Cover Story
The Sun trains some cub reporters at the Discovery Museum
For five days at the Santa Maria Valley Discovery Museum, Staff Writer Kristina Sewell, former Assistant Art Director Heather Walter, and I taught 10 children between the ages of 8 and 13 how to be reporters as part of a special summer camp partnership between the Sun and the museum. The kids learned how to…
Spotlight on: Firestone Walker Brewing Company’s Oaktoberfest
Paso Robles and Buellton are famous for their golden hills, oak trees, warm summer nights, and wineries. On the outskirts of both of these small cities are Firestone Walker Brewing Company (Paso Robles) and the Firestone Barrelworks Tap Room (Buellton). Adam Firestone and David Walker founded the company in 1996. Brewmaster Matt Brynildson recently…
What would you like to see local media reporting on more?
Mary Miller retired “I’d like to have them show us local news. We need to know what is happening in town, like things for seniors since I am one, but more activities.” William Washington retired “I’d like to see them reporting on the homeless situation a bit more so people are more aware of where…
The Lompoc Library Foundation offers free Concerts on the Library Lawn
The Lompoc Library Foundation, a local nonprofit organization, is responsible for more than $50,000 worth of book endowments to the Lompoc, Buellton, and Vandenberg Village libraries. The foundation also organizes several events throughout the year that get locals to the library, including the upcoming Concerts on the Library Lawn series. This is the eighth installment…
Lompoc Valley Art Association is host to a talk with Nancy Yaki
The Lompoc Valley Art Association is holding its monthly meeting on Aug. 5 at 7 p.m. at Lompoc’s Stone Pine Hall. The event will include a social time starting at 6:30 p.m., followed by the meeting at 7 p.m. and a talk with guest artist Nancy Yaki. Yaki will talk about her life as an…
Cachuma Lake offers fireside programs in the evening
The Cachuma Lake Nature Center is offering a series of fireside programs during the month of August on Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. in the Cachuma Lake Fireside Amphitheater. The events include recreational and educational material and entertainment. A nature talk called Cachuma Lake Water: Would You Drink This? with naturalist Liz Gaspar happens…
Summertime magic
The Santa Maria Public Library offers the program Magic of Christopher Lopez on Aug. 12 at 6 p.m. Lopez is a nationally recognized magician who has performed at iconic venues like Los Angeles’ Magic Castle. Santa Maria Public Library Youth Services requires attendees to procure a free ticket for admittance to the special program. Tickets…
Los Padres Artist Guild to hold Robert Burridge demonstration
The Los Padres Artist Guild is holding a meeting at the Luis Oasis Senior Center in Orcutt on Aug. 8 at 5:30 p.m. that will include a special artistic program with guest artist Robert Burridge. The Los Padres Artist Guild will conduct its regular business from 5:30 to 6 p.m., after which Burridge will begin…
Y/BEES? features a collaborative assemblage that focuses on honeybees
All day, every day, honeybees are buzzing all around us, doing what they do best: the thankless job of pollinating most plants we enjoy by sight or taste as well as ones we’re not aware of. An exhibition of mixed media art that focuses on the honeybee, Y/BEES? has been extended for another month at…
PCPA blends history with drama and music in the world premiere of ‘The San Patricios’
The Mexican-American War is an oft-overlooked period of American history, partly overshadowed by the turmoil of the Civil War, which followed less than two decades later. The conflict included many bloody battles and ended with the redrawing of borders to create the ones we know today. However, most Americans don’t know, or forget, the stories…
The airhead
It was supposed to be a simple vacation. The plan was to load up the family, drive to the beach, and surf, relax, and drink irresponsible amounts of rum for a week straight. On paper the plan seemed pretty solid—and it would have all gone according to plan if we hadn’t taken the money-sucking, mother-flunking,…
Sundae splurge: Creamy ice cream desserts are for any day of the week
Growing up in Wisconsin, in an extended family full of dairy farmers, I fondly recall devouring a big bowl of ice cream just about every night for my bedtime snack. If we were feeling festive, we would drizzle chocolate syrup on top of a few scoops, and maybe toss some walnuts in the bowl. Our…
Discovery Corner: Exhibits within exhibits
People ask us all the time, “How many exhibits do you have?” This seems like a relatively easy question, especially for those of us who actually work and play here, but every time this brain teaser pops up, my mind begins to scramble and count, and before too long it becomes one of the most…
Law enforcement explorers graduate from countywide programs
Six law enforcement agencies from across the Central Coast held two weeks of physical and mental challenges for 23 young people between the ages of 14 and 20 years old as part of the Central Coast Law Enforcement Explorer Academy. Those young men and women had their final inspections on July 26 and graduated. The…
United Way to launch North County community literacy initiative
Lompoc Unified School District, Reading Plus, and the United Way are kicking off what the United Way is terming the first Community Literacy Initiative in the country on Aug. 6 at Hotel Corque in Solvang. The partnership between the school district and the literacy programs will provide all residents of Lompoc with access to the…
Santa Barbara County residents graduate from sheriff’s academy
Santa Barbara County Sheriff Bill Brown presented 16 county residents with certificates after they completed 10 weeks of classes as part of the Sheriff’s Citizen’s Academy. The graduation took place on July 19 with a celebration and barbecue at Stow Grove Park in Goleta. The citizen’s academy is designed to give residents an inside look…
Political Watch 7/31/14
• With the planning phase for the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s (BOEM) 2017-2022 Oil and Gas Leasing Program coming up, California politicians decided to try to head off the Department of the Interior before it got too carried away. On July 22, U.S. Rep. Lois Capps (D-Santa Barbara) and 36 other members of the…
Community Notebook 7/31/14-8/7/14
MONDAY, AUGUST 4 • The Solvang Planning Commission has its regular meeting at 7 p.m. in City Council Chambers, 1644 Oak Street, Solvang. TUESDAY, AUGUST 5 • The Vandenberg Village Community Services District has its regular board meeting at 7 p.m. in the District Office Conference Room, 3757 Constellation Road, Vandenberg Village. • The…
Community Corner: Help Santa Maria Babe Ruth make it to nationals
Robert Lopez graced the pages of the Sun about five years ago as an Athlete of the Week. “Second baseman Robert ‘Speedy’ Lopez may be a Little Leaguer in stature, but the 10-year-old has a genuine Big League heart,” the article said. “While he’s excelled as a two-time Southside League All-Star, the fact that he…
UC Davis and the Strawberry Commission wrestle over strawberry breeding program’s future
Those tangy, sweet, red berries that yielded $464 million for Santa Barbara County in 2013 are way more complicated than the average consumer could ever fathom. Sure, there’s the actual farming part of things, and the harvesting part of things, but there’s also the research and development that happens before any strawberry plant finds its…
Dignity Health teams up with other hospitals through telemedicine
Telemedicine robots are now roaming the halls of Dignity Health’s three Central Coast hospitals: Arroyo Grande Community Hospital, French Hospital Medical Center in San Luis Obispo, and Marian Regional Medical Center in Santa Maria. Dignity Health Marketing Specialist Sara San Juan said the 6-foot-tall iRobots decked out in pearly white, chrome, and black are stationary…
Lingl challenges Linn for mayor of Lompoc
Two-term Lompoc City Councilman Bob Lingl filed papers on July 25 to run against Mayor John Linn in the November election. In an interview with the Sun on July 28, Lingl said he decided to challenge Linn because of some of the current mayor’s actions over the last several months. “John and I are friends.…
Chumash to hold public meeting on casino expansion plans
Another round of future plans will inevitably lead to another round of controversy for the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians. This time, it’ll be surrounding the tribe’s plans for the Chumash Casino Resort. In mid-June, the tribe released an environmental evaluation regarding its casino expansion plans; it will hold a meeting on July 31…
County to draft special amendments for Measure P
There are two sides to the Measure P debate—the ordinance scheduled for November’s ballot will either save the world or destroy it. The ordinance would ban enhanced oil extraction techniques such as hydraulic fracturing and cyclic steam injection. The conversation surrounding the measure is both jaded and barbed; decades of discussion surrounding oil drilling practices…
Santa Maria P.D. Officers reveal in arbitration hearing more details about Covarrubias shooting
The arbitration hearing for former Santa Maria Police Lt. Dan Ast started up again on July 28 after a month-long hiatus. Ast and his defense attorney, Jonathan Miller, are arguing that the department retaliated against Ast because he was one of three whistleblowers to file complaints against former Police Chief Dan Macagni alleging widespread problems…
Let it P, let it P?
If Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors meetings were brought to you by letters and numbers, the way episodes of Sesame Street work, the predominate portion of the alphabet for the July 29 meeting would have been “P.” That letter, I’ll wager, will be taking the spotlight from now until November in the board chambers…
Good Goddess!
Heidi Flanagan wants to “draw a line in the sand” and fight for legislative prayer. (“It’s time to fight,” July 17.) She says this isn’t just for “Christianity per se.” Great! Then I can inform the City Council about my Earth Goddess Geo-Gaia and how ticked off she is at humans for climate pollution. It’s…
There are lots of places to legally pray
I am a regular churchgoer and a strong believer in the Constitution, and especially the First Amendment. Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or interfering with the free exercise thereof. As a child in the public schools of Houston, we recited the Lord’s Prayer every day, mechanically, despite the fact there…
An environmentalist says no on P
After participation in a six-year battle to successfully close a toxic waste dump site next to Casmalia in Santa Barbara County, it would be a gross understatement to say that I am sensitive to false and misleading environmental views and opinions. Santa Barbara County voters need to step back and take a closer factual look…
Give praise, and be moved
The Central Coast Church of Orcutt will be offering a series of meditative classes this summer on Saturdays at 10 a.m. PraiseMoves is a Christian alternative to yoga. The class will focus on stretching and core strengthening, as well as improving balance and coordination. The classes can be modified for individuals with limited mobility. Each…
Deer hunt
In a press release last week, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife announced it will be offering a drawing for an apprentice deer hunt on the Chimineas Unit of the Carrizo Plain Ecological Reserve. The event will be a two-day hunt offered in cooperation with the California Deer Association Sept. 13 and 14 on…
Saints looking for runners
The Santa Maria High School cross-country team has begun its summer training to prepare for the upcoming fall season. Practices will be Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8 to 10 a.m.; the team meets in room 613. All boys and girls are interested in running long distance are welcome. For more information, contact boys’ coach Adolfo…
Bulldogs launch youth league
A press release from Allan Hancock College Athletics announced the launch of a boys’ basketball fall league next month. The league will feature separate divisions for sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-grade boys. There will also be divisions for freshman, junior varsity, and varsity teams. “There is a demand for this,” Aye said. “Since we started the…
Brandon Hettenhouser
Bright stadium lights shine down on the players. Football coaches watch the team’s every move; cheerleaders bring their spirit; and those who came to watch their team play cheer and roar from the school bleachers—it’s game time. For Nipomo High School senior Brandon Hettenhouser, this is what his typical Friday night looks like. During football…
The final Benchwarmer: Change brings new opportunity
I have been in this position too many times to count now—the 90-degree angle of my body molds to the chair as if by second nature. And as with each time before, I sit here with a keyboard beneath my fingertips, an empty screen full of possibility in front of my face. While the words…
