Ingleside residents Stanley Zhang and David Gutzwiller have formed a new community group called 711@Ingleside to bring free volunteer-led skill-sharing workshops to the neighborhood.
“What we are trying to recognize is the power of volunteerism and having some pride in your neighborhood and taking care of it and giving back a bit,” Zhang said.
The pair met while volunteering for the Civic Joy Fund’s weekly Ingleside Cleanup. The new group, which is named after the supervisor districts 7 and 11, is a means for branching out from garbage cleanup to other community-building events like skill-sharing workshops and beautification projects, among other projects.
“I view this as a natural extension of the weekly garbage cleanup,” Gutzwiller said. “We already have a core group of motivated neighbors with a demonstrated interest in improving Ingleside as a community.”
Zhang said the goal is to bring both halves of the neighborhood together to break the feeling of isolation some may feel by meeting in one place through town-hall style workshops and getting the opportunity to get their hands dirty and meet their neighbors. He also hopes these sessions will help attendees feel comfortable enough to fearlessly try new things.
Zhang is one of 14 graduates from the founding class of the Civic Joy Fund’s leadership cohort program that helps participants organize their neighborhoods, navigate city departments and launch public-realm projects that build hyperlocal communities. Each graduate received a $5,000 grant.
The Civic Joy Fund, a project of the nonprofit Civic Space Foundation, is funded by the city’s elite. Its mission is to revitalize the city’s public spaces and commercial corridors through art, music and volunteer-driven activations.
The Civic Joy Fund’s managing director and Ingleside native Caleb Hilladakis said he was excited to see Zhang and Gutzwiller “building opportunities for neighbors to learn from one another, share their talents and make the neighborhood an even more connected place.”
The Ocean Avenue Association is 711@Ingleside’s fiscal sponsor and will provide assistance with permitting and logistics related to the use of Unity Plaza as well as workshop promotion, said Megan Catmull, the association’s executive director.
“What excites us most about 711@Ingleside is that it is truly community-driven,” Catmull said. “The workshops are being created by and for community members, and they represent exactly the kind of grassroots activation that helps transform public spaces into places where neighbors can connect, learn from one another and build stronger relationships.”
The sessions, hosted roughly two weeks apart, include volunteer-run hour-long skill lessons with subjects like bike repairs, car maintenance, and mural painting to start. Attendees can sign up via their website and will also get the chance to win raffle prizes related to each session, like a bike light, tire pressure gauge, and an exterior-grade paint brush.
Gutzwiller described the workshops as an opportunity for participants to gain useful knowledge and develop local connections to use later.
Zhang said the group is looking for constructive feedback and workshop ideas. He will lead the first two sessions, with the first, a bike repair workshop, taking place on June 20.
“I think that's what made a big difference for this group,” Zhang said. “That's how we were able to come together and build on something bigger. You will lose motivation if you just do one thing every so often, all by yourself. You have to have other people with you, and that's how you feel good about it.”
