S3E11, Part 1: Aireene Espiritu on Finding Her Home in San Francisco

Since she was a little girl, Aireene Espiritu has searched for a place where she felt she belonged. In this podcast, Aireene, who today is a musician, talks about her childhood in the Philippenes and on the East Coast. Her mom had to work three jobs to support her and her brother, and so Aireene came west to live with family in Milpitas. She eventually found her way to San Francisco, when she enrolled at SF State. A few years later, she started going to open mics, first in the Sunset, then later at Hotel Utah. After being inspired by some of the folks she saw get up and perform, Aireene soon started to play music herself. We recorded this podcast at Pinhole Coffee in Bernal Heights in March 2020. Photo by Jeff Hunt