On a recent morning walk with his adopted dog, Lucy, every other car that passed slowed down so the driver could wave and say ‘Hey James!’ or “Garden is looking great, James.”
The feeling shows on James Ross’ face when he smiles. He is excited—his efforts are having an effect—he sounds happy when he speaks about his work within the Bayview community.
Ross, a father of five and grandfather of one, is co-founder of the Quesada Gardens Initiative, a private, non-profit organization that focuses on better health and quality of life in Bayview. At 50, he looks like he is just hitting his stride. He is not a large man, but he gives the impression that he’s tall. He wears a baseball cap on a clean-shaven head. His most prominent feature is a warm toothy smile that flashes on when you least expect it. He is reserved, but not uptight.
“When I was young I was more of a pain in the butt than anything else,” Ross said. “I didn’t get locked up or anything but I didn’t do anything to help the problems that were going on. I wasn’t into helping the community. When I came back again things were a lot better for me. I was grown, my kids were grown and I saw other people on the block, I decided I was going to help out. The rest is history.”
The work on Quesada Avenue began in 2001 with Karl Paige and Annette Smith, two seniors who started planting the garden. Ross started helping with the garden in 2002. He said it was sort of contagious watching Paige and Smith; it made him want to help. Others joined in. By 2004, the whole block was planted.
The narrow strip of earth down the center of Quesada Avenue between Third and Newhall streets is a multi-colored jungle of flowers and shrubs studded with portly old palm trees. At the end of the cul-de-sac is a vibrant mural that depicts people in action weeding, trimming and planting trees and flowers.
The garden is a tangle of growth. A neighborhood group recently started outdoor movie nights—bring a chair and get free popcorn and soda. It is almost unheard of for people to gather at night outside in Bayview. It’s too dangerous and there isn’t any place to go. Yet the last film at Quesada Gardens drew 200 people, who sat peacefully and watched movies in the cool evening air.
It’s easy to see how the energy of the garden could spread into greater Bayview. Ross is hoping it will.
He and co-founder Jeffrey Betcher have helped to fund and nurture many community-building efforts, working with other foundations within Bayview to form a support network for the community. QGI has started two major community gardens, one a place for people to sit and relax, and one a learning garden where community children learn how to grow food from seed to harvest. The initiative also runs a free build-a-backyard garden program called BayBlooms.
Ross has always loved working with his hands. As a child in Danville, Kentucky, a town of about 40,000, he built bicycles and toys for fun. Later in life, he learned carpentry from his uncle. His wife, Lisa Ross, says that he replaced all the pipes in their home and worked on the electric system, too.
“James is a hard worker. He has lots of energy. He made nearly everything around the house from laundry hampers to furniture.”
After Danville, Ross was ready for a larger vista, so at 17 he left Kentucky and joined the Navy. He was stationed at Monterey and had an uncle and aunt who lived on Quesada Avenue. He visited often and came to view them as substitute parents. When he got out of the Navy, he married and settled in Bayview.
James and Lisa moved back to Danville in 1990 because they wanted a more serene setting. In 2001, after 11 good years in Kentucky, Ross learned that his uncle and aunt were in danger of being moved into a rest home. The family made the difficult decision to move back to Bayview to care for them.
Their boys were ten and 14 when the Ross’ moved to Bayview, a district notorious for violence among young black men. Ross and his wife home schooled them and got them involved in as many activities as they could find. Both boys have managed to survive and stay out of trouble.
“I think parents need to take more responsibility for their children. And that would cut down on a lot of the crime. Because now you know where your child is at,” Ross said. “I’ve always known where my kids were. Even if I couldn’t keep up with myself I knew where my kids were.”
“People are starting to really pick up on this block,” Ross said. They know that we’re into fun and we want to take care of the kids. Cause we know if we don’t take care of the kids and give them someplace to go, they’ll find their own place to go. So this is the perfect place to keep an eye on them,”
Ross works at City College of San Francisco, doing admissions outreach. He speaks at middle schools, high schools and even juvenile detention centers around the Bay Area, trying to get kids to go to college.
“He’ll do almost anything to try to convince kids to go to college,” said his boss, Sanela Latic, events coordinator of outreach and recruitment at City College. “He’s not afraid to share his own story with the kids. He doesn’t hide his own mistakes.” She said they listen to him when he speaks.
As for the future, Ross is earning a graphic design degree at City College so he can fulfill his artistic side and earn a living, too. He hopes to work for local community non-profit agencies so that he can continue his work within Bayview.
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