DOZENS OF PEOPLE GAVE a new meaning to the term “happy hour” as they lined up to take photos with young goats at a Valentine’s Day themed event in Downtown San Francisco.
The Goat My Valentine event on Thursday returned for its fifth year at The Crossing at the East Cut, organized by the community engagement nonprofit Value Culture. The event also hosted popup booths operated by woman-owned businesses.
Adam Swig, executive director of Value Culture, greeted people with a huge smile and passed out hugs to anyone that would accept them. He was excited to bring back the Valentine’s Day event after a two-year hiatus after seeing a need to bring community together.
“If you think about Valentine’s Day, it’s all about love, and love is the GOAT — it’s the greatest of all time,” said Swig. “We partnered on this event to bring love to downtown San Francisco. We need people coming together, smiling, having these great experiences that give back to the city in a unique way. That’s what San Francisco is. It’s a unique city.”
Members of the public reveled in the opportunity to hold hay and take pictures with the furry friends. People smiled and pointed when they saw the goats, with some even purchasing a V.I.G., a “very important goat” pass to allowed them to skip the line and meet the critters.
Two standout goats were well-behaved Clyde and John, who made the rounds in pink and cheetah print bandanas, respectively. They eagerly nibbled on hay as people grabbed on to their leashes and crouched down to pet them and take a picture.
“My uncle has goats, and I grew up around them so this is exciting to just take a picture and have fun,” said Oakland resident Maya Villarreal before she met the ram-bunctious duo. “They are so cute and it’s fun making memories.”
Mikaela Garduno, who traveled alone from Angel Island, heard about the goats through online newsletters promoting events in San Francisco.
“My friend yesterday had baby goats born, and she was sending me all these photos and then I told myself I would find some here,” said Garduno. “I went to school at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo and there’s a lot of goats and I had to take classes with goats, so I still love them.”
Proceeds collected by photobooth company SnapFiesta will go towards City Grazing, a San Francisco based nonprofit that uses goat grazing to reduce wildfire risks.
Rebecca Licu has been a weekend volunteer with City Grazing for about three years and said spending time with goats is more fun than one would think. She said she found out about the organization through social media and happily joined the team.
They eat a lot of the invasive plant species, and their poo actually helps fertilize,” said Licu. “Sustainable land management is what we call it.”
Women-owned businesses were also invited to the Valentine’s Day event at the community space. The vendors sold products ranging from fragrant candles to chocolates and even custom art pieces.
Longtime San Francisco resident Cynthia Williams founded her candle business in 2021 because she wanted to share her passion for artisan crafts. She said being at the unique popup was great because it gives small businesses like hers more exposure.
“San Francisco is the type of place that welcomes me and everybody,” said Williams as she adjusted her bright red hat. “It’s very diverse. When you come to San Francisco, it’s like everyone’s like family and people want to support small businesses but we need visibility.”
Swig said people in San Francisco should connect more often in common spaces.
“San Francisco is all about the A.I., but sometimes we need to focus on the H.I. — the human intelligence,” said Swig. “That’s what this is all about, getting people out to support nonprofits support economic and workforce development.”