Dear Editor,
Joe Vargas and I want to thank writer Matt King and photographer
James Mohs for featuring our lives in a three-part series. It was
quite an honor.
Dear Editor,
Joe Vargas and I want to thank writer Matt King and photographer James Mohs for featuring our lives in a three-part series. It was quite an honor. We have often wanted to capture what we do during our daily lives on camera, and thanks to you that has been done. I know they worked very hard and took many months to put the story together. Because it is a story about our lives, it’s important to clarify a few statements.
Joe did work for decades at other jobs, not odd jobs. Not only was he a certified welder at L&A Engineering, he was also the maintenance supervisor at San Martin Winery for more than 15 years.
He received an excellent salary. When the winery closed, he could easily have applied for a similar position at another winery, but he chose to follow his lifelong dream and get into the cattle business full time.
The first year that Joe bought his first herd of beef cattle and leased some permanent pasture in Red Bluff, he stayed in an 18-foot trailer. His first wife, Marylou and his beautiful daughter Stacy would come up and visit him, but they had to return home during the week to maintain their ranch style home in Morgan Hill, work and go to school respectively.
When Joe and Marylou took over the Castro Valley Ranch, they not only took over the lease but also purchased all the cattle Castro Valley Ranch owned. All their careful years of saving and working two jobs paid off and enabled them to take this momentous step.
Along with the lease came the opportunity to cut firewood and help supplement his cattle income. Joe is a man of vision and has never been afraid of hard work. This was a new venture for him, and he wanted to be sure he would have every opportunity to successfully pursue his dream of living the cowboy life.
Joe and Marylou’s marriage of 25 years was a productive one. The couple invested wisely and owned rental properties in San Jose, Morgan Hill and Gilroy. They raised pigs and calves on the side.
Joe’s daughter Stacy would go with him after work to collect rejected tortillas and milk and bring them back to the feedlot to supplement the feed for the animals.
Joe didn’t sacrifice his marriage to Marylou for his cows. Sometimes people grow apart and marriages fail. Their parting was mutual. They are still the best and friends and they greatly admire each other.
And last but not least, please don’t misunderstand. Joe and I may have had business interests in Lockford, but it is Joe Vargas who has made a success of Castro Valley Ranch, not I. I am honored that my husband spoke so highly of me in your articles, but I want to give credit where credit is due. Thank you once again for your interest in portraying the life of a Gilroy cowboy.
Cathy Vargas, G
