Bayview Business Summit 2025
- Sep 18, 2025
- 11 min read
Updated: Jun 26
Celebrating 100 Years of Bayview Business Leadership
A day of ideas, connections, and action for Bayview businesses.
Schedule for the Day
Plenary Session
9:00 am – 9:20 am | Alex Pitcher Room
Opening & Welcome — Marsha Maloof
The Importance of a Strong Business Community — ShamannWalton
Workshop Intros
Info Sessions
9:45 am – 11:30 am & 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
A) De-mystifying the Loan Approval Process for Impact
9:45 am – 10:30 am | Hunters Point Room
Straight talk, real answers and practical information for new, emerging and expanding businessowners who want access to small business loans.
Moderated by Gwendolyn Wright, The Wright Consultants LLC
Panelists: Lenesha Toney, Working Solutions; Adrian Gomez Zavada, Main Street Launch;Leonardo Fernandez, TMC Community Capital; Meche Sansores, Feed the Hunger
B) Strategies to Help Your Nonprofit Flourish
9:45 am – 10:30 am | Visitacion Valley Room
Nonprofit strategic planning expert, Eric Ryan, will share a small set of practical and highlyeffective strategies to help nonprofit leaders strengthen their organization.
Presented by Eric Ryan, Mission Met
C) Navigating the New Digital Frontier
10:45 am – 11:30 am | Hunters Point Room
Technology is transforming how we live, work, and connect. This session will examine how smallbusinesses, nonprofits, and brands can leverage technology to foster authentic relationships withtheir customers, clients and communities.
Moderated by Reymon “Rey” LaChaux, President NAACP SF; UCSF Research Faculty
Panelists: John Alderman and Sam Ward, Alderman+Ward, Chi-Ming Chien, DayspringPartners; Danny Pedroza, Golden State Warriors.
D) Government Contracting - Tips for Getting in on the Bigger Opportunities
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm | Hunters Point Room
Insights and strategies for small businesses seeking to earn government contracts.
Presented by Matthew R. Alix, Jr., The Alix Group
Procurement & Information Fair
10:00 am – 3:00 pm | Bayview Room
100-Year Anniversary Awards Luncheon
11:45 am – 1:30 pm | Alex Pitcher Room
Food service begins at noon (full-service lunch)
Welcome & Introduction — Marsha Maloof
Remarks and Presentations
Acknowledgements and Gratitude
The BMA Board:
Dontaye Ball, President; Marcus Tartt, Secretary; Al Williams, Vice President; Monique Hayes, Executive Board Member
Sponsors:
Avenue Greenlight, Maryo Mogannam
Council of District Merchants President Tim Omi
CIBC, Sugey Mojica, Community Development Relationship Manager
A. Philip Randolph Institute, Jacqueline Bryant, Executive Director
Community Partners:
Renaissance, Marcus Tartt, Sharon Miller;
Public Glass, Marti Gorski
Bayview Opera House, Theo Ellington
SF Office of Small Business, Katy Tang
EDOT, Earl Shaddix
SF African American Chamber of Commerce, Brigette LeBlanc
SF African American Art and Culture District, April Spears
Special help – SFPUC, Emily Pharr and her team
Special thanks to - Hilary Byrde, Cheryl McDonald, Tonie Brock, Russel Morine, Don Bowden, Samantha Jackson, Naomi Tepper
Remarks and Blessing — Dr. Jonathan Butler, NAACP, SF
History of BMA — BMA President Dontaye Ball
Acknowledge Past Presidents: Mel Washington, La Shon Walker, Al Norman, Muhammad Al Kareem, Al Williams
Special Acknowledgment to Al Williams — Claude Everhart
Government Officials Remarks — “Your vision for the next 100 years of Bayview businesses?”
Scott Wiener, CA State Senator
Daniel Lurie, Mayor (Invited)
David Chiu, City Attorney of San Francisco
Joaquín Torres, City & County Assessor
Shamann Walton, District 10 Supervisor
Keynote — Dr. Tara Lynn Gray, Former Director, CA Office of the Small Business Advocate
3:00 pm | Event Concludes
Exhibitors
America’s SBDC California, Northern CA Network, San Mateo
Bayview Merchants Association
California Green Business Network, San Francisco
Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center
San Francisco International Airport
San Francisco Office of Small Business
University of California, San Francisco
Speakers
 | Dr. Tara Lynn Gray was sworn in on April 26, 2021, as the 5th Director of the California Office of the Small Business Advocate. As Director, she served as the voice for California’s 4.2 million small businesses in the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development. With two decades as an entrepreneur and leadership roles, Gray brings expertise in equity-driven economic development. |
 | David Chiu, the first Asian American to serve as City Attorney of San Francisco, leads an office nationally recognized for advancing civil rights and providing legal counsel to over 100 city departments, boards and commissions. A Harvard-trained lawyer, Chiu has served as a civil rights attorney, prosecutor, president of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and more. In the Assembly, he authored the Tenant Protection Act of 2019 and dozens of other laws on housing, civil rights, and public safety. |
 | Joaquín Torres is San Francisco’s Assessor- Recorder, where he oversees property assessments, tax collection, and public records for the city. He led San Francisco’s COVID-19 economic relief, launching the city’s first African American revolving loan fund and expanding support for women, immigrant, and minority-owned small businesses. Torres has also directed the Invest in Neighborhoods initiative, chaired the Housing Authority Commission, and advanced equitable urban planning, affordable housing, and arts inclusion through leadership in city and nonprofit roles. |
 | Shamann Walton has a long record of advancing equity in education, housing, and economic opportunity. As Board of Education President, he closed achievement gaps, secured the district’s first African American Achievement and Leadership Initiative, and advanced affordable housing for educators. As Executive Director of Young Community Developers, he expanded the budget by $10 million, creating jobs, housing, and student support services. On the Board of Supervisors, Walton champions affordable housing, public safety, and community-driven solutions. |
 | Senator Scott Wiener represents District 11 in the California State Senate. Since his election in 2016, he has authored 87 bills on housing, public transit, healthcare access, climate action, criminal justice reform, and LGBTQ rights. Previously a San Francisco Supervisor, Wiener championed groundbreaking policies on parental leave, housing, and renewable energy. A Harvard-trained lawyer, he has lived in San Francisco's Castro neighborhood since 1997. |
 | Dontaye Ball, chef-owner of Gumbo Social in San Francisco, believes gumbo is America’s most important food—a dish that builds community as much as it feeds. First inspired by his grandmother’s cooking, he blends the traditions of African stews with classical French Escoffier training to create gumbo that is both soulful and innovative. In 2022, he launched a successful Kickstarter to open his first brick-and-mortar restaurant, which began serving the Bayview community in 2023 at 5176 3rd Street. |
 | Claude T. Everhart, longtime San Francisco activist and public servant, founded Young Community Developers in 1974, a program still serving youth and families today. As Executive Deputy Mayor and Chief of Staff to Mayor Art Agnos, he helped lead San Francisco through the Loma Prieta earthquake recovery and co-created “Beyond Shelter,” a nationally recognized homeless services program. Everhart advanced racial equity in city departments, expanded opportunities for minority businesses, and opposed gentrification in Bayview–Hunters Point. His legacy continues through Jelani Inc, a San Francisco-based rehabilitation center. |
 | Dr. Jonathan Butler is a research faculty member in the Department of Family and Community Medicine and the Center for the Study of Adversity and Cardiovascular Disease (NURTURE Center), Department of Medicine, Cardiology Division at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF). He is the associate director of UCSF’s Black Health Initiative. He pastors Jerusalem Baptist Church of Palo Alto and directs the San Francisco African American Faith Based Coalition. He is the NAACP SF Branch President and Executive Committee member of the CA/HI State Conference. |
Session Presenters
 | Gwendolyn Wright is the Managing Consultant of The Wright Consultants, LLC where she helps to increase entrepreneurs’ access to capital and improve their financial acumen. Her social responsibility goals are to make a difference in the lives of BIPOC entrepreneurs, women business owners and underserved micro-enterprises by partnering with non-profit organizations that share her mission. Gwendolyn has a reputation for having an astute, contemporary management style with vision and discernment. |
 | For over 20 years, Adrian Gomez Zavada has supported small business owners across the Bay Area and California, helping them access capital and essential resources. He has partnered with organizations like SBDC, SCORE, and CDFIs to guide entrepreneurs. He is passionate about financial education and often volunteers in the Hispanic community. Currently, he serves as Vice President–Relationship Manager at Main Street Launch, where he continues advocating for underserved entrepreneurs, inspired by his parents’ small business journeys. |
 | Leonardo Fernandez is a Community Development Officer at TMC Community Capital, a nonprofit microlender (CDFI) committed to providing fast and affordable online financing, to fostering financial stability, and to encouraging entrepreneurship among women-owned, low-income and under- resourced small businesses in California. He also supports in increasing awareness to the Community Development Financial Institution space as an entry way for minority and immigrant entrepreneurs to grow their business through access to capital. |
 | Before joining Feed The Hunger Fund as a Senior Loan Officer in 2019, Meche Sansores spent 4.5 years as executive director of Prospera Community Development, a worker-owned cooperative developer. She also led the ALAS Program at Women’s Initiative for Self Employment for seven years. Additionally, Meche has served as Business Assistance Program Manager at Opportunity Fund, Unity Council, and MEDA. Her consulting includes developing programs like the La Cocina Kitchen Incubator Project in San Francisco, which she started at Women’s Initiative. |
 | Eric Ryan is a national leader in the field of strategic planning for nonprofits. He is passionate about the catalytic power that practical and effective strategic planning can have on building a nonprofit’s capacity. He is the author of Mission Met: Proven Strategic Planning Guidance to Help You Build a Financially Secure and Impactful Nonprofit. He and his team have created an online strategic planning course, strategic planning software, and he has led hundreds of nonprofit strategic planning facilitations and consulting engagements. |
 | Reymon “Rey” LaChaux is the Digital Equity Manager for the City & County of San Francisco, where he leads initiatives to expand broadband, digital literacy, and inclusive access. Formerly with Success Centers, Rey advanced workforce and economic development programs that connected underrepresented communities to career and educational opportunities. His work bridges public service, community empowerment, and economic growth, ensuring residents have the tools to thrive in an increasingly digital economy. |
 | John Alderman is the co-founder of Alderman+Ward, a Bay Area strategy and design studio that helps organizations turn moments of change into opportunities for growth. A journalist turned strategist, he has written award-winning books on technology and culture, taught at Stanford’s d.school, and worked on brand and communication strategy for many companies including Charles Schwab, Intel, and Visa. His current focus is on helping businesses use communication and technology to create clarity, build trust, and spark action. |
 | Sam Ward has partnered with global brands including Nike and Nintendo to launch groundbreaking innovations, while helping cultural institutions like The Smithsonian and The Exploratorium forge deeper audience connections through technology. His work has earned prestigious recognition, including an Edgar R. Murrow Award, an Emmy nomination, and a MUSE Award. As Head of Product at Alderman+Ward, a product and strategy consultancy based in Oakland, Sam continues to guide organizations in transforming ideas into impactful experiences. |
 | Chi-Ming Chien is Principal and Co-Founder of Dayspring Partners, a Bayview-based digital consultancy offering people-centered design and software consulting services since 1997. His teams have created brand identities that capture the essence of an organization, designed websites that delight audiences, and developed software platforms that support millions of monthly users and have handled over $2 billion in revenue. He was also the initial product manager for Dayspring’s Goodbudget app, and is part of the founding team for Verso Biosciences. |
 | Danny Pedroza began his career in sports media in 2009 with a four-year stint at ESPN in Bristol, Connecticut, working for the Stats and Information Group. Danny went on to work on the original Social Moments team at Bleacher Report and later at NBC Sports Bay Area as the Director of Social Media before joining his home-town Golden State Warriors in 2022 as the Sr. Director of Social Media. During Danny’s tenure, the team has won four consecutive NBA Social Media Content Performance awards, multiple Hashtag Sports awards, a Clio award, and a Webby Award in 2023 for Best in Sports Social Media. Danny has a master’s degree in Sport Management from the University of San Francisco, where he has been an adjunct professor since 2019. |
 | Matthew R. Alix Jr. has over 40 years of experience in the design and construction of small to large complex size projects in the federal, State, County and Private sectors. Through The Alix Group, he advises and trains small businesses on government contracting, and has helped firms secure over $1 billion in projects. A regional SBDC Advisor and trainer, he has led multiple minority and small business training series across California and currently provides Diversity Procurement assistance for the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Real Estate Group for Design and Construction. |
Sponsors, Partners, and Donors
This event is made possible with an Avenue Greenlight Grant. Avenue Greenlight creates grants to support the recovery and revitalization of SF neighborhoods.
Avenue Greenlight is a new philanthropically funded community-driven initiative to promote the economic recovery and community revitalization of our commercial corridors throughout San Francisco’s diverse neighborhoods. Avenue Greenlight will
rapidly deploy privately resourced dollars to support hyper-local, community improvement projects, leveraging the thought partnership of a variety of local public realm nonprofits for sustainability moving forward. Each grantee will receive a grant up to $50,000 allocated by Avenue Greenlight.
The impetus for Avenue Greenlight came from an acknowledgment that while San Francisco neighborhoods are composed differently, together they make up a truly special place to live and work, and that the success of the small business community is
tied to the success of San Francisco as a whole. Small businesses are reeling as a result of compounding issues, many accelerated by the public health crisis. Further, many merchant corridors may not have the resources or ability to establish
Community Benefit Districts.
The ultimate goal of Avenue Greenlight is to uplift local small businesses to help them adapt and recover from the current challenges. Direct investments like these $50,000 grants with wraparound support will help catalyze new thinking for how residents envision their neighborhoods and result in improved safety, cleanliness, and community vibrancy and resiliency. Avenue Greenlight will serve as a platform for local engagement, not only generating new neighborhood projects but also telling the story
of our neighborhoods while enabling residents to participate in shaping the fabric of our communities.
Avenue Greenlight grants are based on diversity, equity, and inclusion considerations and recognize that working collaboratively across sectors San Francisco can meet the needs of its residents and if we all commit ourselves.
Learn more, donate and apply for a grant:
The Ruth Williams Opera House, formerly known as the Bayview Opera House, colloquially known as the Opera House, was founded in 1989 to run programs at our namesake building. The building is San Francisco’s Landmark #8 and it was inducted into the National Register of Historic Buildings in 2011. The San Francisco Arts Commission purchased and renovated the facility in the 1970s for use as a community cultural center, along with three other centers in disadvantaged neighborhoods.
The Opera House provides opportunities to engage in the arts for a community with a long history of disinvestment, creates a sense of belonging and community ownership of the only significant cultural resource in the neighborhood, maintains inclusiveness of the traditional population despite sweeping gentrification, and provides opportunities for education and employment to community youth and artists.
CIBC is a leading North American bank with the backing of a 157-year-old global financial institution. They offer a wide range of banking services to individuals, businesses and communities. Beyond financial services, they are committed to giving back to the community by actively supporting various charitable initiatives, making a positive impact on the lives of many.
The A. Philip Randolph Institute San Francisco (APRISF) is a non-profit organization that has served residents of San Francisco, particularly in the Bayview-Hunters Point community since 1994. Our mission has been to support racial equality and economic justice and to advocate for economically disadvantaged communities through community engagement and civic participation.
Public Glass is a nonprofit arts organization that is committed to providing access to the resources needed to make explorations in glass a possibility for everyone.
We aim to break down barriers and connect people through education and entertainment. Bridging Bay Area communities ensures a new generation of residents are invested in the creative culture that San Francisco is known for.Since 1996, Public
Glass has been San Francisco's only public access glass studio and school. Public Glass is a nonprofit arts organization located in the Bayview/Hunters Point neighborhood of San Francisco.
Our outreach includes a full curriculum of glass courses taught by local artists, Light-a-Spark programming for underserved youth and adults, team building, intro classes, Hot Glass Cold Beer, studio rentals and special events.
Founded in San Francisco in 1985, Renaissance provides tailored, high-quality training and business support services designed to help individuals from under-resourced communities achieve financial independence and contribute to local
prosperity through small business ownership. In 2001, Renaissance established the Bayview Center to support entrepreneurs in the Bayview Hunters Point community of San Francisco. Each year, the Bayview Center serves approximately 250 aspiring
entrepreneurs and small businesses from Bayview Hunters Point, Visitacion Valley, the Western Addition, and various neighborhoods throughout San Francisco.
The San Francisco African American Chamber of Commerce (SFAACC), with over 50 years of advocacy, works to increase access to capital, hold corporations accountable, and ensure policies support Black entrepreneurship. Dedicated to empowering micro and small businesses, the Chamber is a strong voice for African American entrepreneurs and calls on consumers to support Black-owned businesses.
Plant Construction Company, L.P. is a San Francisco-based firm that has provided general contracting and construction management services from the Bay Area to Southern California and beyond since 1947.
Thank you to our Sponsors & Community Partners for fueling Bayview’s business future
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