Hello Russian Hill Families- We hope everyone had a wonderful summer and is settling into a good fall routine.  Here are some upcoming local events you might be interested in:

Wednesday, September 21 from 6 - 7:30 pm: Francisco Park Planning Meeting
 
Here is your chance to have a say in what happens to that gorgeous expanse of land overlooking the Bay that will soon be our very own Francisco Park! There is a community meeting Wednesday, September 21 from 6-7:30 in the Moscone Recreation Center at 1800 Chestnut Street. Show up and share your thoughts! For more information, please visit www.franciscopark.org
 
Wednesday, September 21 from 5-8pm: North Beach Family Fun Night

Remember the old days of food trucks at Joe DiMaggio Park? The fun is back this Wednesday evening!  Please join your hosts Friends of Joe DiMaggio Playground, North Beach Kids and the North Beach Library to show your support on 9/21 from 5:00-8:00pm. El Tonayense will be serving up delicious tacos- cash only.  Also, the North Beach Library will be doing a story time for kids of all ages at 6:15 pm and will be hosting a stuffed animal sleepover (sorry, animals only). Have your kids bring their favorite stuffed animal and join the fun. 

Saturday, September 24 from 11am – 1pm:  Sherman School Shared Schoolyard Grand Opening

Please join Supervisor Mark Ferrell, Principal Lisa Levin and other community leaders this Saturday morning as they open the playground at Sherman Elementary School (1651 Union between Franklin and Gough) to the public as a shared school yard on weekends.  For the grand opening this weekend, the free event will include fun activities from BayKids, Golden Gate Valley Branch Library, Super Soccer Stars, Culinary Artistas, Tutu School, Infinite Martial Arts, the Presidio YMCA, and Friends of Lafayette Park. Plus, free lunch (while supplies last), a free raffle to win exciting prizes, and a ribbon cutting ceremony! To RSVP, please visit www.sfsharedschoolyard.org/kickoff_sherman

Sunday, September 25 from 11am – 4 pm: Marina Family Fest

The 6th Annual Marina Family Fest this Sunday (also put on Supervisor Ferrell!) on the Marina Green will feature a multitude of family friendly attractions and a great opportunity to meet your neighbors down the hill!  This year there will be a pumpkin patch, a petting zoo, puppies for adoption, bounce houses, face painters, a climbing wall, demonstrations by the fire and police departments, Off the Grid food trucks, a beer and wine lounge, music, and more!  

Friday, September 30 from 4-5:30pm: The Alhambra Project’s free art session and Swensen’s ice cream social for kids 

On September 30, artists Lynn Marie Kirby and Christoph Steger present a night of video, film and performance at the former Alhambra Theatre (now a Crunch Gym) on Polk Street (thealhambraproject.com). Prior to this special event, The Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples is hosting an Alhambra pattern drawing class and ice-cream social from 4-5:30pm for children ages 3 - 10 and their parents or caregivers. A wonderful teacher Jennifer Klecker is running the session. The event will take place in the reception hall of the Church of the Fellowship of all Peoples, 2014 Larkin at Vallejo. Please RSVP to president@rhnsf.org if you are interested in attending!
 
Friday, October 14 from 4:30-6:00pm: RHN Family Meetup At Helen Wills
 
Please join RHN on Friday, October 14 for a fun afternoon at Helen Wills Playground! RHN will provide snacks and other activities for the kids, and it is a wonderful way to end the week and connect with other families with children in the neighborhood. This event is open to all, so please spread the word to any other Russian Hill families who might be interested! 
 
Saturday, October 22 from 9:30-11am (TENTATIVE): RHN-Sponsored Presentation On The Public School Admissions Process by Parents for Public Schools!  
 
The details are still being finalized, but RHN is planning to host a presentation on the San Francisco Unified School District public school admissions process that will be put on by a super-knowledgeable representative from Parents for Public Schools.  The event is tentatively scheduled for Saturday, October 22 from 9:30 – 11am in the Community Room at the North Beach Public Library.  As space will be limited, we will send out a reminder and RSVP request once everything is confirmed.  As part of this event, we also hope to include a panel of parents with children who attend some of our nearby public schools to talk about their schools and answer questions. If you are willing to come to this event and talk about your child’s public school, please email us at families@rhnsf.org and let us know!  To learn more about Parents for Public Schools and the essential work they do for parents in San Francisco, please visit www.ppssf.org
 
Saturday, October 29 from 3-5pm: Polk Street Halloween Parade
 
RHN and the Polk District Merchants Association are hosting a Halloween parade and pumpkin decorating event for kids from 3-5pm on Saturday, October 29. Parents and kids are to meet at FLIPP (1400 Green Street at Polk Street) at around 3pm. The parade will progress to “spooky” merchants along Polk and end at Glammic (1488 Vallejo) for pumpkin decorating and other treats. Please register at https://colehardware.yapsody.com. This will be a fun way to get the neighborhood kids together to show off their costumes!
 
Other Rumored Halloween Happenings!
 
We have heard through the grapevine that the annual North Beach “Trunk or Treat” Halloween event is back on the Joe DiMaggio blacktop this year and will take place on Sunday afternoon, October 30!  Likewise, it sounds like trick or treating will take place along Leavenworth Street between Filbert and Chestnut on Monday, October 31 (Halloween night) again this year.  If it is similar to years past, many of the homes along that stretch generously distribute candy to costumed cuties beginning around 5pm, and others who live nearby can set up folding tables and chairs along the route to join in the fun and hand out treats.  We will send out an update with more information about these neighborhood events closer to Halloween when we have more details.