a tightly knit community
a tightly knit community Southern California Chaldeans band together BY BONNI ROONEY Almost 60 years after the first Chaldean families arrived in San Diego, the community continues to grow and today boasts an estimated 25,000 members. Compared to the first established Chaldean community in Detroit, the San Diego community remains smaller but extremely tight knit. There are two churches in the San Diego area — St. Peter’s Cathedral and St. Michaels Church, both in Men gather at the Crystal Ballroom El Cajon. California has a total of seven Chaldean parishes and soon a Catholic Mission will be established in Poway. Like many Detroit families, Southern California Chaldeans work predominately in the grocery store industry but there is a growing trend to expand into other areas such as restaurants, gas stations, mortgage and real estate businesses. What holds the retail side of the Chaldean community together in California is the Neighborhood Market Association (NMA), formerly the California Independent Grocers and Convenience Store Association (IGCS). According to Mark Arabo, vice president of marketing and development, NMA was originally formed in 1995 by a group of 30 retailers who banded together to help one another compete with larger chains. Over the years, NMA has become a strong voice for independent retailers. A merger in 2007 brought their membership to 2,000 and expanded their region to include Nevada and Arizona. In keeping with the strong tradition of the Chaldean community, the NMA motto is, “Your family in the industry.” In San Diego, 90 percent of independent grocery stores remain Chaldean owned. Chaldean business owners consider their fellow retailers as partners rather than competitors. “Compared to other retailer communities, Chaldean stores are more willing to share information with one another. For example, if a customer tries to cash a bad check, this information is passed on to the rest of the group,” Arabo said. “This innovative spirit and drive comes from the many family-operated independent businesses the NMA represents.” The support of the NMA was clearly shown last year after brutal murders at the Grenada Liquor Store in El Cajon. Two Chaldean store clerks were killed and the Chaldean community came together in a way that the San Diego community had never seen. NMA members quickly raised more than 0,000 in reward money to find the killers, who were later arrested. The NMA remains very close with local law enforcement. Another thread that continues to hold the community together is the traditional Chaldean wedding. “Weddings are very important — I see people that I haven’t seen in a few months and can get caught up on everything,” said retired state Senator Wadie P. Deddeh. “Weddings provide us with a social venue so that we can remain close.” As in Detroit, Chaldean weddings are a huge event and the attendance can range on average from 500 to as many as 1,000 people. Father Michael Bazzi of St. Peter’s Chaldean Church officiates about 70 weddings per year. San Diego Chaldeans also have access to an official directory that is updated every four years by Fr. Michael. This directory holds the names of almost half of the 25,000 parishioners in San Diego and includes the names of 900 Chaldeanowned businesses. The Crystal Ballroom, located in El Cajon, continues to be a popular gathering place for some older Chaldean men who like to play gin rummy and other card games. Deddeh said that most are “a lot of old timers who like to reminisce about the old country – it’s nice to listen to that sometimes. The kids in Detroit don’t do anything like this.” Deddeh says that the San Diego and Detroit communities remain close and he often recognizes fellow Chaldeans on the flight between the two cities. “When I ran for office in the 1960s, had it not been for the Detroit community with their financial and moral support, I would not have made it this far,” he said. “They are my heroes.” Deddeh sees a bright future for the San Diego Chaldean community. “I see articulate and ambitious Chaldeans who want to be engineers, doctors and lawyers,” he said. “The grocery store business will always be an important part of the community, but the next generation of Chaldean-Americans continues to add an important dimension of representation for San Diego.” SPECIAL REPORT C A L I F O R N I A 36 CHALDEAN NEWS OCTOBER 2007
OCTOBER 2007 CHALDEAN NEWS 37
