The Sharon Saguil Memorial Golf Tournament took place on August 9, 2011, with 144 players participating in a spirit of generosity, matched by a cadre of volunteers. Thirty doctors and dentists from Los Angeles traveled 262 miles to join this community in Poppy Hills Golf Course in Pebble Beach, CA. The memorial is held every year to commemorate the short life of a vibrant, giving, community service-oriented teenager, called a Viking, whose life of service and high standards of generosity impacted a community.
Sharon was born on July 30, 1981. Fifteen years later, she was buried on a sunny, blue skied day, with an unusual rainbow and hail, witnessed by community and family mourners, on May 30, 1996. It was a unique phenomenon, which made Sharon’s family believe that she got to the heavens with a bang.
She suffered from a rare form of cancer, whose diagnosis came from UC of San Francisco Hospital. Even after chemotherapy and radiation, she developed shingles and other complications. Isolated from her friends, unable to play sports outdoor in the sun, her active life came to a halt. Jet, her mother, slept beside her for a year, and helped with all her grooming needs, as she experienced non-stop pain.
Immigrant struggle to community integration
Sharon’s family migrated from San Fernando, Pampanga, Philippines to Monterey, California when Sharon was five years old. Like most immigrants who struggled to gain a foothold in America, the Saguil family got emergency housing from the Salvation Army. Their middle class existence was put on hold, until both Jonathan and Jet could get jobs to support the family. Jonathan run a small, but thriving business of manufacturing purses and bags and Jet had a government job, which supported their family’s middle class lifestyle in the Philippines.
When they came to the US, they were cramped in a room, shared by all. The room became everything—cooking, sleeping, relaxing, until Jet and Jonathan got jobs to support all four of them.
But Sharon had a vision for her own life—prompted by the love and nurturing she got from her mother, Jet and her father, Jonathan. Despite their spartan living conditions, she excelled in middle school. She volunteered in music camps and participated in youth programs of the Salvation Army. She became a volleyball player and excelled in this game as well. Even after being diagnosed with cancer, she completed two years in North Salinas High School. She stood out for her community service and got an award, and though she could barely stand, she accepted it with courage and dignity.
When her short vibrant life came to an end, her nurse, her family, and her favorite aunt were all at her bedside, they cracked jokes, lived life to the fullest, while Sharon was gently coached by her mother, Jet: “You can go home, God is waiting for you, anak. Pahinga ka na.” Sharon quietly let out her last breath, and her love was memorialized in a photo that Jet carries with her: “To Mom, Gavilan View, 8th grade, 1992, With all my love, Sharon.” Jet apologized for interrupting the interview with her tears, to which I said, “Kasama po yan sa interview,” and we both cried.
Jonathan is Sharon’s father. He has been a board member for 15 years, and elected board chair of the Salvation Army for ten years. The Army has a holistic program that serves displaced, indigent, transient and unemployed families and provides them with transitional housing, after school programs, youth camps, and feeding programs. One hundred percent of the funds raised for the Sharon Saguil Memorial Golf Tournament go to the Salvation Army children’s and youth programs.
The Salvation Army ran 7,821 operational centers throughout the US and in 2009, they spent $3.12 billion serving folks, 83 percent of which came from public donations, fundraisers, and the rest from freeing their assets, according to their financial report, disclosed on their official website.
The Army has previously received federal emergency funds that went to support displaced families from fires and other disasters. They started a Kids Café 18 years ago, to match their after school care programs, and where the children can eat first, then are given guidance to do homework, computers, and if done with homework, games. Daily, 100 to 300 folks are served in this community center. For the summer, weekly trips to the museum are arranged for the youth.
Jonathan was elected president of the Filipino Community of Monterey and will serve out his term Feb. 2012. While employed with the Northern Golf Course Association, he leads an active life of service for both the Salvation Army and the Filipino community.
This Filipino community has built a hall, all paid for, and in that physical space, many community programs are sustained, with their impact reaching to the Philippines and worldwide. There are 120 to 140 are members, most are active. “The first thing I did was internal. I straightened out financials and reached out to the community. We helped out during Christmas and held fundraisers to get fresh food for the needy. We also hired a trainer that teaches Tae Kwon Do to the members of the Filipino community and for a small fee of $40, they help pay for the trainer. The funds raised go to sports scholarships for the children.”
He gave an example of how they recently assisted a Filipino college student moving from Philadelphia to Monterey, to go to CSU Monterey Bay, formerly Fort Ord. Since he did not have his family, Jonathan acted as the surrogate father, assisting him in finding an apartment and in buying a car. He was also introduced to the community and other Filipino run businesses in the area, some are owned and operated by three generations of Filipino community members now. He named a few: Massero Santos Italian Restaurant in Cannery Row, Olympia Lodge in Pacific Grove and the Mariposa Inn.
When asked about his tireless service to the community, he said it seems natural to pay it forward as his own family was cared for by the Filipino community and the Salvation Army. When Jet was taking care of Sharon during her illness, community members helped pay for their bills, as Jonathan was the only breadwinner: “We would like to be together and support each other, we stand out [as a community] in helping others.“
His community’s leadership becomes family leadership
Jonathan noticed an unused food truck parked in front of Pezzini ‘s Artichoke Farms in Castroville. He broached the idea of purchasing the truck and living up to the potential of having a truck preparing foods from artichokes. Jet agreed and she actualized her husband’s vision and added more of her own touches. She serves not only french fried artichokes, but also lumpia and hamburgers. It is a way of getting folks to know about artichokes but also, Filipino food. But, even as she has progressed to make this venture a successful one, she credits Jonathan for his vision.
Jet appreciates her husband’s ability to look at something and see its potential. “He will look at one chicken and he will know how many persons will be fed.”
Jet credits her husband for teaching her the ability to make sales. She then described the elements
of what she considers excellent customer service. “Number one priority is the customer, acknowledge them, give them an eye to eye contact, even if there is a long line, say to them “ I will be right with you, as fast as I can do it, okay? At first, we earned only $50 to $70 a day, and I realized, tibayan mo ng loob. Unti – unti nakita ng mga tao. People left because everytime they drove out here, the truck was closed. Now, because it is always open, [we are regular], they smell the frying [of the artichokes], they are here to buy.”
They have expanded from doing 80 pounds a week to now 150 pounds a week of french fried artichokes. Food Network television has featured them and bloggers on the Internet have created a buzz. We were there too, based on a friend’s text who gave us details on where we can find the french fried artichokes’ food truck. My husband, Enrique was so supportive of my writing, he planned it at the tail end of our vacation to give me time to cover. When we had to wait for Jet to get to Pezzini Farms, we used the time to take more photos of the artichoke farms and he gave me pointers on how I should take my images. Just as Enrique shared his insights about photography, so did Jet.
Jet described that the frying has to be precise and exact, four minutes. They are first steamed, coated and then frozen. She serves them with four types of dipping sauces: garlic Dijon, lemon dill, ranch and mayo. “The secret is your tongue, not the recipe,” she added.
The Saguil family have now healed, and Sharon’s survivors include not just her mom, Jet, her dad, Jonathan, her eldest sister, Jenny who is a homemaker for three children and a husband and makes their lives livable and worthwhile while Sunshine graduated from San Jose State University with a business degree and now works at the Monterey County for Dept. of Agriculture.
Jet’s advice to Asian Journal readers: “Don’t give up, keep trying, there will be a good answer to your wishes.”
Before I left, I whispered to Jet, “You now have a special angel watching over you, her name is Sharon.” She smiled. The day was bright, the skies were blue, the farm was full of artichokes blooming and a bin was being filled with newly harvested artichokes to be taken to the Pezzini farms’ store, where they are sold and next to it are boxes of french fried artichoke mix. My husband, Enrique bought two bags, one for us, and one for our daughter, Corina and son, Sergio who both love artichokes.
The light from the sunny blue skies was bright and shining! Somewhere in the clouds of the blue skies, we imagined an angel named Sharon smiling at her mom and her dad’s French Fried Artichokes’ food truck.
*Photos by Prosy dela Cruz, family photosourtesy of the Saguil family
(www.asianjournal.com)
(LA Midweek Oct 19-21, 2011 MDWK pg 2)
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