Vol. XLVIII, No. 11
November 2024
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THE NOE VALLEY VOICE
The throngs who visited the first Noe Valley Night Market at the Town Square on Oct. 29 sampled tacos from Casa Mexicana and pumpkin donuts from Mr. Digby’s while relaxing to live music under the stars. The next market is set for Tuesday, Nov. 26, 4 to 9 p.m. Photo by Art Bodner
Pumpkins and Politics Cross Paths at Noe Courts Still, Scott Wiener Carves Out a Fun Day for Families By Matthew S. Bajko
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campering about the pumpkin field set up in Noe Courts Park on the last Saturday of October was Eli Chandler with his mom, Katya Korepanova. The 2-year-old was dressed like a circus strongman, with a mustache penciled above his mouth. “It is a great way to connect with the community and spend time with people,” said Korepanova, who was joined by her husband, Matthew Chandler, at the Halloween-themed gathering. For Korepanova, it was her first time carving a pumpkin. Growing up in Izhevsk, Russia, she didn’t celebrate Halloween and had never heard of trick-or-treating until coming to America for college. “We are going to do a classic pumpkin with a smiling face,” she said. Chandler noted it was also their son’s first experience pumpkin-carving. “It’s just a great thing to bring the community together,” he said. “Plus, it is a free event and a safe, fun place for kids to be themselves.” The event is the 11th annual Pumpkin Carving and Legislative Update, a contest hosted by state Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) in the small park at 24th and Douglass streets. Each year, Wiener invites a panel of local drag queens to judge the gourds and declare a winner. “People love that drag queens are the
judges,” said Wiener, a gay man who lives a few blocks away in the Castro District. To Wiener it’s clear why. “Because drag queens are very good at judging.” He started the event in 2014, when he was a city supervisor, and held it that fall in the former parking lot that became the Noe Valley Town Square on 24th Street. It has since become one of his favorite events of the year. “It is just a really fun, festive time,” said Wiener, who didn’t carve pump-
kins as a child growing up in New Jersey. Wiener spends a few hundred dollars on the event, which drew about 300 people over a three-hour span on Saturday, Oct. 26. As part of the program, Wiener discusses his legislative achievements of the year. He also provides free pizza for attendees, from Escape from New York CONTINUED ON PAGE 7
Despite interruptions from protesters, state Senator Scott Wiener happily hands the Most Creative Pumpkin award to Morgan Ly-Howard at the 11th annual pumpkin-carving event held in Noe Courts Park on 24th Street. Photo by Art Bodner
A String of Events To Put You in the Holiday Spirit From Night Markets and Crafts Fairs to a Tree Lighting and Chanukah Wonderland By Corrie M. Anders
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kay, Noe Valley, get ready for two months of holiday pageantry There will be enough fun things to see and do in the neighborhood during November and December that even Ebenezer Scrooge could work up a smile. The events, all of them kid friendly and free, range from night markets and holiday window contests to a Baltic fair and the lighting of a Christmas tree and the menorah at Chanukah Wonderland. And, of course, the streets will be filled with the sounds of music from jazz to tuba-playing to yuletide caroling. Most of the fun will occur along 24th Street, especially at the Noe Valley Town Square. The merrymaking gets under way Sunday, Nov. 17, with Friendsgiving, an event designed to bring people of all ages together. It runs from 1 to 3 p.m. at the square, 3861 24th St., between Sanchez and Vicksburg. Neighbors can mingle over pie and apple cider. In the manner of speeddating, attendees can “speed-meet,” going from table to table to introduce CONTINUED ON PAGE 9