Comings and Goings…Goings and Comings…Always Present!

Fools, students and faculty from St. Ignatius during immersion 

There is a large YES that hangs in the lobby of the Fool’s Court, given to Kay by a good friend while they were together in seminary. As the large letters were unfurled, the  friend said to Kay, “From here on out your life will be about YES.”  Over 27+ years there have been many “yesses” that have guided the lives of people who have lived and worked with Faithful Fools. Whether coming or going, it is a” YES!” in one’s life to engage with the mission and work of Faithful Fools, sometimes for a week or a few years, and sometimes for a lifetime. The journey of the Fool is about moving intentionally with a commitment to personal and social change. 

As in any journey the path is filled with glorious surprises and  unplanned struggles, fueled by  faith and trust in every step. One thing is certain, the purple ball of yarn that creates the web of Fools is attached to our hearts, and our hearts feel the tug as some people move on and others arrive. After 4 1/2 years Leah Laxamana is moving on from her position and Nancy Munn and Luna Luna join our circle of Jugglers of our day-to-day work and stewards of our mission. As you read about each one, I invite you to say, “THANK YOU!” with me  for their Yesses, and may we know that together we walk our mission “to  discover on the streets our common humanity through which celebration, community, and healing occur.”

Nancy Munn

Nancy & husband Jed on the way to Fool Moon Fest

My initial contact with the Fools was through First Unitarian Universalist  SF and specifically through the involvement of my lovely mother-in-law Marbeth Munn who spoke with delight of her experiences at the Fools Court.  I was so pleased to see her photo amongst the montage in the lobby when I first ventured into 234 Hyde.  Marbeth passed away in 2010, but I feel her smiling at my family’s continued involvement with the Fools. 

My personal involvement came with accepting an invitation to shadow a street retreat last year.  It turned out I wasn’t needed to follow the group but at Leah’s suggestion, I did my own solo walk that day.  I can’t say I understood why or what I was doing, but I was intrigued and came back when asked again.  When Carmen asked me if I might be interested in an “ofoolish” (thanks Leah for that spelling!) position, I said yes without hesitation, again not knowing exactly how it would all work out.  My heart said yes and what I witnessed confirmed I was where I wanted to be.  I want to walk as Kay and Carmen walked out long ago, knowing that “I’ll have what I need when I need it.”  

My husband Jed and son Jackson are both Fools and we live in the San Francisco Inner Richmond neighborhood.  In addition to my work with the Fools, I am the administrator for our family’s small energy efficiency consulting firm and sing professionally when I have a spare minute to practice.

Luna Luna

Luna with her partner Jorge at the Fool Moon Fest

I am a Spirit-led fool and an Associate of the Franciscan Sisters of Little Falls, MN. My journey with the Franciscan and Faithful Fools communities began in 2013, when I joined a Street Retreat in San Francisco’s Tenderloin neighborhood, organized by Faithful Fools and CSU East Bay’s Catholic Club. Inspired by that experience, I later committed to a year of service with the Franciscan Community Volunteers in St. Cloud, MN (2017), where I became deeply immersed in the Franciscan spirit and way of life. That immersion led me to formally enter into a relationship with the Franciscan Sisters as an Associate in 2018.

In 2025, I set a New Year’s resolution to become a more active Associate and Faithful Fools volunteer. I began spending Fridays with the Fools—supporting the Fool Moon Fest and building relationships with community members who frequent the space. In that time, I came to understand the delicate dance between transactional and transformational relationships—connections rooted not just in need, but in mutual presence and care. After a few months of showing up in community, I was invited to officially join the team.

Rooted in community and justice, I have served in a variety of roles across faith formation, cultural immersion programs, and direct service work. Wherever the Spirit leads, my purpose remains the same: to help create spaces of healing, belonging, and radical acceptance.

Leah Laxamana

Leah with some Fools after cleaning up a neighbor's apartment

Getting to know the Fools and eventually becoming one of them was a gradual process, initially being introduced and then participating in a street retreat in 2015. The invitations extended into joining weekly reflection circles, then as a board member, and finally to be part of the team amidst the re-emergence from the pandemic. I was always drawn to the way of the Fools’ — especially making space regularly for reflection, being open to engaging relationally with anybody, naming what most would stay silent about, and honoring the dignity of each person and our shared humanity. What became evident in close to five years of being on the team and in the Tenderloin, was that being a Fool in the best way possible was a constant practice to be honed. Each moment or individual was an opportunity to work on the quality of my presence. 

As a regular Fool in the Court since 2020, I contributed to strengthening the organizational foundation by enhancing systems and cultivating resources that allowed for the team to be a stable presence in the community. And the juggling was real! I was fortunate to have also supported accompanying our neighbors through the ups and downs of their lives, interacting with students and educators during immersions, plus witnessing and experiencing firsthand the transformative power of creativity in people’s lives. 

I'll always be grateful for all the people and experiences that have enriched my humanity and look forward to continuing being a Fool in the world.