Real People Stories

Keith Raskin - Round 1

Keith Raskin moved to San Francisco in 1975 at age 20, fell in love with the city’s intensity, and became a true “mobility veteran” who learned it block by block. First as a trumpet player touring the U.S. and Europe, then as a cab driver for nearly four decades. From the driver’s seat he witnessed San Francisco’s defining eras. His personal backbone was forged at 22 when he got sober after a “one day at a time” turning point and spent decades stacking tools and community to navigate fatherhood, relationships, and loss.

Peter Son Nguyen

Peter Son Nguyen is a Vietnamese-American immigrant, life coach, and mechanical engineer whose life began in the shadow of war. After escaping Vietnam at age 10 under gunfire and resettling in the United States with little more than the clothes he carried, Peter learned resilience through displacement, language barriers, and the pressure to adapt fast. Over time, his search for stability and meaning led him from a Catholic upbringing into a lifelong Buddhist practice shaped by Thich Nhat Hanh and Vipassana insight meditation. Grounded in discipline, service, and personal growth, Peter is driven by a commitment to community, leadership, and the pursuit of peace prioritizing presence and wisdom over status, and helping others build purposeful lives through responsibility, connection, and compassion.

Michael Hecht - Round 1

Michael Hecht is a Los Angeles–raised creative who earned a computer science degree from UCLA and went on to build a career in software including working at Google. Alongside his engineering background, he is a lifelong musician and maker—drawn to composition, sound, art, and learning instruments—and he has devoted significant focus to understanding the human mind through healing, contemplative practice, and psychedelic-assisted integration work. Now based in the Bay Area, he spends his time expanding consciousness, community, and personal transformation.

Rene Ishimwe

Rene Ishimwe is a multidisciplinary creative and entrepreneur. He brings a rare blend of artistic vision to everything he builds; bridging health, culture, and business with clarity and purpose. He is a Co Founder of HarakaMeds and KigaliKaftan among other ventures.