Erika Mailman

Hillside Harmony

The roots of Berkeley’s Hillside Club, founded in 1898, go back to an unpainted redwood house built in 1895 by Bernard Maybeck, then 33. The original club members vowed to support Maybeck’s commitment to architecture in tune with the rustic surroundings. Today the club is a thriving community center, hosting concerts, wine tastings, and lectures.

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Faces of the East Bay

In the Philanthropic Swim

In the Philanthropic Swim

Rockridge residents John Bliss and Kim Thompson may live far removed the gritty flats of East and West Oakland. But this philanthropic couple see themselves as one with the citizens of Oakland, particularly those who are struggling financially, and they’re leading a campaign to get their “financially blessed” peers to invest in the community like they have by funding city programs to teach kids how to swim.