and i'd like to introduce barbara's son, mr. michael coit. >> hello. what a remarkable day. what a grand place. coit tower and telegraph hill never disappoint as a tranquil outlook over a bustling city and busy world. i never tire of treking up here with family and friends. but there is not doctor an extra attraction today -- preferred parking. a first for this coit and i'm a native. the coit family owes its presence in san francisco to two tall, distinguished yankees. first came my great-great uncle howard coit, an enterprising man in the still young state of california. a member of the san francisco stock exchange in the 18 70's and 1880's, he met and married

lily hitchcock, that lovely lady. a century after howard coiment married lily hitchcock, my father moved here with huts wife, barbara wheeler, from dallas to san francisco. like his great-uncle, my father also was drown bit promise of business opportunity here. my parents nurtured the family's links to this great landmark, becoming mascots of sorts to the telegraph hill dwellers, attending the coit 50th anniversary in 1983 and the rededication of pioneer park in 2001. my father would be here talking to you today but he passed away four years ago. he was very proud of our family's link to this but very humbled as well. coit tower's 75th anniversary is important because it returns attention to this art deco

landmark, a symbol for a progressive city then and now. from lily hitchcock coit's bequest to the muralists who covered coit tower's interior with diverse impressions of the city's politics and people, coit tower reflects a civic-minded people prone to bold action and provocative viewpoints. coit tower is a place for great architecture, art, and a place to meet the world. thank you. >> i'd now like to introduce one of the members of the diamond jubilee committee. we put together a committee earlier this year and that's how we arrived at this point and the person that was extremely key in pulling this together logistically, creatively, spiritually for me and keeping me from going

cuckoo -- cuckoo is a wonderful person who lives in this community, mr. ken maily. >> thank you. it's an honor to be here again. i had the pleasure to be here in 19983 for the 50th anniversary with then-may r dianne feinstein, who's the honorary chairman of our this year semicesc quite centennial. the senator sent a note of greetings the 8 it's my pleasure to extend a warm welcome to all of you at the 75th coit tower diamond judge brinkemaee. i'm sorry i'm unable to be with you today. the coit tower is one of the crown jewels of the city, known throughout the world for its beauty. as a united states senator and former payor of san francisco i

once again welcome all of you to this celebration and thank you for recognizing the rich history of this beloved landmark. sincerely, senator dianne feinstein. as i said, i'm proud to be here again today. i'm already thinking they'll start tomorrow planning for the 100th anniversary in 2023 and maybe have a little more lead time. coit tower and pioneer park are symbols've the city's pride in the late 1800's. through the the city's history there are legends of civic pride and heroic deachtds the phoenix over the doorway represents several rebirths of san francisco, from the fires that destroyed it and the great earthquake of 1906. these disasters include many stories of heroic efforts of

citizens to rebuild. one of the most famous volunteers was the knickerbocker five. legend has it that at the age of 15 lily saw a fireman struggling to pull a fire engine up a hill. she dropped her school books and joined to help. they invited her to become a mascot. you've got to love anyone who smokes cigars, plays cards and loves firemen. this land was donated by citizens who purchased it in 1876 to preserve this historic site and to honor. city's early pioneers. when lily died in the 1920's, as you've been told, her bequest is what built this tower, to beautify the city she loved. little did she or anyone

recognize that this memorial would beautify the city but also become one of its iconic images. in the 1920's, a group of neighbors formed the pioneer park project and raised funds to build the new stairways you see here and you can visit the pioneer parks display over here on the west side that will announce phase two, to deal with the plantings on the north side. they have a credit card machine and are willing to take donations. if there say message in this commemoration of lily coit's gift to us three quarters of a century to us i suggest it be a reminder of the importance of civic pride, to honor the history of volunteerism, to help the city in times of need, and believe me our parks are in a time of need, in small or large ways, support your parks and open spaces, appreciate the

contribution the parks make to the extraordinary quality of life we enjoy in san francisco and the tradition of our men and women pioneers, step up and do what you can to maintain the beauty of the city we all love. thank you for joining us all today and again i look forward to 2033. >> all right. i want to the give you some information about what's going to go on after the ceremony is over. we have entertainment. we have free rides on the famous, famous elevator so you can go up and see the beautiful view people come from all over the world to see. the world-famous murals will also be on display. lily hitchcock coit's diary and other pieces of memorabilia are going to be on display inside. additionally we had a number of generous doaners, one of which is mr. joseph schmidt -- please

come over here -- mr. joseph schmidt, who is a true san franciscoan in the fact that he's generous and in good times and in bad, everybody loves his chocolate. if you haven't had his chocolate, you don't know what you're missing. he for this occasion built and carved himself a coit tower out of white and bittersweet chocolate which is on display in the tower when we open the tower today. thank you, mr. schmidt, for doing that for us. in addition, mr. pll schwab donated $25,000 worth of graphic artwork design. this banner is made for this occasion only. we will give out free posters of this design today and that will be available for you. we also have half a dozen city guides here today to do commemorative tours of the

tower the you can ask any question you have, no matter how esoteric, and they'll be able to answer it. also we will have jail productions, down here, to perform ragtime music. also, again, lots of history going on today, mitch morea zachaim, the author of the most influential book every written about coit tower, this book here, you have a rare opportunity to meet the author today and obtain a copy if you would like. this copy is for madame speaker. >> oh, thank you very much. >> judy irving, the producer and direct -- director of the document orie paris on telegraph hill, is here today

and you can meet here. also we have arts and crafts. you can make a commemorative coit tower button. there is food in the back. all that is located in the southern part of the tower overlooking lily's lawn, and there's also information including the san francisco parks trust, ms. karen kid wel, who is right there, generously loan -- donated as part of being a diamond jubilee committee member. i'd like now to introduce mr. nick rause, san francisco native, saxophonist, who's requesting to perform "i left my heart in san francisco."

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[applause]

>> i am not a big speech-maker, but i relish the idea of coming here today to share with you a very special graduation. i want to begin by saying it has been a wonderful, exciting time being the mayor of san francisco for these first seven months. i have had the privilege of working with the chief and his wonderful staff and the fire commissioners. i know they're here to celebrate this unique opportunity. we're joined by supervisor carmen chiu. the last time there was a firefighters graduation class was 2005. it has been a long time. i understand that over 5000 people applied for these positions.

those 5000 people along with you know that these jobs are precious, meaningful to our city, and hard-bofought jobs. i am here to congratulate those of you who have been part of this class. i want to recognize and thank the trainers. each and everyone of you have now departed and in printed -- imprinted on these recruits, skill, attitude, commitment. i want to thank you for the professional hand-off in training. i know that is not easy to do. i want to say to your recruits that you are joining a world- class department.

i know that having been part of the city for 22 years. i know that right after this event, you will be sent to your fire houses and engine companies. but for a moment right now, and visualize that you are joining a world-class department, a department that has served the city so well and has its own history. it is a department has provided the city with its own heroes. i want to congratulate you for working really hard getting to this point. i know that you come from so many diverse backgrounds and disciplines. i understand there is a bartender among you. there is an accountant. there are people who worked in 911, people from all walks of

life. now you get to work as a team. you have gone through this 14 weeks of rigorous training so that you can be part of a world- class firefighting team call the san francisco fire department. i also want to let you know that you are also joining me and 26,000 other people who serve the city well. you are part of delivering a world-class city of services. whether or not he will be jumping into a fire, rescuing a cat from a tree, or maybe being with me when disaster hits the city, i want you to know that you have my personal appreciation as you begin your careers. every day on the job, we serve

the public and do the best the weekend. everything you do by way of sacrifice is worth it all for this great city of san francisco. no they will be backed up by this mayor and administration, -- know that you will be backed up by this mayor and administration and board of supervisors. your friends, family, the residents of san francisco hold you number one in the appreciation that we have and the wealth -- love of the city family. you are joining a great department. we want to make sure we do our best. you are joining a world-class department of firefighters,

paramedics, and all the other wonderful things that we do. i want to impart that i am personally appreciative of the sacrifices you have made thus far. i will also appreciate everything you do from here on. i will do my best to continue leading this city and making sure we recognize all of the contributions made. we want to keep this city family close so that we can depend on each other whenever we have times of need. i want to signal to the public and your families that this is a day we want to remember as one where we celebrate your entry to this department, how you got here, all of the sacrifices, and make sure that you know that you are serving the best city in the world. thank you very much.

[applause] >> thank you, mr. mayor. [applause] >> good morning. thank you all for coming today. this is a beautiful looking group of people. give them a hand. they have been through so much in this training facility. i am so happy to be here today. it has been a long time coming. i am hoping we can make this an annual thing where we are bringing on even more firefighters for this great city. we have people retiring, leaving the department in large numbers. we are truly going to need them and more to come.

i am hoping that is something we can start talking about. this is such an amazing city. every single day when you hear the fire trucks and see the firefighters saving lives, i cannot be more proud to be a fire commissioner then i am when i see this great department saving lives. you are coming into a wonderful department. there are people here representing the department whether you are in or out of uniform, you are always a representative of this great city. i am so proud to be here on behalf of the commissioners who are here and those who cannot be here. we're here to serve and work with the city. we are here for you. thank you so much for being part of this great department. we're looking forward to meeting

you and working with you in the future. [applause] >> thank you, fire commissioner. the chief of the department, joanne hayes-white, would now like to say a few words. [applause] >> good morning, everyone. welcome to our beautiful division of training 21 years ago, i sat in those seats and was a proud member of the 1978 recruit class. we're here to celebrate your hard work and successful completion of the rigorous 14- week recruit academy. this the first recruit academy we've had in nearly six years. you now have the skills and ability to enter the field on your assignments and provide firefighting and emergency medical services to our community to fulfil our mission.

i remember your first day here on may 2, 2011. i spoke about the importance of teamwork, getting to know one another, and working together to build on strengths to help those who might be struggling. teamwork serve you well throughout our careers. your ability to do that and be successful has paid off. the staff at the division of trading has provided you with an excellent foundation -- at the division of training has provided you with an excellent foundation. each day, you will gain new insights and experiences you will carry with you throughout your career. hopefully someday you will train other firefighters like yourselves today. whether it is responding to restructure fire, medical,, making a presentation to the community, you are now part of the official san francisco fire

department family. i am very proud of each and everyone of you. [applause] the profession you have entered is more than just a job. it is a vocation. it is an honorable and noble vocation. there are tremendous rewards and satisfaction that go along with a career in the san francisco fire department. along with this comes great risk and responsibility. as firefighters and medical service providers, we put our lives on the line daily to carry out a very important mission. this is painfully present in our minds with the tragic loss of firefighters in june, heroes who made the old and sacrifice in fulfilling the mission of the

san francisco fire department. i know vince and tony are looking down and giving you the thumbs up today. you are to be commended for the work over the last 14 weeks. you have formed a strong team. the bond will always be with you. each and every member of the class i graduated with is a lifelong friend because of the experience, bond, and teamwork reform here at the division of training many years ago. i encourage you to continue those relationships as you move into the field. always challenge yourself. be a sponge when it comes to learning and knowledge. ask a lot of questions. treat everyone the same way that you would want every member of your family to be treated each and every day, even when you have been up for hours and

hours. always wear the uniform with pride as you are today. nothing is worth doing unless you do it 100% all the time. i am proud of the diverse makeup of our class. it truly reflects the community we are serving. all of you came very well- prepared. you were all emergency medical technicians. this is the first time we have had a class that we made that a requirement. it is great to have real estate appraisers, people who have worked in construction, personal trainers, people will have worked retail, 911 dispatchers. that is all important. each of you bring something to the team. i am also proud that collectively, there are many languages that you speak in addition to english. we have speakers fluent in spanish, cantonese, italian, french, russian, and vietnamese.

all of that is value added for an employee of the san francisco fire department to serve our diverse city. many of you have advanced or bachelor's degrees. with history majors, sociology, i.t., psychology, civil engineering. all that is impressive and important as you build a team and contribute to the san francisco fire department. to the family and friends of our recruits, thank you very much. it has been a sacrifice for the recruits and family members. it has not been an easy 14 weeks. you will find that there will be missed holidays because they are serving the city. we're so proud to have them. we're thankful to you for your continued support throughout their careers. i will also like to acknowledge the division of training staff.

it is challenging and rewarding. it was one of my favorite positions. we're able to impart our knowledge and experience and make our imprint on the new recruits. under the direction of frank costa, they are all to be commended for the work in building the foundation upon which the class will continue to grow. we have many new faces. we had some tiretirements last month. i could not do my job without a good team of people to work with. i would like to acknowledge each and everyone of you chiefs recommend -- representing the department today. i want to thank the commissioners for your support.

we're very proud to work with the commission that challenges us, works with us, and expects us to be our best. we appreciate your presence today. of like to acknowledge local 798. thank you for continuing to advocate for our department, to give the recruits over our class working. supervisor chiu, i would like technology. -- i would like to acknowledge you. i really appreciate your presence and support of the san francisco fire department. the supervisor was chair of the budget committee. it was not an easy task. we