There’s a New Festival in the Tenderloin…Yes Really.
A beautiful new mural in the Tenderloin by Christopher Burch (@goya_goon)
Bet you never expected to see a headline like that, did you?
Well, there is in fact a brand new festival running from April 30th – May 6th and it sounds fantastic! It’s called I Love Tenderloin Week.
Don’t get me wrong, the Tenderloin has a lot of issues that need to be addressed. This is not up for debate. But there is also a whole lot of heart, soul, and love in the Tenderloin as well.
Besides the obvious restaurants, bars, and arts in the TL there are also loads of mostly immigrant families who call it home. There’s no better time to shine a light on all the good things happening in the neighborhood and this festival is a great way to offset all the negativity. Did you know the TL has own visitor’s bureau of sorts? Check out VisitTenderloin.com!
Here’s a rundown of I Love Tenderloin Week:
I Love Tenderloin Week event schedule
Sunday, April 30th
TL Beautification Day, TLCBD; 9am-2pm, email for info Cyntia@tlcbd.org for info – FREE
TL Beautification Event hosted by the Tenderloin Community Benefit District. This day will feature a neighborhood clean-up, planting, graffiti abatement, and mural repainting. We’ll then close the day out with a celebration and appreciation! If this is of some interest, email cyntia@tlcbd.org.
Grand Opening, Healing Well; 2pm-4pm, email kcurran@healingwellsf.org for info – FREE
Please join The Healing WELL for the Grand Opening of our beautiful and spacious home at 374 Ellis Street on Sunday afternoon, April 30, from 1:00 – 4:00. Come by and experience our welcoming space, appreciate a community art display, and enjoy a short program (from 2:30 pm – 3:00 pm). Light refreshments and drinks will be served. Email kcurran@healingwellsf.org.
Monday, May 1st
Boys & Girls Club of San Francisco, TL Clubhouse Fundraiser inside CityScape (Hilton Hotel) from 5pm-8pm, email mvuong@kidsclub.org for more information – FREE
Enjoy a beautiful view among great people and friends. No program, no schedule, just vibes and good times. And for every Tender Hearts Cocktail you buy, money will be donated to Boys & Girls Clubs San Francisco in an effort to send as many kids to Camp Mendocino!
La Cocina Trivia Night, La Cocina Marketplace from 6pm-8pm; email Monica@lacocinasf.org for more info – FREE
Tuesday, May 2nd
Family Movie Night, De Marillac Academy from 4:30-6:30, email laura_ramirez@demarillac.org for more info – FREE
Market Street Movie Marquees: Neon Nirvana
Tuesday May 2, 2023 | 5:30pm – 7:30pm
at the Tenderloin Museum | 398 Eddy St. SF, CA 94102
Free (or $10 suggested donation) w/ registration via Eventbrite
Time travel with SF Neon & Jim Van Buskirk to experience the elaborate neon movie marquees that once saturated Market Street near San Francisco’s Tenderloin.
St. Anthony’s Young Professionals Council Movie Showing
La Cocina Marketplace, 332 Golden Gate Ave
Dinner & A Show: The Invisible Class Documentary (catered by La Cocina)
Join St. Anthony’s Young Professionals Council at La Cocina for a screening of Together Films’ documentary, The Invisible Class, and delicious eats. Your ticket includes dinner from one of La Cocina’s vendors as well as the documentary screening! About the movie: The Invisible Class explores what it truly means to be homeless in America, challenging stereotypes and examining the systemic causes of mass homelessness in the wealthiest nation in the world. From coast to coast the film is a day in the life of homelessness across America.
Eventbrite Link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/dinner-a-show-the-invisible-class-documentary-catered-by-la-cocina-tickets-617289538627
email abbieflis@gmail.com
Wednesday, May 3rd
Tenderloin Movies Viewing Event, Cutting Ball Theater from 4:30-6:30, email cathryn@cuttingball.com for more info – FREE
Weekly Game Night at La Cocina, Fluid Coop/TLCBD from 3pm-7pm, email Cyntia@tlcbd.org for more info – FREE
Join Fluid Coop SF and TLCBD in an evening of board games and community building at Fluid’s Game Night! Board Games will be provided but feel free to bring your favorite games! Happening Wednesday, May 3rd from 3 pm – 5 pm, at 332 Golden Gate Ave.
Thursday, May 4th
Tenderloin Monthly Art Walk, Moth Belly Gallery from 6-10, email mothbellygallery@gmail.com for more info – FREE
TenderMic at La Cocina, Fluid Coop SF & TLCBD from 5-8, email Monica@lacocinasf.org for more info – FREE
Fluid Coop SF, TLCBD, and bring you a special one-off TenderMic, the “I love the Tenderloin because” edition! We invite local artists, performers, and the people of the Tenderloin to showcase their love for the TL. This event is entirely free, for more information on how to sign up for the open mic visit Fluid Coop’s Instagram @WeAreFluidSF.
Book Talk & Panel Discussion with Craig Seligman, Silvano Nova, Phillip R. Ford, & Janice Sukaitis
Thursday May 4, 2023 | 6-7:30pm
at the Tenderloin Museum | 398 Eddy St. SF, CA 94102
Free (or $10 suggested donation) w/ registration via Eventbrite
Celebrate the publication of Craig Seligman’s new book, Who Does That Bitch Think She Is? Doris Fish and the Rise of Drag, at the Tenderloin Museum with a reading and discussion about that legendary queen’s “Sluts-a-Go-Go” era performances and the 1980s scene at the archetypal TL nightclub, the Club 181.
Exhaustion Arroyo movie showing, Cutting Ball Theater at 6pm, email cathryn@cuttingball.com for more info – Sliding Scale Tickets – $15–$100
Friday, May 5th
Tenderloin Spring Family Fest, Salvation Army Kroc Center from 4-6, email Gregory.Meneses@usw.salvationarmy.org for more info – FREE
Tenderloin Spring Family Festival is a free family event that will be held on Friday, May 5th from 4pm – 6pm at the Salvation Army Kroc Center of San Francisco in support of I Love Tenderloin week. The Tenderloin Spring Family Festival will have Games, Activities, Prizes, Food, Refreshments, Community Resources and will feature a Free Giveaway of Children’s Books and Clothing for Woman and Children. The Tenderloin Spring Family Festival celebrates Community and Family togetherness.
Tenderloin Walking Tours, Code Tenderloin at 12 and 2, email tina@codetenderloin.org to sign up
Cinco de Mayo at the Marketplace
11AM-2:30PM, Friday 05/05/23
Best Person to contact/email: Monica Barboza, monica@lacocinasf.org
Quick description: Come eat and dance at the La Cocina Marketplace this Cinco de Mayo, where we will be serving food and drink specials along with a local DJ to enjoy all day! We hope to see you there.
Exhaustion Arroyo movie showing, Cutting Ball Theater at 6pm, email cathryn@cuttingball.com for more info – Sliding Scale Tickets – $15–$100
Saturday, May 6th
Exhaustion Arroyo movie showing, Cutting Ball Theater at 6pm, email cathryn@cuttingball.com for more info – Sliding Scale Tickets – $15–100
More info about I Love Tenderloin Week
From the organizers:
As part of a collective community effort, local partners have come together to prioritize support for the Tenderloin in the face of long-standing challenges while also reframing the neighborhood’s image to more fairly characterize its residents and highlight its incredible attributes and hidden gems to the broader public as a destination full of opportunity that those who live, work, and run small businesses locally know firsthand.
I Love Tenderloin Week is truly the culmination of a grassroots groundswell from community partners who are producing a week-long Spring celebration of the neighborhood running April 30th – May 6, 2023. A coalition of Tenderloin residents and organizations have been planning an engaging week of community building that will showcase this diverse and eclectic neighborhood via live performances from local talent, its rich restaurant and bar scene, spotlighting small businesses and cultural destinations, and community action. The event will be underwritten primarily by the international law firm Foley & Lardner LLP as part of a longstanding partnership with the Boys & Girls Club, in addition to other cross-sector partners such as the City’s Human Rights Commission.
The success of San Francisco is tied to the success of neighborhoods like the Tenderloin, the most populated area in the city, and community organizers hope that I Love Tenderloin Week will help shift perceptions by offering a variety of ways in which people can experience the Tenderloin safely and with intention.
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