A fourth-generation native of San Francisco, I have lived in the Bay Area all my life. I grew up on the Peninsula in San Mateo, attending Aragon High School. Fellow classmates who hit it big include KNBC news anchor Ted Chen and comedian Jim Connolly. At the University of California, I met my best friend Sean in the UC Rally Committee.

My family and I are Jewish – we belong to Peninsula Sinai Congregation in Foster City. I am proud to be an Eagle Scout and a member of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. I am a frequent blood donor, having donated over six gallons. My favorite TV shows include Quantum Leap, Judge Judy, and America’s Most Wanted. On the radio I’m usually tuned to KGO 810, the voice of the Cal Bears football team; and KSFO 560, local affiliate for the Dr Laura and Sean Hannity shows.

I love to travel. So far I have been to twenty-eight states, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Western Europe. Every other year or so we visit Disneyland, Chicago, and Las Vegas. My favorite destinations are Hawaii, Paris, Walt Disney World, and anywhere on a cruise ship.

I live in Union City, a residential suburb located midway between Oakland and San Jose. Union Landing, our marquee shopping center on the western side of town at interstate 880, features a state-of-the-art Century 25 movie theater. Our Logan High School marching band performed in the 1999 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, the 2003 Tournament of Roses Parade, and the 2008 Olympic Games. City recreational facilities include a skate park and a dog park.

Across the street from Union Landing in Sugar Mill Landing Park lies the newly dedicated Flight 93 Memorial. United Airlines Flight 93, bound for San Francisco, was the fourth airplane hijacked on September 11, 2001. After learning of the earlier attacks, the passengers and crew fought back, forcing the terrorists to crash the plane into a field in rural Pennsylvania. These ordinary men and women, through their extraordinary actions, saved an unknown number of lives on the ground and prevented the terrorists from reaching their intended target, the United States Capitol in Washington D.C.. The memorial features a circle of remembrance, a path with remembrance stones for each of the forty heroes, and a circle of hope.

An $80 million intermodal transit center on the eastern side of town is under construction. When finished it will connect BART with up to three rail systems and three bus lines. By 2012 the transit hub will provide Amtrak service north to Sacramento and south to San Jose, and ACE rail service east to Stockton. The route of the proposed California High Speed Rail includes a stop in Union City. The area around the hub will be developed over the next ten years to include housing, retail stores, a business park, a performing arts center, and a community center.