Ring the Changes : Town Once Again Makes Swallows Its Pride

Things won’t be quite the same during the annual celebration today marking the swallows’ legendary return to the historic Mission San Juan Capistrano.

For one, unlike last year, austerity-minded mission officials won’t be shelling out $5,000 to bring Hollywood types such as Jerry Mathers, Ruth Buzzi and Gil Gerard out to the festival, which draws about 10,000 people a year.

Gone too is the PR firm that was paid to hype the festivities.

And in the most sentimental change, the mission also has a new bell ringer for the first time in 66 years. Michael Gastelum will take over the symbolic task of welcoming the little birds from his grandfather, Paul Arbiso, who died last year at age 99.

Despite the changes, mission officials are confident that swallows will take center stage.

“People don’t really come here to see the celebrities,” said mission administrator Gerald Miller. “The swallows are the celebrities.”

The mission does plan, as is customary, to put in a temporary telephone bank to handle an increased number of calls from the media. Reporters usually can be counted on to cover Swallows Day, which is much like a West Coast version of Groundhog Day. Inquiries come from as far away as Italy and Iceland.

The famous swallows not only represent a large part of the town’s identity, they are an economic key to the ongoing work of keeping aging sections of the 219-year-old mission from turning to rubble.

In need of $7 million to $10 million for mission restoration and repairs, Miller’s job is to keep the landmark in the public eye. There are tours for schoolchildren, summer concerts under the stars and art exhibits.

But it is Swallows Day that eclipses any other day. As many as 10,000 people fill the town every March 19. Each person who passes through the mission’s turnstiles means a few dollars more for bricks and mortar.

Miller and others are trusting that the Swallows Day tradition and local performers--not any Hollywood stardust--will power a successful turnout this year.

Although the mission no longer retains a public relations firm, it hired a part-time publicist who does work for the Diocese of Orange. The publicist, James Graves, will probably continue to help promote the mission after the hoopla of Swallows Day fades.

“They are trying to raise public awareness about the mission,” Graves said of mission officials. “It’s the perspective of telling the whole story. It’s the only mission in Orange County. If they don’t spend money to rebuild it, it won’t be there.”

Miller is aware of how hard it can be to promote a tourist attraction these days. After all, this is Orange County, home of Disneyland and Knott’s Berry Farm.

“There’s so much competition for people’s time, we have to constantly remind them of things going on here at the mission,” Miller said.

Interest in Swallows Day is higher this year than in recent memory because of the mission’s efforts to lure greater numbers of swallows back by creating a better habitat for them.

Last week, the first of 500 clay replica nests were installed under the eaves of the mission’s south wing. The mission once boasted hundreds of swallows nests, but most of them were destroyed when work to make the edifice earthquake-safe was started six years ago.

Within the last month, stories on the mission have been carried by major newspapers outside of California, including the New York Times. News wire services picked up on the story, and Associated Press Television shot video earlier this month that will be sent to international news programs.

On Friday, a national cable television show broadcast live from mission. The program’s host solicited donations from viewers for the mission’s swallows project, which is estimated to cost about $10,000 for the nests and thousands of insects released weekly on the mission grounds.

The mission ranks third in attendance among Orange County tourist attractions. About 400,000 people pass annually through the mission’s gates.

That’s 400,000 chances at getting a donation, although Miller said he wishes the number were higher.

“The more people realize that this mission is their history, the more we hope it will help us preserve its history,” he said.

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Swallows Celebration

Swallows Day activities are today in San Juan Capistrano. Food and refreshments as well as gifts, souvenirs and crafts will be available. The details:

* Gates open: 7 a.m.

* Festivities: 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

* Gates close: 5 p.m.

* Admission: Adults, $4; seniors 60 and older and children under 12, $3

* Parking: On nearby streets, such as El Camino Real