so, today i have the great pleasure to recognize art belanson. will you come up? better known as the mayor of west portal, as district 7's honoree for filipino-american heritage month, arch immigrated with his family from the philippines in 1969 and opened his pet store on west portal avenue in 1971. he was called -- he has called district 7 home for over 35 years now and art was always eagle tore get involved and was active in the filipino-american community. during a time when there was a struggle for communities of color to even be recognized ~. he was one of the founding members of the filipino professional and business association and helped san francisco create ties with the manila as a sister city. art is well known in the neighborhood for his charm, warmth, and most importantly his leadership. always friendly, amicable, art helped to elevate the voices of neighbors and merchants. he served as the president of the west portal merchants' association twice and served on the board of forest hills neighborhood association. art carries himself with great civic p