Candidates Statements 2024

These are the folks who have nominated themselves for the open seats on the Board of Directors, and for the office of President:

Below are the Candidates’ Statements.

Visit https://sfleatherdistrict.org/nominations/ for full nomination and election details.

Nominees for Board of Directors

Name: Stephen Roberts
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Residence: San Francisco
Eligibility: History of activism, served reliably on LCD committees
Represents: Elders, Nonprofits
Candidate’s Statement:
Over the past year I have been fortunate enough to serve as a committee chair, committee member and associate Board Member for the District. My focus has been to learn about the organization and how it operates and find a place for myself that would support its work, its mission and its members. I’m proud of the impact I have had… so far. There is still work to be done that I feel I can do and hopefully act as lead on. I would be grateful for the opportunity to continue what we’ve started together and help make this organization everything it can be. Thank you.
Date Submitted:  7/9/2024

Name: Bob Brown
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Residence: San Francisco
Eligibility: History of activism, served reliably on LCD committees 
Represents: Elders
Candidate’s Statement:
I have been involved with the District since the organizations formative years. I was instrumental in creating our by-laws and have served as the President of Board for the past few years. I am not running for President again, since I think it is time for new leadership, but I still want to be involved with the organization, since there is much work left to do. I hope to be involved with the fund-raising effort that we will be mounting in the coming year, along with other important projects.
Date Submitted: 7/12/2024

 

Name: Nathan Perin
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Residence: Covington, KY
Eligibility: Have lived or worked within the District, born or raised in the District, history of activism 
Represents: Residential tenants, Artists, Youth, Businesses, Nonprofits
Candidate’s Statement:
I love leather and bears.
Date Submitted:  7/12/2024

 

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Nominees for President

Sumiko Saulson
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Candidate’s Statement:
As President, I will focus my efforts on diversity (reaching out to diverse communities in the District to ensure that they have a say in what we do and that we have a rich pool of candidates for Board elections, our Entrepreneurship Program, etc.), membership (organizing campaigns to increase membership), fundraising, and streamlining the onboarding process for new board members. I would maintain our commitment to increasing membership, promoting diversity of members, and outreach to diverse community organizations.

I’ve served on the Board for two years, as the Vice President for a year, and as Chair of the Diversity and Membership Board for over a year. I have hosted our Erotic Storytelling Hour since September 2020.

San Francisco Cultural Districts have been impacted by the Mayor’s budget cuts. To avoid being at the mercy of changing priorities, we must ensure we are not overly reliant on a given source of funding, and diversify to draw from private foundations, individuals, fundraising events, and supportive local businesses in the Cultural District. I would accomplish this by prioritizing fundraising and grantwriting and encouraging our supporters to sponsor us and to participate in our fundraising activities.

I have many years of grant-writing experience, having written successful grants for the San Francisco Juneteenth Festival, Iconoclast Productions, and the California Blues Festival. I also sought in-kind donations, sponsorships, and donated labor, services and goods for those events. As President, I would leverage this experience to ensure the sustainability of our operations and execute our collective vision.
Date Submitted: July 19, 2024

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Nominees:  Please contact nominations@sflcd.org if you wish to make any changes or corrections, or add a photo or short video.