An Austin native who made a life of traveling and photographing important people and places from all over the world returned home to capture the diversity of his hometown for an upcoming book.

William Taufic, a world-class photographer, gave a presentation at Sweet Reads during the Austin Artworks Festival and presented his vision for a project called “Our Austin, Our America,” which tells the stories of new Americans who have come to build a life in Austin from another place in the world.

The project is in its early stages, and explores the journey of those who came to Austin, as well as those who have lived in town their entire lives. Taufic has hopes to show the world that Austin’s diversity is an example of what a town can do if people from all walks of life come together.

“What have other people gone through to reach their dream of having their own house, own business, their own family and live in a community where they can be a part of it?” Taufic asked. “Austin is one of three communities in Minnesota that has been labeled a welcoming community, and supported by Welcoming America. If every child at five-years-old went to kindergarten with other children of multiple places like they do at Woodson School, we would have a lot less problems and a lot less animosity in the world.”

A journey to different worlds

His venture in photography began when Taufic was a freshman at Pacelli High School. Originally wanting to be a journalist, Taufic went into the office to seek a position at the school paper as a writer.

“I was told that they didn’t really need a writer, but that they really needed a photographer,” he said. “I said, ‘I think I could do that,’ and was introduced to the senior who was responsible for the yearbook photography.”

Through his interactions, Taufic learned how to develop film and create prints. He fostered a love for photography, and eventually graduated from Pacelli in 1973 and went on to St. Olaf to study psychology after becoming heavily involved in a psychology project with the University of Minnesota. There were no plans to return to photography or pursue the art as a career.

“I loved photography and did a lot of pictures,” he said. “The Minneapolis Star Tribune picked up 14 of my pictures in their Sunday picture magazine. It focused on the story about the project; nonetheless, it was a big feather in my cap, but I was still very committed to be a psychologist.”

After heading off to New York City intending to go to graduate school, Taufic ended up working as a photographer’s assistant instead and all plans went out the window. He grew his own clientele and portfolio working in various industries like fashion, advertising and photographing images for corporate annual reports.

Those connections and experiences, allowed Taufic to travel with Fortune 400 companies and their CEOs to 50 countries around the world, as well as to all 50 states in the United States.

“I’ve been extremely fortunate,” Taufic said. “It was a huge stroke of luck. I’ve been luckier than I have ever dreamed.”

One of those experiences included photographing Pope John Paul II inside the Vatican. Having been a practicing Catholic and attending Pacelli Catholic Schools, the moment was a once in a lifetime opportunity for Taufic.

“I went to the Vatican with 180 couples, and my wife Caroline, was seven-months pregnant at the time, who was part of that group,” Taufic recalled. “We went into the chapel where we were received, the pope came in and walked across the front row. He walked down one aisle where my wife, who was very pregnant, and he noticed that.”

Taufic took a moment and his voice broke, recounting the moment he saw Pope John Paul II blessing his wife.

“He went to her and he blessed my baby,” he said. “Then we walked down the other aisle and there were other photographers with five different flashes that probably went off, and I got this one magical frame, where he looked like he was glowing. It was a remarkable photograph and experience.”

‘Our Austin, Our America’

After traveling the world and seeing the vast cultures that go beyond the bubble of Minnesota, Taufic returned to Austin a year ago with a hope to contribute something to the town he loved.

“I was sitting at my desk in Connecticut, thinking about what I wanted to do next in terms of service to my community,” he said. “I came to Austin to have lunch with dear friends who are teachers and said, ‘Yeah, we have to translate over 50 languages to just be able to talk to our students’ parents.’ I was like ‘what? 50 languages?’”

It was an eye-opening moment for Taufic, who had left Austin 40 years ago and had never imagined Austin becoming what it was today.

“I couldn’t imagine what had happened to Austin, my hometown,” he said. “When I left, there was one language and one color: white. Now there are people from 50 other places on the planet and working in Austin? I needed to understand how that affected the town.”

Through research and connecting with resources like the Welcome Center, Immigration Law Center and the Human Rights Commission, Taufic grew more amazed that Austin had changed and moved toward progress within a time of division and ignorance.

“I was just amazed at how Austin had risen to the occasion, and come to welcome the newcomers with a lot of assistance to help them become part of the community,” he said. “To become Americans. It was just amazing to me, and what a joyful thing in this age of division and animosity to have this going on in my hometown. It needed to be told. This story needed to be told. I was called to tell it, this is what we’re doing. This isn’t my project. This is a project done by Austin.”

So for the next year, Taufic will be assisted with fellow individuals interviewing families from various cultural backgrounds in Austin. During those times, he’ll photograph them as they share their experiences of coming to America and the journey to becoming a new American. He also plans to photograph those who came from other towns to Austin, as well as those who lived in Austin their entire lives.

Taufic hopes to share the stories of people who also weren’t highly receptive to diversity in town in order to paint a full picture regarding the complexities surrounding progress and the national scrutiny that was put on immigrants from others.

“I feel this needs to be shown to the rest of the country as a way of better life for everybody,” Taufic said. “To live in the vision of our forefathers, according to the Declaration of independence, we have a lot to teach people and a lot of of light to shine on the darkness of alienation and exclusion. …I think we can shine a light on the fear and show other communities who are struggling with this change in their world. This may help people realize they don’t need to sit home and being angry or frustrated with that change.”

Being a son of immigrants from Brazil and Lebanon, Taufic felt that this project “Our Austin, Our America” would highlight the importance of diversity and how Austin has changed for the better. His biggest aspirations for the project would be have it on coffee tables across the country and in community government offices as a “guide to a better life for everybody.”

“This is a giveback project for me,” Taufic said. “I owe everything to Austin and to my parents and growing up in a very remarkable town. It’s important that people understand that life is better if it’s lived together.”

“I know it’s not a perfect story, but the spirit of inclusion and acceptance in Austin is really impressive, and I wanted to show the work that people are doing to make a situation better every day,” Taufic continued. “We’re looking forward. Woodson school alone is the most remarkable, there were people enjoying the Mower County Fair together, and there was this applause for the new Americans. I think it’s important to know that we’re all immigrants here, everyone’s family in Austin came from somewhere else. This is continuing the American Dream.”