Your weekly dose of local news, arts, and culture. Our News Wire newsletter lands every Thursday with the stories shaping Northern Santa Barbara County
Ever think about going vegetarian? Interested in the idea, but don’t feel ready to cut out meat just yet? Do you equate vegetarian fare with bunny food? Worried that all vegetarian dishes are going to taste like lettuce? The folks at the Society for Vegetarian Inclined People (SoVIP) and the Healthy Palate restaurant would like […]
Dave Bourbon never set out to be a world-champion arm wrestler. He and his wife were out one night in 1973 at the Black Eye Bar (now Rick’s) in Santa Maria when he was told to get weighed. “What for?” he remembers asking. The answer: There was going to be arm wrestling that night. Bourbon […]
Wood chips are flying. Smoke billows everywhere. Grandma, a 1929 American LaFrance fire engine, sits in wait as Guadalupe Fire Capt. Rick Galindo hacks his way out of a wire-strung box as part of a training exercise. It’s just another Tuesday night for the Guadalupe Fire Department. Guadalupe is one of the last “paid […]
Sure, everyone wants to win, but one of the true measures of athletes is how they carry themselves during the lows as well as the highs. Twenty-year-old Irene Maldonado’s optimism and team spirit during a rough season for Allan Hancock College’s women’s basketball team is quite telling. “She’s a great teammate, just gives and gives, […]
Winners of the 2008 Awesome Kids awards were honored at the annual KIDS Network Holiday Luncheon on Dec. 5 at the Santa Ynez Marriott in Buellton. The KIDS Network is a county-wide organization boasting members from public agencies, the court system, law enforcement agencies, education, community-based organizations, school-linked programs, and parent groups. “This year’s theme […]
Righetti senior Servando Perez has been playing soccer for the last eight years. He’s loved every minute of it, and it shows. He was blocking goals a few feet away during practice while Coach John Pranjic related what an exceptional player and all-around good guy he is. “He’s probably the happiest kid out there,” the […]
Let’s get one thing clear right off the bat: Sailing is a sport. No, it’s not like rugby, say, or competitive foosball. But still. The Olympics and America’s Cup all say it’s a sport. You wouldn’t want to make the America’s Cup angry, would you? Our sport even comes with a rulebook. Chapman Piloting and […]
The Central Coast Rescue Mission in Santa Maria will be hosting its holiday dinner and giving away toys for children in need as part of the Tubs of Love drive on Dec. 18. The dinner and toy giveaway will take place at the Veterans Memorial building at 313 W. Tunnel. Joyce Nix, who’s been with […]
As the weather turns cold and people begin avoiding the beach, Katie Draeger’s surf season is just getting started. For the last several years, from September through December, Draeger has competed in Western Surfing Association competitions. The Nipomo resident is already sponsored by Esteem Surf Company, and ranks in the top 10 for the Western […]
The United Way held its inaugural drive-through Beans and Rice Food Drive on Dec. 9 and 10 to benefit the Salvation Army. With demand for food assistance rising faster than donated food supplies, the Food Drive helped bolster the Salvation Army’s depleted food supplies. Why rice and beans? According to the United Way, both rice […]
A recent cigarette-butt cleanup at four Santa Maria parks obviously helped remove unsightly litter. On a more subtle level, however, it added weight to a continuing effort to pass an anti-tobacco ordinance in city parks, which has been smoldering since late summer. The Santa Barbara County Public Health Department and local community groups coordinated the […]
The winter months will be a little bit easier for people in need thanks to the Santa Maria Noontime Kiwanis’ annual December Coat Drive. From Dec. 1 through 5, locals can donate coats to any Santa Maria, Orcutt, or Guadalupe RaboBank branch. There will be clearly marked drop boxes at each of the branches, and […]
