While You Were Out

Dear Gavin,

I hope you had fun in Washington DC yesterday, meeting with all of those important people in our nation's capital. Are they helping you out with your gubernatorial campaign? How was the Victory Garden Tour at the White House?

Well, I just wanted to keep you up to date with some things you might have missed out on since you're not in town too much these days. Even though your schedule says you're in your office today, I didn't see you when I was outside City Hall this morning.

Maybe you didn't realize this, but today there was a press conference on the steps of City Hall by homeless mothers. Apparently, homeless mothers in the community have been trying to meet you for over two years to talk about housing and issues that affect their families, but somehow you're never available to meet with them...

Here are some of the kids that your mayorship affects with the city's lack of transitional and low income housing for families...

Little kids living in one room SROs in Chinatown (7 people living in one room? That's insane.)

Mothers worried about how they'll survive each day.

People holding up a banner that reads "housing is a right, not a privilege."

Rachel and Lisa from helpamotherout.org were there. They have a diaper drive to help mothers who need the basics and can't get them because there aren't enough services. Did you know that there isn't even ONE diaper bank in the entire city of San Francisco?

Lisa, Rachel and I had to leave after the press conference to meet with K and bring her some diapers, formula, blankets and other items for the baby. But another concerned mom from Badgermama went up to your offices with the rest of the crowd and here is what she reported about being outside of your office for an hour:

I went up to the Mayor's Office with about 20 people. They kicked us out of the office and said that the one woman who can access the mayor's schedule was in a meeting. We waited in the hall outside the Mayor's office for over an hour.

Finally a guy came out and all he did was take a phone number down and promise that someone would call the coalition to make an appointment. Everyone had to leave, the children were restless, the ABC reporter split off some of the most involved folks to get them to go with him and a cameraman to someone's apartment in Chinatown where 7 people live in 1 room.

I played with children in the hallway so that moms could talk to the cameras some more...

So there you go, Gavin... just a little recap of the stuff going on right outside your door, fyi.

UPDATE 7:44pm: Here is the news segment that aired on KGO tonight.

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On an entirely different note...

Kelly! These animals were a HUGE HIT!!! The kids LOVE them! Thank you so much!!! They told me to say thank you! They immediately started playing and hugging them. So adorable. You knew exactly what to get.

xoxo

julie