A Place At The Table
An Encinitas Community Story Project
Celebrating the daily contributions of our Affordable Residents
Lois Sunrich
STORY ARTS PIONEER
Lois Sunrich is the retired Founding Director of StoryArts, Inc. a non profit arts organization dedicated to celebrating life’s stories. Storymakers was Lois’ inaugural 10-year women’s journal writing project, designed to run from 1990-2000 with the mission to record and pass along the evolution of women’s stories during the last decade of the millennium. StoryArts, Inc was then founded in 2000 as a consortium of story artists, including writers, editors, printers and binders who over the next 20 years published 34 life story family publications and produced 12 communitywide year-long story art projects. Lois also is well known for teaching journal writing and life story, and facilitating women’s circles in their homes.
HOUSING STORY
After 45 years serving her community, Lois struggled with how she was going to be able to afford to retire in her hometown of Encinitas. It was her hope that she could sell her studio condo, her only asset, and then rent out a proposed affordable housing apartment being discussed on Quail Gardens Road. However, it became clear that it was not likely that site would be built on, much less by the time she needed it. Therefore, a close knit circle of her friends stepped forward to help create the Sunrich Retirement Fund, allowing her to stay in her beloved condo in Leucadia as she now works helping others like herself advocate for affordable housing throughout Encinitas.
Lois telling her own family stories.
Lois what have you found rewarding about collecting and celebrating people’s life stories?
I am fascinated by how people live their lives. How do they face challenges and overcome them? What do they find most valuable in life and how do they try to live those values? I find asking people how they got through the hurdles we all go through from childhood on through old age, endlessly enriching. But mostly, I know it also will be for those in their families or communities who we are collecting the stories for. And for elders, I know that the future children they are hoping will read the book we are helping them publish, will be forever grateful that their fore-parents invested their time and effort in passing it on to them, specifically, how they personally faced adversity, as well as what they accomplished with their lives.
Also, it is a constant rewarding experience for me when people begin to understand their own life stories are not just a series of day to day activities strung together randomly, but that there are a myriad of meaningful and fascinating threads that make their life journey cohesive. For instance, just helping people title their book is always a powerful moment for me. That is when they decide, in just a few words, what their entire life is all about.
What story stands out for you from your 30 years celebrating people’s lives?
My most recent project was publishing Tak Sugimoto’s book, Coming Home: An American Story. Tak’s life is an especially important and classic Encinitas story. His family was the first Japanese family in Encinitas. His family’s farm was on Saxony across the street from the Ecke’s and the two families were very close. When he graduated from high school — after being in a Japanese internment camp in Arizona during WWII right up to a few months before graduation — the entire student body, and the board and teachers stood up and gave him a standing ovation. He, and his entire family, were dearly loved and respected.
That was not true for other cities in this local region where he shared life threatening stories with me that occurred during that time. We all know how people throughout our entire country struggled with their fear and anger at the Japanese people. But not here in Encinitas. In Encinitas, his family was not only safe and well taken care of, but yes also honored.
Tak’s high school graduation photo
His story is a perfect example of why collecting and passing on stories is so important to a city. His story carries the soul of Encinitas in it. We need stories like Tak’s to remind us of our generous and open hearted roots.
“We need stories like Tak’s to remind us of our generous and open hearted roots.”
