Tenderloin energetic leader Connie Moy passes at 93

(SAN FRANCISCO) Tenderloin is a neighborhood known for open drug markets, homelessness, and violent crime. But Tenderloin is also one of the Asian neighborhoods in San Francisco with most of its Asian residents living in the affordable and senior housing facilities.

Connie Moy, co-founder of Tenderloin Chinese Rights Association (TCRA) and the neighborhood's energetic leader, passed away on November 17 at the age of 93.

While the Chinese community in Tenderloin mourns the loss of a great leader, the residents are also urging the city to allocate more resources to address the issues including public security in their neighborhood.

Moy lived at the Maria Manor, an affordable apartment building for seniors on Ellis Street, for 27 years. She had always been healthy and energetic until mid October when she became sick and was diagnosed with arrhythmia.

She was later admitted into hospice care until passing on November 17, according to Siu Han Cheung, Moy's close friend and working partner on community issues.

"Connie liked dancing and singing that had kept her healthy," said Cheung, Community Outreach Services Coordinator at Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation.

Both Moy and Cheung were the co-founders of TCRA which was established in 2014 as the first organization serving the Chinese community in the Tenderloin neighborhood.

Cheung praised the vision of Moy to start a brand new group, TCRA, to be the voice of the growing Chinese community in Tenderloin.

"2014 is coming very soon which marks the 10th anniversary of founding the Chinese Rights Association in Tenderloin," Cheung said she was sad to see Moy would not be with them to celebrate the milestone of the association reaching a decade.

Cheung joined TNDC in 2009 as its Community Outreach Services Coordinator. She reached out to the tenants who lived in the affordable or senior housing projects managed by TNDC in Tenderloin. That was how Cheung got to know Moy and they became very close friends, always working together on issues related to tenants and the Chinese community.

At the age of 82, Moy decided to co-found the Chinese Rights Association with Cheung in 2014 to represent the Chinese community in Tenderloin.

Moy was born in China and moved to Hong Kong before coming to the United States through marriage. Moy came to the country at age 17 and first settled down in Mississippi with her husband. Moy and her family later relocated to New York.

In later years, Moy found a job in a casino in Reno, Nevada, and moved to the west. San Francisco became Moy's permanent home since she retired and resided in one of the affordable housing units in Tenderloin.

"Connie always stood out as a leader who had bilingual skill and passion to help other tenants," Cheung remembered Moy. "She encouraged all other tenants to work hard to study English, take citizenship classes, and file petitions becoming U.S. citizens."

When Moy and Cheung co-founded the Tenderloin Chinese Rights Association in 2014, it was only a small group of tenants. 10 years later today, the membership has grown to 300.

For the past 10 years, Moy and Cheung have led their members to go to City Hall to speak on issues at public hearings, rallies and protests to be the voices of the Tenderloin community.

Compared with other Asian neighborhoods in the city, Tenderloin is unique with a higher concentration of Asian elderly population. Among the oldest group of residents aged 75 and above in Tenderloin, over 67.4% of them are Asians.

2020 census data indicated that the total population in Tenderloin was over 31,000. White was the largest ethnic group at 35%, Asian came second at 31%, Hispanic 23% and Black 8%.

There were almost 9,800 Asians living in Tenderloin in 2020. Among the Asians in the Tenderloin, the vast majority of them were seniors like Moy aged 65 or older and lived in the affordable housing units.

Tenderloin is also one of the geographically smallest neighborhoods in the city surrounded by Van Ness Avenue, Post, Market and Powell Streets. It is the second poorest neighborhood with 26.5% of the residents living in poverty next to Chinatown which comes on the top at 32.9%.

Most of the Asians who live in Tenderloin represent the most vulnerable members of the Chinese and Asian community. They are elderly with very low income.

Assemblymember Matt Haney who served prior as the D6 Supervisor representing Tenderloin has been a big supporter of the Tenderloin Chinese Rights Association.

Haney invited Moy every year to join him at his car riding along the parade to celebrate the Chinese New Year.