The CEO of San Jose: Mayor Sam Liccardo hangs with the Circle

San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo sits down and gets real with Ambassadors about the future of the Capital of Silicon Valley in Part 1 of a 2-part interview series.

Episode Notes:

Sponsor: Given all that has gone on recently in our country, on this segment we’re talking Emergency Planning for your Financial Affairs. Listen in as we discuss how to best develop a plan to protect and access your financial assets in the case of a major disaster or emergency. Ask Rickey! is brought to you by Rickey Bowen, CRPC, CEP, financial planner with Gateway Financial Advisors, Inc.

Join the Circle: As a member of The Ambassadors Circle, you are joining like-minded individuals on a mission to inspire and equip all of us to #DoMoreGood. Click here to learn more!

Time For Some Action:
The fires in the North Bay have done an incredible amount of damage. But we can help. We are thrilled to see friends of friends volunteering their homes, couches, and spare bedrooms for people who have needed to evacuate their homes. But there are other ways to help. Thanks 7x7 Magazine for the suggestions #Time4Action

Guest Profiles

Mayor Sam Liccardo, San Jose Mayor
Mayor Sam Liccardo took office in January 2015, and at the age of 44, became one of the youngest mayors in San Jose’s modern history. In Sam’s prior public service, he prosecuted a range of felony cases as a federal and local criminal prosecutor. In 2006, voters elected Sam to the first of his two terms on the City Council, where he led efforts to revitalize its downtown, preserve San José’s hillsides and open space, boost funding for affordable housing and open a world-class soccer stadium for the San José Earthquakes. Sam serves on a number of boards of directors and holds senior fellowships for the American Leadership Forum and the Aspen Institute. Sam graduated from San José’s Bellarmine College Prep and Georgetown University, prior to receiving a law degree from Harvard Law School and a master’s degree from Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. Sam and his wife, Jessica, live in the Northside neighborhood, within blocks of Jessica’s childhood home,where Sam’s grandparents operated a neighborhood grocery store. Sam descended from the first Mexican settlers in the Bay Area, as well as from Sicilian and Irish immigrants. Website | Twitter | Facebook

Suzy Loftus, Curator & Ambassador, Asst. Chief Legal Counsel
Suzy Loftus is a native San Franciscan with a highly respected career. As the former President of the San Francisco Police Commission, she led the effort to equip all patrol officers with body worn cameras, reformed the use force policy and dramatically increased discipline for serious police misconduct. In addition, she prioritized improving the Department’s response to violence against women and children, expanded the use of technology to solve crime and worked to make our streets safe for all who use them – pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists. Suzy currently serves Asst. Chief Legal Counsel for the San Francisco Sheriff’s Department. Prior to that she was General Counsel for the California Department of Justice, where she worked on select litigation – both affirmative and defense – on areas of significance to the Department. Suzy received the James Irvine Leadership Award for California in 2014 for her work in San Francisco’s Bayview Hunters Point neighborhood to build and found the Center for Youth Wellness, an innovative non-profit working to heal children suffering from the impacts of violence and chronic adversity. Suzy has also served as a San Francisco prosecutor where she prosecuted domestic violence, elder abuse and firearms cases. Suzy is a native San Franciscan, and along with Tom Loftus and her mother Maureen Roche, is raising 3 daughters in San Francisco’s Outer Sunset neighborhood. LinkedIn | Twitter

Katie Otis, Ambassador; Founder & Creative Director, Design in Mind
Katie is a Creative Director and a fearless leader. She founded Design in Mind in 2002 and has nurtured it into the thriving agency it is today. From a young age, Katie knew she was born to create. She grew up in Oakland and spent many of her favorite moments behind an easel. A good friend once told her to “paint what you see” and since then, she has always followed her artistic vision. As an adult, she shifted her focus to digital art. Katie studied Graphic Design and Photography at San Jose State University and worked as a freelancer for years before moving to Yahoo as a member of the Brand Creative Group. Outside of work, Katie’s priority is her family. When there’s time, Katie loves shopping and exercise. Go Blue! DIM Website | LinkedIn | DIM Twitter | DIM Facebook | Facebook | DIM Instagram

Dr. Ayodele Thomas, Ambassador; Assistant Dean, Stanford; Director, Greene Scholars Program
Dr. Ayodele Thomas is the Assistant Dean for Diversity Programs, Data and Technology in the School of Humanities and Sciences at Stanford University and a lecturer for more than ten years. For more than 25 years, she has focused on diversity and inclusion, particularly in STEM, inspired by her own experiences as the first Black woman to receive a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University in 2005. In 2015, Dr. Thomas became the Director of the Greene Scholars Program (GSP), a unique long-term STEM enrichment program for youth of African ancestry based in Silicon Valley. Over 16 years, all of the GSP alumni have gone onto college with 60% majoring in STEM fields. Ayodele is married and has two children. GS Website | LinkedIn | GS Twitter | GS Facebook | GS Instagram

What’s the 411:

• Wine country fires update
• Bay Area Mayors talk about Homelessness- Help homeless, keep people housed, create more housing & SF Moving Forward With Modular Housing To Help City's Homeless
• Long-planned East Bay Greenway nears new milestone
• California Governor Signs 'Sanctuary State' Bill

Top 5 Events:

• 51st anniversary of the founding of the Black Panther Party, October 13 & 14. October 2017 marks the 51st anniversary of the founding of the Black Panther Party. Hip Hop TV is partnering with Stellium & Legacy Consulting Group to host events commemorating the anniversary from October 13-14th in Oakland, California. The opening reception and conference is at Merritt College on Friday, Oct 13th, followed by an all day concert & rally on Sat, Oct 14th, where the Power to the People stage will be featured at Life is Living Festival at DeFremery Park.
• Dracula Ball: The 2017 Gala Under Glass at the Conservatory of Flowers, Oct 19 at the Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco
• Nemo Gould: Innovations in Obsolescence, Oct 21 at the Foundry in Oakland
• Diwali 2017!! Bollywood Party ft BombayLove in San Francisco, Oct 21 at Mercer, in San Francisco
• 23rd Annual Days of the Dead Community Celebration, Oct 22 at The Oakland Museum of California

Production Credits: 
Sound Design by Courtney Grace with Hosts Becca, LT, Christianne Harder and j-
Guest Relations by Andrea Rush with Production Assistance by Jen Huynh
Content Development by Sophia Cross
360BayArea Intro Music by Courtney Grace with vocals by ElleT

Featured Music + Clips:  
Courtney Grace - Ask Rickey Theme Music, What’s the 411 Theme Music                                       
Tinker Material “Play Pause Stop”
Marcos H “Beach House”
Mike Arnault “I Like Burritos”
Raidek “Cockroach Party”
Tomer Ben Ari “10”
Ava May Perez “You’ve Got To Live With It”
Tomer Ben Ari “Even The Sparks” and “10”
Gravity “Flutter”
Yanivi “The Monkey Funk”
Drake “Grammys”
K. Solis “Wavy” and “Creator”
Theevs Music “Selfish”
Evolv “Where Were You”
Milton “Relato Pop”
Kyle Preston “Crossing”
Lana Inspired “Creative Touch”
Valdi Sabev “Make It Happen”