>> i am one of the board members for the burning man project. welcome to the plaza and the launch. [applause] we are so thrilled to be here in the tenderloin. we're thrilled to create relationships, to work with other people, and make something crazy and magical happened here. we're also extremely happy to be working with the san francisco city itself, with the reinvigoration efforts happening. we have two esteemed people with us from the city. we have mayor ed leave with us. [applause] -- we also have mayor ed lee

with us. and from the board of supervisors, david chu. please come and join us. [applause] >> thinks ank you. it may be premature, but welcome home fellow burners. it is great. there are invitations going on for that burning man. i am going to call our board president, david chu, to come up here and join us. he plays a mean violin already.

i am also going to invite supervisor eric mar, who is the only one of us who has been to burning man. i will say this. the burning man project has been a wonderful contributor to our central market cultural district. working with our office of economic development and the wonderful staff, you are working with the arts commission trying to liven up and insight the arts community -- excite the arts community to look at where we have vacancies and put life into them through art.

there is so much to do. art is about life, activity, and people. it is about creating relationships. i want to thank all of you for being here to share your wonderful friday with us. we have the music to keep the center. now we can go crazy again. i not only have an announcement the burning man launched tonight, but there are so many other wonderful things being attracted to this area. i want to thank hal for the camera work. you are around the corner. that is because you are working with will and maddie thatcher.

they've come to work together to enliven the effort to create a place where the underserved youth can learn about camera works. this is been on my mind for a long time. do you know the old original joe's place? they have brought in a theater piano fight. that is a wonderful addition. it will be starting this fall. the dugan family will locate in north beach. i have been a patron of the original joe's for many years.

i want to specifically thank the piano and fight -- piano fight theater. thank you for starting the wonderful theater. i know you will be asking for a grant. you have been a wonderful partner in looking out for the start-ups and helping them along, helping to identify where they can be and how they can get started. we both started the arts foundation at the corner of sixth and market. there are so many people to thank tonight. i wanted to begin with this list, the freshest efforts to start up. it is a signal to you that we

want to thank you all for reinvigorating this central market with your arts activity, innovation, enthusiasm. there is not going to be a store front available in the next year. it will be filled with arts, people, and businesses, and residents who will come to celebrate this. thank you very much. [cheers and applause] >> it is friday. who is excited to be a san franciscan? it is wonderful to see everyone here. i want to acknowledge my colleague because he is the only member of the board of supervisors who has gone up to burning man. i know that will change. mayor lee and i were joking that we were thinking about going up

there to resolve and worked out all of the issues with city council up in the desert. what do you think, mayor lee? whatever it takes, bringing people together to get it done. that is what we want to do with burning man. san francisco has been a beacon to the entire world for creativity and innovation. i want to thank you all for representing the very best of what that is all about. i also want to welcome you to this neighborhood. the tenderloin and mid market area is so grateful for all the changes we know will happen in the coming years. this year alone, we are bringing twitter to this area. we're bringing artists and theaters. we're bringing new hamburger joints and we are bringing burning man.

i want to thank the burning and project for being on the edge of creative culture. you represent with the greatest partnerships are about, what happens when you bring the public and private sectors together. i know this project will be reaching out to children in the tenderloin. and want to thank you for doing that. i also want to thank burning man for one of the quality we like here in san francisco -- one other quality we like here in san francisco -- experimentation. a few blocks away from here, we have been experimenting with what it means to close market street, to take back parking spaces for parkland. i want to thank the transit

advocates here. hats off to burning man because you are leading the way. without further ado, it is my honor to introduce one of the founders of the burning man project. where is larry harvey? come on up. [applause] >> i did not want to speak to the "post." i am not here as the founder of burning man. i am representing the burning man project, a new nonprofit. our offices are down the street

at 995 market at 6th, right in the hearth of the mid-market district. there is no better place to commence this effort in san francisco, our home town. [applause] we know a thing or two about building a diversity and culture from the ground up. the key thing was expressed by the great jane jacobs. she said cities have the capability of providing something for everybody only because and only when they are created by everybody.

care this is the principle that will guide the burning man project. working with the city of san francisco, we can do many things. you have noticed all of the vacant shop fronts along market street, i am sure. we can begin to change this. pardon me? anyway, we can change this by making it easier for artists to occupy. working with our sister organization, we can install public artworks. if you look behind you, you will see two of them freshly installed.

we can also do what all of us are doing here today. it can mean celebrations. we certainly know how to do that. we can do more. everyone of you here can participate. let's broaden the scope and think about more than just market street. after all, cities have the capability of providing something for everybody when they are created by everybody. let's look beyond the central market corridor and the neighborhood, the community that already lives here.

if you go down to the project office, you will see the gateway to the tenderloin. we do not mean to merely decorate our city's main street. that would be superficial. we want to help change lives. [applause] we want to do what we do best by inventing truly interactive art. we want to work with the residents of the district, creating art made by and for the people. we will need volunteers in order to accomplish this. burners know exactly what i am talking about. we want you to pay attention to our website,

burningmanproject.org. the burning man private even may be sold out of tickets, but the project is destined to fill a much larger canvas. to participate in that, you will not need no stinking tickets. [applause] i already hear people referring to where we are as u.m. playa. [laughter] to repeat with the mayor has already said, welcome home. [cheers and 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 tof