Celebration: Bernal Heights Branch Open House

Saturday, 12/13/2025
11:00 - 4:00
Bernal Heights Meeting Room
Bernal Heights

500 Cortland Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94110
United States

415-355-2810

Join us in celebrating another wonderful year with the Bernal Heights Branch Library community — and help us mark a special milestone: our 85th anniversary! Enjoy a fun-filled day for the whole family, featuring:


Outdoor:


11AM-12 PM: Danza Azteca Xitlalli-Xolotl Performance

Danza Azteca is a beautiful tradition and form of dance that is also known as Danza Mexica, Chichimeca and Conchera. It is one of many indigenous dance traditions from Mexico. Danza Azteca is based on the culture of the pre-Columbian Azteca and Mexica tradition, incorporating dance movement, song and various instruments to honor our ancestors and the elements. 


Main Reading Room (Upstairs):


12-1 PM: Alejandro Murguía and Susie Hara Author Readings
Featuring selected readings by Alejandro Murguía, former San Francisco Poet Laureate, and local author Susie Hara.
 

Alejandro Murguía is the author of Southern Front and This War Called Love (both winners of the American Book Award). His non-fiction book The Medicine of Memory highlights the Mission District in the 1970s during the Nicaraguan Solidarity movement. He is a founding member and the first director of The Mission Cultural Center.


Susie Hara is the author of the novels Earthquake Shack, The House on Ashbury Street, and Finder of Lost Objects, which was a Lambda Literary Award Finalist and received an International Latino Book Award. Her writing has also appeared in Fractured Lit and The New York Times. A member of the writing communities The Ruby and Page Street Writers, she lives and works in San Francisco.


2-4 PM: The Bernal Jazz Quintet
The Bernal Jazz Quintet explores familiar standards and fresh new compositions, from bop to blues to ballads and more.


Program Room (Downstairs):


1-2 PM: Traditional Filipino Parol Making (Tween/Teen)
Parols are traditional Filipino Christmas lanterns made with colorful glass, usually shaped in a star or a circle, with added lights. Hosted by the Asian Unification Project. 

Children's Room (Downstairs):


12-3pm: Arts and Crafts for Kids and Families (All Ages)


Meet Your Community
Connect with library staff, neighbors and community partners.
Enjoy free food and drinks while you explore all the library has to offer.
Come celebrate your community, creativity, and culture!

Celebrations

Connect with your community through Library gatherings.

Community & Neighborhood

Build connections with others in our local programs.

This program is sponsored by Friends of the San Francisco Public Library.

Attending Programs

All programs are drop-in (no registration necessary) unless otherwise noted. All SFPL locations are wheelchair accessible. For accommodations (such as ASL), call (415) 557-4557 or contact accessibility@sfpl.org. Requesting at least 3 business days in advance will help ensure availability.

This program will be conducted in English unless otherwise noted.

Notice: This event may be filmed or photographed. By participating in this event, you consent to have your likeness used for the Library’s archival purposes and promotional materials. If you do not want to be photographed, please inform a staff person or the photographer. A sticker will be provided to help identify you so that we can avoid capturing your image.

Public Notice and Disclaimer

This program uses a third-party website link. By clicking on the third-party website link, you will leave SFPL's website and enter a website not operated by SFPL. This service may collect personally identifying information about you, such as name, username, email address, and password. This service will treat the information it collects about you pursuant to its own privacy policy. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of each third-party website or service that you visit or use, including those third parties with whom you interact through our Library services. For more information about these third-party links, please see the section of SFPL’s Privacy Policy describing Links to Other Sites.

The views and opinions expressed in programs presented by groups unaffiliated with SFPL do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of SFPL or the City.