Carpenters regional council, ey, lows, jamel and tom perkins, linkedin, Russell Reynolds first bank, Community Vision and capital consulting, rubicon, kayhill construction, and oliver and company. I also want to recognize a few donors who have made the dorm possible. Tipping point. Valerie powder, the zeler box foundation, the louis r. Laura foundation and linkedin. This group, along with the city, and sfusd exemplify a Publicprivate Partnership model that has come together to meet the needs of young people in San Francisco. We are honored to have mayor breed with us here today and to have mayor Willie Browns daughter, susan brown, here with us as well. Without question, it is because of the support of mayor breed and mayor brown that we are standing here today about to open this beautiful dormitory for kids. [ applause ]. Its pretty cool. I would like to begin our program by introducing susan brown, who is going to comment on her fathers longterm commitment to Life Learning Academy. Susan. [ applause ]. Thank you very much, craig, for that very warm introduction. Im susan brown and my father is willie brown, former mayor of San Francisco. He was unhappy because he could not be here today, but he asked me to see what i could possibly say. So im here to give you a few words. So our family is extremely proud and extremely happy and extremely excited for these dormitories. In 1998 when my father was mayor, he formed a partnership. And because of that partnership, Life Learning Academy exists. What began with that partnership would culminate into what you see here today Life Learning Academy, an organization which not only provides excellent Educational Excellence and experience for students but has acted as a catalyst for change for so many people who have walked through the doors. Hundreds of lives have been positively impacted by through their programs over the years. And the dormitories today is a goal that they set, which is basically their Mission Statement at Life Learning Academy. So it is my great honor to introduce to you today the principal of Life Learning Academy dr. Terry delane. [ applause ]. Okay. Some people out there who really know me know that i dont need a microphone, but im going to do what im told to do today. Number two, i left my notes at home. So what im going to have to do is just go from what i know. I have been here from day one for 20 years i have witnessed kids come through these doors and in this school and commit to change and commit to nonviolence. I am really lucky because i am somebody that has never forgotten where i come from. When i was 16 years old what stands out in my mind as a runaway and heroin addicted, i was with a boyfriend who was really violent. One night he beat me up, threw me out of the apartment we were in, in the middle of the night. What stands out for me is i was sitting on the Street Corner crying and alone and trying to figure out who to call. Everyone needs to have somebody to call. Not too long after that i got a chance a Second Chance at my life and i went to delancy street foundation, where my life was saved. I met mimi and i learned about community and i learned about fami family. And it has been my mission because i know that i owe for the rest of my life to right whats wrong for our kids. And especially those that dont have a safe place to live. [ applause ]. This building which you will all see is not a dorm. Its a home. What it represents is love and support where these students that live here will be able to thrive and grow and have the best of what they deserve. To build a circle of support of which you all are now a part of. When we go through this dorm, you will see how covered we are. We have the willie brown memorial mayor willie brown memorial family room. We have mayor london breeds beautiful baskets that she sent to us yesterday for every kid thats going to be living in there. We have mayor ed lees legacy in our Memorial Garden named after him. We cant be better covered than that. [ applause ]. I am managing not to break into sobs because this is such an amazing day and i am thrilled because it is now our mission to make this a model so that other schools know what is possible when you can no longer go home each night knowing that you have kids that you love every day that dont have safety, not okay. And can nobody tell you what cant be done. Now im tired of yelling at you all. Its not your fault. Sorry, craig is used to that. He said, no, thats not you yelling. Thats you talking. So i have here with me a young woman named lynnie. I call her lynnie and ive known her since she was 16. She knows what its like not to have a safe place to live and she found herself a family. And then after being in a few high schools, she came to Life Learning Academy and thrived. I want her just to tell you a little bit about herself and she came here from long beach to be with us. She is family for ever family. Our life learning family has been going on for 20 and our kids never forget us. So id like to introduce lynn ward. [ applause ]. Good morning and thank you so much for having me. My name is lynn ward and im a proud alumni of Life Learning Academy. I was raised in a Housing Project by my grandmother. Im the youngest of five sisters born to parents struggling with addiction and mental illness. I found comfort in books early on and excelled academically. I earned scholarships. I was always seemingly good on the surface, but my life home was very chaotic. The environment was making it hard to succeed and my neighborhood was filled with the enticing entrapments of the street lifestyle. This all came to a head in my junior year in high school where i was incarcerated for a robbery with a group of girls. This was a culmination of a longtime struggle for me on two diverging paths the school or the streets. I had a choice to make and it grappled internally with this decision. I had a hard time believing in myself and could not see that there was a life different than the one i was born into. So there i was facing serious charges, kicked out of high school. I needed a change in my life and my best friends dad asked if i was ready and to make a phone call. That phone call was to terry, the principal of Life Learning Academy. I interviewed with her, and during my conversation i realized my life was not a game, that turning my life around was important to her, to the school, and that i had a community that was willing to support me. I knew this because terry told me herself that she would be on me like white on rice. Those were literally her words, and she was. So was my college councilor, the vice principal. I knew the schools number and terrys cellphone number by heart because if i missed school or was late, they were calling me and asking me where i was at. A kid like me, thats what i needed. I needed caring and constant adults who noticed when i missed class, provided me with the resources to earn money and the environment to self reflect. I needed real conversations about the struggles i faced and opportunities for future success. I graduated this past june from Cal State University long beach with a masters degree in political science. [ cheering and applause ]. I am a senior employee with a Small Business in long beach, having been with the company for four years. Im a mentor. I volunteer. I like to travel. I like yoga. I live a positive life. Without Life Learning Academy, i would not be where im at today. Sorry. Life Learning Academy helps give you the Building Blocks to build my life to Something Better than i thought i could be. Because of the impact on me, i was invited to speak about Life Learning Academy at a conference this past october in San Francisco. Mayor breed gave the keynote address at the conference and i was fortunate enough to meet her. She took time to talk to me. She offered me an unpaid internship upon graduation. Like me, mayor breed was raised by her grandmother and the Housing Projects of San Francisco and was able to fight her way out through the support of her community and educational opportunities. I admire her because shes charted a path for herself, rising above the obstacles to become the first africanamerican woman mayor of San Francisco. [ applause ]. She never forgets where she comes from, where we come from, and continues to advocate for more equitable society, especially for youth, evidenced by, among other things, her ongoing support for l. L. A. That is why i am so honored to introduce her today. Ladies and gentlemen, mayor london breed. [ cheering and applause ]. Mayor breed thank you so much. Thank you so much. It really is an honor to be here and let me just say thank you to lynn. We are so proud of you and this is what this school represents. I got to tell you, when i was growing up, we didnt have Life Learning Academy. In fact, the very same kind of circumstances that lynn experienced was the same kind of circumstances that i experienced. The reason why i was raised by my grandmother had a lot to do with challenges with my family. And unfortunately, it didnt end up so well for my brother, whos still incarcerated, and my sister who i lost to a drug overdose. So im one of six siblings who was really fortunate to have supportive people in my life. Thats why the work that i do is so important to support young people, because i know the difference that it can make. So when i worked here at the Treasure IslandDevelopment Authority many, many years ago some of you probably didnt know that i remember the day that mimi silver came to the Treasure IslandDevelopment Authority, building 1, and someone said, well, mimi is downstairs and they called upstairs. Theyre like mimi silver, send her up right away. People lost it because of the fact she was there because they knew how hard she worked for the community. She along with others were really putting together under the leadership of the former mayor willie brown this incredible Life Learning Academy and i had the pleasure of working on the lease to get this thing done. Im really proud of the work that i did. I made the mistake of attending the first graduation 20 years ago. For those of you who go to this graduation, you make sure you have your tissue because i was i think i was sitting next to mike delane, terrys husband, and i was boohookiing the whole time. These people couldnt believe they made it through. I remember the story of one of the young men who said he wasnt going to school that day when the delancy van showed up to pick him up. And the guy who was driving said ill be right here waiting until you get into the van. They would not take no for an answer. They were on those kids like white on rice. They were not going to let one of those kids fail. So thats why today is so incredible. Its long overdue. Its long overdue to have a place for kids who may not have the best environment at home, where we know the challenges of sometimes living in poverty can take you in the wrong direction. Where we have seen too many of our kids cycle in and out of the criminal justice system, when we know they have so much indecreed potential to do Amazing Things. Providing a safe place for them to be, a safe place to call home and be amongst one another and a supportive environment where they are part of a real family, because delancy street is a loving family, they provide love and good food and hugs. Terry hugs everybody. That is what you need to grow and to thrive. Theyve been doing it for 20 ye years. Over the years i worked with young people at the africanamerican culture complex and as soon as i had a child that was in and out one of the schools like, ive had kids who sadly went to almost every high school sometimes in San Francisco. The person i would call and ask, can you please take my baby because he needs structure, he needs support, terry without hesitation always tried to make a way for any kid at the Life Learning Academy because she knew if she got her hooks on them they were going to graduate and they were going to go on and succeed in life. Now shes probably going to move into this dormitory because this is going to be an incredible place so that we can make sure that despite the circumstances that some of our young people are facing in their home environment, they have a home right here at the delancy street Life Learning Academy. This is one of the most and im not crying. My allergies are killing me. But this is one of the most Amazing Things that we can do. This example that were setting today by opening up this dormitory will be a model for other schools throughout the country. This is how we make sure that our kids succeed. This is how we make sure that despite the obstacles theyre facing, that we provide that wraparound support which includes a place that is safe, that is secure, and provides the love and the support that they need to succeed. In San Francisco we know we have some major challenges with homelessness. When im walking the streets in the tenderloin in particular, i see a lot of folks who i grew up with who fell through the cracks. And i cant help but think if we as a city can do better by all of our young people, we will prevent that from happening to them in the first place. Part of the investments that we have been making to End Youth Homelessness in San Francisco, including the rising up campaign, has led to although the homeless point in time count has gone up for the city as a whole, for Youth Homelessness weve seen that decrease by 10 . We need to get that to 0. Because we have an obligation. I believe as folks who have been fortunate to succeed in whatever capacity, it doesnt matter if youre rich or poor or what have you, we all can give time and of ourselves to invest in young people to make sure that they grow and they thrive. Thats what im committed to, not only with the rising up campaign, but with the opportunities for all programs where we will make sure that every High School Student in this city has access, lynn, to a paid internship if they desire. So today is an incredible day of celebration. We have waited so long for this, and i cant thank all of you enough, especially the people who have contributed to making this possible. Yes, the city was able to provide some support and we should provide support and i will continue to make sure that we make investments to support this incredible institution. But the people who really contributed and continue to support the Life Learning Academy and making this dormitory a reality for our kids, thank you so much. This is absolutely amazing. Its really an honor to be your mayor and really great to see projects like this happen because this is going to save and change lives for future generations here in our great city. Thank you all so much for being here today. [ applause ]. Okay. So, i mean, mayor breed said she the city put in some, but the truth of the matter is without mayor london breed we wouldnt be standing here. The city came to our what we asked for, the city gave us. The belief in us and the support from mayor breed, the vision and leadership from mayor willie brown is why were standing here right now. So again, i want to really thank them and thank susan so much for coming. She took pictures of Willie Browns beautiful plaque when youll see as we do tours of the dorm. Now, what were going to do first is take some pictures well, were going to take some pictures up here for a few minutes. Im going to have my kids come up. You can mingle around and have a bite to eat. Our chef derrek is amazing. We eat like this every day. Food is so important to us. Then well come back and have tours of the dorm. Thank you all so much. [ applause ] [ ] all right. Good morning, everybody. Is this working . What a Beautiful Day in San Francisco. You know, if you go to city hall, it is so packed. Everybody is celebrating 88. Were here and going to be celebrating this new project. I am the director of public works here at the city of San Francisco. I want to thank you all for coming out our chief and mayor for coming to celebrate this milestone. This facility will be a facility that will serve our First Responders and we are very excited about it. Just last week around the corner we celebrated the new deployment facility and that is a project that will be completed in 2021. That project also is going really well. Then today we are celebrating another Capital Infrastructure project here in the bayview. This job is not only about serving our First Responders, but will also give a lot of people from the communit