT OF ABANDONMENT OF USE OF FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME FILE 202463215460 The following persons have abandoned the use of the fictitious business name known as CATO CREATIONS LLC , 515 GOETTINGEN ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94134. This business was conducted by an individual and signed by NANCY CATO. The fictitious business name statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 07/29/2024. The abandonment of fictitious business name statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/26/2024.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024

and costs that the court waived for you or the other party. The name and address of the court are SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF CONTRA COSTA, 751 PINE ST, MARTINEZ, CA 94553. The name, address, and telephone number of petitioner’s attorney, or the petitioner without an attorney, is: JOSEPH H. WOLCH, ESQ. (SBN 168401), 100 PRINGLE AVE #200, WALNUT CREEK, CA 94596; (925) 974-0808. July 25, 2023. Clerk of the Superior Court, T. French, Deputy. NOTICE RESTRAINING ORDERS: The restraining orders following are effective against both spouses or domestic partners until the petition is dismissed, a judgment entered, or the court makes further orders. They are enforceable anywhere in California by any law enforcement officer who has received or seen a copy of them. STANDARD FAMILY LAW RESTRAINING ORDERS: Starting immediately, you and your spouse or domestic partner are restrained from: 1.

Removing the minor child or children of the parties, if any, from the state without the prior written consent of the other party or an order of the court; 2. Cashing borrowing against, canceling, transferring, disposing of, or changing the beneficiaries of any insurance or other coverage, including life, health, automobile, and disability, held for the benefit of the parties and their minor child or children; 3. Transferring, encumbering, hypothecating, concealing, or in any way disposing of any property, real or personal, whether community, quasi-community, or separate, without the written consent of the other party or an order of the court, except in the usual course of business or for the necessities of life; and 4. Creating a nonprobate transfer or modifying a nonprobate transfer in the manner that affects the disposition of property subject to the transfer, without the written consent of the other party or an order of the court. Before revocation of a nonprobate transfer can take effect or a right of survivorship to property can be eliminated, notice of the change must be filed and served on the other party. You must notify each other of any proposed extraordinary expenditures at least five business days prior to incurring these extraordinary expenditures and account to the court for all extraordinary expenditures made after these restraining orders are effective. However, you may use community property, quasi-community property, or your own separate property to pay an attorney to help you or to pay court costs.

WARNING: California law provides that, for the purposes of division of property upon dissolution of a marriage or domestic partnership or upon legal separation, property acquired by the parties during marriage or domestic partnership in joint form is presumed to be community property. If either party to this action should die before the jointly held community property is divided, the language in the deed that characterizes how title is held (i.e., joint tenancy, tenants in common, or community property) will be controlling, and not the community property presumption. You should consult your attorney if you want the community property presumption to be written into the recorded title to the property.

Heather McCarty

Legals>> ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-559046 In the matter of the application of JENNIFER CARLEEN SYLVA & EDUARDO FRANCISCO VELASQUEZ ESCOBAR, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioners JENNIFER CARLEEN SYLVA & EDUARDO FRANCISCO VELASQUEZ ESCOBAR are requesting that the name RAQUEL CARLEEN VELASQUEZ ESCOBAR be changed to RAQUEL CARLEEN SYLVA VELASQUEZ. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 19th of NOVEMBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024 AMENDED ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-558953 In the matter of the amended application of DIEGO SHAWN TATUM, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said amended application that petitioner RAQUEL JUAREZ is requesting that the name DIEGO SHAWN TATUM be changed to DIEGO ANGEL JUAREZ. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 21st of NOVEMBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-559048 In the matter of the application of FENDI JANE WANG, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioner FENDI JANE WANG is requesting that the name FENDI JANE WANG be changed to FENDI JANE LIU. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the19Xth of NOVEMBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-559067 In the matter of the application of MASOOD AHMAD KAMANDY, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioner MASOOD AHMAD KAMANDY is requesting that the name MASOOD AHMAD KAMANDY be changed to BLUE KAMANDY. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 8th of OCTOBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404240 The following person(s) is/are doing business as OM ZEN HYPNOSIS, 625 LEAVENWORTH ST #302, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed VILMA ANG. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/22/2024.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404236 The following person(s) is/are doing business as PIER 45 SEAFOOD, PIER 45 SHED B UNIT 11, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94133. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed M.F.M. SEAFOOD INC (CA).

The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/01/2019. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/22/2024.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404216 The following person(s) is/are doing business as HAYES HAVEN, 528 LAGUNA ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed CAVESF LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/19/2024.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404002 The following person(s) is/are doing business as MADRES EDUCADORAS LATINAS DE SAN FRANCISCO, 2301 MISSION ST #301, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110.

This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed CHILDREN’S UNIVERSE LEAVING TRACES LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 07/24/2024.

AUG 29, SEPT 05, 12, 19, 2024

SUMMONS (FAMILY LAW) SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF CONTRA COSTA, NOTICE TO RESPONDENT: JEREMIAH WEBERLING, YOU HAVE BEEN SUED. PETITIONER’S NAME IS ANASTASIA ROBINSON. CASE NO. D23-02756 You have 30 CALENDAR DAYS after this Summons and Petition are served on you to file a Response (form FL-120 or FL-123) at the court and have a copy served on the petitioner. A letter, phone call, or court appearance will not protect you. If you do not file your Response on time, the court may make orders affecting your marriage or domestic partnerships, your property, and custody of your children. You may be ordered to pay support and attorney fees and costs. For legal advice, contact a lawyer immediately. Get help finding a lawyer at the California Courts Online Self-Help Center (www.courtinfo. ca.gov/selfhelp), at the California Legal Services website (www.lawhelpcalifornia.org), or by contacting your local county bar association. FEE WAIVER: If you cannot pay the filing fee, ask the clerk for a fee waiver form. The court may order you to pay back all or part of the fees

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024

PETITION FOR DISSOLUTION OF MARRIAGE, PETITIONER: ANASTASIA ROBINSON; RESPONDENT: JEREMIAH WEBERLING. CASE NUMBER D23-02756 LEGAL RELATIONSHIP: We are married. RESIDENCE REQUIREMENTS: Petitioner has been a resident of this state for at least six months and of this county for at least three months immediately preceding the filing of this Petition. STATISTICAL FACTS: Date of marriage 09/15/2022; Date of separation 04/01/2023; Time from date of marriage to date of separation, 0 years, 6 months. MINOR CHILDREN: There are no minor children.

LEGAL GROUNDS: Divorce, irreconcilable differences.

SPOUSAL OR DOMESTIC PARTNER SUPPORT: Terminate (end) the court’s ability to award support to Petitioner & Respondent. SEPARATE PROPERTY: Confirm as separate property as assets and debts in the following list. All assets and debts acquired by the party prior to date-of-marriage or post-separation. COMMUNITY AND QUASI-COMMUNITY PROPERTY: There are no such assets or debts that I know of to be divided by the court.

OTHER REQUESTS: Attorney’s fees and costs payable

by Petitioner. I have read the restraining orders on the back of the summons, and I understand that they apply to me when this petition is filed. Anastasia Robinson, Petitioner; Attorney for Petitioner: JOSEPH H. WOLCH, ESQ. (SBN 168401), 100 PRINGLE AVE #200, WALNUT CREEK, CA 94596; (925) 974-0808.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-559060 In the matter of the application of AISLING DOHERTY, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioner AISLING DOHERTY is requesting that the name AISLING MARIA DOHERTY be changed to AISLING MCMAHON. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 8th of OCTOBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-559084 In the matter of the application of MICKAELLE OLUSEGUN ADELEKE, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioner MICKAELLE OLUSEGUN ADELEKE is requesting that the name MICKAELLE OLUSEGUN ADELEKE be changed to MICKAEL OLUSEGUN ADELEKE. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 3rd of SEPTEMBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-559082 In the matter of the application of ANIKA MURTHY, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioner ANIKA MURTHY is requesting that the name ANIKA MURTHY be changed to ANIKA MURTHY GAWTHORNE. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 15th of OCTOBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-559083 In the matter of the application of GRAHAM THOMAS REESE-GAWTHORNE, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioner GRAHAM THOMAS REESE-GAWTHORNE is requesting that the name GRAHAM THOMAS REESE-GAWTHORNE be changed to GRAHAM THOMAS GAWTHORNE. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 3rd of DECEMBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-559078 In the matter of the application of LOES SCHOTMAN, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioner LOES SCHOTMAN is requesting that the name LOES SCHOTMAN be changed to MAIA LOES SCHOTMAN. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 3rd of DECEMBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024

<< Classifieds

12 • Bay Area Repor ter • September 19-25, 2024

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-559085 In the matter of the application of RAUL PORTILLO, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioner RAUL PORTILLO is requesting that the name RAUL PORTILLO be changed to RAOUL PORTILLO. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 3rd of DECEMBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404256 The following person(s) is/are doing business as SAN FRANCISCO BEARD COMPANY, 3401 CLAY ST #202, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94118. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed JULIAN MICHAEL DAY. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/23/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/23/2024.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404312 The following person(s) is/are doing business as BHOTO BOOTH, 916 CAPP ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110.

This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed MACE GRUNSFELD. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/28/2024.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404243 The following person(s) is/are doing business as CITY LIGHT PALACE, 706 SACRAMENTO ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94105. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed ALLAN NUTTALL. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/08/2021. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/22/2024.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404259 The following person(s) is/are doing business as SF WEEKEND WALKER, 4536 CABRILLO ST #7, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94121. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed LANE GREGORY GUNSOLLEY. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/16/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/23/2024.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404247 The following person(s) is/are doing business as LEMON BAR IN A JAR, 8 MCLEA CT #101, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed THUY TRAN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/22/2024.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404189 The following person(s) is/are doing business as RAMRO COFFEE, 77 VAN NESS AVE #101, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed DAVID MADRUGA. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/01/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/15/2024.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404297 The following person(s) is/are doing business as THE UPS STORE 0175, 2269 CHESTNUT ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed JING STORE INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 10/01/2015. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/27/2024.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404298 The following person(s) is/are doing business as THE UPS STORE 6609, 1225 4TH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94158.

This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed JING STORE INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 10/15/2005. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/27/2024.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404299 The following person(s) is/are doing business as THE UPS STORE 4592, 660 4TH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed JING STORE INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 11/01/2004. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/27/2024.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404300 The following person(s) is/are doing business as THE UPS STORE 6520, 4104 24TH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94114.

This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed JING STORE INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/01/2013. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/27/2024.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404241 The following person(s) is/are doing business as CAFÉ ENCHANTE, 6157 GEARY BLVD, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94121. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed ENCHANTE ENTERPRISE, LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/22/2024.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024

NOTICE TO PROPOSERS : SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA RAPID TRANSIT DISTRICT (“BART” or “DISTRICT”), REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (“RFP”) FOR SYSTEMWIDE HIGH PRESSURE POWER WASHING SERVICES AT AREA 1 - WES T BAY AND AREA 4 - EAST BAY S OUTH, RFP NO. 6M3695-96, ISSUED SEPTEMBER 11, 2024.

BART is now accepting proposals from high pressure power washing firms. The awarded Contractor(s) will provide Systemwide High Pressure Power Washing Services at Area 1 - West Bay and Area 4 - East Bay South to assist BART’s Maintenance and Engineering Department.

Interested firms must register on BART’s Procurement Portal at; https://suppliers.bart.gov All solicitation documents, including the RFP, must be downloaded directly from the Portal. A Pre-Proposal Meeting will be held on September 19, 2024 at 1:00 p.m. local time via Zoom – instructions on registering are included within the RFP. The District’s Equity Program(s) will be explained, and participants can share contact details to network with other firms. The due date for submission of proposals for this RFP is 2:00 PM local time Tuesday, October 8, 2024.

9/19/24 CNS-3852163# BAY AREA REPORTER

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404316 The following person(s) is/are doing business as EDDY’S MARKET, 951 IRVING ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed TULSIUSA LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/09/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/28/2024.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404282 The following person(s) is/are doing business as MARINA INDIAN CUISINE, 1968 LOMBARD ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed GMR HOSPITALITY INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/13/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/26/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404321 The following person(s) is/are doing business as YOUR HAPPY PLACE LLC, 5252 MISSION ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed YOUR HAPPY PLACE LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/29/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/29/2024.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404392 The following person(s) is/are doing business as CALIFORNIA CONSULTANTS SPC, 166 GEARY ST 15TH FL, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94108. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed CALIFORNIA CONSULTANTS SPC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/06/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404324 The following person(s) is/are doing business as MANGALA SANCTUARY, 5252 MISSION ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed BAY AREA MANAGEMENT GROUP LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/29/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/29/2024.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404311 The following person(s) is/are doing business as VELOCIPEDE CYCLERY, 2405 3RD ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed THE BICYCLE GARAGE, INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/01/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/27/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404042 The following person(s) is/are doing business as SMASHIN’ SANDOS; SMASHIN’ BURGERS; BLAZIN’ BOWLS, 475 6TH ST #K, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103.

This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed DEL NORTE KITCHEN, LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 07/29/2024.

SEPT 05, 12, 19, 26, 2024 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-559057 In the matter of the application of ISAIAH DEVION ANTONIO DREAD, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioner ISAIAH DEVION ANTONIO DREAD is requesting that the name ISAIAH DEVION ANTONIO DREAD be changed to TAEO LYU JINDOU. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 21st of NOVEMBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-559079 In the matter of the application of STEPHANIE ANNE DRAVIS MARQUEZ & FERNANDO LOBATO MARQUEZ, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioners STEPHANIE ANNE DRAVIS MARQUEZ & FERNANDO LOBATO MARQUEZ are requesting that the name LUCA SEBASTIAN MARQUEZ be changed to LUCA SEBASTIAN LOBATO MARQUEZ. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 3rd of DECEMBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-558957 In the matter of the application of JUSTIN PAGE, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioner JUSTIN PAGE is requesting that the name JUSTIN PAGE be changed to JUSTIN ZILLA. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 15th of OCTOBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404296 The following person(s) is/are doing business as MC JANITORIAL SERVICE, 1830 ALEMANY BLVD #313, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed ADONI VECER MEJIA LICONA. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/27/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/27/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404356 The following person(s) is/are doing business as GLORIA’S FLOWERS, 2810 MISSION ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed GLORIA PERALTA. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/09/2019. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/04/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404365 The following person(s) is/are doing business as CITY BADMINTON SUPPLY, 18 10TH ST #230, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed VICTOR LEUNG. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/03/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/04/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404373 The following person(s) is/are doing business as MIMI OSA, 3208 16TH ST #1A, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed JESSE CHANG. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/08/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/05/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404079 The following person(s) is/are doing business as LAUNCH COUNSEL, 725 SHRADER ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94117. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed MATTHEW SAMUEL BERTENTHAL. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/30/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 07/31/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404353 The following person(s) is/are doing business as WEI TAN CO., 1140 REVERE AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed CHEUK MING NG. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/28/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/04/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404366 The following person(s) is/are doing business as THE CB COLLECTIVE, 301 MADISON ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94134. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed CLAYTON BISHOP. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/04/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/04/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404342 The following person(s) is/are doing business as ELITE INN, 116 TURK ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102.

This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed SHREE HARI, INC. (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/01/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/30/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404290 The following person(s) is/are doing business as RAMEN VR, 2261 MARKET ST #4507, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94114. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed TRIBEVR INC (DE). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/29/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/26/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404323 The following person(s) is/are doing business as SNOWTILL, 1786 CARROLL ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed CARROLL STREET PARTNERS (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/15/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/29/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404379 The following person(s) is/are doing business as CHUY’S FIESTAS RESTAURANT AND TAQUERIA, 3839 MISSION ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed CHUY’S FIESTAS RESTAURANT AND TAQUERIA INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/05/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404380 The following person(s) is/are doing business as CHUY’S FIESTAS RESTAURANT, 2341 FOLSOM ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed CHUY’S FIESTAS RESTAURANT INC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 01/09/2021. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/06/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404391 The following person(s) is/are doing business as RACHEL LEVINE PHOTOGRAPHY; SF CITY HALL PHOTOGRAPHER; THE EFFORTLESS WEDDING, 564 CLIPPER ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94114. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed MYLIU LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/01/2011. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/06/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-559105 In the matter of the application of ANASTASIA MARIE ALESSANDRA, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioner ANASTASIA MARIE ALESSANDRA is requesting that the name ANASTASIA MARIE ALESSANDRA be changed to ANASTASIA MARIE CORIO. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 22nd of OCTOBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-559109 In the matter of the application of EVAN ROBERT WISNER, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioner EVAN ROBERT WISNER is requesting that the name EVAN ROBERT WISNER be changed to EVAN LAURENS KNICKERBOCKER. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 12th of DECEMBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-559111 In the matter of the application of ANDREA MICHELLE MEISLIN, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioner ANDREA MICHELLE MEISLIN is requesting that the name ANDREA MICHELLE MEISLIN AKA ANDREA M. MEISLIN AKA ANDREA MEISLIN be changed to ANDREA MICHELLE TWILLING. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 17th of DECEMBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024 ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO FILE CNC-24-559002 In the matter of the application of KASEY ALYSHA DOWNING, for change of name having been filed in Superior Court, and it appears from said application that petitioner KASEY ALYSHA DOWNING is requesting that the name KASEY ALYSHA DOWNING be changed to KAI ZHANA ALI. Now therefore, it is hereby ordered, that all persons interested in said matter do appear before this Court in Dept. 103N, Rm. 103N on the 5th of NOVEMBER 2024 at 9:00am of said day to show cause why the application for change of name should not be granted.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404411 The following person(s) is/are doing business as VIC’S CLEANER, 551 TAYLOR ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed MELANIE LEE. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/10/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/10/2024.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404367 The following person(s) is/are doing business as KAI CLEANS, 370 ELLIS ST #18, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed AKIRA KAI DEMOSS. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/23/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/04/2024.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404251 The following person(s) is/are doing business as BUZZ LANDSCAPE, 1000 CHESTNUT ST #13A, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed DAVID BUZZELL. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/15/2022. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/23/2024.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404441 The following person(s) is/are doing business as JOSEPH BEARD, 540 O’FARRELL ST #103, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed NATHANIEL J. MAY. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 03/26/2013. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/13/2024.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404401 The following person(s) is/are doing business as BEE’S, 3232 16TH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed BEE & RU LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/09/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404249 The following person(s) is/are doing business as XING CHEN DBA KISHA STUDIO, 29 GLENVIEW DR, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94131. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed XING CHEN. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 04/23/2010. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/22/2024.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 609019 The following person(s) is/are doing business as STUPID SONS STAINED GLASS, 1940 LAKESHORE AVE #42, OAKLAND, CA 94606. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed ABIGAIL KATZ. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/31/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of Alameda, CA on 08/30/2024.

SEPT 12, 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404428 The following person(s) is/are doing business as K9 DREAM TEAM, 77 SANTA ROSA AVE, PACIFICA, CA 94044. This business is conducted by an individual, and is signed KIMBERLY LESHER-SCHULTZE. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/28/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/12/2024.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024

NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF ANTOINETTA G RITGER IN SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO: FILE PES-24-307673 To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate, or both, of ANTOINETTA G RITGER. A Petition for Probate has been filed by EDWARD N RITGER in the Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco. The Petition for Probate requests that EDWARD N RITGER be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent. The petition requests the decedent’s will and codicils, if any, be admitted to probate. The will and any codicils are available for examination in the file kept by the court. A hearing on the petition will be held in this court as follows: OCTOBER 7, 2024, 9:00 am, Dept. 204, Superior Court of California, 400 McAllister St., San Francisco, CA 94102. If you object to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney. If you are a creditor or contingent creditor of the decedent, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the later of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined by section 58(b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code. Other California statutes and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law. You may examine the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE-154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code section 1250.

A Request for Special Notice form is available from the court clerk. Petitioner: EDWARD N RITGER, 4451 MISSION ST #201, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94112; Ph. (415) 225-2852.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 2024

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404352 The following person(s) is/are doing business as ONE HOUR CLEANERS, 2233 MARKET ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94114 . This business is conducted by a married couple, and is signed KHAGARAJ POUDEL & GAUTAM SHOBHA. The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/03/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/03/2024.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404322 The following person(s) is/are doing business as EL TESORO TAQUERIA AND GRILL, 599 O’FARRELL ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102. This business is conducted by a corporation, and is signed ELTESORO AND GRILL INC. (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 12/20/12017. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/29/2024.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404310 The following person(s) is/are doing business as TACKO, 3115 FILLMORE ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123.

This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed HUMMOCK POND, LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 07/25/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/27/2024.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404363 The following person(s) is/are doing business as ROCKSTARS IPHONE IPAD SAMSUNG MAC LAPTOP & ELECTRONICS REPAIR, 2601 SAN BRUNO AVE, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94134. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed SUNSTONE UNITED LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/28/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/04/2024.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024

t

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404413 The following person(s) is/are doing business as INN AT GOUGH, 135 GOUGH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed MALTI INVESTMENTS LLC (CA).

The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/01/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/11/2024.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404426 The following person(s) is/are doing business as BARBARY COAST DIVERS, 1459 18TH ST #300, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94107. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed CAMINO NUEVO LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 08/25/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/12/2024.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404209 The following person(s) is/are doing business as RISING STAR LAUNDRY, 858 COLE ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94117. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed RISING STAR LAUNDRY LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on N/A. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 08/19/2024.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404420 The following person(s) is/are doing business as SFNEWA, 407 ELLIS ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102.

This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed NEWA LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/11/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/12/2024.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404423 The following person(s) is/are doing business as NOE VALLEY BOOKS, 3957 24TH ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94114. This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed 24TH STREET BOOKS, LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/12/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/12/2024.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024 FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE 2024-0404454 The following person(s) is/are doing business as ENNY, 2143 GROVE ST, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94117.

This business is conducted by a limited liability company, and is signed SUPERPOWER STUDIOS LLC (CA). The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the above listed fictitious business name or names on 09/16/2024. The statement was filed with the City and County of San Francisco, CA on 09/16/2024.

SEPT 19, 26, OCT 03, 10, 2024

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Jon Bauer

Ray of Light relitigates

‘Legally Blonde’

Majesty Scott (center) and the cast of ‘Legally Blonde: The Musical’

by Jim Gladstone

H

ave you heard of Blackpink? It’s the name of a massively popular Korean girl group whose successful singles include “Playing with Fire.”

It’s also a good description of the clever spin that director Phaedra Tillery-Broughton and

co-director ShawnJ West have put on Ray of Light Theatre’s production of “Legally Blonde: The Musical.”

Adapted for the stage in 2007 (a pre-Broadway tryout played the Golden Gate Theatre here) from the even more prehistoric 2001 Reese Witherspoon film, the show would feel painfully dated had Ray of Light’s staging been loyal to the notso-pretty in pink original.

Allen Warren/Wikipedia

James Baldwin in 1975

To mount a show which, as originally written, asks audiences to take pity on a spoiled white UCLA sorority princess who’s picked on by a pack of similarly privileged ninnies, would very much be playing with fire in contemporary San Francisco.

Instead, in a rejuvenating stroke of genius, the talented Black actress Majesty Scott has been cast in the lead role of Elle Woods, the ditzy but common-sensical golden-locked girl who ma-

triculates at Harvard Law. This choice challenges audiences to look at the show through a very different, not at all rose-colored lens. The incredibly low stakes of the original – Will plucky Elle transcend white-on-white mean girl pettiness and social climbing? – are enormously heightened.

by David-Elijah Nahmod

David-Elijah Nahmod: What, in your opinion, is the legacy of James Baldwin?

Becka Robbins: James Baldwin was a gay Black man from Harlem who was active in the Civil Rights Era, and his writing continues to reverberate like an unrelenting earthquake in our cultural landscape. He wrote with incision, empathy, fearlessness and had a mastery of prose that makes uncomfortable truths shine in their warmth. He is referenced broadly in social movements still, simply because no one wrote better than he did about race in America.

See page 14 >>

2017 0A Media a Kit

ugust 2nd was the 100th birthday of legendary gay African American author James Baldwin. On September 19 the GLBT History Museum, in collaboration with Books Not Bans, will throw a birthday party that promises to pull out all the stops. The party will include performances by drag artists Coco Buttah and Afrika America, who will also serve as the evening’s MC. Actor Anthony Rollins-Mullens will also be on hand to perform The Los Angeles Blade covers Losof Angeles and California news, dramatic readings from some Baldwin’s most Can you say something about how politics, opinion,profound arts and entertainment and features national works. groundbreaking and it was for Baldwin to write international coverage from the ahead Blade’s reporting Baldwin was very much of hisaward-winning time. As the stories he did decades ago? team. Be part of this exciting publication serving Los Angeles early as 1956 he wrote about homosexuality in LGBT To be Black and gay in the mid-20th century the acclaimed novel “Giovanni’s Room. ” He wrote from the team behind the Washington Blade, the nation’s first LGBTprejudice from multiple was to face tremendous aboutfreeway homosexuality bisexuality, and got newspaper. From the toagain, the and Beltway we’ve you covered. angles.

Baldwin’ s commitment to engaging pubinterracial couples in his 1962 novel “Another licly and exposing the realities of our embedded Country.”

See page 16 >> Baldwin was active in the civil rights movement. He was a true renaissance man, a man who wasn’t afraid to stand up to racism and who wore his gayness on his sleeve proudly.

The GLBT Historical Society and Books Not Bans are the perfect collaborators for the birthday celebration. Baldwin, who died of cancer in 1987, is an important literary figure, a part of gay history. Books Not Bans, a program that started at Fabulosa Books in the Castro, recognizes the importance of literature. Its founder, Fabulosa Events Manager Becka Robbins, regularly sends queer books to LGBT organizations in red states, where these books are often banned.

Baldwin birthday event In an interview with the Bay Area Reporter, organizer Becka Robbins Robbins spoke about Baldwin’s legacy, and about GLBT History Museum commemorates gay African American author what attendees of the birthday bash can expect.

Mission Statement

A 100th Birthday Celebration for

James Baldwin

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<< Theater

14 • Bay Area Repor ter • September 19-25, 2024

‘Ride the Cyclone’ debuts at NCTC

Night of the living, singing, dancing dead

“Ride the Cyclone” at NCTC. “I think one of the reasons why is that that don’t want to do things they’ve seen over and over. Why put on ‘Mean Girls’ when it’s already been a movie twice? Why is anyone doing a musical of ‘Shrek’?” (Local audiences can ponder that question when the ogre arrives at the Golden Gate Theatre in December).

“This show is fresh and original and genuinely connects with the feelings of freedom and of angst that teenagers experience and that we’re all familiar with from our own teenage years,” said Temple.

Kids today

Lois Tema

The cast of ‘Ride the Cyclone’

by Jim Gladstone

A

new variant of a decades-old catchphrase may trip off the tips of local theatergoers’ tongues as they peruse the season’s upcoming productions: “I see horny dead people.”

San Francisco stages will offer a three-ring circus of hormonal horror in the coming months kicking off (and kicking the bucket) with “Ride the Cyclone” at New Conservatory Theatre Center (NCTC) on September 20.

It’ll be a literal nightmare before Christmas when “Beetlejuice: The Musical” returns to the Golden Gate Theatre on December 24. And Ray of Light’s acclaimed, immersive “The Rocky Horror Show” will haunt Oasis in October.

But first up is the new blood: the eagerly anticipated Bay Area premiere of “Ride the Cyclone,” a critically acclaimed, virally vaunted musical

<<

Legally Blonde

From page 13

While the large supporting chorus is markedly multicultural, the characters pitted against Elle in the plot-a boyfriend who dumps her, his new Yankee flame, an imperious law professor-remain white and self-righteous (Seth Hanson).

Every time they speak to her condescendingly or laugh at her guile-

Monday 8am

(last seating 9:45pm)

Tuesday 8am

(last seating 9:45pm)

about a sextet of randy teens who’ve been killed in a rollercoaster mishap trying to sing their way out of limbo.

The crew of misfits includes the effortfully self-possessed Noel Gruber, who observes, “Being a gay man in a small rural high school is kind of like having a laptop in the stone age.

I mean, sure, you can have one, but there’s nowhere to plug it in.”

In his big solo musical number, Gruber, played by Jon Gary Haris in the NCTC production, shares his fantasy of being a tough-talking female prostitute in post-WWII Paris.

Morbid originality

“Delightfully weird and just plain delightful” said The New York Times of “Ride the Cyclone” when the show opened Off-Broadway in 2016, following acclaimed runs in Chicago and across Canada (The music, lyrics, and book were all written by British less opinions, audience members are forced to consider what exactly is eliciting such scorn. Is it Elle’s girlygirl materialism and manner, or is it the color of her skin? Do you have any doubt? (That’s also a reminder of how flimsy the original material’s plot is).

Apart from the clever orchestration and movement that infuses one production number with an HBCstyle drumline and stepping (Music direction is by Jad Bernardo; chore-

Columbia-based duo Brooke Maxwell and Jacob Richmond).

One of many new musicals overshadowed by the mid-decade “Hamilton” juggernaut, the show nonetheless went on to well-reviewed productions in Seattle and Atlanta. But it was only after the pandemic blew up that “Ride the Cyclone” did likewise.

Video clips from past productions and stylistically eclectic songs from a 2021 digital cast recording offered a timely blend of gruesome morbidity, faint hope, and winky innuendo that worked like catnip on moody housebound theater kids and their friends.

As musical numbers circulated online, they helped build an incorporeal cult of millions around a show few of them had seen.

“I read an article recently that said that fewer and fewer high school students are participating in theater,” said Stephanie Temple, who is directing ography by Jill Jacobs), there’s nothing particularly Black about this version of the show beyond some of the cast members’ races.

The directors are conducting a fascinating experiment with audiences as their subject. You sit in the Victoria Theater contemplating complicity.

The influence of the superficial gets under your skin.

Still, while casting a Black actor as Elle is a successful provocation, it doesn’t lead to a coherent overall reconceptualization of what has never been more than a C-grade storyline.

Even with this audacious tweak, “Legally Blonde” remains a cotton candy cloud of a show; musically unmemorable and, at times, wincingly silly (My lord, the recurring “Riverdance” gag is idiotic!).

Kudos to set designer Matt Owens and costume designer Katie Dowse for the many variations of pink in their

t

Temple is particularly qualified to assess the musical’s emotional authenticity. In her fulltime job as NCTC’s education director, she works as a teaching artist, introducing teenagers (as well as younger children) to the theater through the classes and youth productions that have always been a core of the company’s mission.

Since its founding by Ed Decker in 1981 as a theatre education center for youth from underprivileged back-

Director Stephanie Temple

grounds, NCTC has worked to serve young people in the Bay Area. Even frequent attendees of NCTC shows may be largely unaware of the institution’s educational bedrock. In fact, the NCTC’s queer-themed main stage series didn’t begin until 14 years after the company’s founding.

The cast members of “Ride the Cyclone,” who are in their twenties and thirties, have benefited from Temple’s regular interaction with adolescents, as she’s helped them embody characters much younger than themselves.

“They’re pretty playful performers,” said Temple, “but sometimes in rehearsal I have needed to pull them back into a younger mindset, to remind them of the amount of freedom you feel when you’re young and to try to embody those feelings.”

Temple has also been able to share insights about contemporary teenagers’ attitudes with her cast.

“Young people’s conversations around queerness are evolving,” she noted.

So, while there is only one character who specifically identifies as gay in the “Ride the Cyclone” script, Temple said, “They’re living in a world where someone maybe being queer is just a normal possibility, not necessarily a major plot point.

“In rehearsals, we’ve shared questions about all the characters and what lies beneath the surface of the play. The characters Noel and Mischa definitely have a connection; they’re a great example of positive male affection. We’ve talked about how some of the female characters may have crushes on each other. They’re playing contemporary high school students. The lines are much more blurred than they used to be.”t ‘Ride the Cyclone’ at New Conservatory Theatre Center. Sept. 20Oct. 20. $35.50-$72.50. 25 Van Ness Ave. www.nctcsf.org

Jon Bauer

Majesty Scott and Seth Hanson in ‘Legally Blonde: The Musical’

color-drenched handiwork. And to everyone involved for adding a bit of brain-bending nutrition to this show’s empty calories.

“Legally Blonde” has always been a guilty pleasure. This version may have

you blushing for a better reason.t ‘Legally Blonde: The Musical’ through Sept. 29. $21.99-$74.99.

Victoria Theatre, 2961 16th St. www.rayoflighttheatre.com

Open Daily!

New Adjusted Hours

Wednesday 8am (last seating 9:45pm)

Thursday 8am Open 24 Hours

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Jon Bauer

A musical number in ‘Legally Blonde: The Musical’

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Theater>>

September 19-25, 2024 • Bay Area Repor ter • 15

Center Rep’s ‘Arsenic and Old Lace’

Vintage comic play’s gender switch

Both photos: Kevin Berne

Left: Danny Scheie, Cody Sloan and Michael Patrick Gaffney in Center REP’s production of ‘Arsenic and Old Lace’ Right: Danny Scheie and Michael Patrick Gaffney in Center REP’s production of ‘Arsenic and Old Lace’

by J.A. Valentine

W

ith their current mounting of “Arsenic and Old Lace,” Center Rep pulls off a type of theater that often proves elusive: the Style Piece, a heightened reality in which every member of the acting company is on the same page.

Joseph Kesselring’s spiked chestnut has been continuously produced in smaller theatres since it’s 1941 premiere, with a single, unsuccessful stab at a Broadway revival in 1986. A tale of murders and manners, originally conceived as a thriller, the first production quickly changed tactics and embraced the comedic subtext.

Here, it is reflected through a decidedly queer prism, with most of the roles played by gender-swapping actors. From the alpha auntie through the last supporting player, there isn’t a weak link. A potentially burdensome concept resulted in simply excellent casting. There is no self-aware winking going on, the characters are embodied, not commented upon.

Broad comedy is served up, replete with sight gags, prop comedy and pronounced regional dialects, without ever neglecting those essential ingredients: high stakes and commitment.

In their directorial debut for the company, artistic director Matt M. Morrow proves a thoughtful chef. A few deft edits have been made to the script, with some streamlining of all those clattering dishes, which serves to keep things moving. Pace, pace, pace. Now this test kitchen is cooking with gas.

Details, demure drag

Brooke Kesler’s costuming is traditional in silhouette, precise in the details. Yi-Chien Lee’s set is higher concept, with a color palette skewing

to purples, emerald green, black and white domino; a very Tim Burton mood. The period accurate furnishings are framed by a proscenium that has melted askew.

Most stylized are the bold lighting effects by Kurt Landisman, who garnishes the proceedings with glowing neon accents within the set, which could upstage the storytelling, were they not so strategically applied. That and James Ard’s playful sound design, bonk audiences on the head to announce the arrival of new characters and underline plot points. It becomes a framing device that divides the play into neat vignettes. The overall effect is a beloved classic viewed on a pinball machine.

Presiding over this parlour is Danny Scheie, whose Aunt Abby has the teeth to run the Brewster family and wrings laughs out of nearly every line she utters. Subversive and sly, sarcastic and confrontational, she frequently tests the threshold of the fourth wall, yet remains a proper little old lady.

Alternating between piercing vocalizations and smartly underplayed line readings, she keeps you guessing what she’ll do next.

Michael Patrick Gaffney as sister Martha, proves you should never underestimate the demure. Wielding a massive ruffled bosom and the moral high ground, she is the perfect partner in crime.

dome into a squared blockhead.)

The other nephew and his fiancé are the straight couple of the piece, both literal and figurative. Carla Gallardo’s Elaine is no shrinking violet, she has the wit and backbone to prevail among this eccentric melange. Cody Sloan as Mortimer juries the situation with exasperated befuddlement and ultimately, charms. Much comedy is made of his position as a theater critic, an undignified undertaking, but someone has to do it.

The buffet of character actors who round out the cast clearly relish their roles. Skyler Sullivan as Dr. Einstein and Catherine Leudtke as Uncle Teddy are chucklesome. Drag king performances are chronically underrated.

In this production they also represent

the world outside the Brewster house, mainly the scrutinizing eye of law enforcement. Here Brenda Arellano, and Taniko Baptiste in particular, earn their badges. This creates an even playing field, where nothing should be taken at face value, and everyone can be more than they seem.

Lizzie Borden was acquitted largely because no jury would believe a woman capable of the acts she was accused of. “Arsenic” operates on the same principle, easily likened to the practice of queer “coding,” hiding in plain sight under the guise of normalcy. But, judge a book by its cover at your peril.

In the perpetual quest to appeal to both older subscribers and modern sensibilities, this production should achieve both. It’s neither a starchy

museum piece nor an avantgarde besmirchment. Rather, it’s a reimagining that serves the material and delivers big laughs.

Full disclosure: I have worked with this company and some of these folks are colleagues, so bias could be claimed. Fuller disclosure: I’m so envious of this cast that I arrived smelling of sour elderberries. Turns out, the production is so well realized and entertaining, I put the poison pen away.

I am compelled instead to give it my highest recommendation and plan to return for a second helping.t ‘Arsenic and Old Lace’ at Lesher Center for the Arts, Walnut Creek. $49 and up, thru Sept. 29, 1601 Civic Drive. lesherartscenter.org

Wit and backbone

The reveal of the sisters’ peculiar hobby is complicated by the return of their long-absent, nefarious nephew, Johnathan, who is required to resemble Boris Karloff and intimidate every character in his path. In this role, DeAnna Driscoll, a comic bulldozer, nails both. (Kudos to wig designer Emily Haynes, who transforms Driscoll’s

Directed by

KJ Sanchez

Sep 12–Oct 6 Toni Rembe Theater

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Kevin Berne

DeAnna Driscoll and Skyler Sullivan in Center REP’s production of ‘Arsenic and Old Lace’

<< Fine Art & Celebration

16 • Bay Area Repor ter • September 19-25, 2024

‘The Worst of Waters’

Filmmaker John Waters shares his odd art at Rena Bransten Gallery

All photos: John Waters/courtesy Rena Brantsen Gallery

John Waters with the cast of ‘Kiddie Flamingos’

by Jim Provenzano

F

resh off the cha-cha heels of the large-scale exhibit honoring his films at the Los Angeles Academy of Motion Picture Arts Museum in 2023, filmmaker, author and artist John Waters returns to Rena Brantsen Gallery for his fifth exhibit of unusual and odd art pieces. Get out them cha-cha heels, super fans, because Waters will be in attendance at the opening reception September 21.

Subtitled “Works never before exhibited in San Francisco; the rudest the hardest to sell the just plain wrong,” the exhibit includes photographic prints, sculptures, and appropriated movie imagery that spark a demented form of joy.

From punishment to traumatic events and a skewering of masculinity, the exhibit even includes a G-rated version of Waters’ “Pink Flamingos” acted out by children. Objects d’art take on an absurdist scale reminiscent of Marcel Duchamp’s alias, R. Mutt.

The oft-entitled Pope of Trash,

<<

James Baldwin

From page 13

biases has left us with the gift of his writings. That he was unflinchingly raw and honest, that he exhibited such tremendous degrees of curiosity, that he was so deeply engaged in the movement is testimony to his brilliance as a writer. That he became a beloved public figure who’s legacy endures is a gift to all of us.

Please tell us how this event came to be.

I’m the founder of Books Not Bans, which has the mission of fostering joy

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whose many films include “Pink Flamingos,” “Desperate Living,” “Hairspray,” “Crybaby,” and the cult classic “Multiple Maniacs,” started collecting art as a child in Baltimore. Waters recently bequeathed his extensive collection of art and archives to the Baltimore Museum of Art with the condition that they name, in his honor, The John Waters Restrooms; allgender, of course.

While fans of his movies are legion, some may not know that he has exhibited his oddball artwork at museums around the world, including the Baltimore Museum of Art, the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York, the Wexner Center of the Arts in Columbus, and he was even selected as a juror for the Venice Biennale. He’s an outsider turned insider, as he said in interview with CBS News.

Waters has also had five books of his photographs and sculptures published since 1997. And he’s also a connoisseur of unusual art. In the CBS interview, he said what attracts him is

“something that stops me in my tracks, that surprises me.”t

and connection through literature.

We’ve gotten a lot of press for sending desperately needed queer books to communities in red states. We’ve sent 810 books so far, with another 200 going out at the end of the month.

Books not bans also throws literaturethemed parties. To highlight, the first one was called Read for Filth, and took place as part of Litquake in October of 2023.

One of the ways that Baldwin is so remarkable is that his reach extended beyond his writing into activism, as he was a key part of the Civil Rights movement. He turned 100 this year, and it felt important to honor him

with festivities. We wanted to throw him a proper birthday party that had all the sense of revelry. We’re so lucky to have his writings and the very least we could do was to have cake and champagne.

Leigh Pfeffer, the museum manager of the GLBT Historical Society, and I talked about throwing a party in his honor and we’ve managed to pull this together. I’m so excited that the event will be at the museum.

‘John Waters: The Worst of Waters,’ at Rena Brantsen Gallery, Sept.

21- Nov. 16. Reception Sept. 21, 5pm-7pm. 1275 Minnesota St., Minnesota Street Project. www.renabranstengallery.com

Above: John Waters’ ‘Hairball’ print, 2014 Below: John Waters’ ‘Stud’ and ‘Guzzle’ print, 1998

What will the event entail?

Drag! Cake! Champagne! Short readings from excerpts of Baldwin’s essays. We’re going to have time for people to socialize, of course. This will be a vibrant and joyful event.

A super cool thing is that the contents of James Baldwin’s record collection is available for listening online, so the music used in the drag numbers will be music that Baldwin had a connection to.

What do you hope that guests will take from the event?

My goal is for guests to come away with a sense of connection and inspiration. The electricity of these ideas and his beautiful phrasing should be experienced out loud. You don’t have to be an academic or even a habitual reader to appreciate the awesomeness of Baldwin’s prose. I want raucous celebrations of the writer that have made our world more just and connected.t James Baldwin 100th Birthday Bash, September 19, 6pm, GLBT History Museum, 4127 18th Street, $20, free for museum members. www.glbthistory.org www.fabulosabooks.com

Above Left: Coco Buttah Above Right: Afrika America Below: Anthony Rollins-Mullens

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Film>>

September 19-25, 2024 • Bay Area Repor ter • 17

‘My Old Ass’

Second chances with a younger self

by Brian Bromberger

H

ave you ever wondered that if you knew what would happen in the future, would you change any decisions made today? This tantalizing question pervades the new whimsical yet bittersweet coming-of-age fable film, “My Old Ass,” that at first seems like it will be a frolicking lesbian summer escapade, but then radically changes direction in a story line that encompasses both regret and possibility. It’s the type of movie where you might be laughing and shedding tears simultaneously, which could account for its being a breakout hit at this year’s Frameline Festival.

Produced by actress Margot Robbie and written/directed by upcoming Canadian filmmaker Megan Park (“The Fallout”), free-spirited teenager Elliott (Maisy Stella) is ready to leave her rural home to attend college in Toronto. Her parents own a cranberry farm. She’s determined to have a riotously fun idyllic summer, including hooking up with her long-time crush, a female barista at the local coffee shop.

To celebrate her 18th birthday, she motorboats to a remote island with her two BFFs, Ro (Kerrice Brooks) and Ruthie (Maddie Ziegler) to trip on psychedelic mushrooms. At first Elliott doesn’t think she’s feeling anything, but then suddenly finds herself talking with a wisecracking 39-year-old woman, her literal old ass (Aubrey Plaza) who claims to be the woman with a Ph.D. she will become in two decades.

She gives Elliott two pieces of advice: spend more time with her family (particularly after she forgets to show up to her family’s own birthday dinner for her) and stay away from anyone named Chad. Later, she will golf with her brother and assist her mother in the kitchen.

Marni Grossman/Amazon MGM Studios

Maisy Stella and Aubrey Plaza in ‘My Old Ass’

passage, betwixt and between the previous state you are leaving behind and the new state you are heading towards, but haven’t quite arrived. It’s a transitional vulnerable time where you can make mistakes but also mature, as you encounter life’s unpredictable events which force you to grow up.

Foolish acts

The film keenly explores decisions

we make when we’re young, but later wish we could change, even though we know we can’t go back. But what if you suddenly did? Would you correct any mistakes or find you would still commit the same foolish acts again?

“My Old Ass” also pressures us to cherish and be grateful for the present, because we don’t know what lies ahead where our lives could change in an instant.

Park excels at capturing the energy, authenticity, and idealism of youth approaching adulthood, expressing both honest realism towards life’s limits and a playful spirit where anything seems possible.

Stella embodies these characteristics and brings vibrancy, positivity, and warmth to Elliott, but also honesty. Plaza doesn’t look like Stella, but they do share a similar authentic vibe

and eventually a mutual trust, with Stella radiating depth and a razorsharp wit. She’s a survivor which gives hope to Stella.

The older Elliott has some bitterness borne out of experience so perhaps by interacting with her younger self, she can regain some of life’s delight which she’s lost. A minor criticism is that Plaza disappears for most of the film and one wishes there were more of her.

The sexuality element is minimized.

Park, who’s straight, avoids any impression of a lesbian finding salvation through a heterosexual romance or that it’s a phase. Instead, the Elliott character and the film is comfortably compassionate with a shifting identity and/ or fluidity. Elliott is as discombobulated by the turn of events as is the audience, but there’s no judgment whatsoever.

Overall, this unforgettable film is a delightful surprise etching an elegiacal poignancy and avoiding any sentimentality. We’ve all wondered ‘what if ‘about our lives and “My Old Ass” tells us to enjoy what we have here and now, reminding us it’s the small moments of life that matter most.t ‘My Old Ass’ opens September 19 at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema. www.drafthouse.com/sf www.mgm.com

Troubling Chad

Of course, the next day, she meets an adorable, kind, sweet-natured college student named Chad (Percy Hynes White) hired as a summer worker on Elliott’s family farm. This presents a conundrum for Elliott because she identifies as a lesbian, only having had relationships with other women.

Her family and friends have always been supportive, accepting her as she is. At first, she keeps her distance from him, yet the more time she spends with Chad the more attractive he becomes to her. Meanwhile, through her cell phone, Elliott (if only we could phone into our past) keeps in contact with her old ass, pumping her as to why she’s so negative about Chad, which she initially refuses to disclose, but later her reasons will emerge under pressure.

The film has the supernatural logic reminiscent of last year’s “All of Us Strangers.” We are never told how or why the older vaguely unhappy Elliott can communicate with her younger self, which is fine because it avoids the pseudo-scientific gobbledygook explanations that deflated previous time travel fantasies. The viewer just goes with the flow, accepting the ruleless fantastical premise.

What the film does so well is capture that exciting awkward period between leaving home, a liminal rite of

“You think your pain and your heartbreak are unprecedented in the history of the world, but then you read.”

—James Baldwin Untitled-6 1

8/30/24 1:41 PM

<< Music

18 • Bay Area Repor ter • September 19-25, 2024

Davóne Tines’ ‘Robeson’

by Tim Pfaff

B

ass-baritone Davóne Tines has built a reputation for doing things his way on the concert stage. The out 37-year-old Harvard and Juilliard graduate was given complete instruction on the how-to’s of singing and program planning. He then had the nerve to make programs only he could make, sell them to a rapidly expanding audience, and garner a reputation as the singular artist he is.

Unsurprisingly, Tines’s debut album, “Robeson” (Nonesuch), not only reflects his artistry; it’s also one no other singer could match. Having devoted his career to transmogrifying “art music” as usually practiced, he might wish the same “freedom,” the word defining his own music, for all his colleagues.

It may seem odd, on the surface, that this new CD is predicated on the life and art of Paul Robeson. But as it plays out, Tines’s homage to America’s legendary, some would say finest, Black performer of song, musical theater, and the stage suits Tines perfectly. That’s primarily because, like his modern successor, Robeson was an activist working for Black rights at literally life-threatening risk levels, leading him to contemplate suicide in a Moscow hotel room after CIAadministered LSD.

It takes a few

For “Robeson,” –and, one suspects, for his own artistic future– Tines has assembled a band he has named The Truth. The band’s core membership is pianist John Bitoy and sound artist Khari Lucas, and Tines further credits the director Zack Winokur as cocreator of “my most personal artistic statement to date.”

That said, “Robeson” is all but crowded by performers, vocalists and instrumentalists alike, working on Tines’s wavelength, who do much more than contribute to this recording project. The album marks musical

A debut album like no other

collaboration of the highest order, and “Robeson” would be unimaginable without every one of those voices.

Among the musicians Tines recognizes as influences, jazz giant Miles Davis stands out. In a way, jazz seems like the only word that characterizes this material and its aural means, though there’s nothing particularly “jazzy” about the finished sound. The songs on “Robeson” are many-layered and musically sophisticated, but, like the best jazz, they feel improvised, despite the manifest care that has gone into the arrangements (mostly by Tines) and the recording itself, which reaches Nonesuch’s highest and most exacting standards.

Another homage

Still, other than to Robeson himself, Tines sings a tribute to Julius Eastman, the late Black gay composer and performer Tines calls “one of my idols, whom I call an ancestor.” Experimentalist to the core, Eastman had his advocates in his own day (the 1980s and ’90s), but like so many composers before him, died largely misunderstood and underappreciated, broke, alone, and in ill health, possibly from HIV infection.

It’s tempting to say that Eastman’s time has come. Many of today’s most adventurous performers and ensembles, including full symphony orchestras, are revisiting his music in what is probably the boldest revival of a musically challenging gay composer since the ongoing resurgence of interest in the music (and life) of the late Canadian, Claude Vivier.

Tines writes about Eastman in his notes (which, on evidence, are part of the composition as a whole) for ‘Scandalized,’ the fourth track on the new recording. A riff on the tongue-incheek (Tines’s word) spiritual, “Scandalize My Name,” it takes the listener to church stylistically as well as in spirit. Julius Eastman’s brother Gerry, a jazz guitarist, takes a central place in the revelry.

Instagram

Davóne Tines

Tracks of his tears

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At no point is it in doubt that this album is the most serious of undertakings. Its principal theme is freedom and the grueling path to it. And in the notes to “Let It Shine” (an infinite gospel vamp” in Tines’s words), the singercomposer acknowledges that, in ways similar to Robeson and Eastman, the album, which took shape during the pandemic, proceeds from Tines’s own artistic low point. But it also charts the journey out of despair, and Tines is clear that, in composing and performing it, “I couldn’t contain the joy of feeling that survival and personal change were possible.”

“Fly Away,” which present-day audiences may know primarily from the Baz Luhrman film, “Elvis,” takes yet another Black spiritual and, well, flies away with it. Tines says it began with pianist John Bitoy’s almost random practicing Ravel’s “Le Gibet” the haunting third movement of the notoriously difficult ‘Gaspard de la nuit,’

before one of the recording sessions.

It quickly morphed into a jam, only to become one of the wildest and most transfixing tracks on the album.

It also elicits some of the most com-

Noah Morrison

Davóne Tines

Davóne Tines, ‘Robeson,’ Nonesuch Records, CD and streaming. www.nonesuch.com www.alsoanoperasinger.org

FBFE

Going Out

pelling singing in head voice (falsetto) from Tines on offer in this collection.

It completes the picture of his voice as it roams between the first rendition of “Ol’ Man River,” the song with which Robeson is most associated, when Tines favors the listener with sepulchral bass notes, and the last one, which seems like a different song altogether.

His “normal” range is baritonal, deployed with an uncommon sense of drama. But the departures from exact pitch and other givens of the recital platform are not failings but, rather, evidence of the singer’s impressive range, in terms of expression as well as of vocal compass.

It’s hard to communicate what a departure this is from the usual singer debut recording, say nothing of the ever-more-obligatory “theme” album.

For all of its challenges –this is not music for the casual listener– Tines’s songs are immediately absorbing, and in the end harder to let go of than to welcome.

“Some Enchanted Evening” has never sounded quite like this before, and ‘Todesbanden,’ based on a Bach cantata, won’t pass any historical authenticity test while it sweeps you away.

“The House I Live In” takes its inspiration from a short film starring Frank Sinatra and then returns from that land of encores to a hymn to promote racial and socio-economic equality.

Tines calls “Lift Every Voice,” sometimes called the Black national anthem with its words by James Weldon Johnson, his favorite song. It could also serve as the motto for this brave new program, where every song, and every voice, lift the willing listener up.

In related news: in that odd way of the recording industry box set, Sony Classical has issued all of Robeson’s own recordings for Columbia, RCA, HMV, and Victor. The 14-disc set includes Robeson’s 1944 production of Shakespeare’s “Othello.”t

Professional headshots / profile pics Weddings / Events

StevenUnderhill 415 370 7152 • StevenUnderhill.com

You should be dancin’, yeah. Along with our pristine/splashy and joyful/contemplative cultural events, once in a while you just need to shake your booty, like at Beaux (see photo).

We’ve got plenty more in our expansive listings of nightlife and arts events in Going Out, only on www.ebar.com.

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TV>>

September 19-25, 2024 • Bay Area Repor ter • 19

Cold open

The Lavender Tube on ‘SNL,’ ‘English Teacher’ ‘Grotesquerie’

by Victoria A. Brownworth

T

he current political landscape will likely be the subject of the cold open on the premiere of season 50 of “Saturday Night Live.” The hit sketch comedy show will debut the new season on Sept. 28 at 11:30p ET/8:30p PT Live on NBC and Peacock. The host and musical guest for the first episode have not yet been announced.

Three new comedians will be joining as featured players for this historic season; Ashley Padilla, Emil Wakim, and Jane Wickline. Per NBC’s media release, Padilla, a Bay Area native, has been a member of the comedy troupe Groundlings Main Company since 2021. Wakim is a Lebanese-American comic and was selected as a New Face of Comedy at the 2022 Just for Laughs Comedy Festival. Wickline was a cast member on TikTok’s live show, “Stapleview,” and performs sketch comedy on tour. Out gay cast member Bowen Yang returns for a fifth season.

Brian Jordan Alvarez exemplifies that axiom “it gets better.” Bullied for being gay as a kid in Tennessee, he’s now starring in his own FX series he created, “English Teacher.”

FX’s “English Teacher” stars Alvarez as Evan Marquez, a high school teacher in Austin, Texas who often finds himself at the intersection of the personal, professional and political aspects of working at a high school.

Evan wants to be a principled person but often runs into trouble because of it, striving to meet the conflicting needs of students and parents amidst ever-changing rules.

By Evan’s side at Morrison-Hensley High is his friend group of other teachers. Chief among them is his best friend Gwen Sanders (Stephanie Koenig), the eager and optimistic history teacher who tends to see the best in people, even when she probably shouldn’t. Then there’s PE teacher Markie Hillridge (Sean Patton).

Though he can seem gruff and abrasive, beneath the surface, he possesses a knowledge of human nature that often proves valuable to Evan. When they aren’t disagreeing, Markie and Evan share a genuine bond, but they’re usually disagreeing.

Principal Grant Moretti (Enrico Colantoni) wants nothing more than peace and the path of least resistance, a path Evan is rarely willing to take.

While Grant keeps his own opinions close to the vest, he respects Evan’s passion, even if it makes his own job more difficult. Guidance Counselor Rick (Carmen Christopher) barely wants to be at this school. He sees himself as an entrepreneur, but still loves hanging out with the other teachers. Evan’s boyfriend Malcolm (Jordan Firstman) is a former teacher at Morrison. Wild and free-thinking, Malcolm often draws Evan back into a pseudo-relationship.

When Grant informs Evan that he is being placed under investigation for a long-dormant incident where he and Malcolm kissed in front of students, Evan suddenly feels that he’s under a microscope and is being targeted for his sexuality. Evan is left with one rule to abide by: no relationships with faculty, only to meet Harry (Langston Kerman), a charming new teacher who seems to be interested in him.

Over the eight-episode season, Evan navigates his relationships, his students and his fellow faculty and tries to answer the question: can you really be your full self at your job?

Both photos: FX

Left: Brian Jordan Alvarez in ‘English Teacher’ Right: Niecy Nash-Betts in ‘Grotesquerie’

by gay neuroscientist Oliver Sacks, “The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat” and “An Anthropologist on Mars.” “Brilliant Minds” premieres Monday, Sept. 23 at 10/9c on NBC and streaming next day on Peacock.

Oh, gross

Is it possible we have three new fall dramas starring out queer actors? It is!

Niecy Nash-Betts stars in the new FX horror series, “Grotesquerie” created

by Ryan Murphy, Jon Robin Baitz, and Joe Baken for FX. “Grotesquerie” premieres Sept. 25 on FX and streams on Hulu.

FX notes, “Evil is all around us.”

(Too right!) In Murphy’s 10-episode “Grotesquerie,” a series of heinous crimes have unsettled a small community. As FX details, Detective Lois Tryon (Nash-Betts) feels these crimes are eerily personal, as if someone –or something– is taunting her.

At home, Lois grapples with a strained relationship with her daugh-

ter, a husband in long-term hospital care and her own inner demons. With no leads and unsure of where to turn, she accepts the help of Sister Megan (Micaela Diamond), a nun and journalist with the Catholic Guardian.

Sister Megan, with her own difficult past, has seen the worst of humanity, yet she still believes in its capacity for good. Lois, on the other hand, fears the world is succumbing to evil. As Lois and Sister Megan string together clues, they find themselves ensnared in a sinister web that only seems to

raise more questions than answers.

The series also stars Courtney B. Vance as Marshall Tryon, Lesley Manville as Nurse Redd, Nicholas Alexander Chavez as Father Charlie, Raven Goodwin as Merritt Tryon and Taylor Swift’s squeeze, Super Bowl champion Travis Kelce.

Written and created by Ryan Murphy, Jon Robin Baitz and Joe Baken, “Grotesquerie” is directed by Max Winkler, Murphy, Alexis Martin Woodall and out gay filmmaker Elegance Bratton.t

Mindful

Out gay actor Zachary Quinto stars as the eccentric Dr. Oliver Wolf in NBC’s new medical drama “Brilliant Minds.” NBC describes the series as focused on “a gifted neurologist who uses his unconventional approach to treat puzzling psychological cases.”

The series is inspired by the books

This resource is supported in whole or in part by funding provided by the State of California, administered by the California State Library in partnership with the California Department of Social Services and the California Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander American Affairs as part of the Stop the Hate program. To report a hate incident or hate crime and get support, go to https://www.cavshate.org/.

Local LGBTQ+ Media Giving Day October 8th!

Celebrating 100 years of local media for and by our community.

The first gay publication in America was 100 years ago this year—1924’s Friendship & Freedom, produced by Henry Gerber. It was shut down by police after just two issues. Through the years, LGBTQ+ media faced similar censorship and hardships. But 100 years later, there is a chance to revitalize this journalism and make it stronger to face the anti-LGBTQ+ backlash, providing critical coverage of this vital part of the U.S. media landscape.

This first year, with one donation, you can support six of the top LGBTQ+ outlets serving our community:

Bay Area Reporter – Dallas Voice _ Philadelphia Gay News Tagg Magazine _ Washington Blade – Windy City Times This project is a program of News Is Out, a collaboration of six of the top local LGBTQ+ media across the country, supported by Local Media Foundation, a 501(C)(3) organization.

Tax-deducible donations can be made anytime from now until Oct 8th.

Scan the QR code to donate now!

Learn more here: givebutter.com/LGBTQequityfund When you give to one, you give to all