Habitat for Humanity reseals roof of beloved Temecula couple

By: BRIAN ECKHOUSE - Staff Writer | Saturday, November 19, 2005 10:41 PM PST ∞

TEMECULA ---- Habitat for Humanity hasn't forgotten Temecula's Christmases past. For about 16 years, the Taylors of Temecula were known as Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus. It wasn't a stretch for them. Gregarious, Bob Taylor has a natural white Santa beard, always thick and full. Bea Taylor is grandmotherly, warm and doting.

They would ride in parade floats as Mr. and Mrs. Claus, and pose for pictures with young children.

But that was before Bob Taylor, 82, was diagnosed with dementia. Bea Taylor, 78, is recovering from a shattered right shoulder and broken left foot ---- suffered because of a fall ---- and recently had hip replacement surgery.

Now, they're struggling to maintain their home, situated in a senior mobile park in Temecula.

So Helping Hands, a Habitat for Humanity program, swooped in to aid them.

Saturday, Tim Miller of Murrieta patched the Taylors' roof, pressure-washed it, and then sealed it with a coat of Elastomeric. He expects to add a second coat today. His 10-year-old son, Ryan, assisted him Saturday.

"I wouldn't be surprised if Ryan eight years ago attended a Temecula parade and saw" the Taylors, said Miller, who works for Plant Equipment of Temecula, which makes 911 call-center equipment. Miller is also a volunteer for Habitat for Humanity.

Seeking help
Needing help with her home's upkeep, Bea Taylor recently approached the city's redevelopment agency for help with her home.

"There's always something that needs taking care of," she said. "But up until a few years ago, I was able to keep up on the general upkeep of the roof."

Now, she and her husband are at the poverty level.

She said John Meyer, the city's director of housing and redevelopment, told her that a trailer home, under city code, isn't considered a permanent residence.

He wanted to pitch in, however. So he contacted Tammy Marine of Habitat for Humanity.

"It just so happened that we had just received an application" from Bea Taylor, Marine said.

Volunteers on Helping Hands, which launched last June, have fixed two other homes, and will repair a Lake Elsinore house in December.

Typically, the family pays the material costs, Marine said.

"But in this case, because of the good name of the Taylors, we had several people step up and donate ---- anonymous donors," she said. "It's just so cool to help people who have given back for so long."

Bea Taylor never expected she'd need help.

"Isn't there a saying, 'What goes around comes around?'" she said. "But it's awfully nice when people recognize when they can do something for you, too."

Temecula became home
The Taylors, who lived in Torrance through the mid-1970s, toured Wine Country in Northern California, but found the cost of the homes to be beyond price range.

But wine country ---- any wine country ---- would do. A friend had told them that wine couldn't thrive in extreme climates.

Then they learned about Temecula. They moved here in 1977.

Bob Taylor, who was passionate about history, used to make walking maps of Old Town, and distribute them to visitors. He would walk about Old Town, regaling travelers with tales of Temecula's past.

"Bob would keep talking about the history," Bea Taylor said. "'There was a gun shot in front of the Shire,' he would say."

But a seamstress friend of Bea Taylor's warned that her husband was too cute to be left alone. So her friend sewed her an outfit "that looked very 1850s," she said.

The Taylors had performed in theater, so they were naturals giving tours. A few years later, they assumed the roles of Temecula's Mr. and Mrs. Claus.

And no one, it seems, has forgotten.

Contact staff writer Brian Eckhouse at (951) 676-4315, Ext. 2626, or beckhouse@californian.com.

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