Ellen Holderman is the woman behind the tweets. And the happy hours. And the website updates. In fact, she's got a lot going on in the neighborhood, so we got together with her this week to hear all about it. 

Holderman is an Oakland native who moved to Cole Valley three years ago. She loved the quaint, homey, and entirely un-hip feel of the tiny neighborhood. "Everyone just gets along," she told us. 

When she moved in, Holderman looked around for a one-stop shop to find out the essentials about her new digs. What she found was the old Cole Valley SF website. The foundations were solid and she found the information she was looking for, but the website was outdated and sort of sad. With a background in web design and social media marketing, she knew she could do better. 

She contacted Judette Platz, the creator of the site, who had since become too busy to run it the way she'd envisioned. Together, they revamped the site and the new Cole Valley SF was reborn. 

Holderman's vision was a for-neighbors-by-neighbors project, so the next step was to roll up her sleeves and meet the residents. She planned the first Cole Valley happy hour last April at Padrecito, and the whole neighborhood pitched in to make it a successful event. The Fizzary donated taffy, Cole Hardware gave everyone in attendance $5 coupons, and Padrecito gave everyone happy hour prices for the duration of the meet-up. More than 50 people showed up, and they all had one question: When is the next one?

The follow-up was held last Monday, on the back patio at Reverie. Say Cheese donated a cheese platter and baguettes, and Reverie offered $3 beer and $5 wine for the party, while Holderman provided Cole Valley trivia. 

So, what's next? Holderman is pursuing a Master's in Nonprofit Management at USF, and  she also works full time. That means that she could use some help maintaining the website and planning events. She told us that most of her efforts are focused on Twitter, and as a result the blog has lapsed. She's on the lookout for someone to take stories from Cole Valley's Facebook page, and nextdoor, and turn them into fodder for the blog.

If party planning is more your speed, she's also looking for someone to help her plan the next happy hour, which will probably be just after Cole Valley Street Fair in late September. In particular, she needs help with graphic design for flyers, soliciting donations, and spreading the word. 

If you're into either of these roles, you can contact Holderman via the contact form on Cole Valley SF. Stay tuned and we'll keep you updated on where and when the next happy hour will take place.