From the Publisher

FROM THE PUBLISHER

You might wonder why there’s an article about Renel Brooks- Moon in Benicia Magazine. Here’s the story. I was invited to a baby shower by London Breed and John Konstin. John is a close friend and the owner of John’s Grill in San Francisco on Ellis Street. He is also active in trying to correct politics in SF. I don’t often get an invite from Mayor London Breed, so I decided to attend with Genevieve. Since the baby shower was for John’s first grandchild, he pulled out all the stops. Over 250 friends, politicians, media, and a few beat cops. It was over the top. We were fortunate to sit with Renel and her charming husband Tommy. I’ve known Renel personally since 2008 and have been a fan for much longer. So, I asked if she would do an interview for Benicia Magazine, and she said yes. Genevieve and I were thrilled. Renel is hilarious and charming and we knew the interview would be fun. And she was indeed charming and funny and full of baseball stories, but there was another very somber part of the article. We interviewed her during the same week as the Ketanji Brown Jackson confirmation hearings. She started off the interview saying that she was not doing well and that the hearings were very triggering for her. She told us of the many difficulties that she encountered in her career as an African-American woman, both as a radio and broadcast personality and as the Voice of the Giants. This was a very different Renel than the one that I knew. The interview lasted over an hour and 45 minutes, and it covered much of her life. We were not able to include everything in the magazine but will have a more complete article on our website at a later date.

Father’s Day is always a bit melancholy for me. I lost my dad when I was 14 and I still think about all that he missed. He was a happy, generous and thoughtful man and a great father. He was adventurous; he faked his I.D. when he was 15 years old and joined the Merchant Marines, sailing the Great Lakes. He then enlisted in the Marine Corps and fought in the Korean War, where he received a Purple Heart. He taught my sister and I how to play baseball, volleyball and had us running around the track. He was a health enthusiast before it was popular and would treat us to various healthy concoctions which we didn’t really appreciate. He died on Mother’s Day in 1968 of an asthma attack. I miss him, still.

To all the Dads out there, happy Father’s Day!

—Mary