Category Archives: Politics

Activism, Gay, Health, Politics, Tobacco

Tobacco End Game Presentation at City of Hope’s Pride Health Symposium

Leave a comment

After working remotely for more than four years, I finally had a good excuse to fly down and see our gorgeous campus in Duarte, California. I had sometimes waved to the building from the freeway when driving by on my way to vacation in Palm Springs, but on this day I had the privilege of speaking about my pro bono tobacco activism at the Pride Health Symposium!

This is the presentation of my life! In it I summarize decades of pro bono activism in tobacco control that I’ve done, but most importantly it exposes so much of what Big Tobacco continues to do to poison humans all over the world. I also concentrate on the strides that have been made locally in the Bay Area in the last several years, but since I started this in the 1990’s it’s always been about fighting the industry worldwide. My presentation is 50 minutes long and that’s after I had to cut it back. I was so honored to speak at the Pride Health Symposium at my employer’s campus for the Board I joined for LGBTQ employees. I gave this in late June for Pride Month, but I work on this issue all year long. It’s highly personal and I’m very proud of it. I can almost not believe I got through it. Thank you to so many for your support!

Here is the official video of the presentation I gave:

I was also recently asked to join the Board of Pride in the City, which is the LGBTQ employee group. My closest fellow co-workers also came from far and wide to support me, which was so heart-warming. I am very lucky to work with such great people and such an important institution fighting the scourges of cancer and diabetes every day!

Kelly took the beginning of my presentation.
Selfie video on our gorgeous zen campus!
Activism, Art, Friends, Home & Garden, Politics

Artichokes and Lemons

Leave a comment

We had a wonderful time with fellow Stephanie Miller fan (we’re both Steph-heads), Vallejoan, and progressive activist friend Diane Hume in her gorgeous home and garden. We compared notes on several subjects and check out this beautiful haul I got from her garden! Fresh lemons and artichokes? My favorites!! Diane is another reason why I know I made the right decision when I moved to this city five years ago!

Activism, Politics, Tobacco

American Cancer Society Sacramento Information & Education Days 2025

Leave a comment

First pictures from this year’s tobacco control meeting with legislators in Sacramento. The American Heart Association sponsors Information & Education Days in late May every year to help fight the tobacco industry. This is my second year attending as a volunteer with many public health advocates.

More pictures from my trips to Sacramento for the American Heart Association’s I&E Days with our legislators.

Activism, Gay, Politics

Vallejo City Pride Month 2025 Proclamation

Leave a comment

Shea (and others, including a bit of my profile) made it to the front page of the Vallejo Times-Herald! This was from the City of Vallejo proclamation recognizing June 2025 as LGBTQ+ Pride Month.

Tom Bilbo’s Vallejo Pride Proclamation Acceptance Speech


Mayor Sorce, members of the City Council, City staff, and residents of Vallejo, the proclamation just read reminds us of the importance of the alliances we foster within and beyond the LGBTQ+ community. Your allyship and friendship are essential to our collective wellbeing, especially in challenging times like these. Our community faces significant challenges, with members being targeted by political figures and individuals spreading hate. These moments underscore the fragility of our democracy and the critical need for strong alliances to protect and uplift one another. Simply living an authentic life can make us targets on both national and local levels, but having a hometown like Vallejo where we are valued and seen as an integral part of the community means the world. This year, we are proud to host over 17 events in and around Vallejo that celebrate pride and unity. From the flag raising at City Hall next Monday to Pride Night at the Museum, the Solano County Pride Picnic on Mare Island, and our celebration at the Solano County Fair, we warmly invite everyone to join us and partake in these vibrant moments.
These events are spaces for our community to come together and celebrate, and we treasure the support and presence of allies who stand with us in these spaces we call our own at this time of year. Finally, I am honored to present this new flag, which symbolizes our City’s unwavering commitment to diversity, inclusion, and belonging. Again, thank you.

Activism, Gay, Politics, VGN Vallejo Gay Network

Vallejo School Board Pride Flag Raising

Leave a comment

We attended the Vallejo City Unified School District (VCUSD) 2025 Pride Resolution and Flag Raising this evening. We joined the LGBTQ Community as the Vallejo City Unified School District made a resolution to recognize June as Pride Month, and raise the LGBTQ Pride Flag ceremonially. The flag will fly at the school district office for the month of June. We brought our dogs Bonnie and Snoopy together with the two fosters, Penny and Jonah. Great minds think alike because Peter brought his sweet dog (also a rescue), named Harlem.

Activism, Italian, Italy, Politics

Italian Citizenship

Leave a comment

I think my mom would be very proud that my daughter and I have started the ball rolling to pursue our Italian citizenship. By extension, that also means European Union citizenship. I was inspired by friends and family who have pursued this themselves. I probably should have started the process long ago. I did have a couple of false starts with the Italian Consulate in San Francisco, which wasn’t very communicative. The momentum is here now as I’ve signed a contract with a reputable organization that can make this dream come true. Many people don’t know that I grew up in Italy and Spain in part, even though I was born here in California, as my father was. My mom was from Italy herself, and my first language was Italian when I was growing up in Sardinia, where my little brother was born. I’ve owned property in Italy for years now in Calabria, where most of my family continues to live. I do plan to continue living in my home in Vallejo indefinitely (the one that I’m waiting to move back in after it’s renovated). Backward American politics certainly has something to do with this decision, but there are several pragmatic reasons also. My mother had acquired dual citizenship herself long before she died.

Activism, GCCA, Politics

Glen Cove Community Association’s Spring 2025 Meeting

Leave a comment

GCCA hosted another successful community meeting, which focused on safety. We had the wonderful IHART program representatives explain what they are doing for our city, including outreach, with the hopes that the program expands. We also had the Deputy Police Chief speak for a while on updates for the understaffed Vallejo Police Department.

We had the honor of the mayor of Vallejo, Andrea Sorce, and the President of the Vallejo City Unified School District, John Fox, speak at the event, as well as representatives from the Cultivate Community Food Cooperative and a representative from SolTrans about the bus routes that are very likely going to be changed, including the 8 line which comes through Glen Cove.

Our microphones lasted right until the last few minutes. Thanks go to Shea for recording this session so that we could live stream it on Facebook and then save the recording here.