active member of the fighter department. . but she's near and dear to the heart of everybody in the 2ke789 thank you for the generosity and thank you for coming out and celebrating with us. >> we are very, very honored to have members of lily's family with us here today. down below, barbara. right there, barbara coit is sitting right there. 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." ♪ ♪

[applause]