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It’s been half a century already since Salaburu left Elizondo (Navarre) and Sorhouet fled from Arnegi (Lower Navarre), both to come to the US. On February 15, the San Francisco Basque Cultural Center awarded them with its Bizi Emankorra prize, “because they have been helping and supporting the Basque Cultural Center for so many years.” Sorhouet looks back and says it was an honor for him. Pedro Salaburu adds that “the Basque Club has helped us a lot.”

San Francisco, CA. When they speak about the Basque Cultural Center, one can feel love and gratefulness in their words. “The Cultural Center is like a second home for us,” said Salaburu. Along the same lines, Sorhouet pointed out that he’s lived way better in the Club than in his previous years as a sheepherder in other parts of the country.

In 1964 he left Arnegi behind to go to work as a sheepherder to Wyoming, from where, after five years, he went back to his hometown. In the first year of the 1970’s, he moved to San Francisco, where he had some friends. “It was a big change to go from working as a sheepherder in Wyoming to San Francisco, a huge change, but I had good friends there and, since then, I’ve been working at a vegetable garden”.

His first home away from home was the Hotel Des Alpes. “I used to sleep very well there. I liked working as a sheepherder but that was too rough of a life. Always alone. I liked it, but as you grow up you start looking at things in a very different way. Always alone, as oppose to the company you have working here.” Nevertheless, he also wanted to highlight that, no matter where and how, he has always been "happy.”

Salaburu came directly to California, to Bakersfield, to work as a sheepherder too, for four years: “I was not making that much money so, when my contract expired, I went back to Spain. But things were not good over there and here I could buy a house and a car. We started getting more money and we decided to stay. Then you lose some friends over there (in the Basque Country) and you make new ones here. But, nonetheless, we never forget the place we came from, never.”

From the hot lands of Bakersfield he decided to move to the colder San Francisco area, where he had some friends from Aldude, “Jean Pierre Ospital and Alice Arriet. Jean Pierre passed away, but Alice is still alive. I started working in landscaping and, after some years, I moved to another friend’s, Bernar Belait’s, but I kept working in the same field. And in the year 1974 I bought our own house.”

Both of them got married in the Basque Country, before settling down in America. On the one hand, in 1978, Kaiet espoused Marie Etcheguneberry, from Urdazubi (Navarre), and they had two children: Mark and Natalie. And on the other hand, Salaburu walked down the aisle with Mari Carmen Oscariz, native of Arizkun (Navarre), in the year 1973. They also had to kids: Idoya, active member of the Club and Xabier, also a member of thew club and the the klika.

Even though fifty years have gone, both are still working, but “less than before,” stated Salaburu. He is still working in landscaping, on his own, and Sorhouet keeps going to the vegetable garden. And whenever possible, both enjoy going to the Club, although the have different hobbies: Kaiet likes playing mus and Pedro is keen on fronton sports, “even though I had an issue with my bones and the ball doesn’t like me anymore,” he joked.

Both feel happy after having received the Bizi Emankorra award from their friends. “The Basque Club has helped us a lot,” finished Salaburu.