think it is important to acknowledge people like mary helen rogers, creating these powerful tools that can work on behalf of the community. i know that the family has worked hard with their mother and grandmother to produce the kind of changes people want to see here. i wanted to say thank you. [applause] >> i think that norman is bringing buses from sacramento to support redevelopment tomorrow. another great supporter of this project is our board president, david chiu. >> i had a half-hour speech prepared, but given the weather i will keep my comments to one minute. today is valentine's day. as our mayor alluded to, this

project is an expression of community love. the love of mrs. rogers in her fight for everything that we stand for. particularly redevelopment, which is so timely today. i want to thank the chinatown community development center, as well as tabernacle, the rev., the urban core, the asian american and african american communities together. when we come together, we can not be more powerful. thank you to everyone for that expression of love. today's announcement is also about the glove of st. francis. the compassion as a city that we have for our homeless and what we are all going to invest in our children, as well as taking

care of our seniors. this will be a testament of what we stand for as a city. the city named after st. francis. thank you for being here. i look forward to future events here when the building is up and future projects in the city. thank you. >> the district supervisor of district 6, we know them pretty well. >> this is actually district 6. >> i know. [laughter] >> having been raised in the chinatown community development center and now being done the board of supervisors, it is an honor to be here today. moments like this remind me how opportunities come from times of disaster. this is an opportunity for us to

not only build community and address the needs of san francisco, particularly for our seniors, but it is also an opportunity to build communities across the asian american and african american community as well. this came to us because of a natural disaster through the fall of the central freeway which is affordable -- i am excited that the mary helen rogers community is going to bring 100 more unions into the community particularly those working below their income bracket. this is exciting. it will be -- it is a project

that the chinatown community center did were carved. we made sure that we had services for folks to come together. ross mirkarimi had a certificate of commendation that we will present to the sponsors. in recognition of the mary helen rogers senior community groundbreaking in the western addition forhonoring one of the hardest working community advocates that fought for one of the most vulnerable advocates in san francisco to ensure economic

equality for all. the board of supervisors extends its highest commendation. [applause] >> thank you. hang on. we want to present it to the family a little later. is rev. boyd or reverend walker here? i can see rev. pounds in here. million not join me in welcoming another champion for san francisco? they are on the redevelopment commission. for how long? 32 years. commissioner lee roy king. >> i have been listening. long before any of you were born, before you were around, mary rodgers came from europe and traveled throughout the

world. she came here and got this housing, this school here, got this school moving. the big school over there on the park, she got that fixed. my sister-in-law made sure. teachers were teaching the kids. mary rodgers would go in and check. she change that community around. mary was a champion. that big safeway store in the western addition. mary rodgers got a job program much more integrated than any

safeway in the city. she was going night and day. i want to tell you. we have got to thank her for many of the things. i was over at that housed many nights. because she was a wonderful person. now as i look around, i can see jackson over there, part of her team. 258, the union. they were all there. this city would not be where it is today. there is an old housing thing there. mary was down there and had that

thing change around. we had integration on union street. so, i want to say this. this family gave their mother many hours, spent many nights and days with mary, changing the city rounds. thank you to the mayor and all of you for this honor here today. she hasps done more than anyone else in this city to change this city around. thank you. [applause] >> thank you, lee roy. our next speaker is from silicon valley bank, wonderful in providing financing to this project. >> thank you. i would like to acknowledge a few people from the bank's staff that are here. keith, who came down from santa rosa, our credit officer. judy, who worked on the credit

approval. donald, who worked on the project. after mclane, she came as our attorney on this project. i am with the community development finance group. i am glad that you brought up the safeway, because even though i did not know mary, i got an urban action grant so that that safeway could be built in the western addition. i have history with the neighborhood itself. i am glad that it is well integrated and doing well. silicon valley bank is a proud and consistent sponsor of affordable housing. i know that you all realize that this project is a special, but i do not think you realize how really special it is. this was only one of four projects in the entire area that got 9% tax credit last time

around. which was very difficult to get. which is why we are here today, the funding came together. banks had to compete heavily to finance and have an opportunity to finance the project. i am very proud that silicon valley bank was chosen. the bank has a tag line called "nothing that we would rather be doing." that says it all. nothing that we would rather be doing than partnering with chart -- chinatown urban development and the urban core. thank you very much. [applause] >> thank you. as we are waiting for rev. boyd and reverend walker, let me introduce rev. calvin jones. i think they went to school the other a couple of years ago. >> not too young. has not been around long enough.

balboa high school. i thank god that mary rodgers had that fortitude. that is what i am thinking about. we will take that same fortitude, with at this climate across races and nationalities, we need to represent mary rodgers. this building should represent and reflect what the community is and it is our job to work together to make that happen. i believe that there's a will and a desire in this city to make it happen. and i thank god, first of all, the back when i was a knucklehead in school, they had to integrate bawa loopy -- guadalupe, they wanted to make sure that it was. i knew that we were special, but they treated us a little special because they had to keep us in

their. by the time i got out of the sixth grade, there were a few issues i remember my mother telling me -- boy, do not make me come get you. when we build this building, we want to make sure that we are planning together, building together, making money together. i do not want her to say boy, do not make me come and get you. let's be in let's not wait for egypt and jerusalem. -- let's not wait for egypt and jerusalem. let's be in the forefront. let's make san francisco a model for what it means to live together. >> please give it up for mary

helen rogers' family. >> good afternoon, everyone. thank you for coming out. i am so proud of the partners that came to the family and worked with us to make sure that what my mother had wanted in this building was going to be there. i am so proud of them and i thank them. when my mother first came to the city and started fighting in this community, we knew that she was not going to be home as much as she should have been. but we did not mind. we had a bigger brothers and sisters that would whop us what my mother would " bust.

-- whaop us. they keep telling me to keep this short, but i am a talker. what can i say. how member -- how many members of the family are here today? [applause] my son, my daughter, my niece and nephews, generations of the rogers family are here today. i wish that you could come here and speak. where are you at them in pushing you. get up here and -- where are you at? get up here and say something. i am pushing you. no one knew her better than you. >> i do not want to take advantage. but i am family. i know that i am family, unlike

a lot of view -- except for dexter, george, minibus at very lean days during the black power era, mary helped us. all of the other stuff that she did was great and wonderful. but feeding us in those days when we had no money and were tired of bologna and cheese, she looked out for us. let me say some things about her that may not have been said. if mary told that the redevelopment -- told you that the redevelopment regulations said a certain thing, she was never wrong. she knew what she was talking

about. all of that material that the agency would send you, mary actually read all of that. i did not read it. she read it word for word, line for line. if it were not for mary rodgers, what you see in this community -- yes, we talk about the out- migration of african americans, i would like to remind the redevelopment agency -- since i have the microphone -- that it took a lot of money and an entire agency to the black people out of here. i would like to say to the agency and city officials, it will take an agency and money to keep african-americans and get some back in here. this is america and you cannot do it for free. that is what mary would tell you. she would give you her favorite line right now.

she would say -- let's make sure that we do not have different strokes for different folks. anyone remember that? let's make sure that everybody is treated fairly. to treat those -- you have got to give them more than you have given the other folks or they will never catch up. that is just the reality of life. that is just the reality of running the race we are in called life. we are excited. we want is not to be the end of the last project in the western addition. it may be the last thing that the redevelopment agency pays for, but it is not the last of the work that we have to do in the west of the city. to bring charity and to bring people the kind of life that they deserve. i will say it. i am through.

i hope i am not to offensive. i really want to say this and i hope that you can get it. the reality of life is that white people in san francisco are too comfortable for black people to be doing as bad as we are. we have got to make sure that folks know that we are hurting and not happy about. and that we are calling for change today. mary would not stand here and give you a namby-pamby's speech with all of the problems and troubles, the violence and the hurt, the lack of education and lack of advantages in our community. she would tell you about it when she got to the microphone. in channeling her right now. this is not really me. do not get mad at me. thank you. douglas you. i would like to introduce my baby brother, michael brother, this is my baby brother, paul.

he wants to sing a song for my mother. >> ♪ overtime i have been building mike castle of love -- my castle of love. although you never knew that it was not you that i was dreaming the sandman has come from too far away come back some other day although you do not believe that they do dreams do come true open my dreams when i look at you, baby if you

could be here you two might be overjoyed over love over me because i and my heart -- in my heart i have painfully turned around just to find what i saw i discovered i have come out too far for you not to say that i would have to throw my castles away. dreams do come true, though we do not believe that they do when i look at you, baby, if you

could believe that you might also be overjoyed over a love over me and although we have the improbable what do they know for a romance, give me a chance with a chance you might find that you are likel i over love over me over love ♪ [applause] >> finally, just want to know if

any more members of my family would like to speak. any of the grandchildren, and i would appreciate it if they would come up here and say something. >> i'm angela, her youngest daughter. i just would like to say -- i would just like to thank everybody in the community for coming out this day, rainy as it is, and how beautiful it is to see that people still care. i just told my brother earlier -- he was like, "what should i say?" i told him just to tell people to love one another. that was my issue. my mother really showed her love in this community. i walk down this community now, and i do not live here anymore. i moved back from texas. i see people who do not smile, people who walk down with their

heads down, and that was not married. she always said, "keep your head up high. hold your head up. smile." that is what i like to see -- people smiling and enjoying this community. it is beautiful, although i grew up -- it was different. if you did something wrong, by the time you got home, you had five people whipping you. you do not have a community anymore like that. so i just say grow together and love. that is basically what we need. that is all i wanted to say. thank you. [applause] than at any more members of the family -- >> more members of the family? that is it? thank you. one more hand again to the rogers family. this is why we are here today. [applause] i think that is it for our program today.

want to thank everybody for coming. we've got refreshments over at 871 turk. had a corner from here. have a great day. -- ken a coco