City of San Diego and Latino City Employee Association Kick-off Hispanic Heritage Month With Celebration Honoring Outstanding San Diegans
By Elia Esparza
The City of San Diego’s Councilmember, District 8, David Alvarez kicked-off the City’s Hispanic Heritage Month celebration at an awards ceremony hosted by the City Employee Association where two outstanding San Diegans were honored for excelling in the arts and for making a positive impact in the South Bay. Honored included Jaqueline Calderon-Guido, an actress/filmmaker/producer and humanitarian, and Francisco Bustos, a poet and scholar.
Jacqueline Calderon-Guido is recognized for demonstrating enlightened support by giving of herself to mentor hundreds of children and teens and inspiring them that nothing is impossible to achieve if they have a vision and a plan. “Seeking a career in the arts is not an easy path,” Calderon-Guido tells the children. “So I stress the importance of an education. Whether a youngster wants to be an actor, a poet, or a troubadour, an education can give them the independence and freedom to pursue their passion without starving.” Calderon-Guido also stresses the importance of having a thick skin. “A lot of rejection comes with the territory of pursuing one’s dreams especially working in the arts.”
Her mentoring is working. “Some of the kids have gone on to become award-winning filmmakers. And, still other students have worked on developing documentaries on foster care after 18 years of age, and about AIDS/HIV education,” she proudly declares.
A native of San Diego, Calderon-Guido Calderon is relentless in the giving of her time and sharing of her experience and knowledge to help guide children from the Latino community. The busy actress divides her time between San Diego, Los Angeles and Tijuana, championing for their ultimate success in life.
South of the border, Calderon-Guido has produced projects by collaborating both with Mexican and U.S. production companies. Under her own banner, Stage 9 Productions, she has produced projects in Tijuana and San Diego. She is an active member of “Los Amigos del Rep,” housed at Lyceum Theater in Horton Plaza as part of the San Diego Repertory.
As an actress, she favors projects that bring life to social issues. She has starred in theatrical productions such as “The Women of Juarez” at the Frida Kahlo Theater in Los Angeles. At CASA 0101 in Boyle Heights, an East L.A. popular theater, Jacqueline has starred in such prestigious productions as “August 29th” and “8 Ways To Love My Life And Mean It,” for which she was honored with an Imagen Award in 2009. In 2013, Calderon-Guido worked on the Italian film Miele, an award-winning independent film by director Valeria Golino, and is now in DVD.
In addition, Calderon-Guido has produced and directed a number of films that touch on social issues—Revelacion, a film that deals with HIV in the transgender community—and Juan the Brave, a story of a young boy born in a girl’s body.
As a documentary filmmaker, she has three short films that chronicle the lives of three men who made the journey from south of the border to the United States. One film features the life of Francisco Bustos, a poet and scholar who coincidentally was also recognized with the Calderon-Guido for his outstanding contributions to the community; and Clemente Beleche and Antonio Calderon, both farmworkers. These films are chronicled under “Stories of Our People” category for the San Diego Media Arts Center and can be seen on YouTube, link: https://www.youtube.com/user/macsd
A wife and mother, the personal joys of Jacqueline’s life include husband Lennell Guido, and son, Fabrizio Guido. Despite her opportunities as an actress in Los Angeles, she remains a resident of San Diego. “I love living here! I’m close to the people I love,” she says with great pride.
“It is one of the most beautiful city’s in the world! You have everything here—a place where one can enjoy a delicious meal and attend the theater with productions that equal any to any respected theater in our country. San Diego is a place where I can pack a lot in one day. In the morning I can go out sailing with my husband and son in the morning, then hop in the car and head to ‘Viejas Casino,’ with my mom. We can be there in less than 40 minutes for dinner!
“Also, San Diego is close enough to Mexico where I can get my cultural fix whenever I feel like it. I just cross the border to ‘Palacio’ and then stroll down to a local street market. I’ll sip on a yummy lemonade with chia seeds while listening to Mexican folkloric music,” she explains. “It doesn’t get any better than that.”
For Calderon-Guido, receiving this recognition is serious business and not one she takes lightly. She is inspired to continue her humanitarian involvement in communities that are very relevant to who she is and where she came from. “Giving back is my duty,” she says. “I have been blessed and fortunate to have a job I love. The best way I know how to pay it forward is to share what ever I can with my community. Nothing is more humbling than to be able to open doors for others.”
Upon receiving her recognition, Calderon-Guido got emotional. “To be recognized by the city where I was born and raised, is an enormous honor. The greatest blessing to have my parents present to witness their little girl getting rewarded for doing what she loves to do best—helping others.”
“Jacqueline Calderon-Guido is not only a good actress, she is a caring mother to her son Fabrizio, a loving wife to her husband Leo, and a kind friend to me. She gives a lot to many especially to her community,” says Douglas Spain, Actor (Line of Duty, Resurrection Blvd, Band of brothers). “I’m so glad to know her community has recognized her with this honor.
The actress/humanitarian also shared how sometimes “our Latino parents don’t quite understand when we choose non-traditional careers. They’ll say, ‘yes, I know it makes you happy and you’re following your heart and passion, but will it put food on the table.’ That’s a hard one to debate with them because it is not easy being in the arts. So to be recognized today by this exceptional organization and by Councilmember David Alvarez, is like the city recognizing you are ‘putting food on the table,’ validating to my parents of how my efforts have helped to make a difference in the very city I have always called home,” she says. “There is no greater joy than to be able to share these type of events with my parents.”
The actress and humanitarian’s commitment is to empower young Latinos by helping them pursue an education, counseling them on their desire to work in the arts by offering acting coaching and volunteering as a mentor.
In 2010 she started Stage 9 Acting Studio, an international eclectic boutique production company based in Tijuana, Mexico. She is currently writing the screen play “And He Became a Man” adapted from local San Diego artist Samuel Valdez’s one-man show by the same name.
The actress and humanitarian hopes to continue her work on projects that bring positive change to social issues that improve the quality of lives of under-served children and residents of her community. She continues to act, write, produce and direct.
Definitely, Jacqueline Calderon-Guido is a very busy and inspiring woman.