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Rugged Rescue: Santa Barbara County’s volunteer search and rescue team saves lives in all terrains
View a slideshow of the Santa Barbara County Search and Rescue Team. On the night of April 5, 2014, the residents of Isla Vista witnessed a party scene become a full-fledged riot. By 10 p.m., the informal spring break celebration known as Deltopia devolved into a violent mob of 15,000 people. Wedged in between the…
Defense contractor cuts 92 jobs at Vandenberg AFB
L-3 Communications, a New York-based contractor, is laying off 92 employees at Vandenberg Air Force Base, according to Jennifer Barton, a company spokesperson. The job cuts at Vandenberg are part of a greater number of layoffs within the company, including 136 at Patrick Air Force Base in Florida, which sits along the Space Coast just…
When was the last time you volunteered and what did you do?
Alex Cullson transient “I volunteered in June and July of 2013 for general relief through Salvation Army.” Dolores Manriquez lead instructor at VTC Enterprises “I volunteered once per week over the course of the summer at the pre-school nursery at Allan Hancock College.” Gerry Watkins worker for Santa Maria Area Transit “I helped the elderly…
Santa Maria Public Library open late for staff training
The Santa Maria Public Library will be opening at different hours to allow for two days of staff training on Jan. 19 and 20. The library will open at 11 a.m. rather than the usual 10 a.m., but will still close at 8 p.m. both days. Hours of operation will remain unchanged at the Guadalupe,…
The Valley Speaks includes Orcutt’s oil history
The Valley Speaks, the Santa Maria Valley Historical Society and Chamber of Commerce’s speaker series, will feature a talk about Orcutt’s oil history on Jan. 10 at 11 a.m. in the Santa Maria Public Library’s Shepard Hall, 421 S. McClelland, Santa Maria. Jim Bray, Pacific Coast Energy Company public and government affairs manager, will deliver…
League of Women Voters announces new book group
The League of Women Voters Santa Maria Valley has announced a new book group meeting on the last Thursday of each month at noon at the Moxie Café in Santa Maria. The first meeting on Jan. 29 will discuss the biography Elizabeth Warren, Diary of a Mad Diva by Joan Rivers, and I am Malala.…
South Coast Railroad Museum seeks more volunteers
The South Coast Railroad Museum at the historic Goleta Depot is seeking volunteers interested in being docent guides aboard Amtrak trains for the Trails and Rails program. The program is a collaboration between the National Park Service, the South Coast Railroad Museum, and Amtrak and is designed to inform rail riders of the cultural, historical,…
Mariachi Flor de Toloache comes to Santa Barbara County
¡Viva el Arte de Santa Barbara! represents the concerted efforts of dozens of nonprofit, government, and educational organizations with businesses, private donors, and volunteers concerned with bringing world-class Hispanic music to deserving communities in Santa Barbara County. Viva books big name ensembles that perform three free family concerts, lead workshops, and offer outreach in local…
Poetic Justice Project founding director Deborah Tobola shares her poetry at The Bookworm
Deborah Tobola is the founding artistic director of the Poetic Justice Project (PJP), a theater arts organization designed for formerly incarcerated people to engage with their community through the performing arts. Tobola conceived the idea when she worked in Arts in Corrections at the San Luis Obispo California Men’s Colony and witnessed the therapeutic power…
Local historical societies keep the past alive thanks to volunteers
History can easily be seen as a thing only viewable through dusty sepia tone photographs and moldy newspapers, but this ignores the history living all around us, in the most unlikely objects and people. The several historical societies and museums throughout Northern Santa Barbara County showcase shelves of photographs and other artifacts of course, but…
To sleep, perchance, to dream of sleeping in
There was a time, in days of yore, that a dueling scar meant something. A man sporting such a mark on his visage was perceived as both heroic and dangerous, with a certain mystique about him. He had survived a duel to the death, with the slash of his opponent’s épée or saber as plain…
Glass matters: Tasting is believing with famous glassware maker Georg Riedel
You can’t argue with physics, right? Georg Riedel, the 10th-generation owner of Riedel Crystal, made a rare appearance in Santa Barbara County in December to state his case that physics plays a critical role in the enjoyment of wine. Santa Barbara Vintners, the region’s vintners association, played host to Riedel, whose family founded the esteemed…
Economic Alliance asks the community to support a career integration initiative
Allan Hancock College is in the midst of finishing up a grant application for $6 million for the California Career Pathways Trust grant through the California Department of Education. The grant’s intent would be to develop pathways that include work-based learning components for high school students in arts/media, manufacturing, automotive technologies, health science, public service,…
Spotlight on: Casa Bonita Furniture
When you walk into a furniture shop and notice empty spots where merchandise once stood, that’s a good thing and here’s why: It means they get lots of business. Which is saying something about customer loyalty. And the place hasn’t even been open for more than two months. Casa Bonita Furniture departs from the business-as-usual…
Community Notebook 1/8/15-1/15/15
MONDAY, JAN. 12 • The Santa Maria City Block Grants Advisory Committee has its regular meeting at 5:30 p.m. in the City Hall Conference Room, 110 E. Cook St., Santa Maria. • The Solvang City Council has its regular meeting at 7 p.m. in City Council Chambers, 1644 Oak Street, Solvang. agendas are available at…
Hobnobbing with Helen
We all know that retirement parties can be a big ho-hum and so borrrrring. This was most definitely not the case with Rick Sweet’s retirement party held on Dec. 10 at the Veterans Memorial Community Center. This was a party with a lot of heart. What made this one special was that the people on…
Road warriors: You’ve seen the signs, but what is adopting a road or highway all about?
By all accounts, picking up litter on the side of a road or a highway isn’t the sexiest of vocations, but hundreds of local volunteers donate their time to do just that every single year. “All I can say is that a lot of people get hooked and end up really loving it,” said Julia…
Correction
In the Jan. 1 story “Police seek leads on an apparent Santa Maria homicide,” we listed the victim’s death as the second homicide of 2014. It was actually the third.
The Sun makes some changes
Starting this week, the Sun is freeing up space to make room for more local news. We’re retiring some longtime features that, while informative, fun to write, and—hopefully—fun to read, aren’t necessarily serving our readers in the way more news will. You’ll no longer find Discovery Corner or What Kids Are Reading in our school…
Unemployment rate rises in November
Santa Barbara County’s unemployment rate in November 2014 was 5.7 percent, a slight bump from October’s rate of 5.4 percent, but still lower than November 2013, which was 6.4 percent. According to a press release from the Workforce Investment Board of Santa Barbara County, the numbers were as expected with some “unfortunate changes from the…
Santa Maria police investigate second killing in eight days
Detectives from the Santa Maria Police Department are investigating a shooting that occurred on Dec. 30 near the corner of Jones and Bradley streets, just a stone’s throw away from Allan Hancock College. The shooting happened around midnight, police said. The victim, indentified as 23-year-old Santa Maria resident Terrence Richardson, was driven to Marian Hospital…
Santa Barbara County Fire Department radio dispatch impersonator strikes again
An impersonator hijacked the Santa Barbara County Fire Department radio waves once again, causing the department to suspend its Twitter account in late December. The impersonator has been hijacking the radio waves since October, said Joe Ayala, the dispatch supervisor for the Santa Barbara County’s Sheriff’s Office. The impact has been relatively low, according to…
Bureau of Indian Affairs approves fee-to-trust status for Camp 4
As is the case with the past few Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisor meetings attended by Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians Chairman Vincent Armenta, he once again asked supervisors to engage in government-to-government dialogue with the tribe at the first meeting of the new year. “Do exactly what is good for the community,”…
It’s in the cards
Did you hear the rumbling? Feel the ground shake? On Jan. 2, the doors to the Hall of Officially Licensed Drivers opened for the first time to undocumented immigrants in the state of California. I don’t think that our leaders intended the first day for new applications to be on a Friday, but that’s how…
Why can’t you get it about nuclear, liberal media types?
We are appalled by your constant assault on the nuclear industry and in particular Diablo. Your latest commentary by the hysterical Rochelle Becker, titled “Don’t count on Diablo” (Dec. 11), begs the question: If we can’t count on this wonderful source of power, just how will we provide to the 2 million users if it…
The rose-colored glass is half full
Recently, Supervisor Steve Lavagnino wrote an opinion piece in the Santa Maria Times, saying that Santa Barbara County’s government is doing great and being managed well on your behalf (“A brighter outlook on county’s fiscal future,” Dec. 20). First, I’m going to tell you why that’s wrong. Then I’m going to tell you why Supervisor…
Francisco Mendez
Allan Hancock College offensive lineman Francisco Mendez, No. 70, earned all-state honors when he was recently named to the All-California first Team Offense for Region III for the 2014 season. The 6-foot-6, 298-pound tackle was one of 26 athletes voted onto the team from Northern, Central, and Southern Leagues by head coaches. Coaches nominate athletes…
Sports: Not just for jocks
If you’ll permit me to do so, I’d like to share an athletic secret with you. OK? Even though I love sports, I was never very good at playing them. Whether it was the back and forth of the soccer field, the stop and go of the baseball diamond, or the pant and wheeze of…
