Frank Teixeira, who suffers from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), often referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease, and who with his wife, Linda, originated the concept of Big Fat Love, relaxes at Swami's Cafe in Encinitas in May.
TIM RYLAND Staff Photographer


Swami's Cafe regulars dish out help for man with Lou Gehrig's disease

By: TIM RYLAND - Staff Writer

Although Swami's Cafe manager John Nolan didn't know quite what to make of it last summer when Frank Teixeira handed him a Big Fat Love rock, he knew it was a significant gesture.

The pocket watch-sized rock was nondescript, like the myriad stones that cobble the beaches of North County, except it had the words "Big Fat Love" sandblasted on it.

"The rock meant something to me ---- something powerful ---- when I'd touch it," the 42-year-old restaurant manager recalled. "Frank said, 'There's a story behind it. Someday I'll tell you what it is.' "


Eventually he did, and from that simple gesture, a relationship developed far beyond restaurateur and customer. Today, Swami's Cafe, 1163 S. Coast Highway in Encinitas, sells Big Fat Love merchandise to help Teixeira raise a small part of the money he needs to fight a disease now crippling his once-vital body.

At the time, though, Nolan knew little about Teixeira. He knew he hung out at Swami's, a whole-foods cafe, with a tight circle of friends. He knew he liked curry soup and wheat grass. He also knew that Teixeira, a straight-shooting peace officer who once rode Harleys and chased waves around the world, walked with the help of hiking poles.

"One of the girls (waitresses) told me he had Lou Gehrig's disease," Nolan said. "He was just a customer, but you couldn't help but like him."

A beach rat's story
Teixeira, 39, grew up in Orange County living the typical beach-rat lifestyle ---- in summer, "down to the beach from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.," he said. Teixeira attended Cypress Junior College and in 1981 became a prison guard at the Donovan Correctional Facility in Otay Mesa.

Throughout his 20s, Teixeira chased waves in places like Hawaii, Samoa and Tonga. In 2001, he married his girlfriend, Linda, and they settled in Point Loma. In 2002, he took second place in surfing at the U.S. Peace Officers Olympics.

It was in the water the next year that Teixeira began to notice something wasn't right.

"I wasn't surfing well," he said. "I would go to do something I'd done forever, and my legs wouldn't work right. It was my right leg and foot. A friend said, 'Hey, what's up?' He said I should see a doctor."

The first doctor told Teixeira he had multiple sclerosis. So he sought a second opinion, and a third. A Los Angeles specialist diagnosed amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, better known as Lou Gehrig's disease.

"I thought I had a pinched nerve," Teixeira said.

According to the national ALS Association Web site, ALS is a neurodegenerative disease that usually attacks both upper and lower motor nerve cells and causes degeneration throughout the brain and spinal cord. There is no known cure.

In happier days, when he and Linda were dating, Teixeira recalled, "When we'd see someone do something nice, with nothing to get in return, we'd say, 'Wow, look at that big fat love.' "

It became the couple's catchphrase. For their wedding, they had it sandblasted onto rocks that they gave to friends and family. They had more made and passed them out judiciously. Giving someone a rock was tantamount to bestowing a blessing.

Stopping at Swami's
Frustrated after his diagnosis with traditional methods of dealing with ALS, Teixeira sought alternative treatment at the Center for Advanced Healing in Encinitas. With a friend, he began stopping at nearby Swami's Cafe two or three times a week for a healthful breakfast or lunch.

Tami Haslan met Teixeira last summer, a week after she started as a waitress at Swami's Cafe. She "fell in love," the mother of four said with a laugh.

"You can see the love in his eyes," Haslan said. "Frank's an angel that has fallen down here with us. He's always positive, always has a smile. His spirit is just amazing."

Ali Cotov started working at Swami's Cafe in January. "Everyone was always talking about Frank," she said. "He finally came in with his gang, all wearing Big Fat Love shirts. He's inspiring, the way he lives. I feel like, if he can do anything, I can do anything."

"That's what strikes you about Frank," said Nolan, who has managed Swami's Cafe for eight years. "He's so consistent. He's not having a pity party. He treats everyone with respect."

When Teixeira's condition forced him from his prison guard duties in April 2006, Nolan became aware of his jobless status.

"I helped him out a few times, gave him a few free meals," Nolan said. "He became a part of our little family."

Because of Nolan's spirit, exemplified by this generosity, Teixeira bestowed on him a Big Fat Love rock.

'Where can I get one?'
But Teixeira had another problem: Since his insurance through the state doesn't classify ALS as a disability, his medical coverage is woefully inadequate. As he began casting about for ways to make ends meet, the idea of expanding Big Fat Love into a franchise took hold.

"People would see the rocks and say, 'Where can I get one?'" he said.

In January, he trademarked the phrase. In February, he had made 15 bright-red "Change the world through Big Fat Love" baseball caps and gave one to Nolan, who began wearing it daily.

When Teixeira asked him whether the restaurant could help sell the hats ($20) and T-shirts ($15), Nolan didn't hesitate. "He wanted to give us a percentage," Nolan said. "I told him, 'I don't want your money.' "

Initially, the merchandise flew off the counter. Teixeira recalled bringing in five hats early on. "By the time we'd finished breakfast, they were gone," he said.

"They (customers) always comment on the hat," Nolan said, who rarely takes his off. "It lets me segue into Frank's story. We don't push it (the merchandise). The shirts and hats are going to go when they're ready to go."

Owner Jaime Osuna "is letting it happen," Teixeira said of the help Swami's Cafe gives him, "but John is the heart and soul of it."

Teixiera said he has spent about $3,500 for the Big Fat Love trademark and merchandise, and so far has made less than half that back. He donates 10 percent of his proceeds to the ALS Society ---- "they help people for free, and with a big smile" ---- and the rest goes to his medical bills.

The merchandise is also available at the Grape Connection Wine Shop in Point Loma through a similar arrangement with the owner, and on the Web at www.bigfatlovecompany.com.

'Good comes back to you'
In the last six months, Teixeira has moved from hiking poles to a walker, and his hands have assumed a rigid, curved position.

"Because it's a nerve disease, I don't have control over my body," he said. "A dog barking (nearby) makes me jump and I fall down." But he believes a cure for ALS is imminent and attributes his attitude to "my belief in God. I just don't feel inside my body that I'm going to die."

It's clear Nolan has gained insight from Teixeira's attitude.

"We all face challenges, things that debilitate us," he said. "It's like a mantra, no matter what happens. Big Fat Love ---- your attitude ---- you have control over that.

"We've helped a lot of people over the years," he continued. "Everything we do, think, speak, feel has a reaction. And good comes back to you."

For Nolan, the good comes to his business in ways that aren't measurable in a ledger.

"We've let Swami's take on its own identity in the community," Nolan said. "It's been a positive, healthy environment where people come, spend some time and leave feeling good. I've seen it so many times, people down in some way ---- you give them a little respect, let them regain their dignity ---- within weeks you see the change. We're not taking pity. We're just doing what's right."

In his friend Frank Teixeira's case, Nolan implied, it may have been meant to be.

"You don't just come to Swami's by accident," he said.

Contact Tim Ryland at tryland@nctimes.com.

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007..._307_21_07.txt





A rock sand-blasted with the phrase "Big Fat Love" is one of those sold at Swami's Cafe. Frank Teixeira gives such rocks as gifts to those whom he sees offering unrewarded kindness to others. They are $12 each as part of Teixeira's Big Fat Love line of merchandise, which includes men's and women's T-shirts ($15) and baseball caps ($20). Teixeira donates 10 percent of the profits to the ALS Association and uses the rest to help pay for treatments for his disease that are not covered by his insurance.
TIM RYLAND Staff Photographer