I Left My Park In San Francisco

A year like no other, 2020 turned our world upside down, and yet it couldn’t stop love. Trapped in our own homes, parks became essential oases for San Franciscans in search of fresh air and a little sanity – and for some people, a chance to get down on one knee. This Valentine’s Day, love takes center stage as several couples realize that there’s no time like a pandemic – and no place like Golden Gate Park – to set the scene for a romantic proposal.

Remember your first job? The nerves and sweat walking into that first interview, the grind of waking up too early during summer break, that glorious first paycheck...We’re jumping into all that and more on today’s episode, where we share stories from our youth employment program Workreation, which has been providing job opportunities to high school kids for the last 60 years. While hiring and training teens for their first job is bound to bring entertaining stories – it also provides space for our next generation to learn from their mistakes and develop skills that will support them throughout their careers. If your teen has a knack for surfing, skating, acting, writing, or wrangling their younger siblings, we have a job for that. Check out our Workreation program and apply online to spend the summer outside with SF Rec and Park!

Since ancient times, ghost stories and instances of the paranormal have followed humanity. Whether you believe in ghosts or not, their stories often offer a glimpse into the past, serving as a fun and unique way to view history. For this special Halloween episode, we’re on the hunt for fun and spooky stories from two of our most historic buildings: McLaren Lodge and the Geneva Car Barn.

On a headstone, there is a dash between birth and death. Nonagenarian Neil Fahy, Rec and Park’s oldest employee, has devoted his dash to nature education at Camp Mather: inspiring both kids and adults one caterpillar, leaf, and night sky at a time.

Baseball has always been considered America's pastime, and one group in Golden Gate Park takes the game to historic levels. The Bay Area Vintage Base Ball League plays by the rules of 1886, where each team is outfitted in uniforms and equipment replicated from the era. Today, we're going back in time to explore the gentleman's game.

Like Cupid’s arrow, this special Valentine's Day episode takes aim at romance in our parks. From initial attraction at Precita to a nervous meeting at Duboce to a wedding surprise at Corona Heights, San Franciscans discuss how park paths led them to love.

For nearly a decade, a committed group of women have been boxing on Tuesday nights at Mission Rec Center. The class is an alternative to the coed group, for women to create their own, machismo-free space to train and learn technique. The program’s shining star emeritus is Raquel “Pretty Beast” Miller, who was first a student, then an instructor at Mission Rec, and now is one of the top women boxers in the country training for a World Title.

Through its humble beginnings under the shadow of the AIDS epidemic, Flagging in the Park served as an expression of joy and remembrance in a time when the virus claimed the lives of nearly half of the city’s gay community. Now entering its 21st year, the DJs, organizers, and participants keep tradition and memory alive in an explosion of kaleidoscopic color and dance in the National AIDS Memorial Grove.

From the old guard of San Francisco skaters to the newest generation of shredders, this episode drops in on a couple of SF’s most beloved skate parks and programs. Hear stories of gnarly injuries, new tricks, and first impressions from those who have witnessed the transformation of skate culture in San Francisco – and those just starting on the Basic Shred.

This episode explores the story behind Byron Preiss’ "The Secret", and the armchair treasure hunters flocking to San Francisco in search of an elusive ceramic casque. Guided by the theories of our historian-in-residence Christopher Pollock, we go digging for the buried secret ourselves.