our city is blessed with many wonderful one-of-a-kind institutions that are no less part of san francisco than the golden gate bridge, such as the world's longest-running musical revue, "beach blanket babylon." yes. [applause] so we have a special treat for you today. "beach blanket babylon" together with mayor lee have created a special musical tribute to tony bennett in honor of all the things he has done to our city -- done for our city. i'm honored to present this to our friend, tony bennett. ♪

>> ♪ the fabulous tony bennett home the world all seems to know sang a song about this town and it left our city of low -- aglow grammy awards, and the awards, and a kennedy nominate a star on hollywood and vine all to honor his legacy he's a painter his picasso he's got the class of fred astaire and today, we are gathered here to show you just how much we care

you hold our hearts in san francisco so many songs you've sung to me and the rags to riches what a sound and a man who sings never retire

of san francisco i love your album "duets" both i and ii for there is no one quite like you you are the heart of san francisco one of the greats we know it's true for when you graced us -- our

town of san francisco our golden sun will shine on new -- you ♪ [applause] mr. bennett. ♪ it only takes a tiny corner of this great big world to find a place that you love you have brought us so much joy

you are a golden boy we love to have you here in our great towner of -- town of san francisco open your golden gates san francisco here is your wondering words singing other places only make me love you better you are the heart of all the gold in the world san francisco welcome me home again i'm coming home

♪ [applause] >> keep the applause going for the fabulous lisa malone. that was just terrific. [applause] i almost wore the same thing today. [laughter] would have been so awkward. [laughter] no, she was fantastic. now, everyone, without further ado, ladies and gentlemen, please welcome our host, the 43rd mayor of the city and county of san been cisco, the

honorable edwin m. lee -- the 43rd mayor of the city and county of san francisco. [applause] mayor lee: wow, welcome to city hall. and thank you, beach blanket babylon. what a wonderful performance. let's give her another hand. that was just fantastic. when i started being mayor of the city, i turned to our protocol officer and said, "you know, charlotte, we are going to do a lot of work this year, but these years forthcoming, as we work hard, i want to also have fun. isn't this fun? all right. [applause] this is our 50th anniversary of the wonderful song, "i left my heart in san francisco." tony, it is wonderful for you to

be here and grace us and honor us with your presence. your 17 grammys are just so unprecedented. you just won two more this past week, and what a wonderful career. congratulations, tony. i want to thank our school of the arts. i want to thank our boys and girls choruses. thank you. wonderful performances. it is a fitting tribute that our boys and girls choruses and ouryouth -- our yout are here today to perform because they reflect tony's dedicated career to ensure the future of arts education. we have seen what he has done and seen what his support is, and he is encouraging youth to be leaders on and off the stage,

to make sure they grow up with the values and the shared values that he has. this is such a wonderful opportunity. i also want to thank some of the school kids especially here today. we have kids from our tenderloin community school. thank you for being here. [applause] all right. we also have, for the first time, at the request of -- the idea ofcesa -- that cesar chavez elementary school wanted us to webcast this live, so we did it for them. wherever you are, welcome. [applause] tony, for 50 years, you have helped us not only remember a great song, but whenever any of us leave our town, we always come back and call san francisco our home. i know we talked a little

earlier and tried to recall that wonderful initiation where in 1961, you first sang that song in the venetian room up at the fairmont. little did you know at the time that then mayor george christopher was in the audience with joe alioto. it was such a marvelous performance that when joe became mayor, he adopted that as one of our two official anthems. thank you for performing first in san francisco. [applause] tony, you have helped us celebrate so many milestones in our city. you have helped us after earthquakes to come back and revive the spirit of our wonderful city. you have designed the wonderful art pieces to raise funds for

those who need that service. you help us to reopen. after earthquakes, you have helped us climb -- not half way, you have helped us climb all the way to the stars with the -- a nation of our cable cars. you have just -- i in your career, you have generated more love and more nostalgic for our bay area -- more nostalgia for our bay area than all the songs and all the movies and all the television shows associated with us combine. for that reason -- it is really for that reason, tony, that it is my pleasure if you would please come up, to declare today, valentine's day, february 14, 2012, as tony bennett day in san francisco. [applause]

and also, on behalf of all of us and with all of our love and with all of our hearts together, to present to you the key to the city of san francisco. [applause] >> would you like to say a few words? you have 45 minutes. [laughter] >> well, i would like to thank mr. ralph sharon, my great friend and musician, for finding

this song. i was in little rock, arkansas, and we were on our way for the first time in my life. he found a song, and he said, "why don't we do this in san francisco?" i said ok, and i have no idea, but there was a bartender who said, cassette and i don't mean to interrupt your rehearsal, but if you record that song, i'm going to be the first customer -- "i don't mean to interrupt your rehearsal, but if you record that song, i'm going to be the first customer." as i started singing it, the people came up and said, "you have to record the song

immediately." i always thought it would be a local song in the area, but the fact that it has become such an international song throughout the world -- everybody loves it, and they love this city. it reminds me of one time when i was playing the fairmont hotel, gorbachev from russia with here and travel throughout the whole united states and in front of the company could tell, i was listening to him speak about san francisco. he said, "i traveled to every city in the united states, and i was disappointed with what i saw. there was not one city that i liked, but as far as i'm concerned, san francisco is so beautiful that i would like to design 15 cities in russia that look like san francisco." [laughter] and he was right. [applause]

my wonderful wife, my family is here. i'm thrilled. thank you very much. i must say -- excuse me, i have to mention one thing. i have never seen anything in my life as beautiful as these young people. [applause] you stand so beautiful. [applause] -- you sang so beautiful. [applause] >> it is tony bennett day in san francisco. [applause]

just fantastic. now, before we leave here today, just one more time, let's hear that special song one more time, now performed by the talented san francisco gay men's chorus, who will be joined by -- yes -- who will be joined by all of our performers here today and then all of you. you can sing along by following the lyrics on the screens. ladies and gentlemen, the san francisco gay men's chorus. [applause] ♪ >> ♪ the loveliness of paris seems some house sadly -- somehow sadly gay the glory that was rome is of another day

i've been terribly alone and four got 10 -- forgotten in manhattan i'm going home to my city by the day -- city by the bay ♪ >> and now it is your turn. >> ♪ i left my heart in san francisco high on a hill it calls to me to be where little cable cars

climb halfway to the stars in the morning fog may chill the air i don't care my love waits there in san francisco of of the blue and windy see -- above the blue and windy sea when i come home to you san francisco your golden sun will shine for me ♪

[applause] >> very nice job, everybody. well, as we close here today, mr. bennett, you have always had the key to our hearts. now you have the key to our city. we hope to see you back here soon in your city by the bay. thank you for this wonderful gift you have given us all these years and thank you so much for letting us honor you today. tony bennett day in san francisco. once again, for the man of the hour. [applause]

thank you all so much for celebrating with us today. happy valentine's day. we will see you at the ballpark.

>> good afternoon. and welcome. welcome to san francisco. my name is lisa villareal, and i am here during this lunch representing not only the coalition for community schools, but also president and ceo of these and francisco foundation. she could not join us to introduce the mayor of san francisco. let me tell you a bit about our mayor and let me tell you about the passion he has for community schools. rarely do we find an elected official, and mayor that comes with so many vital skills and experiences that relate directly to powerful community engagement.

from his early days as managing attorney for the asian law caucus, to key positions including the director of employment relations, director of the human rights commission, the director of city purchasing, director for public works department, and finally, city and administrator prior to his election. mayor edwin lee has experienced every civic perspective. his dedication and a passion for children and youth are evident by his extraordinary support for the san francisco department of children, youth, and families. one of the first national city based initiatives to support children and youth. to be matched only by his outstanding partnership with the san francisco unified school district that is one that many districts across the united states within the -- would envy.

they have forged a partnership to deepen schools and embrace the full-service community schools initiative across the city of san francisco. ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the forty third mayor, and the first asian-american mayor of the city and county of san francisco, mayor edwin m. lee. [applause] >> thank yo, lisaou, lisa, for t introduction. welcome to san francisco, how do you like the weather? first of all, i want to thank her and marty from the san francisco foundation and sam hernandez that is not with us today. they are doing a good job with our educators to make sure that the school district is never isolated. i knolerned that -- learned

that a long time ago. the best cities are the ones that place education at the very center of what we are trying to do as mayors. i want to welcome the mayors of lincoln, nebraska and hartford, connecticut. thank you for being here. i want to welcome the various school board members and administrators that are here today on this important topic of community schools, thank you for coming to san francisco. thank you for taking this opportunity to learn from each other how we can do better. i was talking with my education adviser, hydra mendoza. it doesn't go a week that we don't talk to each other about the value of education.

whether it is hurt, carlos garcia, or the incoming superintendent, we will always place education at the center of our agendas. that is what we have to do. i can't conceive of any city in the country who would not place education the highest part of their agenda. it just doesn't seem like you are a city if you don't do that. in san francisco, we value that because we are knowledgeable. we know how important it is not only for our kids, but the role of education and everything that we do. and the fact that our community school concept is alive and well and our city -- in our city. we have had those years where we look at the school district and we say, wait a minute, we don't have to work with them.

they are a state agency. and the state gave it up and they keep giving it up. we keep having to respond. for me, i am sick and tired of responding to what the state is not going to do that we have to anticipate the bad news and we have to embrace these school districts and to make sure that they are always part of our city. that is why we have been working on ideas and programs to make sure the health department is engaged. to make sure our public safety agencies are engaged with the school district. our mayor's office, the budget office, the board of supervisors. all the other elected officials have to find some way to engage our school district, the administrators. that is why i have been talking all morning about how to get a meeting with the ceos. yes, our principles of our school district. they are like the ceos.

we have to engage everybody to make sure that we are doing the right things to balancing all the things that they need to run a successful school property and a school program. i benefited from public education many years ago. now that i am 60, those years are being recollected slower. as a recipient of public education, i have known for some many years that i was and passion that -- i was passionate about succeeding as an individual. there are more barriers to success these days. financial barriers. every time we turn around, there is another barrier presented to successful education. that is why the cities must be involved and the community schools have to be a concept that everybody embraces. i want to thank you for holding

this important meeting here because we have been trying to champion the whole community schools concept. we know that the success of our kids have to do with everybody being involved. from army dunton to carlos garcia -- arne duncan to carlos garcia and everyone involved with this movement, we have to involve everybody at the early stage. we can't let our schools fail by allowing them to be isolated. with your help, with your ideas, with the programs that are the foundations that we are coordinating and implementing, the greater idea is to involve everyone else in the community with our schools, that is going to be, i think, the way out. the only thing -- the other thing that i would like you to know, the other efforts are to involve more of our businesses with our schools.

in san francisco, we are leading the effort to make sure that the technology companies in of a -- innovate and find success as part of our city. i would like that success of innovation that many technology companies are bringing to their businesses to also happen with our school district. i know that if we can innovate our way to better taxi dispatch is like we are doing with technology companies were better ways to service delivery, we can also innovate ways in which education can be a greater part of every kids' lives and all parents. and making sure that we can use technology and the business community to do that. we will be introducing these ideas, working with our principles, working with the school boards and the superintendent to make sure that we can also link