Leland Pon, the 67-year-old crossing guard at the San Francisco Community School in the Excelsior, knows what he likes: Pineapple buns. The chow fun at Hong Kong Claypot at Grant Avenue and Jackson Street. Buying fresh produce in Chinatown on the weekend. Having 7 a.m. coffee and a bagel that he buys from Safeway. Watching Jimmy Kimmel on tape because his wife won’t let him stay up late.
Also: The snacks that parents of local schoolchildren bring him as tribute. “That’s why I’m getting fat,” Pon said with a big smile during a recent shift, gently rubbing his belly.
Pon’s role as crossing guard began shortly after he retired two years ago, after 32 years of giving out traffic tickets at the SFMTA. It was his wife’s idea, he reports. Specifically, he recalls being told to “you need to get out of the house and do something.”
So he got out of the house.
Now, wearing a neon-green hat and vest with a stop sign in hand, Pon stands at the intersection of Excelsior Avenue and Paris Street twice a day, watching kids and directing traffic during his two-and-a-half-hour workday: 8:30 a.m. to 9:45 a.m. during drop-off and 3:30 p.m. to 4:45 p.m. during pick-up.
Pon might not remember everyone’s name, but he sure recognizes everyone’s face. “‘Hi Leland! Bye Leland!’” The kids, parents and teachers greet him on their way to and out of the school. Things get busy toward the end of the drop-off. “Some families arrive late,” he said with a chuckle.
Compared to his previous tenure, this job is much easier. Ill-tempered parents yell things like “Why are you not on this side of the street?” sometimes, but that’s nothing compared to being chased after giving out tickets in his last job.
His neck sometimes hurts from turning to watch for cars from all directions, and some still blow through stop signs from time to time.
Outside of his crossing-guard shift, everyday life is simple and on repeat. In his leisure time, Pon is a dedicated connoisseur of pineapple buns.
Pon is a regular at Cherry Blossom Bakery at Ocean and Capitol avenues. He will occasionally drive all the way to the Sunset and wait in line at the famous Pineapple King Bakery (better texture, he reports, and a wider array of flavors like matcha and ube).
The array doesn’t tempt him; Pon only eats original flavor. Another shop, Hong Kong Bakery at Mission Street and Persia Avenue, is closest to school grounds, and will do in a pinch.
Pon was born and raised in Chinatown. After marrying his wife (they met through a matchmaker who’s a family friend), the two moved to the Excelsior. According to Pon, the Excelsior is not as warm as Chinatown. That matters when you’re working as a crossing guard.
Pon was 32 when he married. “My mother kicked me out of the house, because I was getting old but still single,” Pon said. Now his two sons are 29 and 30, but he’s unlikely to kick them out just yet. “They can’t afford to move out,” Pon said. “But maybe eventually.”
For now, it’s nice and useful having them around; they help carry groceries on the family’s weekly trip to Chinatown.
Pon will retire for a second time on June 3. That’s when his wife, who has an accounting job at the University of California, San Francisco, retires. The two have plans to travel. Nothing too ambitious to start, says Pon. They’ll take some time touring the city first, maybe explore outside of Chinatown for a change.
He will miss chatting with parents, he says. That’s his favorite part of the job. Until then, he will be at Excelsior and Paris, watching, waving, saying hi and bye, and turning his head until it hurts.
It’s a good job. Better than being chased.