Joe and Margie Talaugon love what they do for their community. And recently they discovered just how much they’re loved in return. Their tireless work to promote the arts gained them the 2008 Leadership in the Arts Award from the Santa Barbara County Arts Commission.
“It was a surprise. A great honor. It’s really exciting to realize what we do has that effect,” Joe said.
The commission established the leadership awards in 2006 to recognize people who’ve made significant impacts on the arts.
“I am delighted that the Talaugons have received this public recognition for their decades of service and commitment to the cultural heritage of the Central Coast and the City of Guadalupe,” said Ginny Brush, executive director of the Santa Barbara County Arts Commission. “Countless youth and others underserved in the community have benefited through their efforts and the establishment of the Guadalupe Cultural Arts and Education Center.”
Joe said their work is done out of love for the community, so the recognition is just icing on the cake. He said they’ve always had a desire to be a part of change in the community and society.
“Margie and I share this one belief, that you are born into this world, and you should live your life so that when you leave you can say that you contributed to society in some way,” he said.
Joe said their love for the community work came from their life experiences. Both grew up in Guadalupe, experiencing the Depression as kids. They witnessed firsthand the hardships after World War II, when businesses and local residents struggled to survive. Stores would often extend credit to families until payday so they could buy groceries.
“You don’t see that any more,” Joe said. “There was a lot of community support.”
The Talaugons began to get involved with that support system by attending meetings and doing what they could.
“Then we found ourselves in the middle of the ’70s and there were battles for civil rights and against discrimination and racism,” Joe said.
Those days brought about some of their proudest accomplishments.
Margie has been an advocate for Filipino American rights, history, and culture. While they were living in the Bay Area in the ’70s, she helped spearhead a lawsuit that accused a hospital of not allowing for advancement of Filipino nurses who were recent immigrants—and won. In 1974, she fought for passage of the California Filipino Classification Bills. She helped develop the Filipino Coalition of the Central Coast in 1995 and served as a cultural advisor to the Santa Maria Chapter of the Filipino American Historical Society.
Joe has worked at preserving Guadalupe’s history and culture. He served on the Guadalupe City Council from 2000 to 2004 and was co-chair of the Guadalupe Tourism Action Committee, coordinator of the Central Coast Committee for Native American Rights, and served on the Filipino American National Historical Society, Central Coast Chapter. He continues to serve as chairman of the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Elders Council. But he counts learning and teaching others about his own Chumash culture as one of his proudest accomplishments, along with the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Education Center.
“That’s probably the highest point in our lives right now,” he said.
Joe is quick to point out that he and his wife still have their sleeves rolled up and their hands ready for work.
Margie is currently working on a book about her life experiences, while Joe is working on an arborglif project that researches the astrology the Chumash people studied and used in their everyday lives. Both hope to continue improving on the center.
“We’re not done yet,” Joe said. “There’s still a few more things we’ve yet to do.”
Arts Editor Shelly Cone is done—at least until the new year. Give her a pep talk at scone@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Dec 25, 2008 – Jan 1, 2009.