Noe Valley Voice July 2025 by The Noe Valley Voice

THE NOE VALLEY VOICE

Noe Girls Film Fest Turns 10

In September

It’s Time to Hit Record and Make Your Mark

By Pat Rose

Calling all girl filmmakers! The Noe Valley Girls Film Festival (NVGFF) is accepting submissions for its 2025 showcase.

The rules are simple: Films should be G-rated and five minutes or shorter and created by a girl (ages 16 or younger) who is the director, editor, cinematographer, or scriptwriter. The deadline is Aug. 20, so start making your movie magic.

Winning entries will be screened at the festival’s 10th annual celebration, held Saturday, Sept. 6, at 4 p.m., in the concert hall at the Noe Valley Ministry,

Sailing Into Uncharted Waters

accelerates into the storm.”

By Matthew S. Bajko

“ The storm is quickly transforming the

So sets the scene of the first chapter of The Uncertainty Principle, written by Noe Valley father-son duo Joshua Davis and Kal Kini-Davis.

The book focuses on Mia, a troubled 17-year-old who has been plucked out of school by her family to go live on a sailboat off the islands of Anguilla and Saint Barthélemy. Though all she wants is to escape and return home, Mia soon

finds kinship with two other ex-pats: Alby, who is living at sea with his Australian family, and Nisha, a tourist vacationing on her father’s yacht. The new friendships lift Mia’s spirits, but they also stir questions—and desires— she is only beginning to understand.

“I brought a lot of my own feelings and uncertainties into Mia, and that

CONTINUED ON PAGE 11

Old Meets New In Reopened

Laundromat

Business From ’80s Boasts New Machines, Free Soap

Emily Hayes

History meets modernity at a resurrected self-service laundromat in Noe Valley. The family-run Sea Breeze dry cleaners at 1420 Castro St. near Jersey has reopened its adjacent laundromat with all new washers and dryers, a few perks, and a dash of oldfashioned hospitality.

The coin-operated laundromat reopened on June 14, after sitting empty for 16 years. It features a fleet of new machines: 12 jumbo washers and 16 dryers.

Alas, with the modern machines come modern prices—$8.50 per wash in a 30-pound-capacity Dexter Laundry T-400 machine and 25 cents per four minutes tumbling in a dryer. That compares to $1.75 for a standard wash and 25 cents per eight minutes to dry back in 2002 (according to a Voice survey of “Coin-Op Contenders,” March 2002).

However, a range of laundry detergent products are on the house, including All Free & Clear liquid soap, Kirkland Oxi Powder, and Downy fabric softener.

Owner and operator Justin Kyle Yip, 50, explains that the laundromat historically offered detergent for free, per the preference of his mother, Lisa Huie Yip, and he is keeping that tradition with the reopening.

“She wanted to help the customer out any way she could,” Yip said.

Sea Breeze Cleaners has a long

CONTINUED ON PAGE 9

Adrift on Romance: The Kini-Davis family charts a course through the Andaman Sea in Thailand in 2024.

Photo courtesy Joshua Davis

Clean Slate: To honor an old tradition, Justin Yip poses with wife Kay Astorga and son Felix, 3, while holding a 1982 family photo in front of Sea Breeze Cleaners at 1420 Castro St. In June, the couple reopened a freshly remodeled coin-op laundromat next door. Photo by Art Bodner

A Blockbuster Bake Sale in June yielded $350 for Noe Valley Girls Film Fest fundraisers Wilson (left) and Blaney Haljun. The event is set for Saturday, Sept. 6. Photo courtesy Alison Haljun

Caribbean Trip Inspires Father, Son to Pen Teen Novel

blue Caribbean into angry, darkened waves. She needs to turn back now, head for the safety of the French West Indies behind her. Instead, she twists the throttle and

CRIME SNAPSHOT

Spike in Thefts and ‘Other Miscellaneous’

Police recorded 95 criminal incidents in Noe Valley last month, marking the highest monthly total so far this year and a sharp 56 percent rise from April’s 61 incidents.

According to data culled from the San Francisco Police Department’s digital crime map, larceny/thefts continued to dominate local crime. There were 44 such incidents in May, nearly half of all reported cases, and most involved shoplifting and vehicle break-ins.

Seventeen of the larceny/thefts were shoplifting incidents—14 of them clustered around Castro and Jersey streets. Another dozen involved car break-ins.

Police also recorded four package thefts from buildings, two stolen license plates, and nine “other thefts.”

Burglaries climbed to 16 incidents, up from 11 the previous month. Residential properties were most affected, with 10 homes broken into. Five commercial sites were also burglarized, along with one property classified as “other.”

Fraud cases jumped to nine and included unauthorized credit card use and classic con jobs. Meanwhile, the SFPD logged 10 “other miscellaneous” offenses, among which were trespassing, loitering, resisting arrest, and parole violations.

May also saw two reported robberies and five assaults.

Source: Dataset titled “Map of Police Department Incident Reports: 2018 to Present”

Incident-Reports-2018-to-Present/wg3w-h783/.

online reporting for non-emergency cases. Disclaimer: The

timeliness, or correct sequencing of the

Avenue/Guerrero Street, 30th Street, and Grand View Avenue/Diamond

The monthly crime data is sourced from the SFPD’s “Map of Police Department Incident Reports: 2018 to Present,” which includes both officerfiled and self-reported non-emergency incidents.

The Noe Valley Voice retrieved May’s figures from the city’s open data portal on June 21, 2025.

For statistical purposes, Noe Valley is defined by the SFPD as the area bounded by 21st Street, San Jose Avenue/Guerrero Street, 30th Street, and Grand View Avenue/Diamond Heights Boulevard.

More information is available at data.sfgov.org.

—Corrie

M. Anders, Sally Smith

SAINT JOHN CATHOLIC SCHOOL

Website: https://stjohnseagles.com

Phone: (415) 584-8383

Email: officesj@stjohnseagles.com

LETTERS 73 CENTS

A Forest of Friends

Editor:

Yes, it takes a village to organize the Noe Valley Garden Tour. And this year’s event, on Saturday, May 17, was no exception.

We would like to start by thanking the gracious garden hosts who volunteered to open their gardens. Without them, no tour!

Thank you to Dale and Patty Fehringer, Stefani Wolff, Barbara Howald, Sheila Ash, Barbara Byrnes, Richard Anderson, Richard Cutler, Taylor and Lia Wallick, Alice and Bill Shapiro, Kailei Gallup, and Gina Cockburn.

At each garden, we depend on Garden Greeters to welcome visitors, sell raffle tickets, and keep track of what’s going on. So here is a big shoutout to our wonderful, lovely, dependable Garden Greeters: Susan Olney, Anne Douglas, Pamela Boucher, Marianne Hampton, Gail MacCallum, Marilyn Schaumburg, Elizabeth Malick, Ann Wellington, Howard Fallon, Belinda Fang, Sharon McConnell, Suzi Quatman, Gerta Hurder, Debra Niemann, Michelle Cobble, Jan Proudfoot, Keri Scholte, Linda Lavelle, Richard Mullen, Evangeline Nason, Joseph Padilla, Beth Mooney, Kaz Levenberg, Simon Glinsky, Kurt Boden, Gary Roudebush, Kat Hall, Cheryl Gay, Ludivine Ni, and Clarissa Lam.

In order to have a garden tour, we need a little help from our friends! We couldn't do it without the generosity of our fabulous sponsors:

Gold Sponsors: Droubi Team— Generation Real Estate, Dennis Otto—

Compass, De Fonte Law PC—Estate Planning With Heart, Sloat Garden Center, and Vivre Real Estate—

Danielle Lazier.

Sponsors and Donors: Corcoran Icon, Dirty Hoe Landscaping, Noe Valley Farmers Market, Noe Valley Merchants & Professionals Association, Mitchell’s Ice Cream, NOVY, Noe Valley Library, Noe Valley Books, Skinspirit, Small Frys, Urban Scout, Art Haus, Flora Grubb Gardens, Love and Stem, and Flowercraft. We would also like to thank this year’s artists: Michelle Echenique, Diane Presler, Tanya Wilkinson, Raquel Johnson, Lola Herrera, Shiva Pakdel, Richard Anderson, and Liberty Street Band.

Lastly, thank you to our amazing, hard-working Garden Tour committee: Arete Nicholas, Lisa Erdos, Jana King, Michelle Echenique, Frank Schlier, Susan Roudebush, Rose Griffin, Adrian Bonifacio, and Chris Keene.

Next up is the Noe Valley Art Festival on Sunday, Sept. 14. Mark your calendar. And if you are an artist and would like to participate, email friendsofnv@gmail.com to be added to our list.

Peggy Cling

Linda Lockyer

Friends of Noe Valley

Upper Noe as Old as the Hills Editor:

In a letter to the editor in June (“A Northerner’s Complaint”), Yames expounds upon a misunderstanding of local geography and history. Upper Noe Valley banners on Church Street answer the question, “Where am I?” geographically, historically, and politically. Geographically, the Oxford Dictionary defines a valley as a low area of land between hills or mountains. Yames’ view from 23rd Street and Church, looking south, does indeed look downhill into the valley we call Noe. The valley continues beyond 30th

These two images,

Street, then rises all the way to Miguel. However, if one took a view more familiar to early residents, one sees two valleys. Looking south from 23rd and Castro streets, a valley that is closer to downtown San Francisco falls to 24th Street and then rises up on Castro to Duncan Street. Beyond is an upper valley that falls to 30th Street and then rises to Billy Goat Hill and beyond. Historically, commerce grew separately in the upper and lower valleys. Noe Valley first developed around 24th and Castro. The first train connecting downtown SF to Noe Valley ran along Castro Street from Market Street and terminated in the lower valley. The more bucolic upper valley was served by commerce along the higher numbered addresses on Church Street, such as the butcher shop that has done business continuously since the 1880s. Politically for administrative purposes, the Planning Department drew boundary lines in the 1990s that were convenient to define a smaller set of

Neighbors in Action

Editor:

Today, July 1, Trump’s big brutal bill passed the U.S. Senate—truly a horror for our country. Join your Noe Valley neighbors in fighting back. We in Action-SF select effective grassroots groups in key swing states and direct donations to them. For this November 2025 (only four months away), we are targeting votermobilization groups in Virginia and Pennsylvania. Just today, we raised over $1,000 of our $10,000 goal! See us at the Noe Valley Farmers and Night Markets. Join our effort at action-sf.com.

Courtney Broaddus Member, Action-SF

Noe Valley.”

neighborhoods, ignoring history, geography, and communities that often overlapped. For instance, the entire area of Fairmount was simply rolled into the new boundaries of “Glen Park,” which suddenly abutted the entirety of “Noe Valley.”

Upper Noe Valley has been a recognized community for over 150 years. Upper Noe Recreation Center started as a project under that name a hundred years ago by the Upper Noe Valley Improvement Association. The recently installed banners on Church Street celebrate the neighborhood's history and vitality.

Thank you for dining in Upper Noe Valley. Now you know where you were. For more information, see https://uppernoeneighbors.com/neighborhood-history/.

Christopher Faust

President,

Upper Noe Neighbors

sent by letter-writer Chris Faust, show the prominence that divides the lower and upper valleys in our neighborhood. The photo on the left looks north on Castro Street from Billy Goat Hill (at 30th Street). The one on the right looks south on Castro Street past 23rd Street and heads toward “Upper

CARTOON BY OWEN BAKER-FLYNN

*NASA platform

“___ say more?”

“With my little eye”

47. Claiming Fido as a dependent, e.g. 50. *Acidity-testing strip 54. ___ Fridays (Applebee’s rival) 55. No-holds-barred Reddit Q&A 56. Warriors’ org. 57. With “Bomb,” Japanese restaurant on 24th at Florida 59. Word like “tar” that also means sailor

Anaheim ballplayer

Drug cop, for short

Illuminated from below

Photo: Amanda Brauning

Hidden Italian ACROSS

Open for Submissions

1021 Sanchez St.

The NVGFF was founded in 2016 by two pairs of sisters—Charlotte and Caitlin Kane and Ella and Maggie Marks—all under the age of 12. Over the years, it has grown from a neighborhood festival to a global platform for young filmmakers.

Today, the production team includes 20 girls from middle and high schools across San Francisco. Among the newest members is Blaney Haljun, 13.

Haljun says submitting a film to the Noe Valley festival can be a confidence booster. “It inspires girls to put themselves out there in the world of film. This is important because it helps girls build the courage they need to take on new challenges and see themselves as leaders," says Haljun.

Festival organizers encourage filmmakers to tell stories that are meaningful or personal to them. “Create the movie that only you can create by highlighting specific details that build the tone, character, and the authentic connection with the audience,” says festival adviser Christina Kane.

So far this year, the NVGFF has received more than 100 submissions, from as far away as China, Kenya, Spain, Croatia, Australia, Estonia, and Iran. “And of course, from Noe Valley!” says Kane.

The event offers prizes ranging from $50 to $250, for the top three films in each of two age groups: 11 and under, and 12 to 16. Kane notes that in recent

Parks Alliance Shutdown Stuns Local Groups

Upper Noe Rec and Comerford Greenway Among Jilted Parties

By Megan Robertson

At the beginning of June, the San Francisco Parks Alliance—which lent decades of support to more than 150 parks and public spaces across the city—shut down amid shocking allegations of financial misconduct.

The nonprofit’s board admitted to misusing $3.8 million in restricted funds to cover operating expenses, in an email leaked in April to the San Francisco Chronicle

In response, San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins opened a criminal probe. Mayor Daniel Lurie then suspended grant funding to the organization, pending an audit.

The Parks Alliance had served as a fiscal sponsor to more than 80 groups in San Francisco.

Its collapse left dozens of stewardship groups in limbo, including two in Noe Valley: Friends of Upper Noe Recreation Center, which supports the park and rec center at 295 Day St.; and the Comerford Greenway Project, a group of neighbors working to turn Comerford Alley, between 27th and Duncan streets, into a city-owned and maintained public greenway.

Both groups are now unable to access their funds.

Chris Faust, president of Friends of Upper Noe Recreation Center, was blindsided by the news. It was like going to the bank to get cash and find-

years “we have expanded the age categories in hopes of including [more] older girls.”

Filmmakers can submit their films from now until Aug. 20 to https://filmfreeway.com/festival/NoeVal leyGirlsFilmFestival.

Meanwhile, team members are busy sorting out festival details, seeking local sponsors, and reviewing entries in the competition.

Blaney Haljun and her younger sibling Wilson, 11, have been hard at work raising funds through bake sales at the Saturday Noe Valley Farmers Market. At a recent June sale, they raised $350. Volunteers and sponsors are encouraged to contact the festival’s email at info@nvgff.com.

At the Sept. 6 event, there will be a popcorn and candy stand and a soon-tobe-announced guest speaker from a

ing nothing there, he said. “All our money was banked with them.”

FUNRC had $14,000 in reserves in the Parks Alliance account.

Without the funds, Faust said, the rec center had to drop its summer Concerts in the Park series. It also delayed an audio-system upgrade for the auditorium and the purchase of furniture for Joby’s Dog Run.

Still, Faust expressed sympathy for Parks Alliance employees. “I don't blame our direct representatives,” he said. “I really felt they were doing the best they could in a very difficult situation where they were not given answers either.”

Comerford Greenway’s Bad Day

Howard Fallon, who heads the Comerford Greenway Project, echoed

Faust’s consternation.

“Everything was fine,” Fallon said. “Then one day, I open the paper and it says, ‘They're bankrupt,’ and I’m like, ‘What?!’”

His group has $9,000 frozen in its Parks Alliance account.

“I’m really bummed that [the Parks Alliance] went south, because it provided a valuable function for the city,” Fallon said. “Aside from providing insurance and administrative support, it was a way for these community groups to know each other.”

‘Show Me My Money’

Both Faust and Fallon acknowledge that their losses were relatively modest compared to that of other organizations in the city. (For example, Sutro Stewards, which helps protect trails and

Hollywood film company. Past speakers have included Robbie Brenner, president of Mattel Films, and Maurissa Horwitz, lead editor for Pixar Animation Studios and a co-creator of Inside Out 2

Kane says the festival is free but tends to sell out, so order your tickets soon. To reserve a ticket or get more information, go to http://www.nvgff.com/.

wildlife on Mount Sutro, claims it’s out $200,000.)

To get answers as well as full restitution, the groups have formed a coalition called the Community Partner Network Advisory Committee.

Fallon says he has attended every rally the committee has held, often carrying a sign reading, “Show me my money.”

“We're still trying to pressure the city. We're still trying to do things to promote our cause,” Fallon said.

Despite his concerns about Parks Alliance mismanagement, he remains hopeful that some version of the organization can be salvaged.

“It was corrupt, but they’re going to just let it all die?” he asked. “Let's get the bad people and prosecute them, but let's not destroy the institution.”

Tending to Their Turf

Friends of Upper Noe Recreation Center is reaching out to other groups in Noe Valley, said Faust, “to see if there is a way to work together to support the park.”

Though a few projects have been put on hold, improvements are continuing at the rec center, he said, and Rec and Park recently installed a new Tot Turf synthetic grass surface in the children’s playground.

“We love our park, and we know the neighborhood loves the park,” said Faust. “We are doing our best with what we have to ensure the park stays safe and clean and attractive for everyone.”

Meanwhile, Fallon and his team are pressing on with their beautification of Comerford Greenway.

“We've [just] planted over 25 plants in the alley,” Fallon said. “We're not going to be deterred.”

Each year, dozens of team members and community volunteers pitch in to produce the Noe Valley Girls Film Festival, including a few who don’t mind running the popcorn and candy stand.

Photo by Ted Weinstein

Howard Fallon (“Show Me”) of Comerford Greenway stands in solidarity with (l. to r.) Karen Duderstad of Sutro Stewards and Lois Salisbury of the Tennis Coalition SF at a recent rally at City Hall, protesting the sharks who ate the Parks Alliance funds. Photo courtesy Howard Fallon

A Coin-Operated Laundromat Reopens in Noe

history. Husband-and-wife team Jim and Lisa Yip bought the Noe Valley–based business in the late 1970s and moved to the spot at 1420 Castro in 1982, purchasing the location from Synergy School. After they passed away—Jim in 1996 and Lisa in 2007— son Justin took the reins of the business.

In 2009, Justin Yip closed the selfservice laundromat. At that time, the laundromat business in the area was very competitive and the machines were out of date and needed to be replaced at high cost, he told the Voice

“At the same time, our finished laundry service—like collared shirts for events and going into the office—was very busy, so we chose to expand that operation and close the [coin-op] laundromat,” Yip says.

During the Covid pandemic, though, the dry-cleaning business slowed down, as tech companies like Twitter left San Francisco or shifted to remote work.

Sea Breeze lost half of its clientele.

“Fashion, too, has changed the industry. With the rise of athleisure wear, people are able to wash their own clothes,” says Kay Astorga, Yip’s wife and partner. “So that's made a difference.”

Yip and Astorga married in 2019 and have a son named Felix, who turns 3 this month.

Justin Yip knows regular customers by name and many of their phone numbers by heart, says store patron Gloria Saltzman.

“Sea Breeze has been my local dry cleaners for as long as I have lived in Noe Valley, since 1982,” Saltzman says. “I have seen the changes in the world and the neighborhood and how the Yip family has met their challenges with grace.”

As owner of the building, Justin Yip could have opted to rent the empty space to a new tenant, but instead he decided to reopen the laundromat, seeing a need for another self-service option in the neighborhood.

“It's important to us that whatever is housed in the space be a service to the community, because Justin’s parents left such a legacy, and everyone who knew them knows how much they cared about Noe Valley, so it just feels right,” says Astorga.

Astorga notes that Justin has been

working there since he was 11 years old.

“It was like a rite of passage to be behind the cash register and work with Justin's family,” she adds.

In addition to installing new machines in the laundromat, the business did some cosmetic repainting inside and had the business name painted on the shop window by local artist Mike Menzel.

Since reopening, the laundromat operates for the same hours as the adjoining dry-cleaning business. On Monday and Wednesday, they are open from 2 to 6 p.m. On Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, the hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sometime after the July 4 holiday, when renovations are complete, the laundromat will be open seven days a week, from 12 to 13 hours per day.

So far, Noe locals have been finding out about the new service by chance, seeing the painting work going on and

popping in the dry cleaners to ask what is going on. Astorga, who has a hospitality background, is exploring partnerships with local merchants, including coffee shops, and planning to host events to let the community know about the reopening.

Charlie Spiegel, a customer who has lived in Noe Valley since 2006, says he appreciates the family history when he visits Sea Breeze, seeing the pictures of the Yips back in the day, and the shop’s vintage tote bags.

Spiegel also described Justin Yip as “exceptionally considerate.”

Recently, Spiegel said he washed a load of pillows on the self-service side. And what of the free detergent?

“It’s like the icing on the cake—just a nice little extra,” Spiegel said.

Sea Breeze Cleaners and its coinoperated laundromat can be reached by phone at 415-824-5474 or by text at 415-740-5417.

Justin Yip stands before his upcycled laundromat, which abuts his Sea Breeze dry cleaners at 1420 Castro. The new coin-op offers 12 jumbo washers and 16 dryers. Photo by Art Bodner

In 1982, when Sea Breeze Cleaners moved from 1302 Castro, where Mary’s Exchange is now, to its current location at 1420 Castro St., the family captured the moment, says owner/proprietor Justin Yip, with a photo of “me on the left, then Auntie Holly, my seamstress Cookie who retired, my last active employee Oscar, and retired employees Linda and Connie.”

Photo courtesy Sea Breeze

The tradition continues with the youngest generation at Sea Breeze: 3-year-old Felix with parents Kay Astorga and Justin Yip. Photo by Art Bodner

OMNIVORE BOOKS ••• UPCOMING EVENTS

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TAMARA JO HICKS & JESSICA LYNN MACLEOD • FEASTS ON THE FARM BOOK LAUNCH PARTY • 6:30 P.M. FREE! Celebrate with the founders of Tomales Farmstead creamery!

Sailing Into the Unknown

helped me figure them out for myself,” says Kini-Davis. “I hope by me putting in those real feelings, people reading the book can kind of use that to help them figure things out, too.”

Kini-Davis also channeled the frustrations he sometimes felt toward his parents during high school, though he was quick to clarify, “Mia may be at a more extreme level than me.”

In its first draft, the book centered on Mia falling for two boys from different backgrounds. Then Kini-Davis suggested making one of them a female love interest.

He and his dad finished the final revision on New Year’s Day of 2021. That Jan. 1, Kini-Davis also came out to his family as bisexual. “Writing that really helped me be more comfortable being open about it,” he said.

Davis liked the new storyline, especially because it seemed more authentic. “Mia’s process of accepting her own sexuality mirrored Kal’s own journey,” he said.

Kini-Davis, 18, spoke to the Voice in late May, as he was spending his summer at a boatbuilding program in Washington state. Afterwards, he was set to fly to Florence, Italy, to study furniture design as part of his freshman year at Rhode Island School of Design.

During the interview, Davis, 50, was seated in the kitchen of the home on Clipper Street where the family had lived since 2004. He had called his son so they could jointly discuss the novel.

Not wanting to give away the book’s ending, Davis said readers might be surprised at the decision Mia ultimately makes.

“She makes a very bold choice. To me, it says a lot about growing up,” said Davis.

A Vacation From Internet

Published in June by Penguin Random House, the 260-page young adult novel had initially sprung from a month-long vacation Davis and KiniDavis embarked on with Davis’s wife, Tara Kini, and their younger son, Kirin, in 2020. Itching to leave behind the stay-at-home protocols wrought by

Covid, the family flew that June to Antigua, one of the first countries to allow back tourists, and rented a catamaran 40 feet in length with four bedrooms and two bathrooms. Another family of four from San Francisco joined them on the trip. Their sailboat had two pontoons, one mast, and a sail, and was captained by a person provided by the boat-rental company.

“I was super excited about it. We got to have access to so much nature, and the whole ocean was in front of us. I felt very lucky to be out there,” said Kini-Davis. “It was an eye-opening experience to get to sail.”

During downtimes on the vessel, the families would relax and tell tales to entertain one another. Back then, there was no satellite internet service and no streaming of games or videos—their cell phone service was spotty at best, noted Davis.

From time to time, a huge yacht would anchor near them, sparking their imaginations as they sailed from Antigua to Barbuda and then to St. Barts. The nearly three weeks spent on the boat produced the “kernel” of an idea for their book, said Davis.

“One story Kal and I were bouncing back and forth was what would happen if a kid on a vagabond sailboat, a teenager, fell for a teen on a mega yacht romantically, like teenage love,” Davis recalled. “Kal was feeling, as a new teenager 13 years old and stuck on a boat with his parents and seeing across the water a kid on this other boat, a feeling of isolation and a longing for connection that I think a lot of us felt during Covid.”

Once back home in Noe Valley, father and son set about writing their novel. Over several drafts it came together, with the editing process wearing away who wrote just what.

“I thought it would be a fun project, even if it didn’t get published; a fun father-son thing to do, which it was,” said Davis, who grew up in San Francisco and was part of the eightperson first graduating class of the San Francisco Day School.

Chasing Self-Awareness

Davis is the best-selling author of several nonfiction books, including Spare Parts, about four Latino students who win a robotics competition, and his memoir, The Underdog, about entering arm-wrestling, bullfighting, and other

wacky competitions.

Co-founder of Epic magazine, which publishes extraordinary stories that can be developed for film or TV, Davis produced the Sundance award-winning film Radical, a 2023 comedy-drama about a teacher undeterred by the limited resources at his impoverished primary school in Mexico. He also wrote for Wired magazine for close to two decades,

Davis has thought about turning The Uncertainty Principle into a TV series. That would be fine with Kini-Davis. “I would love to see it put into a TV show,” he said.

Their book’s title refers to the Heisenberg principle in quantum

physics, loosely paraphrased as the closer you look at a thing in motion, the e harder it is to see.

“We thought it was an apt metaphor, in general, for the teenage years,” said Davis. “It is a period of time where on the one hand you are becoming selfaware, but on the other hand, what self are you becoming aware of?”

Nautical Tips

After their Caribbean sojourn, the Kini-Davis clan took America Sailing Association courses, so they could captain a sailing ship on their own.

Instructors with Spinnaker-Sailing, located at the marina near Oracle Park, taught them on a 21-foot Andrews high-performance sailboat.

“Certainly, for me and the whole family, it was like a way of being with nature. We loved it,” said Davis, who had first gone sailing as a young teen with a science teacher on a J/24 keelboat-class sailboat around Sausalito and under the Golden Gate Bridge. “We got certification to captain boats up to 50 feet.”

In St. Barts, Kini-Davis took lessons from French-speaking instructors on small dinghies. It was a trial-by-fire experience, he recalled, as they put him in the boat and sent him on his way, then purposefully came along in another boat to cause his to capsize.

“It was a thrill,” he said.

All Hands on Deck

During high school at the Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts, Kini-Davis joined the youth sailing club offered in conjunction with the Golden Gate Yacht Club. He and his fellow members raced students from other local high schools on collegiate flying junior boats, or CFJs.

He also started going to the wooden rowboat repair sessions held on

Joshua Davis and Tara Kini set sail with their most trusted seamates, Kal Kini-Davis and Kirin Kini-Davis.

Photo courtesy the Kini-Davis family

Authors Joshua Davis and Kal Kini-Davis dreamed up The Uncertainty Principle in the waters off Antigua. The story found a publisher and beautiful cover art by Jay Emmanuel.

By JOSHU JOSHUA A DAVIS and KAL KINI-D KINI-DAVIS

“It’ t’s s not the electr electrodes,odes,” ” Lene sa says. ys. She’ She’s s sitting cr cross-legged oss-legged above e the hatchwa hatchway y that leads beloelow w deck and is wearing earing her usual beige eige tur tleneck and bagg agg y, pea-gr pea-green een suit jacket. et. It’ It’s s a ridiculous thin thing g to wear ear on a boat, oat, par ticularl ticularly y in the mugg ugg y Caribbean, but ut Lene doesn’ doesn’t t car care, in par t because ecause she’ she’s s a worldorldrenoenowned wned physicist. ysicist. Also, because ecause she is Mia’ Mia’s s imaginar y friend.

The real eal Lene Hau at Har va vard d has no idea that Mia exists.

“Y “You ou should tr y a diff differerent ent substrate ,” ” Lene sa says ys helpfull helpfully.

“Because what you’ou’re e doing now w realleally y isn’ isn’t t working.orking.” ”

“I kno know, Lee ,” ” Mia mutters. utters. The cor correct ect wa way y to pronounce onounce Lene’ Lene’s s name is “Lee-nah, “Lee-nah,” ” but ut when Mia gets frustrated with her friend, she sometimes sa says ys just th the e first par t.

Kaden looks up again. He can’ can’t t see Lene , so Mia’ Mia’s s strange mutterings utterings can sometimes confuse him. Mia ignor ignores es him and sta stays ys focused ocused on her homemade solar panel. It’ It’s s made of fiv five e glass squar squares es and each one reprepresents esents a diff differerent ent idea about out how w to maximize electrical production using naturall naturally y occur occurring ring things. One is made out of wild bererries, ries, another from om har harder to get titanium dio dioxide xide

Sh She’e’s s been een at it for or months now, slo slowlwly y impr improving the power er generation. When the they’y’re e anchor anchored, ed, she spends her da days ys shuffling ar around ound the boat’oat’s s small kitchen, boiling oiling concoctions and mumbling ling with her imaginar y friend. Eventuallentually, she’ll have e a completely y mobile comm communication unication system, the casta castawaway y geek version of a cell phone

“This is one of the rar rare e things your mom and I see eye e to eye e on, on,” ” Lene sa says. ys. “Y “You’ou’re e definitel definitely y becoming ecoming a weireirdo do ”

Mia wants to argue but ut realizes it would onl only y confirm the poin point. t. After all, if your imaginar y friend and your mom agr agree ee that you’ou’re e weireird, d, you ou probably y have e a problem. lem. Mia feels a pang of tension just thinking about out her mom. Her dad’ dad’s s soft snoring has driv driven en her mom out of the forward d cabin and Mia can hear her tossing fitfull fitfully y on the banquette beloelow. The They y had a long passage last night and Izzy left Mia in charge so she could sleep These moments on deck withou without t her par parents ar are e one of the few w times she can relax. elax.

Normally, her mom is badgering adgering her to read ead a book ook or study for or an AP test, which is ir ironic because ecause Izzy pulled them out of school to do something called “unschooling. “unschooling.” ”

Izzy had read ead about out it in a book, ook, and it basically y means the they y can do whate whatever er the they y want. The book ook said that unschooled kids star t by y goofing oofing off until the they y get so crushingl ingly y borored, ed, the they y decide that studying sounds gr great. The approach oach was supposed to help a student disco discover er “inner motivation” via intense bororedom. edom. But, after six months, Mia is still goofing oofing off, at least as far as her mom is concerned.

Mia nibbles bbles a stra stray y piece of skin on her index finger and winces when it comes off.

The sharp sharp, fleeting pain is a distraction from om the sound of her par parents beloelow. She can hear ever er y snor t, burpurp, and far t. Reason 147 wh why y this was a bad ad idea: You ou never er want to be e jammed in this close with your par parents. ents.

Excerpt published with author s’ permission fr from om The Uncer tainty Principle (P (Penguin enguin Random House: June 2025)

Wind in Their Sails

Tuesday uesday nights by the Dolphin Swim Club, to which his dad belongs.

“I was like, like, ‘Wow, this is incredible!’ I loved it immediately immediately,” ,” said KiniDavis. “I have always liked working with my hands. It is very grounding, getting to work on these ancient wooden boats. It is very meditative work, varnishing and sanding the boats.”

It is also how he learned about the Northwest School of Wooden Boatbuilding in Port Hadlock, Wash. One of the club’ club’s s master boatbuilders had attended the school and suggested that Kini-Davis do the same.

As for post college, Kini-Davis isn’t t quite sure what career path he will pursue. He suspects it will be in the creative arts, or craft related. There could be another book co-written with his dad. “The possibility is there,” said Kini-Davis.

Davis notes, “At the end of this book, it leads us into a new ocean or sea. There is another book contemplated in our minds.”

Captains Courageous

Creativity could once again flow from the family’ family’s s sailing adventures. Since their first voyage, they’ve char chartered boats to sail around Australia’ Australia’s s Whitsundays Islands, home to the Great Barrier Reef; around the islands of French Polynesia; and in the Andaman Sea bordering Thailand. They’ve also returned to the Caribbean, sailing around Grenada.

At one point, sailing in the Leeward Islands in the Pacific last year year, the bat-

teries ran out on the ship they had rented. It caused the onboard refrigerator to clunk out, thus spoiling all the perishable food they’d brought with them.

“W “We e threw the food overboard to the sharks,” said Davis.

Asked who of the two was the better sailor sailor, Davis and Kini-Davis admitted the issue was a source of squabbling in the family Then each began to cite examples of his own prowess.

Davis noted he was best at taking the helm at night, while Kini-Davis recalled his ability to navigate island reefs and thus avoid damaging their boats.

Such was the case one night when Davis was attempting to sail toward Maupiti Island, the westernmost island in French Polynesia. He was trying to steer the ship into a narrow 50-foot pass among the reefs circling the island.

“I couldn’ couldn’t t see where to go. If you looked at the chart you could see it, but you couldn’ couldn’t t see it with your eyes,” he recalled. “It was extremely nervewracking.”

At sunrise, Davis suggested they wait a little longer for the ocean waters to settle. Kini-Davis, however however, said they should call the local woman they had been told to phone, who lived on the island’ island’s s mountain and could visually check the swells in the channel.

They called her her, and she said conditions appeared to be safe, safe, so Kini-Davis took over and sailed the boat ashore.

Even though the waves had lost their power to capsize the sailboat, Davis recalled, “it was terrifying.”

Thereafter continued the debate as to whether it was father or son who had greater command of the sea.

Stepping in to referee, Tara ara Kini told the Voice oice, “Kal is clearly the better captain.”

Dowownlnload oad thihis PDF b s booookleklet

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Engineer-Turned-Baker Crafts Masterpieces

By Bruce Dettman

While Delights by Lisa, a cozy bakery located at 1767 Church St., might appear boutique-sized, the immense talent and work that goes into the creation of owner Lisa Chan’s custom cakes and assorted confectionary goodies is anything but small or limited.

Chan, a native San Franciscan and longtime Noe Valley resident, runs this one-woman enterprise. Her first profession was as an industrial engineer, but in later years she decided to pursue her second dream, that of going into the bakery business with the goal of fashioning unique and specialized desserts.

Attending the California Culinary

Academy, Le Cordon Bleu, where she graduated summa cum laude, she was already working in a bakery when she opened her first brick-and-mortar site in 2012. At the time, she was also teaching year-round cooking and baking courses as well as kids’ summer cooking enrichment classes in South San Francisco, a program that was later adopted at the College of San Mateo and Canada College.

In 2019, she moved the bakery to its current Church Street location. Though she enjoyed teaching children and adults, she opted during Covid to focus on the bakery, utilizing her impressive design and conceptual talents toward the selling of customized cakes and offering cupcakes, eclairs, and other dessert items on certain days for retail walk-ins.

Her amazingly detailed desserts, specially ordered by her clientele, have run

the gamut from a streetcar to a jewelry kiln, a garbage truck to a designer purse, and even a tasty replica of a chateau in France, all as visually impressive as they are delicious.

I accidentally stumbled on Delights by Lisa last year, and my sweet tooth has never been happier. My wife loves the lemon treats and I’ve never met a chocolate treat from Lisa I didn’t like.

For information on ordering, visit her website at DelightsbyLisa.com or email delightsbylisa@gmail.com.

The bakery’s walk-in hours are normally Wednesday, noon to 5 p.m.; Thursday and Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

As Lisa Chan says on her website, “Custom cakes take up the rest of the time.”

That’s understandable. Those cake designs are simply amazing.

Bruce Dettman is a freelance writer and a 25-year resident of Noe Valley.

The 昀rst half of the year has been strong for SF real estate, but the summer slow down that usually occurs in August has begun early. Are buyers just getting away from the fog, or is the economic uncertainty starting to push them to the sidelines? The stock market is holding steady, the latest sales have been strong. Preparing to manage risk in our typically busy fall market is how Jessica is playing it. Already this year, Jessica's sales have wowed her clients and driven the market up. Her sharp negotiating skills, market intelligence, and nearly two decades of experience navigating this nuanced, shifting market consistently sets her apart Jessica’s deep expertise is especially evident in Noe Valley, where she's been a property owner and leading agent for decades, and where her latest listing just sold over asking at $5.660M right after the 昀rst open house (www.ModernNoeMasterpiece.com)! Call Jessica today at 415.341.7177 for a complimentary, no-strings-attached evaluation of your home's value in today’s market.

Pastry designer Lisa Chan is wowing customers with her edible art works at Delights by Lisa on Church Street. Photos courtesy Bruce Dettman

Lisa Chan’s cakes are such showstoppers, customers might mistake them for the real thing.

Co-artistic directors Meena Bhasin and Owen Dalby have announced that the 2025–26 season of the Noe Music series will be “a declaration of artistic integrity, of community, and of fearless creativity in a complex world.”

From the looks of the 11 concerts— featuring classical, jazz, new music, improv, and world music, and a choral collaboration in May called Together We Rise—they have a good chance of embodying their musical manifesto.

The season launches Sunday, Sept. 14, with Elizabeth Joy Roe, whom many may recall from her virtuosic and often hilarious four-hand duos with fellow pianist Greg Anderson. For this concert, Roe will play the Bay Area premiere of Etudes by Samuel Carl Adams, as well as partner with violist Bhasin in a piano portrait of Brahms’ F minor sonata.

On Oct. 5, the eight-member American Wind Soloists will perform works by Mozart, Smetana, and Ruth Gipps, conveying the lyricism and folkloric elements in these composers.

The Poeisis Quartet’s program on Nov. 9 will stress resilience and cultural memory in pieces by Prokofiev, jazz pianist Billy Childs, Kevin Lau, and Michi Wiancko, sister of Kronos Quartet cellist Paul Wiancko.

The first of three Noe After Dark concerts—in the evening instead of afternoon hours—will showcase eclectic vocalist ganavya on Nov. 21, playing with bassist Max Ridley and harpist Charles Overton. Pianist Inon Barnatan, with series co-director Dalby on violin, will perform an Impromptu and Sonata by Schubert on Dec. 7.

Visiting the series in the new year

SHORT TAKES

will be Grammy-nominated composer, flutist, and vocalist Nathalie Joachim (Jan. 10); the Junction Trio sampling Beethoven, Schubert, and Cage (Feb. 22); pianist Dan Tepfer with an innovative approach to Bach (March 21 and 22); and lyric tenor Nicholas Phan celebrating the sound of protest with the 13-member Palaver Strings (April 19).

In the finale on May 10, the San Francisco Girls Chorus will join Bhasin, Iranian-born singer Mahsa Vahdat, and Latin singer-songwriter Diana Gameros in offering a “musical act of witness and a celebration of voices that refuse to be silenced.”

Series memberships at $100 and $500 levels, with individual tickets priced at $60 reserved, $45 general admission, or $15 for students, are available starting this month. The music will resound at the Noe Valley Ministry, 1021 Sanchez St.

For more information, about either the main stage concerts or the Noe Music Kids series, as well as the Lullaby Project with music by new mothers, go to noemusic.org.

—Jeff Kaliss

Civic Joy and Gelato Noe Valleyans of all stripes are invited to the next gathering of Upper Noe Neighbors on Wednesday, July 16, at 7 p.m., in the Upper Noe Rec Center auditorium, 295 Day St.

The group will hold a summer check-in on some big local issues.

At the top of the agenda are:

—Tips on fundraising from Civic Joy Fund co-founder Manny Yekutiel

for Indoor and Outdoor Dining Tues. - Sat. 5:30 - 8:30 fireflysf.com/reservations

We’re partying like its 1993! (Our original opening) Now open for indoor and outdoor dining, Tues-Sat 5:30-8:30 fireflysf.com/reservations

(owner of Manny’s “political events space, café, bar, and bookstore” on 16th Street), including ideas for revitalizing the park and rec center at Upper Noe; —Crime and safety updates from Ingleside Police Station, plus a look at how Neighborhood Watch groups are faring these days;

—A speaker from the Department of Public Works, discussing sidewalk maintenance and liability issues; and —Transit talk about the J-Church and a traffic signal proposed for 29th and Church.

There also will be free door prizes and refreshments, including sweets from La Copa Loca Gelato (1504 Church St.).

Says group president Chris Faust, “Everyone’s welcome. Come for the updates, stay for the gelato.”

You can reach him at hello@uppernoeneighbors.com.

—Sally

Smith Artists and Models

TheNoe Valley Art Festival, first launched in 2022, will return to the Noe Valley Town Square for its fourth year on Sunday, Sept. 14, with a new array of art and artists, plus music, dance, and art-making activities for kids.

“Mark your calendars!” say organizers Linda Lockyer and Peggy Cling. (Or how about paint your calendars, all the ones you’re now receiving in the mail, and then cut them up to make mosaics or masks or a papier-mache idol 10 feet tall... But I digress.)

If it’s anything like last year’s, the

free event, co-sponsored by Friends of Noe Valley and the San Francisco Rec and Park Department, will include photographs, paintings, jewelry, ceramics, sculpture, and fabric and fashion art.

The impresarios are still mixing the media, says Lockyer, so artists who would like to be involved, please send an email to Friendsofnv@gmail.com before July 23.

Yes, you can sell your work at the festival, which happens in the square at 3861 24th between Vicksburg and Sanchez. For more information, call Lockyer at 415-519-1654.

—Sally Smith

Debra Forthetsukobram shows off her ceramic art at the 2023 Noe Valley Art Festival at the Noe Valley Town Square on 24th Street. Those who’d like to participate in this year’s event, on Sunday, Sept. 14, should contact festival organizers at Friendsofnv@gmail.com.

Photo by Sally Smith

The Cost of Living in Noe

Units Are Better Than One

By Corrie M. Anders

Awaveof buyers eager to gain a foothold in Noe Valley’s highpriced housing market snapped up seven small apartment buildings in May—a significant increase from just one sale in April and three the previous May.

The rise in sales, detailed in monthly data provided by Corcoran Icon Properties, comes in a neighborhood where only a handful of two- to fourunit buildings typically change hands each month. All seven of May’s transactions were duplexes, often purchased by tenants-in-common looking to coown and occupy separate units.

“You have the potential for condo conversion. That would be the appealing part of a two-unit building,” said Christine Lopatowski, manager of Corcoran Icon’s 24th Street office. “Or you could occupy one unit and get income from the other to help pay the

mortgage,” she said.

The average sale price for the duplexes was $2.2 million. Split between two buyers, that works out to $1.1 million each—far below May’s $2.84 million average for a singlefamily home or $1.85 million for a condominium. The median price was even lower, since one of the seven sales was for $5 million.

The outlier was a modern two-unit building in the 1500 block of Church Street near 28th Street, constructed in 2017. After lingering on the market for 71 days, it sold for $4,995,000—12.3 percent below its listed price of $5,695,000.

The luxury home’s upper unit featured three bedrooms, two baths, a gourmet kitchen, floor-to-ceiling windows, a marble fireplace, and a topfloor family room leading to a roof deck with city and bay views. The equally elegant lower unit offered two bedrooms and two baths, a chef’s kitchen, and direct access to the home’s back yard and patio.

Condo Market Rebounds

The condo market also showed strength in May. Buyers moved quickly, on average in under two weeks. They also paid an average 9 percent above asking.

The top condo sale was a threeedroom, 2.5-bath unit in a renovated three-unit building at the corner of 29th and Dolores (1500 block). The buyers paid $2,350,000—6.9 percent over the

Rents**

Noe Valley Home Sales*

list price ($2,199,000). Built in 1905 and given a contemporary makeover in 2021, the 1,920-square-foot home boasted floor-to-ceiling glass, a spa-like primary bath, a private deck and yard, and one-car parking.

Homes in the Mid-Range

Single-family home sales held steady year over year, with 11 properties sold—matching last May’s total. Though sales were down from 16 in April, homes sold quickly, with an average 20-day turnaround and final sale prices coming in at 8 percent above the seller’s asking price.

Most buyers opted for mid-range homes. Seven of the 11 properties sold for under $3 million; four exceeded that mark.

The month’s most expensive house was a fully remodeled Victorian (first built in 1900) in the 1000 block of Noe Street between 23rd and Elizabeth streets. The 2,980-square-foot home— featuring four bedrooms, three baths, a double parlor, and an eat-in kitchen with a walkout deck and garden—sold off-market for $4 million, just $5,000 over asking.

The residence also included a fourcar garage—a rarity these days.

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STORE TREK

Store Trek is a regular feature spotlighting new businesses in and around Noe Valley. This month we introduce a bakery specializing in warm bagels and fresh-made pastries.

BONES BAGELS

741 Diamond Street bonesbagels@gmail.com https://www.bonesbagels.com/

There are a few things to consider when trying out Bones Bagels, now dispensing its signature sourdough bagels fresh from the oven at a brickand-mortar location.

First, you may join dozens of patrons waiting in line at the bakery, which opened to much fanfare on June 13 at 741 Diamond St. near 24th Street, in the spot once occupied by PastaGina.

Second, Bones has no phone, so customers can’t pre-order. Sales are on a first-come, first-served basis. Everything is takeout.

Also, the bakery is making 1,000 bagels a day, and due to their instant popularity, the shop is limiting people to four bagels each, between 8 a.m. and 1 p.m.

“We are boiling and baking all throughout the day, so the bagels are coming out fresh,” says Bones founder Noah Orloff. “I think it’s very cool that you are getting a hot, fresh bagel all day.”

Patrons also should know there are three types of bagels and cream cheeses to choose from on any given day. At opening, the options were plain, sesame, and “everything" bagels, and plain, chili oil, and green onion and chives cream cheeses.

The bagels are vegan, Orloff points out, since they are made without using an egg wash before baking. They cost $3 apiece, or $5 if ordered with cream cheese. (A bagel with a vegan cashew spread costs $6, as does an eight-ounce canister of cream cheese.)

Any bagels that remain after 1 p.m. are sold loosely without a limit on the number. But they will need to be taken home to be toasted, as the bakery shuts down its kitchen an hour before closing at 2 p.m., to allow the staff time to clean up.

Bones Bagels is also offering bagel

dogs made with a hot link sausage ($6), which can be ordered starting at 11 a.m.

The lunch menu also features bagel sandwiches, such as the salmon ($16) and the veggie ($10), made with fresh herbs, cucumber, onion, dill, and tomato.

Orloff puts out two small benches in front of the bakery. If they’re full, he recommends those who don’t live nearby head to Noe Courts park at the corner of 24th and Douglass to sit and enjoy their bagels.

“A parklet is something we need to do,” says Orloff, so customers don’t monopolize the outdoor seating that Diamond Cafe provides in its parklet on Diamond Street.

Orloff grew up in San Diego and graduated with a B.A. in Native American studies from U.C. Berkeley in 2013. He moved back to his hometown and ended up taking over a bakery he and his mom liked visiting, which was housed in an old barn in the Valley Center area of San Diego County.

“As customers, we loved their bread, and the owners started teaching me how to make it,” said Orloff. He sold his mostly French bread at local farmers markets.

In late 2016, he moved to Santa Cruz to work at the Companion Bakeshop. There he learned how to make sourdough baked goods. Returning to San Diego, he opened Wildwood Flour, which he first ran out of his home, then at a location in Pacific Beach.

He sold his stake in Wildwood and relocated to San Francisco in 2023 with his fiancée, Jessica Thornton Murphy, with whom he has a 15-month-old daughter, Ruby. They had first dated “for a week,” he said, when they were 12 years old, and met up again later in life. The couple are now co-owners in Bones Bagels.

It was in the garage of their Outer Richmond home that Orloff launched Bones Bagels & Bread delivery service and gained buzz for using a stationary bike to mill grains into flour for the baked goods. He would deliver orders by bike or car around the city, which is how he came across the for-lease sign on the former Italian market and pasta shop PastaGina. After PastaGina closed in 2017, a ghost kitchen took over the nearly 800-square-foot storefront and made food for takeout or delivery during Covid. It shuttered last year.

“I was looking for a place in a nice neighborhood that was hybrid residential and business, is walkable, and has a

small front-of-house,” said Orloff. “I didn’t want to do a complete renovation.”

He has stopped making breads and is solely focused on bagels, bialys, and a few pastries, like cookies and scones. The shop’s name honors Milo, a dog Orloff once had, who was “all skin and bones” in his old age but who still loved eating bagels. It is also a nod to a friend in San Diego nicknamed Bones.

“Bones has a nice ring to it,” Orloff said.

Murphy, an artist and designer, created the bakery’s tile mosaic of a skeleton dog on a leash, which adorns the right wall, and a mural above the front counter.

She is also the proprietor of Plunge,

which makes household items and beach towels ($45). A selection is for sale at the bakery alongside locally made candles and ceramics.

Bones Bagels has continued to attract crowds since opening weekend, when wait times for a bagel reached 25 minutes. The staff of 10 “adjusted on the fly,” said Orloff, and have been able to speed up the ordering process.

“I was extremely surprised by the support,” he said.

—Matthew S. Bajko

Bones Bagels is open from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday through Sunday.

A customer awaits satisfaction in the front area at Bones Bagels, painted fern green and decorated in mosaic and mural art by co-owner Jessica Thornton Murphy. Photo by Art Bodner

Bones Bagels founder Noah Orloff makes no bones about it: his fresh, hand-rolled bagels are sold first come, first served.

Photo by Art Bodner

Noe Valleyans of all shapes and sizes enjoy their morning feast at Bones Bagels, located at the corner of Diamond and 24th. Photo by Art Bodner

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You’re invited to submit your poems, short fiction, essay or non-fiction piece for possible inclusion in the August 2025 edition of The Noe Valley Voice.

750 word limit. No payment, but your work will be seen by thousands of readers of our print and online editions.

Deadline: July 15, 2025

Email editor@noevalleyvoice.com

Thank you.

Good Day in Noe Valley.

MORE FOOD TO EAT

Sourdough Chocolate Chip Cookie from Bones Bagels

It’s days like today that make this job both a privilege and a challenge—a privilege because if you stay curious and keep your eyes (and taste buds) open, Noe Valley’s food scene has a way of surprising you; a challenge because when there are so many great finds, choosing just one to highlight isn’t easy.

This morning, Ollie, Katie, and I tried the newly opened Bones Bagels (open 8 a.m.–2 p.m. Thursday–Sunday) at 741 Diamond St. Judging by the bustling line when we arrived, the secret is already out. But as a native New Yorker with a soft spot for bagels, I wasn’t deterred by the wait. What’s a Sunday morning without a fresh treat?

So, while the sourdough bagel we tasted was undeniably wonderful—crispy on the outside with its charming gluten blisters and “everything” seasoning, and captivatingly soft within—it’s not the bagel I want to highlight here. Anyone going to Bones is already going to grab a bagel; that’s a given. But if I can nudge you toward something that feels a bit more decadent, then I’ll consider my journalistic duties fulfilled.

Every bite of the shop’s Sourdough Chocolate Chip Cookie strikes a perfect balance.

The sweetness is just right, and the use of sourdough brings a depth of sophistication you don't see in your typical chocolate chip cookie. The chocolate itself is rich and satisfying, while the texture finds the “sweet spot” between crispy on the outside and chewy (but not overly doughy) within. Additionally, the bakers at Bones added a nice sprinkling of sea salt on top, a small touch I love, to keep the cookie grounded. And thankfully, it’s not the size of a dinner plate. It’s indulgent without being overwhelming.

All in all, it made for an A+ Sunday morning and a delicious reminder that sometimes the best finds come in small packages.

—Matt Fisher, on the beat for More Food to Eat Have a suggestion for a dish to try in Noe Valley? Send an email to Matt Fisher at MoreFoodtoEatNoeValley@gmail.com. Also, check out this month’s Store Trek. It tells the whole Bones Bagels story and gives tips on grabbing a batch fresh from the oven.

The Basics for Your Quake Kit

Sally Smith / Illustrations by Karol Barske

Here are some tips on putting together a quake kit or “go bag,” so you’ll be ready to face the next earthquake, severe weather event, fire, or other health emergency Think about what you’ll need to manage for a week with no electricity or plumbing

Meanwhile, you get prepared by taking a training course with San Francisco’s volunteer Neighborhood Emergency Response Team (NERT)

You can sign up at the SF-fire org/nert website For information, call the SFFD at 415-970-2022 or 2024 (NERT class hotline)

Water: One gallon per person to last 3 to 5 days

(Use bleach to purify it 2 to 4 drops per quar t )

Food for 3 to 5 days, such as canned or dried soups beans juice

Cooking Supplies: A grill or camp stove , utensils, matches, can opener, foil plastic wrap garbage bags

Clothing: Light and heavy layers for all, stored to stay dr y Include a pair of shoes and gloves

Safety: Flashlight, radio, batteries, rope , knife , scissors, fire extinguisher, wrench to shut off utilities

Supplies such as cash, house or car keys, pencil and paper, i d cards, insurance info maps

Hygiene: Waterless soap, toilet paper, shampoo toothbrush

sanitar y supplies

Special items for children, the elderly or people with disabilities

Children’s Play Area on Firm Ground

According to Friends of Upper Noe Recreation Center. renovation of the children’s playground proceeded smoothly and on schedule in June at the park. Look for the children’s area to reopen this month.

Meanwhile, the Summer Schedule is continuing through Aug. 21. Fun classes this session include Karate Kidz and International Folk Dance (18+). Also, recently added is Boys Open Volleyball, for teens 17 and under. To see if classes have slots available, go to sfrecpark.org/register.

Equipment for pickleball, ping-pong, and other activities can be picked up at the Upper Noe Rec Center office, at 295 Day St. between Sanchez and Church. Some activities at Upper Noe are drop-in and free. So, call the office at 415970-8061 or visit www.uppernoerecreationcenter.com for more information.

Friends of Upper Noe Recreation Center is the stewardship group. Get involved. If you see something amiss at the park, contact San Francisco Customer Service (3-1-1) either by phone, web, or the phone app. Park personnel rely on your 3-1-1 reports to support service requests.

For issues related to Joby’s Dog Run, open 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., call 3-1-1 or email info@fundogsf.org.

Upper Noe Summer Schedule (June 10 to Aug. 21, 2025) Rec Center Hours, 295 Day St.: Tues. to Fri., 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.;

Sun. and Mon., closed; outside activities only. Park

Tuesday

9 to 10 a.m. Zumba (outside) FREE

10 to 11:30 a.m. A Place to Play

10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Pickleball (all ages) FREE

12 to 1 p.m. Pilates (18+) 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Strength & Flexibility (18+)

2 to 5 p.m. Open Basketball (youth) FREE

5 to 7:45 p.m. Open Basketball (18+) FREE 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Yoga Vinyasa (18+)

Wednesday 10 to 11:30 a.m. A Place to Play

Shelter: Tent, sleeping bags

Medical: First-aid kit, medications, KN95 masks, extra pair of glasses

Pet Supplies, such as food, water, leash, medications, and carrier

Checklist for the ‘Go Bag’

It never hurts to have a “go bag” at home or work or in your car.

□ Sturdy shoes

□ Flashlight, whistle

□ Glasses

□ Crank or battery radio

□ Food and water

□ Cash ($100 in small bills)

□ Basic first-aid, medications

□ Change of clothes

□ Toilet paper, hand sanitizer

□ Big trash bag, mylar blanket

□ Copy of driver’s license

□ Paper, pencil, family or pet photos, important documents

10:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. International Folk Dance (55+) FREE 12 to 1 p.m. Feldenkrais (18+) 12:30 to 3 p.m. Open Basketball (all ages) FREE

3:15 – 5 p.m. Boys Open Volleyball (youth) FREE

4 to 4:45 p.m. Karate Kidz—Little Kickers (6-8)

5 to 6 p.m. Karate Kidz (9-12)

5 to 7:30 p.m. Advanced Drop-In Volleyball (18+)

Thursday

10 to 11:30 a.m. A Place to Play

10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Pickleball (18+) FREE 12 to 1 p.m. Pilates (18+) 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Strength & Flexibility (18+)

2 to 5 p.m. Open Basketball (youth) FREE 4 to 5 p.m. Petite Bakers (3-5) 4:30 to 6 p.m. A Place to Play (Free Play) 5 to 7:45 p.m. Open Basketball (18+) FREE 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Yoga Vinyasa (18+) Friday 9 to 10 a.m. Zumba (outside) FREE 10 to 11:30 a.m. A Place to Play 12 to 5 p.m. Open Basketball (all ages) FREE 2

San Francisco Information Line SFgov.org or SF.gov. .

3-1-1 or 415-701-2311

San Francisco Police Dispatch in a emergency: 9-1-1. From a cell phone:. . 415-553-8090

San Francisco Police in a non-emergency

Burned-out Streetlights, streetlights@sfwater.org (PUC).

District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, mandelmanstaff@sfgov.org .

District 8 Community Safety Liaison (SFPD)

415-553-0123

415-554-0730

. 415-554-6968

Dave.Burke@sfgov.org

Graffiti, fallen trees, street cleaning (DPW) 3-1-1 or zerograffiti@sfdpw.org. . 415-695-2017

Homeless Services Street Outreach Services (SOS) medical care.

Lost or Injured Animals Animal Care and Control . .

Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Services sfmayor.org

. 415-355-2250

. 415-554-6364

. 415-554-7111

NERT Neighborhood Emergency Response Team sffdnert@sfgov.org. 415-970-2022 or 2024

Parking Enforcement (blocked driveway) DPT Dispatch .

PG&E Gas or electrical issues

Pothole Repairs potholes@sfdpw.org.

. 3-1-1 or 415-553-1200

. 9-1-1 or 1-800-743-5000 or 1-877-660-6789

Recycling Recology San Francisco (free pickup bulky items).

Rent Board San Francisco phone counseling

Sewer Problems, Overflows

SFMTA or Muni Call 311 or email MTABoard@sfmta.com.

Tree Planting urbanforestry@sfdpw.org

415-554-5810

415-330-1300

415-252-4600

415-695-2096

415-701-2311

415-554-6700

24th Street Community Benefit District (Noe Valley Association . 415-802-4461 or 519-0093

Water Leaks, Water Pressure, Adopt a Drain

“An eye for an eye will only make the whole world blind.”

3-1-1 or 415-554-3289

—Mahatma Gandhi, Indian lawyer and activist, 1869-1948

Kids, Get Ready: Fresh, bright green rubbery material and artificial grass beckon youngsters to play in the children’s area at Upper Noe Rec Center. Photo courtesy Chris Faust

• Custom & Refaced Cabinets

• Replacing Dry Rot Deck Planks

• Carpentry and Painting

• Refinishing Hardwood Flooring

• Finish Decks 6 different stains lasting 6 to 8 years. Call Miguel (510) 333-0732

415.608.7634

Clear the Clutter Reclaim your Space! pat@patrosehomeorganizing.com patrose@gmail.com

Troubleshooting/Tutoring Tune-Ups/Upgrades SFMacMan.com (415) 821-1792

Through Sept. 2: Don’t miss the SFMOMA retrospective of the artwork of RUTH ASAWA. 151 Third. sfmoma.org

July 1-Aug. 1: There’s a new group ART SHOW at City Art Cooperative Gallery. Reception July 2, 7-10 pm; Wed., Thurs. & Sun. Noon-9 pm; Fri, & Sat. noon-10 pm. 828 Valencia. 970-9900; cityartgallery.org

July 1 & Aug. 8: ACTION-SF meets 6 to 7:30 pm. Noe Valley Library, 451 Jersey; action-sf.com

July 3-31 & Aug. 7-28: Family STORYTIMES are Thurs., 10:15 am and 11 am. Noe Valley Library, 451 Jersey. 355-5707; sfpl.org

July 3-31; Aug. 7-28: Chad Balch leads a class in IYENGAR YOGA. Noon-1:30 pm. Noe Valley Ministry, 1021 Sanchez. iyisf.org

July 3-31 & Aug. 7-28: Mutiny Radio hosts free OPEN MIC comedy at The BAR on Dolores, Thursdays, 8 pm. 1600 Dolores.

July 4-25 & Aug. 1-29: The Noe Valley RUN CLUB meets Fridays at Noe Cafe, 1299 Sanchez. 6:45 am 4 miles, and 7:30 am for 2.5 miles. Noevalleyrunclub.square.site

July 4, Aug. 1 & Sept. 5:The self-guided Castro ART WALK features the work of local artists on the first Friday of the month. 5-8 pm. castroartwalk.com

July 5 & Aug. 2: The KNITTING CIRCLE at the Noe Valley Library purls from 10 am to 12:30 pm. 451 Jersey. 355-5707; sfpl.org

July 5 & 19; Aug. 17: City Guides offers a WALKING TOUR of Noe Valley starting 2 pm at the Noe Valley Library, 451 Jersey. Register 355-5707. sfcityguides.org

July 5-26 & Aug. 2-30: The FARMERS Market has fresh produce, food booths, and music Saturdays, 8 am to 1 pm. Noe Valley Town Square, 3861 24th.

July 5-26 & Aug. 2-30: Traipse the ’hood with NOE WALKS on Saturdays. Meet at 24th and Sanchez, 10 am.

July 6 & Aug. 3: The Castro ART MART on first Sundays takes over Noe Street at Market, noon to 5 pm, with art and artists.

July 6 & 20: YOGA FLOW offers free alllevel classes; bring water and a mat. 11 amnoon. 3861 24th; noevalleytownsquare.com

July 7-28 & Aug. 4-25: Toddler STORYTIMES are Mondays, 11:15-11:45 am. Noe Valley Library, 451 Jersey. 355-5707; sfpl.org

July 8: Margaret Boyle discusses Sabor Judio: The Jewish Mexican Cookbook at OMNIVORE Books on Food. 6:30 pm. 3885 Cesar Chavez. 282-4712

July 8 & Aug. 12: It’s LEGO and Board Game Night at the Noe Valley Library. 67:30 pm. 451 Jersey. 355-5707; sfpl.org

July 9: The Noe Valley DEMOCRATIC Club hosts a social with Emma Hare, vice chair of the SF Democratic Party. 6-7:30 pm. Tacolicious, 4063 24th. RSVP noevalleydemocrats.org

July 9 & Aug. 13: STORYTIME for families, with readings by a Noe Valley librarian, runs 10:45 to 11:15 am in the Noe Valley TOWN SQUARE. 3861 24th. 355-5707; sfpl.org

July 11: The Noe Library FILM CLUB screens American Fiction. 2-4 pm. 451 Jersey. 355-5707; sfpl.org

July 10: HANK SHAW presents Borderlands: Recipes and Stories from the Rio Grande to the Pacific, at Omnivore Books. 6:30 pm. 3885 Cesar Chavez. 282-4712

July 12: Decorate a photo frame like a CAKE with library sprinkles and charms. For ages 8 and older. Reservations required. 355-5707; sfpl.org

July 12: High-energy dance RHYTHM & MOTION offers a workout. 4-5 pm. 3861 24th. noevalleytownsquare.com

July 13: Kids 10 and up can build a fingerboard SKATEBOARD for a miniature minipark. Noe Valley Library, 451 Jersey. 3555707; sfpl.org

July 13: Acoustic Sunday at the Noe Valley Town Square features DANUBIUS, performing traditional and Roma music. 1-3 pm. 3861 24th. noevalleytownsquare.com

July 13 & 27: FOLK YOGA offers free alllevel classes; bring water and a mat. 11 amnoon. 3861 24th. Noevalleytownsquare.com

July 15: Tony Ramirez and Dan Correa talk about the spicy Filipino and Cajun recipes in the Backyard BBQ cookbook 6:30 pm. Omnivore Books, 3885 Cesar Chavez.

July 16: OMID ROUSTAEI offers Bitter & Sweet: Global Flavors From an IranianAmerican Kitchen. 6:30 pm. 3885 Cesar Chavez. 282-4712

July 16: Civic Joy Fund director Manny Yekutiel speaks at the UPPER NOE Neighbors meeting, along with a sidewalk expert from DPW’s Outreach Team. 7 pm. 295 Day. Uppernoeneighbors.com

July 18: The CASTRO Night Market features art, food, and entertainment. 5-10 pm. 18th & Castro. castronightmarket.com

July 19: Kids 6 and older can make an Alka-Seltzer ROCKET at Summer Stride at the library. 451 Jersey. 355-5707; sfpl.org

July 19: Mission Cultural Center celebrates Pete Escovedo at a GALA with music, dance, food, and art. 4-8 pm. 2868 Mission.

July 20: Volunteers for the monthly Noe Valley CLEANUP DAY meet at the Town Square at 10 am. 3861 24th.

July 21: CHETNA MAKAN shares her Classic Indian Recipes and Easy Indian Vegetarian secrets at Omnivore 6:30 pm. 3885 Cesar Chavez. 282-4712

July 23: OMNIVORE Books welcomes Cathy Whims, author of The Italian Summer Kitchen: Timeless Recipes for La Dolce Vita. 6:30 pm. 3885 Cesar Chavez. 282-4712

July 25: Learn how to make TEA with Tap Twice Tea, 2-3:30 pm. Noe Valley Library, 451 Jersey. Reserve at 355-5707; sfpl.org

July 26: Attend a free self-defense workshop and Immigration Resource Fair, for immigrants, LGBTQ+ community, and others. Lunch, childcare provided. 10 am to 4 pm. 2773 Folsom, #101. Secure-justice.org

July 26 & Aug. 30: The Noe Valley Library’s STORYTIME ia 10:45 to 11:15 am. Noe Valley Library, 451 Jersey. 355-5707.

July 29 & Aug. 26: The Noe Valley NIGHT T MARKET offers local vendors, food, and music from 5 to 8 pm, on last Tuesdays. Noe Valley Town Square, 3861 24th. Noemerchants.com/events/

July 29 & Aug. 26: It’s PAJAMA STORYTIME at the Noe Valley Library. 6:30 pm; reservations required. 451 Jersey. 355-5707; ; sfpl.org

Aug. 1: A Labyrinth WALK is accompanied by meditative music. 7 pm. Bethany United Methodist Church, 1270 Sanchez. 647-83933. Aug. 3: Noe Valley Books hosts Annalee Newitz, author of Automatic Noodle, in conversation with Alex Hanna. 3 pm. Bethany UMC, 1270 Sanchez. 590-2961; noevalleybooks.com

Aug. 4: Author Maryann Jiliani discusses PAKISTAN and its home kitchen recipes. 6:30 pm. Omnivore Books on Food, 3885 Cesar Chavez. 282-4712

Aug. 8: See the 2014 FILM Birdman at the Noe Valley Library. 2-4 pm. 451 Jersey. 3555707; sfpl.org

Aug. 10: Explore plants, birds, and insects around the library with a PLANET BEE scientist. 1-2 pm. Reserve a spot. Noe Valley Library, 451 Jersey. 355-5707; sfpl.org

Aug. 11: David Nayfeld brings DAD, What’s for Dinner?, his “lifesaving recipes to avoid meltdowns…” to Omnivore Books. 6:30 pm. 3885A Cesar Chavez.

Aug. 16: Take a walking tour of STAIRWAYS of Noe Valley. 2-4 pm. Reserve at 355-5707. Noe Valley Library, 451 Jersey. Aug. 20 & Sept. 6: Aug. 20 is the deadline e for submissions to the 10th annual Noe Valley GIRLS Film Festival, screening Sept. 6 at 1021 Sanchez. 606-6558; nvgff.com

Sept. 14: The Noe Valley ART FESTIVAL will fill the Noe Valley Town Square from 10 0 am to 4 pm. 3861 24th. For information, email Friendsofnv@gmail.com. July Goings-On:

CHILDREN’S FICTION

In The Littlest Drop, written by Sascha Alperand and illustrated by Jerry Pinkney and Brian Pinkney, a hummingbird tries to save her nest from ﬁre. Ages 3-7.

Gaia Cornwall’s picture book Fairy Walk follows three kids and a dog into the forest to ﬁnd magic. Ages 3-7.

Brother and Sister spend a night away from home in a Step Into Reading title, Sleepover Night! by Candice Ransom, illustrated by Ashley Evans. Ages 4-6.

A diverse cast of young people interact on a summer day in A Day at the Beach by Gary D. Schmidt and Ron Koertge. Ages 8-12.

In Sarwat Chadda’s fantasy Storm Singer, a 12-year-old girl ﬁnds a way to control the elements in a land ruled by ﬁerce winged warriors. Ages 8-12.

CHILDREN’S NONFICTION

Geraldo Valério describes his favorite species from around the globe in My Book of Frogs and Toads. Ages 3-6.

Photo Ark 1-2-3: An Animal Counting Book in Poetry and Pictures includes photographs by Joel Sartor and poems by Debbie Levy. Ages 3-7.

Maze Play by Roxie Munro is an activity book featuring seek-and-find games. Ages 4-8. Children will see the important work that firefighters do in DK Super Readers’ revised A Day in the Life of a Firefighter. Ages 6-8.

I Know Dino! Amazing Breakthroughs, Mega Mistakes, and Unsolved Mysteries in Dinosaur Science is a book written by podcasters Sabrina Ricci and Garret Kruger, with illustrations by Franco Tempesta. Ages 8-12

CHILDREN’S EBOOKS

In Safe at Last by Richard Jones, little James searches for his animal friends after a storm. Ages 3-7.

100 Goats and Granny! is a humorous counting tale by Atinuke, with illustrations by Lauren Hinds. Ages 3-7.

A Muslim girl loves India, but her family must move to Pakistan in Zarina Divided by Reem Faruqi. Ages 8-12.

The graphic novel Good Boy, by Andy Hirsch, is about a boy and his rescue dog, both of whom struggle with anxiety. Ages 8-12.

Zack Keller’s graphic novel Small Town Spirits, illustrated by Gabriele Bagnoli, is set in an Irish village that celebrates Halloween with Spirit Games. Ages 8-12.

TEEN FICTION

In Solo by Gráinne O’Brien, Daisy encounters ﬁrst love and a series of challenging changes in her life. Ages 12-17.

A saboteur releases ancient aliens on a spaceship bound for Mars in Titan of the Stars by E.K. Johnston. Ages 14-17.

In A.A. Vacharat’s This Moth Saw Brightness, a BIPOC student joins a suspicious university health study. Ages 14-17.

In Let Them Stare, by Jonathan Van Ness and Julie Murphy, a gender non-conforming 18year-old tries to escape to the big city. Ages 14-18.

TEEN NONFICTION

Ages 10 to 14 may get their questions answered in Growing Into You! An Inclusive, Shame-Busting Get-Real Guide to Your Changing Body and Mind, by Melissa Pintor Carnagey, illustrated by Brianna Gilmartin. Clelia Castro-Malaspina explains the rise of a popular sport in Girls With Goals: How Women’s Soccer Took Over the World. Ages 12-17.

Thirty short biographies are included in Generation Queer: Stories of Youth Organizers, Artists, and Educators, written by Kimm Topping and illustrated by Anshika Khullar. Ages 13-17.

Jake Hall documents the history of crossdressing in The Art of Drag. Ages 16 and up.

TEEN EBOOKS

An Asian-Latino teenager ﬁghts a false accusation in The Summer I Remembered Everything, by Catherine Con Morse. Ages 12-17.

The Lost Queen by Aimee Phan is Book One of a fantasy duology inspired by Vietnamese lore. Ages 13-17.

In Dean Atta’s I Can’t Even Think Straight, a queer biracial teen confronts issues of race, privilege, class, and sexuality. Ages 14-17.

A teen who has a vision of the future must try to prevent a murder in Love at Second

MORE GROUPS TO JOIN

Fair Oaks Neighbors

Email: hello@fairoaksneighbors.org

Address: 200 Fair Oaks St., SF, CA 94110

The Fair Oaks Street Fair is traditionally held the day before Mother’s Day.

Friends of Billy Goat Hill

Contact: Lisa and Mo Ghotbi, 821-0122

Website: www.billygoathill.net

Friends of Dolores Park Playground

Contact: Nancy Gonzalez Madynski, 828-5772

Email: friendsofdolorespark@gmail.com

Website: friendsofdolorespark.org

Friends of Christopher Park

Contact: Brynna McNulty, 818-744-4230

Email: friendsofchristopherpark@gmail.com

Website: FriendsofChristopherPark.org

Festival Friends of Glen Canyon Park

Contact: Jean Conner, 584-8576

Address: 140 Turquoise Way, SF, CA 94131

Plant restoration work parties, Wednesday mornings and third Saturday of the month.

Friends of Noe Courts Playground

Contact: Laura Norman

Email: noecourts@gmail.com

Address: P.O. Box 460953, SF, CA 94146

Meetings: Email for dates and times.

Friends of Noe Valley (FNV)

Contact: Todd David, 401-0625

Email: info@friendsofnoevalley.com

Website: friendsofnoevalley.com

Meetings: Two or three annually.

Friends of Slow Sanchez

Contacts: Christopher Keene, Andrew

Casteel

Email: info@SlowSanchez.com

Website: SlowSanchez.com

Friends of Upper Noe Recreation

Center

Contact: Chris Faust

Email: info@uppernoerecreationcenter.com

Website: uppernoerecreationcenter.com

Meetings: Email or check website.

Friends of Upper Noe Dog Owners Group (FUNDOG)

Contact: David Emanuel

Email: info@fundogsf.org

Website: www.fundogsf.org

Glen Park Association

Contact: info@glenparkassociation.org

Website: glenparkassociation.org

Address: P.O. Box 31292, SF, CA 94131

Juri Commoners

Contact: Dave Schweisguth, MI7-6290

Email: dave@schweisguth.org

Website: meetup.com/Juri-Commoners

The group is on hiatus and seeking a new leader. Call Dave. “Tidy up when you can.”

Liberty Hill Neighborhood Association

Contact: Dr. Lisa Fromer, president Email: efromer3@gmail.com

Meetings: Quarterly. Email for details. Noe Neighborhood Council

Contact: Ozzie Rohm or Matt McCabe

Email: info@noeneighborhoodcouncil.com

Website: noeneighborhoodcouncil.com

Meetings: Quarterly at Sally Brunn Library, 451 Jersey St.

Noe Valley Association–24th Street

Community Benefit District

Contact: Debra Niemann, 519-0093

Dispatch: To report spills or debris on 24th Street, call Billy Dinnell, 802-4461.

Email: info@noevalleyassociation.org.

Website: noevalleyassociation.org

Board meetings: Quarterly. See website. Noe Valley Democratic Club

Contact: Sam Maslin, President E-mail: noevalleydemocrats@gmail.com Website: www.noevalleydemocrats.org

Meetings: Monthly at Valley Tavern or Todo el Día, dates publicized on website. Noe Valley Farmers Market

Open Saturdays, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.; 3861 24th St. between Vicksburg and Sanchez Contact: Leslie Crawford, 248-1332

Email: info@noevalleyfarmersmarket.com

Noe Valley Merchants and Professionals Association (NVMPA)

Contact: Kristen McCaffery, President, Kristen@novysf@gmail.com, 829-8383; or Kathryn Gianaras, Vice President, Kathryn@novysf@gmail.com

Meetings: 9 a.m. Call to confirm location. Website: https.noemerchants.com www.NoeValleyMerchants.com

Noe Valley Parent Network

An e-mail resource network for parents

Contact: Mina Kenvin

Email: minaken@gmail.com noevalleyparentsubscribe@yahoogroups.com

Noe Walks

Contact: Chris Nanda

Email: christopher.n.nanda@gmail.com Website: NoeWalks.com

Meetings: Saturdays, 10 a.m. Starts 24th and Sanchez. Ends Noe and Duncan for photo. Progress Noe Valley Facebook: ProgressNoeValley Email: progressnoe@gmail.com Website: progressnoe.com

Meetings: Check Facebook page for current meeting and event schedule.

San Francisco NERT (Neighborhood Emergency Response Team)

Contact: Noe Valley NERT Neighborhood Team co-coordinators Maxine Fasulis, mfasulis@yahoo.com; Carole Roberts, carole_rober ts@faludi.com

Website: https://SF-ﬁre.org/nert Visit the website to sign up for trainings. Upper Noe Merchants

Contact: Info@UpperNoeNeighbors.com; https://uppernoeneighbors.com/merchants/ Upper Noe Neighbors

Contact: Chris Faust

Email: Hello@UpperNoeNeighbors.com

Website: www.uppernoeneighbors.com

Meetings: Bi-monthly on third Wednesdays. Confirm by email or check website.

THE NOE VALLEY VOICE editor@noevalleyvoice.com

All phone numbers are in the 415 area code, unless otherwise noted.

and now for the

The Colors of the Rainbow

By Mazook

WE GOT PRIDE: At June’s end, the Pink Triangle on Twin Peaks shone through the fog down to Noe Valley. The Pride Parade marched down Market Street to City Hall. And the Dykes on Bikes made their appearance in Dolores Park.

But lest we forget, the LGBTQ+ movement had its roots on Duncan Street in Noe Valley.

Noe Valley residents Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon co-founded the Daughters of Bilitis in San Francisco in 1955. It became the ﬁrst social and political organization for lesbians in the United States, and within ﬁve years of its origin, the Daughters had chapters around the country, including in Chicago, New York, New Orleans, San Diego, Los Angeles, Detroit, Denver, Cleveland, and Philadelphia.

On Feb. 12, 2004, Martin and Lyon were issued the ﬁrst marriage license by the City and County of San Francisco, after then-mayor Gavin Newsom ordered that marriage licenses be given to same-sex couples who requested them.

Lyon and Martin were both active in San Francisco's ﬁrst gay political organization, the Alice B. Toklas Democratic Club

On a personal note, I had the privilege of working with Del Martin in a Ford Foundation–funded group in 1970, which brought the SFPD together with various neighborhood groups, to focus on “Police Community Relations.” I was the resident hippie and Del was the resident gay person. She was a kind and loving person who was brilliant in articulating the lesbian voice.

The postscript is that after about nine months, the SFPD ofﬁcers participating in the program announced that they would no longer attend the meetings and we were accused of being communists.

To this day I am proud to have worked with (and been enlightened by) Del and the San Francisco Pride movement.

NIGHT MARKET JOY: The Noe Valley Merchants & Professionals Association (NVMPA) held its Noe Valley Night Market June 24. The event has been held on the last Tuesday of the month since October 2024, in the Noe Valley Town Square.

In June the market expanded onto 24th Street. The block in front of the square was closed to traffic, to the delight of around 800 shoppers and visitors showing up from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. The endeavor has grown to become a partnership between the NVMPA and the city’s Civic Joy Fund, a nonprofit founded two years ago when Manny Yekutiel of Manny’s on 16th Street organized a drive to light up Valencia Street. Civic Joy people help to set up the market in the afternoon and also provide some financial assistance. We are the 11th night market the fund has supported in the past two years.

The most notable vendor in June was Aroma Concessions Inc, which brought a huge catering truck and cooked food

on-site.

The number of vendors who appeared at the market had grown from the usual 20 local merchants to 32 for this Tuesday night event. There was a free disco, where folks put on headphones courtesy of Cliff Wolosiansky, and DJs set up on the street in front of Jamaroo and Banan. Disco music was wi-ﬁ’ed into the headphones so you could dance the night away. He was recruited for the event by Civic Joy. I took my turn, put on the headphones, and listened and nodded to the beat for a half hour. Wow, it was very kewl.

THE LATEST SCOOP: Planning for an early July opening is Angela’s Organic Ice Cream, at 3751 24th, on the corner of Chattanooga (where Mill Mercantile was). This is their ﬁrst location in San Francisco. The shop was originally founded in Petaluma in 2017.

Angela’s currently has ﬁve locations in the North Bay, including two in Petaluma, one in Mill Valley, and two others, in Forestville and Healdsburg. Their plant is located in Ignacio, a neighborhood within Bel Marin Keys in Novato.

“We are lucky to get this location in Noe Valley,” says co-owner Cielo Garat, “and we appreciate that this is a very active, community-oriented neighborhood with a lot of families.”

“The name comes from our mother’s name, Angela Pryor, who has a wellknown food shop on Fourth Street in San Rafael.”

Angela’s will also provide catering services for parties. Says Garat, “We make ice cream the old-fashioned way—with simple, organic cream and eggs from local farms. Every spoonful is a burst of pure, rich ﬂavors.”

Angela’s menu is ﬁlled with desserts—cones, ice cream sundaes, cookies, brownies—and they also serve coffee. You can get a four-ounce cone for $6.45 or a double (8 oz.) for $8.75.

The store hours will be Monday through Thursday, 1 to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, noon to 10 p.m.; and Sunday, noon to 9 p.m.

BAGELISTAS ALERT: Bones Bagels, at 741 Diamond St., had its very soft opening on July 13, making it a lucky day for all you bagel aﬁcionados.

Says owner Noah Orloff, “We were swamped with people lined up on Diamond Street, and by the time we closed we had over 300 orders and ran out of all our ingredients.”

Orloff says he has been making and selling a thousand bagels a day. Note that Bones is only open Thursday through Sunday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Sourdough bagels are his main focus, But he also has a sourdough bialy (short for the Yiddish bialystoker kuchen). Flat and circular, with a solid bottom and a dugout in the top, the bialy is a baked yeast roll usually ﬁlled with sautéed onions, which Orloff then tops with pickled jalapenos or caramelized onions.

Orloff’s most popular item may soon be his bagel dogs, literally a bagel wrapped around a beef hot link. There also are bagel sandwiches, including veggie and smoked salmon.

If you are looking for something that isn’t a bagel, the shop has a cookie and a scone.

“NETFLIX SUCKS NOW” was the grabber headline. The story went on, “A U.S. neighborhood is keeping an alternative alive.” We are the neighborhood,

July 29, from 5 to 8 p.m., will be contained to the Town Square (3861 24th). But organizers say it will have plenty of curiosities among the food, drink, and (geek) toys. Photo

and our precious Video Wave, at 4027 24th St., was the subject of the story, penned June 12 by Timothy Karoff, culture reporter at SFGate.

Quoting more: “First, the chalkboard sign hanging from the store's ceiling, declaring, ‘We Know Movies.’ The ‘we’ here is royal, since Video Wave is a oneman operation. Colin Hutton knows movies, but he also pays the rent, organizes DVDs, mails discs to Video Wave's 21 long-distance subscribers and sweeps the ﬂoors. Second, a slightly crumpled printout of a 2019 article from Cracked taped in the doorway titled, ‘You Miss Video Stores (Even If You Won't Admit It).’ Third, obviously, is the videos. Video Wave's walls are painted an egg yolk yellow on one side, aubergine on the other, but you wouldn't notice, since they're covered by shelves crammed with DVDs.”

Says Hutton, “Yeah, I read the story, and was quite surprised that several of my customers read it, too, and mentioned it to me. I have received some new customers and some donations of used DVDs. I have about 550 subscribers and ... almost 20,000 titles for rent.” He says that around 90 percent of his subscribers live in Noe Valley. Video Wave’s monthly fee is $8, which includes one free rental. Additional rentals cost $6 to $8. Some of his customers rarely rent a movie but continue to make regular payments. It’s their way of supporting the store, Hutton says.

MISCELLANEOUSNESS: Haystack Pizza now joins Lehr’s, Hamano Sushi, and Noe Valley Bakery as a city-recognized legacy business. On June 4, the San Francisco Historic Preservation Commission approved the designation for Haystack, which has served the city for 53 years. “The Legacy Business Registry recognizes longstanding, community-serving businesses that are valuable cultural assets to the city.”

A reminder to all of you over age 60, the Noe Valley Bakery (“Rain or shine, there’s always a line”) gives seniors a 20 percent discount on all store items on Tuesdays and Thursdays. In order to get the discount, you must ask for it.

In the sour news category: The Pentagon has recommended unnaming

the Navy ship Harvey Milk, which was celebrated by Noe Valley's own Fleet Week program last year. SFGate’s Janie Har reported June 4, “The Pentagon has not conﬁrmed news of the renaming, a highly rare move, but unnamed ofﬁcials say the change was laid out in an internal memo. It is in keeping with attempts by Defense Secretar y Pete Hegseth and the broader Trump administration to purge all programs, policies, books, and social media mentions of references to diversity, equity, and inclusion.” The ship was named Harvey Milk in 2016 to honor the late supervisor and gay rights activist.

Noe Valley activist Todd David is featured in Fault Lines, a feature-length documentary ﬁlm about the affordable housing debate. It’s being shown around the country and can be streamed on Apple TV. According to Fault Lines directors Yoav Attias and Nate Houghteling, the ﬁlm investigates the housing crisis through the lens of San Francisco, and it is built around three core stories—a neighborhood association going up against developers, a group of activists promoting new housing legislation, and an unhoused family searching for a permanent home.

OUT OF THE BALLPARK: San Francisco Giants pitching star Tim Lincecum has removed himself from the public eye since his playing career ended in 2018. But on Thursday, June 26, the reclusive Lincecum was spotted in Noe Valley by a Giants fan.

Online Reddit user Woodhouse_20 posted a picture captioned: “Stepmom saw this guy and said, ‘You look like Tim Lincecum!’” Lincecum replied to the stepom: “Cuz I am,.” The two-time Cy Young Award winner then posed for a photo with the stepmom at the corner of Church and 24th streets. When Woodhouse_20 shared the pic on Reddit, it instantly blew up, garnering nearly 10,000 up votes.

THAT’S ALL, Y’ALL: See you right here in September. The August Voice is our literary issue, where you can contribute your writings. All of us Voicers take a summer break, or try to. Ciao for now.

Sounds of Silence: Kids and A’s fans were drawn to hear the “silent disco” music at last month’s Noe Valley Night Market, which for the ﬁrst time in its history allowed fair goers to stroll, sip wine, and admire puffy coats on 24th Street. The next event, on

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