Basin nations in the United States. For those who dont know where that is, the great states of nevada, utah, parts of arizona and oregon. And before that i worked at the trust public land. And im happy to lead with london breed, malia cohen, our former supervisor who first championed this issue, in favor of the full divestment from fossil fuels. I want to start by thanking the Broad Coalition of environmental advocates, Public Health advocates, clean fuel transportation activists, Democratic Party officials, grassroots advocates and retirement Board Members and as of last night, the commission on the environment who have turned out today to demand that San FranciscoEmployee Retirement system divest now from fossil fuels and were getting to labor, were saving the best for last. And i mean that sincerely and it is in my notes. I want to start by saying that sciu 101 has been the wind at our backs. I cannot thank you enough. To the folks from dapo, i cannot thank you enough. Well hear from all of them. I want to start not with our president , not with our retirement board member but with our former supervisor. We have a lot of great speakers but this started with supervisor john ovolose who first issued the resolution unanimously adopted by the board five years ago that has not yet be heeded but perhaps with malia cohens leadership will be heeded today. Good morning. Its great to be here. But also kind of strange to be here. Five years after we had first voted unanimously to call upon sfers to divest from fossil fuels. Since that time im a retiree of the sitting council of San Francisco, so i depend on sfers to respond. What we have done in five years of analysis, we know fossil fuel investments is a bad investment. Were seeing the great volatility of fossil fuels while our sfers overall fund has grown from 19 billion in 2013 to 23 billion in 2018, our fossil fuel portfolio has only stayed about the same, meaning this is a really poor investment while we see growth elsewhere. We know why its a bad investment. We are seeing increasingly, the harm thats caused low income communities of color, to cities and towns along the waterfront are suffering from Sea Level Rise, from climate, from dramatic climate events, from hurricanes and typhoons and in california we have our fires. These are all signs that our economy founded on oil and fossil fuel is one that harms life on earth. And its way past time that we start moving our economy to renewable power, Renewable Energy generation. We have called upon sfers for five years to do this, take our money out of fossil fuels and put in renewables and they have dragged their feet almost all the way, like they have the Donald Trump Administration on the board to deny the fact that the world is becoming harmed every day as we continue to invest in fossil fuels. I want to thank supervisor peskin, supervisor london breed and Supervisor Malia Cohen to continue with the work to make sfers do their part to divest and today well see if theyre going to move this the way they have had to these five years. Its time to divest, divest now, sfers your time is up, thank you. Thank you. This has been a tough 24hours in this building, but president breed said something which is profoundly important, that our relationships have to transcend and that number one, its all about public policy. And with that, under president breeds leadership, we, again, unanimously adopted last year the same resolution that a different board adopted when john was on the board of supervisors. It is my pleasure to introduce on the same policy page, the president of the San Francisco board of supervisors, london breed. Thank you. Hi everybody. Im happy to join many of our environmental leaders and our Community Members and members of the board of supervisors and everyone who is here today, who is committed to a cleaner planet for future generations. There are many people to thank, but i want to start by thanking Supervisor Malia Cohen, who is a member of the retirement board who has been leading the fight on this divestment at the retirement board along with victor macres who is also on the retirement board. Thank you both. I want to acknowledge Sophie Maxwell for her long time work to protect atrisk communities from polluting power plants and i want to thank labor. The members of sciu 101 and 350. Org for your advocacy and staying on top of the issue and members of the commission of the environment for ongoing advocacy on this measure. San francisco has always been a national and global trail blazer for environmental practices. We have reduced Greenhouse Gas emissions 28 below 1990 levels, cleaning our air while our population was growing and our economy was booming. We have launched our clean power program, clean power sf, the single most important thing we can do to combat Climate Change and i was proud to lead that initiative here on the board of supervisors. With the enrollment of clean power sf, were well on our way to achieving the 50 renewable target by 2020 and 100 by 2030. Goals that even outpace the Ambitious Goals set by the state of california. And were providing Reliable Energy at great prices. Through the work of so Many Community leaders, we closed the last two fossil fuel plants eight years ago in this city. And we are leading the nation in waste reduction and Resource Recovery thanks to the recycling and composting programs. We are recovering more than 80 of materials from landfill. We are preventing many harmful products from entering our city at off we were the first in the country to ban plastic bags and through legislation i proudly wrote we have the largest styrofoam plan and Drug Take Back Program that has kept more than 24,000 pounds of the bay and landfill. Thats what were doing here in San Francisco. San francisco has been at the forefront of so many Ground BreakingEnvironmental Issues and today, our retirement board has a chance to make history. We cannot continue investing in companies that pollute our ea h earth. Its time to divest. Its time to divest. Its time to divest. Its time to divest. And do so, quickly. Washington d. C. May ignore Climate Change. Our president may ignore Climate Change. But here in San Francisco, we are going to put this at the forefront. Were going to make sure that they know we have to make change and we have to make change now. Its not fair to our planet and future generations to come. Divest now, do the right thing, lets get this done. Thank you for being here today. applause thank you president london breed and thanks for shouting out Sophie Maxwell. We had two polluting plants, the Hunters Point plant that supervisor maxwell led the fight on closing and years later with the incredible work of the City Attorneys office, the murrant plant was closed. As supervisor breed said at the forefront of this, inside the belly of the beast, supervisor cohen has been a star in making sure that we divest. And that vote is happening shortly. She has to go in a closed session at 11 30. Supervisor cohen has been leading that fight and god willing, a little after 1 00 p. M. Well get that vote. Its still on the bubble but i know malia is going to make that happen. Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. First, i want to recognize many people that have brought us to this point today. I dont see jed holtsman, hes been attending the sf retirement meetings for years. I want to recognize supervisor peskin for bringing this issue to us and lending his voice in the desire to put pressure on the staff to make this vote happen today. And i want to recognize supervisor ovolose, he took an unpopular position early on and i want to appreciate his leadership style, although different from mine. But nonetheless, here we are today. I think its a testament that you need both moderate and less support to make this happen. Its not a political issue, this is really the right thing to do when we think of the health and wellness of our entire world. I want to recognize the members of siu 101 who have spoken in two minute intervals. Many i had to cut off because your comments were too long but it was good to see you all. And the retirees making the most of their retirement time coming out to support. And i want to recognize the number of staff people to help me and educate me on the importance on this movement and how we can continue to move forward and uplift and recognize our indigenous folks who are here that led the way when they were fighting dapo. There are many people whose shoulders i stand on that we need to recognize. The seriousness of the issue were going to vote on today is not missed on me. We all know fossil fuels emissions are harming our children and health and doing irrepairable damage to our planet. As a city, we cannot build our pensions on the health and wellbeing of our children and future generations. But divestment is not just a moral imperative. This is not just a talking point, a political issue of the day. As a fiduciary member, we have a responsibility, as fiduciary member of the retirement board, i have to make sure every person can retire with dignity, with assurance that their pension is safe and no one is taking a gamble. The investments in fossil fuel endanger that promise. The board of supervisors has repeatedly demanded that staff implement divestment plan and frankly we have no plan. The engagement strategy that has probably had a hand in jed holtsmans hair falling out, i think you would agree that engagement strategy has been very hard to stomach. The staff has touted the strategy but honestly theres been no accountability. Theyve had no mandated timeline for any companys responsiveness. Im getting in the weeds but the retirement board has a process on how they pull back divestments and its a multi level multi tier response. Its too much pollution. They have not identified an acceptable ratio of returns to emissions. Due diligence hasnt been done. The process for evaluating environmental and social risk has been haphazard and inconsistent. As our city continues to pay out money for healthcare and invest in mitigating Sea Level Rise and trying to prevent flooding on our streets, we must put our money where our mouth is, we must stand up and shout out. Our pension budgets must not exassrbate the issues. We must limit for the safety of our residents and wellbeing of employees, working and retired. I call on my colleagues on the retirement board to join us, take our childrens future seriously and finally divest from fossil fuels. Ladies and gentlemen, i stand with you, im excited and im looking forward to casting my vote this afternoon. Thank you. applause thank you supervisor cohen. I want to make a few more shoutouts. First, as we just heard, this is not a conservative issue. This is not a liberal issue, this is not a moderate issue. This is not a progressive issue. This is a moral and financial imperative. To that end, supervisor cohen, supervisor breed and myself serve as members of the Democratic County Central Committee and it was our colleague keith boraka that issued it to divest. That passed unanimously. Thank you keith for that leadership. Thank you to bay. Org, fossil free sf, indian people organized for change, next gen america. Sf berniec. R. A. Ts. And last night with incredible testimony from victor who talked about the way the investment industry works, about score cards, out of the half a billion dollars that the San FranciscoEmployee Retirement system has invested in fossil fuels, over 20 of it has not yielded a positive return to the fund. Just what supervisor cohen was saying, for five years or more. Thats what we call a bad investment. That is a bad investment. This decision can be made as a fiduciary decision and moral imperative as we did around guns and ammunition and tobacco. It makes prudent sense for the retirement system to divest. I want to shout out the commissioners gathered here who took the very bold step and at the department of commission of the environment last evening voted for full divestment within 180 days. Which is a strong demand. Thank you commissioners. With that, i would like to bring up isabelle sezie who is a young leader, a grassroots leader and thank you isabelle for being here and thank you for your work. Good morning relatives. I come from the northern tribes. Im 23 yearsold and live on occupied territory. I want to first pay acknowledge to the people of the land we do stand on because indigenous voices, indigenous rights and sovereignty is important to remember and acknowledge. I am a member of idle no more sf bay. Sfd fund dapo coalition and defending mother earth treaty. I want to start by saying we welcome the pension board and seiu Public Sector members to join our ranks as water protectors. The vote to defund is critical. Its critical to protecting the water. The divestment vote and movement in San Francisco has been initiated and fostered by long standing grassroots, indigenous advocacy throughout Turtle Island and mobilizing groups that have fought long and hard for this moment today. We have seen and continue to see the violation of indigenous rights and the threats to our water. All of the sacred systems of life. The standoff at Standing Rock to stop the Dakota Access pipeline is not over and its just the beginning. To show that the many other Standing Rocks around the world that we are not afraid to stand up to big oil and to divest. The assault on mother earth is real. The Climate Crisis is real. And all who are living in those yet to be born need clean air, clean water and clean soil. And we need to remember that. We all need clean air, clean water and clean soil to live a healthy and sufficient life here on mother earth. And i want to thank the San Francisco board for hearing us out and responding to the frontline call to divest from fossil fuel projects and the investments. And last, i want you all to know that my generation, the next seven generations and all our non human relatives, we thank you for this and we will be completely relived of any hardships and i send my best regards to the vote in favor for us to divest completely of fossil fuel projects and infrastructure, expansions and any investments because we all know we need to keep it in the ground. Keep the oil in the ground, keep fossil fuels in the ground and divest. Thank you. applause thank you for those profound words. Before i introduce the final speaker, i want to say that all aspects of our government minus the sfers board, at least until 1 00 this afternoon, are on the same page and i want to shout out our City Attorney who has initiated some of the most Ground Breaking litigation against some of the largest fossil fuel polluters in the United States of america. And the reason i bring that up, because as cities and states start this kind of litigation, these investments become more and more risky. These become stranded assets and i speak to you not only as a member of the board of supervisors but as a member of the California Coastal commission, where last year more emergency permits were applied for because of Sea Level Rise, king tides, beaches being buried under the sea, than any previous year. As we just heard, this is real. We would not be here without the strong support of labor advocates. Sciu 101 have led on the fight and they take it personally because many are vested pensions invested in the risky big oil assets. Thank you joseph bryant, thank you Martha Hawthorne. With that, my friend joseph bryant. Who is ready to divest in fossil fuels . We are were not in the chamber. I want to hear noise. Who is ready to divest in dirty fossil fuels . We are thats right. Im the regional Vice President of sciu 101. We represent in San Francisco over 15,000 city workers who are vested in the citys pension fund and were urging the board of retirement to divest in dirty fossil fuels now. I want to give a huge shout out to everyone who has played an Important Role in this, its been a village that has come together to help move this. Thank you former supervisor ovolose, supervisor peskin, supervisor cohen, president breed. And the commission on the environment for your resolution pass last evening. Thank you very much and i would be remissed without acknowledging our retirees here who have broken their backs to ensure this is a priority for sciu 101, particularly david page, Melissa Hawthorne and many others here who have led the fight. With this, we have reached the point of insanity. Its a bad investment. Were losing money on this investment and destroying our communities and we still have to spend our time, energy and effort here to fight for it. What is going on. This is absolutely insane. With all the challenges were facing right now from the federal level, from throughout this country, were having to spend our time in the most progressive city in the country to fight for a very basic concept, to do the right thing, divest in fossil fuels. Were here for that and were not just asking to say do it eventually. We want a timeline. We want something real. We need something real. So please join us today sciu 101, again adamant supporter, well be up there in the chamber causing whatever ruckus we need to to ensure it happens. Thank you very much. All right. Lets keep it real, lets make it real at 1 00 p. M. , at 1145 Market Street on the sixth floor is the meeting. I hope all of us will be there sitting in the audience ready to testimony. And with that, Martha Hawthorne leading us in a few chants. So, actually i think its officially good afternoon, ive been saying good morning all day, but its afternoon. Welcome. Im the director of the department of children, youth and their families. [applause] the only time i get applause is for saying that. At press conferences [laughter] it is so exciting for me to be here with you all. This is a labor of love that has taken over two years to come to. And i am so happy to be here with young people, in community, and with our key partners. We have the police department, the chief of police is here, adult probation, we have rec and Park Partners and School District partners. So im so proud to be here with everyone and with our mayor. First, want to thank our host, our School District, james denman middle school. Particularly principal lisa, thank you so much. [applause] we had an opportunity just a few minutes ago to tour one of the classrooms that i have to say, it is amazing. Its wonderful to see people curious and excited about what theyre learning. It makes me want to go back to school. Maybe, maybe. I want to recognize and thank century i thought i saw him around here. Yay applause been helping to make really helpful for us. San francisco has made this very powerful commitment over the many, many years within the city, but more importantly in the last two years, to ensure equitable access to opportunities and services for all of our children. So that they can lead lives full of opportunity and happiness. Dcyf is one of those departments trying to envision that dream and goal set out by mayor ed lee. Were not the only department that can move toward the goal of having access for all. Were one of many departments. Were a city of community and city of leaders who want to work together. And with that, i would like to bring up to the podium, a person who needs no introduction. Our mayor, mayor mark farrell. [applause] mayor farrell first of all, any deacons in the house . Come on, we can cheer all right. Listen, i want to thank maria for all of your hard work on behalf of the citys families and children. I want to acknowledge a number of people here today. First of all, supervisor safai is here. District attorney gascon next to him and our school Board Members. We have our president. As well as commissioner walton. And as well as our Vice President of our school, please give him a hand as well. And i know commissioner haney was coming as well. Today is a chance to celebrate the Bright Future of our citys children here in San Francisco. While we do honor the legacy of our late mayor, edwin lee. Mayor lee was a longtime champion of children here in San Francisco and today, we also will celebrate that. You know, it is our responsibility as a city to uphold the values of San Francisco. Of inclusiveness and hope that we ensure San Francisco remains affordable for families. And that we invest in the health and success of all of San Franciscos children. As a father of three young children, i understand that, mayor lee was a devoted father of his two daughters and there are so many fathers and mothers today with us. With that, we need to make sure our children receive quality education, they live in safe homes in communities and with that, they can achieve Amazing Things in life. As city, we are committed and will always be committed to serving those most vulnerable and most needy here in San Francisco. We know that our families are face ago crisis of affordability. Of childcare. After school programs. And we need to make sure that parents know that their children are safe at school, after school, and on the weekends. And we want a city that provides programs to support our families and our children. Whether its the transitional aged youth here in the city, families with single mothers or working class families. That is who we are going to support as a city of San Francisco. That is who we are as a city of San Francisco. And today, its so amazing. I am most excited about the fact that the Beacon SchoolCommunity Strategy that is currently in nine middle schools is now available on all 27 middle schools across the entire city of San Francisco. [applause] its going to mean such an amazing change for cities and families. Its going to allow us to serve over 8,000 more children than were serving today. Were investing through High School Partnership programs and 16 million for the youth here in San Francisco. When we fund these programs, were not only investing in our residents, were investing in the future of San Francisco. And we know that those are investments that i am proud of as a mayor of San Francisco and that i know mayor lee was proud of when he was mayor as well. Its something that we all should be proud of together and something we should all celebrate. Today is a day of celebration. I want to say a special thanks to our principal here. We got to know each other last year when we opened the middle school as a shared schoolyard projects. For the weekends here that our children can play here. If were not doing everything we can in our City Government to support our families and children, i dont know what our government is all about. So i am so proud to be here today, so proud to stand with the people behind me who do all the hard work to make this happen and so proud to support our families. Thank you, everybody. [applause] thank you, mayor farrell. So in order to deliver the best result for San Franciscos children, youth and families, we have to work in deep collaboration with our citys partners and stakeholders to ensure the most effective and efficient use of resources. One of our proud and key partnerships is with the San Francisco unified School District. With that, we have dr. Vincent matthews. [applause] thank you. One of the things im most proud of is when the partnerships come together to make things happen for our children. It is said that you can judge the true character of a community by how they treat their children. And so when we come together like this, this is exactly what its all about and this is what makes me most proud to be a san franciscan. In order for us to do our work, were guided by the work of our board. Im going to introduce him one more time, the president , Vice President cook and commissioner walton and one of the supervisors in the audience, shes shy now, but you should hear her in meetings. We thank you for your hard work. We are fortunate to live in a city that is so deeply committed to the health, wellness, Emotional Development and academic success of our students and families. I want to thank the mayor for supporting the commitment of mayor lee and to maria for her efforts in continuing to strengthen our partnership. Lets give them a big round of applause. [applause] we at the School District benefit from the generous support of the city through the rfp process. The School District works with over 150 Community Based programs that provide a wide range of support for our students. And the majority of the funding from dcyf. This allows us to work with partners to enrich and enhance our after school programs, Student Leadership programs, social Emotional Development and much more, which directly contribute to building prosocial, positive learning environments in all of our schools. I want to take just a couple of minutes to mention two areas in particular that we are especially thankful for. For many families providing after School Programming is essential, especially for working families, who without them, would have to pay for childcare. Over 20,000 San Francisco unified School District students are enrolled in afterschool programs and they not only provide a safe place for students to be, but through the partnership with dcyf, we have collaborated to provide to assess and strengthen the quality of the programs. Another area we are particularly excited about is the beacon expansion. They and the School District have partnered to provide beacon programs at nine of our schools. Its helped the district to better understand the Community School strategy we see as a successful model in our own city and is showing success in cities all across the country. The district has been wanting to expand on this model and we wanted to for some time now and dcyf heard our call and will increase funding and support from 9 schools to 27 schools. [applause] tripling the number of schools will begin in july 2018. These 27 schools represent all of our comprehensive middle schools and identified highneed elementary schools. Were very excited to see the beacon programs soar by aligning the needs of the School Communities with the rich resources offered by our Community Partners and we welcome them into our schools. I want to thank dcyf and the San Francisco community for all that you do. Thank you so much. [applause] thank you. So before i continue, i want to acknowledge that we have a lot of the dcyf staff in the audience here. Without our staff, we would not be able to do this work. So, staff, could you just raise your hands so people here know who you are . Thank you, thank you. [applause] having amazing staff really makes my life much easier and makes all of us look amazing and good. Right . Mr. Mayor . I know, i know. On top of that, were also guided by an oversight and advisory body and today, were fortunate to have the chair, eddie zhang here with us, the vice chair, linda jordan martin. And one of our oversight members, dr. Gibson. [applause] so in 2014, the voters of San Francisco overwhelmingly passed proposition c, the children and youth initiative. Which increased the children and youth fund from three cents to four cents for every 100 of property tax revenue. Adjusted the age limit to allow us to serve transitional age youth. Extended the fund up to 25 years. And then most importantly created a coordinating council, called the our children, our families council. As the official steward of the children and youth fund, we administer the funds to Community Based organizations and public partners, public agencies to provide services for children, youth, transitional age youth and their families. Today, dcyf is extremely proud and honored to share that we will be funding 294 programs throughout the city administered by 151 different nonprofit agencies, for a total get ready for a total of 377 million over the next five years. [applause] [cheers and applause] that is a true demonstration of deep commitment that the people of San Francisco is making for our children, youth and families here. Over the next five years, nonprofit agencies will be receiving 75 million to provide services for our children, youth and families in over 300 schools and communitybased agencies and sites throughout the entire city. In every single district, in all 11 districts. In this commitment, in strategic funding, powered by equity, quality services, Community Engagement and collaborative partnerships, this investment, by the city of San Francisco and its residents, is more than just money. It is a demonstration of love and dedication for our future. We are committed to ensuring equitable access to the services and opportunities that all of our children, youth and families need to lead lives full of opportunity and happiness, with a deep focus ensuring access for San Franciscos children who need it the most. We have reached the culmination of this exciting multiyear planning cycle. And i am extremely proud of the new grant portfolio resulting from this process. We welcome all 151 agencies into the dcyf family. Our funding decisions were guided by the population level data that we track regularly. And by intentionally listening to our community, to our young people, to stakeholders, about what our children and families need to live in San Francisco and to thrive. Dcyf new investments and programs ranging from academic support to emotional wellbeing, from arts and music to literacy. And everything in between. This includes a commitment in our im sorry this includes an investment in our commitment to building the capacity of our agencies that we fund. The programs were funding will support and strengthen San Franciscos children, youth, transitional aged youth and families with greatest needs and people who serve them. We believe that the continuum of services that our grantees will provide, will make San Francisco an even greater place to grow up. The power of San Francisco to be committed in our youth and families, this is what makes San Francisco strong. It is now my pleasure to introdu introduce dante callaway. A San Francisco native. Youre not from denman, are you . I am from denman. A denman alumni, a Beacon Center alumni, who came back and worked at the Beacon Center. And now is a School District employee. Yes. [cheers and applause] lets hear his story. Thank you, i appreciate that. Raise this up a little bit. First, i give glory and honor to god for this opportunity and everybody else in their rightful places. Much like what she was saying, i was a former participant here, i am a native san franciscan and worked for the beacon program. I am here and proud of it. I did receive my diploma, but i am still here. Now, i never would have thought i would return to this place or be back in the positions the opportunities that i was given. While working for the beacon, i climbed the ladder. I started off as support and ended as site coordinator. And it was a wonderful opportunity. The beacon has given me so many opportunities and i want to give them thanks for where i am in my life. I grew into the young man i am today. And james denman middle school,ive to give them credit. Its wonderful to hear they opened up the school during the weekend, because as a young person, i used to jump the fence to play basketball here with siblings and by myself. Thank you, i appreciate that. No students have to jump over the fences anymore. Growing up here in San Francisco, its not always the easiest place to grow up. Especially, you know, when youre growing up with a struggling family, struggling mother here to take care of 48 children. And everything shes instilled in me, i give her credit for had who i am. I am grateful for the many opportunities i have here and that im even able to give back. I truly believe what you sow, you shall reap. The times i was mean, rude torques the majority of the staff here, im reaping that sometimes. But again, i have an investment to give the kids, what was given to me. As a former beacon student, i had many, many different Staff Members continue to invest their time in me, treat me like a little brother and even like a cousin. However they wanted to do me, but though, sometimes i was being rude, sometimes i was an obnoxious student, they still loved on me. And i decided that, ok, i have to go ahead and give back. I never thought i would be in this position im in now, but im honored to give them what was given to me. To hear were going to be receiving 377 million over the next five years, to invest in our children, the youth and their families . It literally touches my heart. Because now i know for a fact that San Francisco is definitely invested in our young people. And want to see them grow. Its a beautiful into beautiful young adult. So again, i would love to give honor to everyone else in the rightful places and i thank you guys. Me, myself, having two children, a son and daughter, i know that their futures are going to be very successful if they have a place like San Francisco that cares for their children and families. Thank you, guys. [applause] thank you dante. I want to acknowledge that our public defender just arrived. Thank you. So that concludes our very exciting announcement. For our Nonprofit Agency ins agencies in the crowd and some behind me, well be releasing the reward announcement later, 1 00 today. So check your emails. And youll be pleasantly surprised. Thank you so much. I just feel like this is what i was born to do when i was a little kid i would make up performances and daydream it was always performing and doing something i feel if i cant do that than i cant be e me. I just get excited and my nickname is x usher my mom calls me i stuck out like a sore thumb for sure hey everybody im susan kitten on the keys from there, i working in vintage clothing and chris in the 30s and fosz and aesthetic. I think part of the what i did i could have put on my poa he focus on a lot of different musical eras. Shirley temple is created as ahsha safai the nation with happens and light heartenness Shirley Temple my biggest influence i love david boo and el john and may i west coast their flamboyant and show people singing cant be unhappy as a dr. Murase and it is so fun it is a joyful instrument i learned more about music by playing the piano it was interesting the way i was brought up the youth taught me about music he picked up the a correspond that was so hard my first performing experience happened as 3yearold an age i did executive services and also thanks to the lord and sank in youth groups people will be powering grave over their turk ill be playing better and better back la i worked as places where men make more money than me i was in bands i was treated as other the next thing i know im in grants performing for a huge protection with a few of my friends berry elect and new berry elect and can be ray was then and we kept getting invited back you are shows got better we made it to paris in 2005 a famous arc we ended up getting a months residencey other than an island and he came to our show and started writing a script based on our troop of 6 american burr elect performs in france we were woman of all this angels and shapes and sizes and it was very exciting to be part of the a few lettering elect scene at the time he here he was bay area born and breed braces and with glossaries all of a sudden walking 9 red carpet in i walgreens pedestrian care. Land for best director that was backpack in 2010 the french love this music i come back here and because of film was not released in the United States nobody gave a rats ass lets say the music and berry elect and performing doesnt pay very much i definitely feel into a huge depression especially, when it ended i didnt feel kemgd to france anymore he definitely didnt feel connected to the scene i almost feel like i have to beg for tips i hey im from the bay area and an artist you dont make a living it changed my represent tar to appeal and the folks that are coming into the wars these days people are not listening they love the idea of having a live musician but dont really nurture it like having a potted plant if you dont warrant it it dizzy sort of feel like a potted plant laughter im going to give San Francisco one more year ive been here since 1981 born and raised in the bay area i know that is not for me ill keep on trying and if the struggle becomes too hard ill have to move on i dont know where that will be but i love here so so much i used to dab he will in substances i dont do that im sober and part of the being is an and sober and happy to be able to play music and perform and express myself if i make. Few people happy of all ages ive gone my job so i have so stay is an i feel like the piano and music in general with my voice together i feel really powerful and strong. Director brinkman. Ul and strong. Present. Borden. Hsu. Present. Ramos. Present. Rubke. Present. Torres . Here. Torres present. Director pleasing advised director heinicke will not be with you today. Please, also note we have a new sound system here but you still do need to speak into the end of yuck microphone so you be heard, recorded for all times. Item 3 announcement of prohibition of soundproducing devices during the meeting. The ringing of a cellphone, pagers and soundproducing Electronic Devices are prohibited. Any person responsible for one going off may be asked to leave the room