By Khalida Sarwari
It’s a rare Tuesday not to see Laurel Perusa out in downtown Saratoga with her sleeves rolled up. If she’s not watering plants and flowers, she’s putting up American flags. If it’s not flags, it’s Christmas decorations, and if it’s not decorations, then it’s inspirational quotes. Take a glance at anything in the Village, and sure enough it has the Perusa touch.
Which is why on Jan. 8, the Los Gatos chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution recognized Perusa with its first ever Community Service Award at its Monday luncheon.
She attributes her American family history to an ancestor by the name of Richard Warren who came over on the Mayflower and is today her inspiration for her community service values and civic involvement.
“I have pride in my heritage and I am very proud of my ancestors who lived in New England,” she said.
Gardening is her way of recognizing her heritage and Tuesdays are when she’s out with her fellow Village Gardeners, tending to the numerous treewells, hanging baskets, urns and flowerpots that decorate the street. She’s been a member of the volunteer group since 2005 and doesn’t see herself slowing down anytime soon. In fact, there’s no such thing as an off-season.
“In Saratoga, village gardening is 12 months out of the year and it’s an absolute joy,” she said.
Years ago, the Village Gardeners started the America in Bloom initiative, in which Perusa is also an active participant. The group spends months beautifying and preparing the city for judges from America in Bloom, a national nonprofit program that holds an annual contest promoting civic pride and beautification.
Since 2005, Perusa, a retired teacher and museum docent, has also been an active member of the Saratoga Village Development Council and the Saratoga Foothill Club. As part of those groups, she has helped organize Witchy Walk-A-Bout, the St. Paddy’s Day celebration and the Heritage Day, Love Notes, and Fourth of July events. She has organized the historical figures for the Blossom Festival and for several years even played the role of Olivia de Havilland, the Academy Award-winning actress who lived in Saratoga and attended local schools.
To Perusa, who has called Saratoga home for 33 years now, none of what she does is actual work, but a true labor of love.
“I love Saratoga,” she said. “I think it’s a privilege living here and serving the community.”
In recent years, she joined S.T.O.P. (Stop Trafficking on Our Planet), a human trafficking awareness task force run by Jean Cherniss and Terri Goehner that meets monthly at the Saratoga Federated Church.
While she doesn’t personally know any victims of human trafficking, Perusa said she was inspired to help after attending awareness meetings and later holding meetings of her own at her home.
“I wanted to do something about trafficking in our area,” she said. “I can’t go to Asia; I can’t go to the Middle East, but if I can help stop trafficking in our county, that is important. I feel that it’s an issue that is all over the world. It’s unfortunately in every community in the U.S., and I think if we can somehow put a halt to trafficking in our county, our state, our country we’re making a big mark.”
Analogizing the epidemic to that of cigarette smoking, Perusa suggested that for her, it’s not about eradicating the problem altogether, but shedding enough awareness so that someday it is regarded in the same way as smoking.
“My hope is that fast forward 50 years from now, trafficking will be very, very minimal, because awareness will have increased so much,” she said.
In the end, everything she does boils down to one thing: purpose. It’s what keeps her going, even as vision issues now prevent her from driving.
“It’s so important to have purpose in one’s life, because that generates so much positive energy,” she said. “The Village and human trafficking awareness is my purpose.”
Perusa was born in Pittsburgh, Penn., but was raised in Tarzana and Kailua, a town on the island of Oahu. She attended the University of Hawaii and later San Jose State University, where she got her teaching credential and met her husband, Tony, a retired commercial insurance agent. She taught kindergarten and second-grade in the Oak Grove School District for a number of years while living in Los Gatos. Later, she became involved with the San Jose Historical Museum, which is now History San Jose, and was a docent there for 11 years. She said she found the work rewarding.
“I think it’s important for children to know their own local history. I feel that you have to know your own history and then learn about other histories,” she said.
The couple still lives in the same house they moved into 33 years ago near West Valley College. They have a dog they adore named Mouton, a Samoyed golden retriever mix. When she’s not out and about in the Village, chances are she’s at home, doting on Mouton, gardening, reading or cooking. But, even then, you can bet she’s got the Village on her mind.
“I love my home,” she said. “I love to nurture my home. When I’m at home doing things around the house, I have time to think about the Village and ideas pop up in my mind.”
Certainly, Saratoga is just as lucky to have Perusa as a resident intent on ensuring the city stays on the map.
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