Cover Story
Living with Pride: House of Pride and Equality (HOPE) volunteers ready to celebrate Pride a second time in Santa Maria
The soft, rhythmic thumping sound of the gray and white pit bull/lab mix Banjo’s tail on Jessie Funes and Audy Macdonald’s living room couch underscores the chatter of the meeting, a sign of appreciation for all the attention he’s getting. A group of volunteers and board members for the House of Pride and Equality (HOPE)…
Gloria Soto announces candidacy for District 3 City Council seat
Surrounded by dozens of enthusiastic supporters, lifelong Santa Maria resident Gloria Soto announced her candidacy for the City Council’s District 3 seat outside the Minami Community Center on June 21. Business owners, several recent high school graduates, and staff members of various advocacy organizations gathered outside Minami at noon that day to show support for…
Rebeccamendations
• Local chefs are still memorializing the late Anthony Bourdain. On July 14, chefs Brooke Stockwell and James Owens, of Solvang’s K’Syrah Catering and Events, will host a dinner in his honor. The meal will feature their take on some of Bourdain’s favorite foods, including Cacio e Pepe and Korean Fried Chicken. The event runs…
Fun with food: Former Central Coast journalist and editor Ryan Miller publishes his first book
Ryan Miller isn’t used to being interviewed by journalists. In fact, he’s used to things being the other way around. “It’s interesting being on this side of things,” he said during an interview with the Sun. Central Coast residents may remember Miller as an editor for both the SLO New Times and the Sun. But…
June is a joy
June was not exactly busting out all over with hobnobbing opportunities for moi. Social schedules were no doubt crammed with graduation and wedding dates that are not part of my world. So I was especially delighted to be able to go to a Santa Maria Noontime Rotary special occasion–the outgoing president’s step down dinner–on Tuesday…
Storm into Norman: Norman at the Skyview Los Alamos Hotel is a must-see
By now you’re probably familiar with all the restaurants and wine bars Los Alamos has to offer on Bell Street. But now it’s time to look on the other side of the highway. On the east side of Highway 101, at the top of a short steep drive, sits Norman, the restaurant housed in the…
Clark’s country
Time can be a motivator, but for Santa Margarita-based singer/songwriter Shawn Clark, it granted him perspective. Originally from Texas, Clark grew up playing guitar since he was 12 years old, jamming in garage rock bands and playing “post hardcore” music with friends. In his early 30s, he began experimenting with folk influences, and before moving…
Small town, big heart: Ruben Espinoza creates a new mural in Guadalupe
Artist Ruben Espinoza faced a bigger challenge than usual when working on his latest mural. As part of the Squire Foundation’s Artist in Residence Program, Espinoza was tasked with installing a brand new mural on the side of the building that once housed the historic Far Western Tavern in Guadalupe, now located in Old Town…
Spotlight on: Quilting Angels
The long-arm sewing machine gives off a high-pitched whine as Janie Walker adjusts her nearly completed quilt beneath a two-inch steel needle. “What I’m doing is pretty much putting together a sandwich,” she says. Walker’s fingers deftly glide across the quilt’s surface, below is a layer of padding, which is protected by two sides of…
‘Totally exhausted’: Santa Maria dips into reserve funds to balance budget
Santa Maria has a balanced budget for its next two fiscal years, but the equilibrium came at the cost of millions of dollars in precious funds usually reserved for times of economic instability. Officials say the move was necessary given the city’s growing pension payout obligations, which saw a spike of nearly $4 million in…
Lompoc city council places pot tax on November ballot
Lompoc residents will get to decide whether to pass a new tax on cannabis in the Nov. 6 general election following the adoption of two resolutions by its City Council on June 19, effectively reversing their decision this past March to not explore a ballot measure. At that time earlier this spring, Councilmember Jenelle Osborne…
PCPA presents comedy ‘Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike’
The Pacific Conservatory Theatre (PCPA) presents Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, a comedy by playwright Christopher Durang, opening June 28. In the play, three siblings reunite in the family’s Bucks County, Pennsylvania, home. Vanya and Sonia bicker and pine about the dashed dreams and squandered hopes of their lives while their fortune-telling maid…
Theodore American
President Theodore Roosevelt’s thoughts in 1907 on being an American should be our motto for all newcomers today, as follows: “In the first place, we should insist that if the immigrant who comes here in good faith becomes an American and assimilates himself to us, he shall be treated on an exact equality with everyone…
Support jobs in Santa Barbara County
It’s been rough going lately for working people in the Santa Maria area. According to the California Employment Development Department, the unemployment rate here is 6.3 percent–80 percent higher than the average for Santa Barbara County. So it’s good news when opportunities for well-paying jobs with good benefits come along, especially when they don’t necessarily…
Cancer survivors don’t discriminate
Cancer impacts people and families from all walks of life, and all races, religions, and political persuasions, including my own family. Treatment is difficult and expensive, and far too few resources are available to support the doctors, health care providers, and facilities that care for patients battling this terrible disease. So when community members step…
Trump’s not a Republican
Steeped in blatant lies, outrageous hyperbole, and just plain nonsense, Donald Trump severely degrades the office of the presidency and lessens worldwide respect for the United States. First, there’s the corruption. Ulysses Grant, Warren Harding, and Richard Nixon, heretofore considered the most corrupt presidents in American history, must be celebrating Trump. Look no further than…
Embrace the change
And then, there were two. Is anyone else excited to see another young, Hispanic professional stepping up to the plate to run for Santa Maria City Council? Local nonprofit manager Gloria Soto is running to fill Jack Boysen’s soon-to-be-vacated District 3 seat, and I must admit, I’m all aflutter! It’s not just that she’s young…
Orcutt National Brewers
After months of intensive practice, the Orcutt National Brewers put their skills to good use on the baseball diamond not once, not twice, but three times this season, taking home three little league championship titles. The Brewers–self-titled the Brew Crew–ended their season with 18 wins, three losses, and one tie game. “I’m just really proud…
Schools await Governor’s approval of $300 million for career tech education
Since the Santa Maria Joint Union High School District was awarded $2 million through the state’s Career Technical Education (CTE) Incentive Grant in 2016, it has transformed the way local high schools educate. The district was able to add a multitude of career-oriented courses, improve its existing pathways, and break ground on its new…
Hollister Ranch hearing set amid public backlash
Out of the hundreds of comments submitted to the California Coastal Commission regarding public access to Hollister Ranch, only a handful are positive. As of the Sun’s press time, more than 600 hundred public comments had been submitted to the commission, all but three of which were intensely critical of the deal that would limit…
Rep. Salud Carbajal visits border, child detention facility in Texas
On June 25, Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) visited the U.S.-Mexico border and a detention facility in Texas to assess the conditions that detained children were being held in and question the federal officials tasked with caring for them. Carbajal joined Rep. Jacky Rosen (D-Nevada) in crossing over the Paso del Norte Bridge into Cuidad…
