President's Update; September 2019

Building community has been one of EVNA’s primary goals since our founding in 1881. In the last two years, since I’ve assumed the post of president, we’ve been busy bringing people together around different interests and causes: whether its mayoral debates or movie nights, I’ve been happy to see our neighbors and members joining in the action. The Castro and Eureka Valley is (by a long shot) one of the most community focused and engaged neighborhoods in the city.

There have been plenty of activities to get engaged in over the summer and more planned for this fall. If you’ve got an interest, please reach out and help in any way you’re able, we’d love to have you.

The 2^nd round of the Castro Welcome Pack has been assembled and delivered by an army of volunteers in August. We received a list of over 300 new names and addresses this past quarter of those  moving into the neighborhood, and managed to pack and distribute welcome packets to most of those. A big thank you to all the board members and volunteers who gave their time and effort, especially to Barrie Simpson, who went above and beyond in making deliveries and getting the word out about EVNA.

As a follow on to the Welcome Packet was the Neighbors Mixer- we sent postcards to those on the Welcome Packet list, as well as sent an email out to member’s inviting everyone to the mixer on August 10th at the Spark Arts Gallery on 18th Street. This is such a cool space to meet up for tasty coffee and baked goods from Spike’s Coffee on 19^th, check out the current art on display, and sit around the comfy living room furniture and catch up with each other for an hour or two. I have to say this is one of my favorite spaces and definitely my favorite EVNA event. We’ll have the next mixer in November sometime.

Looking forward on the calendar is the upcoming EVNA movie night on Saturday September 28 at 7pm! Mark your calendars and tell your neighbors. This is our second annual event sponsored by Vanguard Properties on Castro Street. The board is busy finishing up the planning and details. It will be held again on the Rikki Streicher Field at the EV Rec Center, corner of Diamond and 19^th Street. The movie title will be announced as soon as we have it. This will be a great family event, free to all but donations welcome.

And most importantly, we are gearing up for elections at our November 25^th public meeting. Nearly h

alf of the current board is up for election, and new board members are welcomed and encouraged to run. If you live in the EVNA footprint, are a dues paying member, and would like to throw your hat in the ring, please email me with a headshot and a brief statement about you and your aspirations as a leader in the community. Women, persons of color, people of all persuasions, ethnicities and orientations are welcomed and supported.

Please plan to join us at our next public meeting on September 25^th in the upstairs meeting room at the EV Rec Center. Meeting starts at 7pm, doors open at 6:45pm. In the meantime, I look forward to seeing you around the neighborhood.