in the office
Nicole Agbayani Corridor Manager
Nicole Agbayani is native to San Francisco and the Excelsior Neighborhood. She graduated from UCLA with a degree in International Development, minoring in Environmental Systems and Society. She has worked with multiple Bay Area small businesses on environmental business development, as well as construction contract management. During her time in the construction industry, she achieved the LEED AP BD+C (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Accredited Professional in Building Design and Construction) accreditation for her contributions to multiple LEED green building projects. Before taking her current position as Corridor Manager with EAG, Nicole graduated from UC Berkeley's IN[CITY] Sustainable City Planning program in the Department of City and Regional Planning. Nicole has been an active member of the Ingleside Station Community Police Advisory Board since Spring 2012, bringing the safety concerns of the commercial corridor to the forefront of Community Policing efforts in the district. Also in 2012, Nicole was selected as a Koshland Civic Unity Fellow for her work with the community in the Excelsior. Nicole brings an enthusiasm for this community and sustainability to the job; she enjoys working hand in hand with individual merchants, as well as the community at large to foster a vibrant and active commercial corridor that is a cherished asset of the Excelsior. Her dedication to the community where she grew up is at the heart of her efforts with the Excelsior Action Group.
behind the scenes
Our Steering Committee is comprised of volunteers who dedicate days of their time to provide insight, direction and energy to plan and implement community building efforts in the Excelsior.
Grace D'Anca Co-Chair, Beautification Committee | Festival Committee
Grace D'Anca has been an Excelsior resident for 17 years, and is a long- time San Francisco resident. She is the parent of a daughter who attended San Francisco public schools. Grace studied the theatre, dance, art, creative writing, and journalism in college and graduate school. She worked for many years as a creative arts therapist with youth and adults with special needs. She is currently the volunteer services manager at St. Luke's Hospital. Grace serves on the Advisory Committee of the Excelsior Boys and Girls Club, Geneva Car Barn and Powerhouse Arts Program Board, FACE Steering Committee, and as the District 11 Democratic Club Secretary and a District 11 Council Delegate. Grace is a youth and arts advocate who says some of her most memorable neighborhood experiences are working on public art and beautification projects with community members of all ages.
Al Harris
Al Harris has shown a dedication to community organizing for over twenty years. In a past life, Al worked as a community organizer for Safety Network, a non-profit dedicated to public safety. Now days, Al continues in the field as a volunteer. He has been a board member of OMI-Neighbors in action and the OMI Safety Committee since 1992. Since 1999, Al has served as a District 11 Council delegate, a member of the District 11 Democratic Club, and a member of the Ocean View Park Advisory Committee. Al also currently serves as a board member for the OMI Community Action Organization, a steering committee member for the Neighborhood Parks Council, an advisory committee member for the Excelsior Boys and Girls Club, and a board member for the Western Neighborhood Project. As a steering committee member of the Excelsior Action Group, Al is able to bring all this experience and knowledge to our corridor.
Mary Harris
Mary Harris is proud to be a native San Franciscan with a strong history of community action. She is currently involved with over ten community organizations including: being a founding member and president of the District 11 Council, a founding member and Vice President of the District 11 Democratic Club, a steering committee member of the OAA Safety Committee, a member of Friends of the Ingleside Library, a member of the OMI Community Action Organization, a member of the Community Police Academy Alumni, a member of the Excelsior Youth Center Advisory Board, a member of the OMI/E Beacon Center Community Advisory Board, a member of the Ingleside NERT, a delegate to the Coalition of San Francisco Neighborhoods (CSFN), a member of the Taraval Community Advisory Boards (CAB), and a member of the Minnie & Lovie Ward Community Recreation Council. All this is in addition to her valued participation with the Excelsior Action Group as a Steering Committee Member.
Tom Kirvin Chair, Business Attraction & Support Committee
Tom Kirvin is a native of San Francisco and the Excelsior neighborhood, where he now lives with his wife and son. He attended Monroe Elementary School and went on to attend San Francisco State University, from which he earned a B.A. in broadcast production and writing, and Santa Clara University School of Law, from which he earned a Juris Doctor degree. He has practiced law in California, the District of Columbia, and Maryland for 30 years, concentrating on insurance, construction, and commercial litigation. Tom's community activities include coaching Little League baseball and hosting international visitors in San Francisco. He also enjoys writing fiction and playing jazz (flute and saxophone). Tom has volunteered his time for several EAG projects and is now honored to be a member of its Steering Committee. He is looking forward to working with EAG and the community to increase cleanliness along the Mission Street corridor and revitalize the businesses in our neighborhood.
Deborah LeDet Co-Chair, Beautification Committee | Festival Committee
Deborah LeDet returned to the Excelsior district four years ago. She has an extended connection to the Excelsior, having spent most of her summers here in her childhood and youth. Her family has lived within the district for eighty years. Deborah holds a degree in Early Childhood Education. Before retiring to devote more time to her artistic endeavors, she worked extensively with disabled children and taught kindergarten. She is an ordained non-denominational Elder. She served as summer Program coordinator and Artist in residence for Sojourner Truth Multicultural Arts Development Center in Sacramento, CA. While with the Center, her design was selected for then Governor Schwarzenegger’s pre-inaugural mural. She served as art and set director to assist in the production of Reaching Out, a weekly television program which focused on women’s issues in the Sacramento area. She acted as the artistic director for the Women of Greatness Annual Conferences, sponsored by a local non-profit organization. Deborah executed a number of public art works in northern California. She currently serves as a Co-Chair on EAG’s Festival and Beautification Committee and believes EAG is making a positive change in the aesthetic and financial health of the Excelsior business corridor.
Angie Minkin Chair, Steering Committee | Excelsior Safety Planners
Angie Minkin and her husband, Dan Sneider, have lived in the Excelsior District for over 25 years. Their children, Jake and Aly, now live in Los Angeles and Portland, OR, respectively, but are proud to call the Excelsior home. Angie recently retired from the California Public Utilities Commission, where she served as an Administrative Law Judge for many years. Angie is a member of the Excelsior District Improvement Association, has worked actively on the Light Up the Night campaign (a joint project of EAG and EDIA), and serves as co-chair of the Ingleside Police Station Community Police Advisory Board. She is a trained mediator, volunteers with Community Boards, and is especially interested in peaceful and creative conflict resolution. Angie’s focus has been trying to improve public safety in the neighborhood. She is also interested in neighborhood beautification and working together to improve our collective environment. She has a master’s degree in special education from the University of Colorado.
Jeff Rocca
Owner of "A M Rocca Inc" general contractors, and a property owner in the Excelsior.
Edward Zhu
Eddie Zhu, owner of Henry's Hunan Restaurant at 4753 Mission Street, was born in Hunan China and came to the United States in 1982. His first job in the restaurant business was as a dishwasher in Chinatown. In 2008, Eddie opened his first Henry’s Hunan on Church Street. In 2010, Eddie and his grandfather came to the Excelsior and opened the Mission Street Henry’s Hunan at the former Granada Café building. Eddie chose the Excelsior after researching the area and learning about the progress our community has made and the number of multigenerational families we contain. Eddie wants to help make the area cleaner and more attractive to the families living here and to encourage them to spend their time on the corridor. He believes that we should all do what we can to improve the neighborhood. With this thought in mind, Eddie joined the steering committee of the Excelsior Action Group and intends to support positive change in our community. He says that it isn’t easy, but if we keep working our community will continue to get better and better.
our community
The Excelsior Action Group is a community organization that gets its direction from the residents of the Excelsior, not just people that hold titles within our organization. We want input from everyone in the Excelsior. If you care about our community, have ideas that you want to share, problems that you want fixed, solutions that haven't been tried, contact us! We'd LOVE to hear from you, even if its only to say "hi" and introduce yourself!
