December 18, 1962 – a date which will live in infamy – for me, anyway… It was the day I presented San Francisco Mayor George Christopher with a book of Christmas Carols in the City Hall Rotunda!
Imagine, if you will, 400 children on those steps. Me, at the bottom – a nervous 10 year old who has just forgotten his speech. I was stammering… my mind was a complete blank… My short life was flashing before my eyes… I was doomed…
I started out “Mayor Christopher” ::clears throat:: … “Mayor Christopher” ::clears throat again::
Gladys, our playground director, was doing a stage whisper shouting “On Behalf” “On Behalf” Finally, it came to me:
“Oh, yeah!!!”
Mayor Christopher,
On behalf of the Children’s Chorus of the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department, I would like to present to you this Book of Carols for you and Mrs. Christopher.
That was it – the five-second speech that caused a near-death experience!
Mayor Christopher laughed and gave me a big hug. I had persevered and done my job. The festivities were officially started.
I don’t really know how I was chosen to do this. I kinda guess it happened to be South Sunset’s turn to supply the kid and I was such a little dweeb that I was a natural.
I spent a lot of time at South Sunset Playground back in the day – it was my safe haven. I was picked on and bullied at school – St Gabriel’s – 1200 students in grades 1-8. The largest Catholic school west of the Mississippi River. We were taught by nuns – in long black habits, white guimpe and wimple, black veil… very medieval… The fact that I was a straight-A student and more often than not a Teacher’s Pet did not win me any bonus points from some of my classmates.
At the playground, I was in the ukulele group taught by Mrs Daniels – Hawai’i had only been a state for a year or so. Mrs Daniel’s was also the organist at the church and I was one of the children’s choir members. I soloed Ave Maria – Shubert’s, in Latin, of course – at Midnight Mass somewhere in ’62-’64. Yeah… not popular amongst my peer group but encouraged and accepted by a few adults who weren’t relatives.
Here’s a photo of the Ukulele Group since I don’t have one of the City Hall Christmas Carols… It was probably around the same time…
I contacted the SF Public Library about how I might locate a photo of the event, but, alas, it seems that no photo exists. They did send me a couple of newspaper clippings that they had, but a search of Rec & Park files as well as Mayor Christopher did not show any actual photos or other documentation of the event.
And that’s okay… The memory of being that nervous little kid 60-whatever years ago brings a smile to my face. And, in the grand scheme of things, that’s all that matters.