HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-03-2015 CLR, Ashbaugh 2C -- Rl'CEI\/EO
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' Council Liaison Report
City of San Luis Obispo, Office of the City Council
DATE: November 2, 2015
FROM: John B. Ashbaugh, Vice Mayor
RE: SLO Historical Events this date
Today I attended three events that all centered on the diverse historical origins of San Luis Obispo.
All three events also pointed to promising new directions for our future.
Heritage Mass for Saint Junipero Serra
The first event at 11:30 a.m. was the celebration of a special bilingual Heritage Mass at Old
Mission Church to commemorate the canonization of Junipero Serra, the Franciscan priest from
Mallorca, Spain who founded Old Mission in 1772 and gave our city its name. Bishop Richard
Garcia of Carmel led the Mass, and Old Mission Pastor Russell Brown contributed a short
biography of Saint Serra. A printed version of a longer article on Junipero Serra by Father Russ
was available to those attending the Mass; I have copies of this article for the Council, as well as
the program for the Mass.
Today's Heritage Mass was important to the wider community, at least in part, because of the
sensitive way it acknowledged the controversy associated with the Pope's decision to elevate Serra
to sainthood. In recent months, local Catholic leaders have made a deliberate effort to reach out to
Native Americans in the Central Coast, engaging them in meaningful conversations about Serra
and his contemporaries. The results of this work were revealed in two aspects of today's
ceremony: First, some of the local Native Americans (Pam Nulton and Katie Zweifel) led off the
event in the outdoor plaza in front of the Mission, before the statue of Saint Serra, with a Chumash
chant and a traditional "smudging" ceremony. Secondly, Bishop Garcia included an explicit
apology within his homily for the harsh treatment of many Native Americans by Saint Junipero,
and other early Missionaries of the Catholic faith in California.
Dia del Muertos — Mission Plaza
The second event today — All Saints Day — took place in Mission Plaza: The "Dia del Muertos"
(Day of the Dead) festivities, sponsored by Wilshire Hospice with support from the Downtown
Association, Latino Outreach Council, and Joan Sargen. This event drew good crowds who
enjoyed a traditional parade, music, dance, poetry, arts and crafts booths, costume and altar
contests, and authentic food. It was the 2nd Annual Day of the Dead celebration, and it seems likely
to continue in the future as the community gains a better appreciation of our Hispanic heritage. It
would be hoped that organizers might consider incorporating some of the elements of the former
"La Fiesta" event that once occupied the entire community for many months prior to its traditional
place on the calendar in late May. "La Fiesta" was cancelled in the early 1980s due to declining
participation.
SLO Souls — San Luis Cemetery
The final event that I attended was "SLO Souls" at the San Luis Cemetery, hosted by the History
Center of SLO County, with sponsorship by the City (among others). Eleven docents from the
Council Liaison Report on historic events 11-1-15
Council Liaison Report
November 2, 2015
Page 2
History Center impersonated some of the most prominent occupants of that cemetery, such as
Myron Angel, Walter Murray, and R.E. Jack. In two cases, the docents presented the case for
homicide victims buried there: Pierre Dallidet, Jr., shot by his younger brother in 1897 in the
Dallidet Adobe; and Nezzi Helen King, strangled in 1947 by her husband Morley King in the
Andrews Hotel. The City's own volunteer Historian, Joseph Carotenuti, was the "Historical
Oracle" who capped off the tour with a literature table stuffed with copies of his articles about
some of the characters featured on the tour. A copy of the Program and Tour Map is also available
for review in the Council office for those who are interested. The History Center staff and
volunteers are to be commended for bringing these stories to the community in such a dramatic
fashion.
As a final note, I'd like to call attention to the recent publication of La Vista, an anthology of local
history that compiles articles by several contributors, including yours truly. The History Center
intends to resume La Vista as an annual publication (which it had been, up until about 1983), and
if this issue is well received, this should be possible. I welcome comments from readers on my
article, which tells the story of the 1903 visit by Theodore Roosevelt to San Luis Obispo.