When Ofelia Ofie Escobedo came back to Carlsbad in the mid-1980s after more than 30 years away, she noticed that her neighborhood wasn’t the same as when she left.

“The barrio was much deteriorated,” she said. “It was full of graffiti, drugs. The city wasn’t helping either. It wasn’t even close to what I remembered.”

So Escobedo got into action, and she became a hero for revitalizing Barrio Carlsbad, the historic Mexican neighborhood that has become a thriving community in the city, in part thanks to her efforts.

“People had the wrong perception of the barrio,” said Escobedo, who is 86 years old. “But the city finally realized what a treasure this barrio is, and now it is a completely different area.”

Escobedo has been chosen as one of the 2014 San Diego Legends, an art and photography exhibit organized by the San Diego County Library that opens on Friday, May 16th, at 6 p.m., at the Rancho San Diego branch. Then, the Legends exhibit will rotate among all county library branches.

The exhibit celebrates Older Americans Month “by honoring San Diego elders who are a testament to the value of hard work, spiritual integrity, and commitment to others,” reads a description of the exhibition, which is comprised of painted portraits, and photographs by Library Director José Aponte.

In addition to Escobedo, other San Diego Legends included in the exhibit are Wadie Deddeh, the first Iraqi-born American elected to public office in the United States; Murray Lee, a World War II veteran who works to raise awareness of the Chinese in San Diego; June Singer, one of the first women to enlist in the Marines; and Bridget Wilson, a torch bearer for equality.

“This collective of individuals demonstrate that people from all walks of life can, with a clear sense of mission and purpose, positively impact their neighbors, our region, and the world,” Aponte said.

Escobedo is truly a San Diego Legend.

She arrived in Barrio Carlsbad as a teenager, after her parents settled there, and opened a small store. After graduating from college, getting married, working in the aerospace industry for more than three decades, and after raising a family in Orange County, Escobedo returned to her beloved barrio.

There, along with her two sisters, Escobedo opened Lola’s Market and Deli, considered a staple in Carlsbad and a community hub for youth and local residents. The sisters also maintain a small private museum about the history of Barrio Carlsbad, where they tell the history of the neighborhood through old pictures, books, and antiques.
Escobedo said never expected to be selected as a San Diego Legend.

“I feel very humbled and honored to be in the same class with all those mighty, mighty people who have done so much for our communities,” she said from Lola’s Market and Deli. “I’m just a worker passionate about retaining the culture and history of our barrio.”

For Aponte, Escobedo is much more than that: She’s “a champion.”

“Ofelia Escobedo is a lifelong champion of Barrio Carlsbad and its resident’s community and history,” said the library director. “She is a tireless advocate for the rights of the undocumented and new citizens interested in building more relevant schools and better public libraries to serve all of San Diego.”

San Diego County Library Deputy Director Susan Moore, who is writing the impact statements that will accompany the exhibit for each of the five local elders, said that Escobedo deserves the recognition, without a doubt.

“She is a legend and a leader who has dedicated herself to making the world a better place, one person at a time. Ofelia is the person from the neighborhood who knows the names of all the kids, how they are doing and sees greatness in them,” Moore said. “Not only did Ofelia step up to help restore her neighborhood, her barrio, when it looked like no one cared but she is still at it today.”

And she truly is. Escobedo said she and her sisters are trying to expand and professionalize the local history museum. She’s also making sure that Barrio Carlsbad doesn’t go back to the forgotten state it was for many decades in the past.

“We owe it to the people who were here before,” she said. “If it wasn’t for the Mexican immigrants who came in the early 20th century, Carlsbad wouldn’t be the great city that it is today.”

For more information about the 2014 San Diego Legends exhibit, please visit www.sdcl.org.