Welcome and thanks for attending this evening’s celebration. It is an honor to serve as the mayor for Cupertino for the 2008 year. I appreciate the faith placed in me by my colleagues to fulfill this assignment.

As many of you know, I am a whitewater rafting enthusiast, often taking off mid-summer to raft rivers throughout the region. I am often the guide of my boat, acting as a rudder for the paddlers – who are in essence the engine. Working as a team, the paddlers and I – if all goes well – raft the river successfully, everyone stays in the boat, we work hard and have fun all at the same time. Once in awhile someone gets out of paddling synchronization, we encounter a major rapid, or some other bizarre thing happens and someone gets thrown from the boat and inadvertently swims a rapid. In the end we pick them up and help them back into the raft to face the next challenge.

I believe rafting is a great metaphor for being the next mayor of Cupertino. We - the city council, staff, residents and groups - will work hard together and create many successes. But no one is perfect, so undoubtedly there will be issues or topics that we don’t all agree on, a rapid in the river, so to speak. Yet – we are a team – all working towards the betterment of our city. I picture myself at the helm of the council – setting the course and guiding the city in a positive direction. We may encounter a few rapids along the way – but after we dust ourselves off we’ll all be better off for the experience.

This is the beginning of my 17th year in elective office, and about 28 years of involvement in politics and community service. Growing up here has given me a unique perspective on the evolution of this valley – and why we must embrace change to build a better tomorrow.


Over the years, I have encountered dedicated organizations that help to build our community. These organizations include other governmental agencies, such as our schools districts, County Fire, the Deputy Sheriffs and our Library team, include a multitude of civic organizations and wonderful non-profit organizations and faith-based communities. With these groups and others, we have a vast pool of residents who volunteer their time to help build a better Cupertino.


I’d be remiss if I didn’t take a moment to introduce part of my personal team, which includes my mom, Pua, dad Frank, sisters Denise and Elizabeth and brother Frank and nieces Stormi and Katherine. I’m grateful that Ed has supported me in this endeavor for so many years. I’m blessed to have so many friends and colleagues here this evening to start my mayoral year off right.


On Wednesday, January 30, I will deliver an in-depth view of where I hope to lead the city council, staff and residents over the next year. We have many projects and programs to work on. I hope you’ll join me at this state of the city.

For now, let’s celebrate before the hard work begins.