Cover Stories
Holloway’s Christmas Tree Farm keeps business fresh with a family focus
It’s early and it smells like pine as Carl Holloway inches his John Deere tractor across the Nipomo property where his family has sold Christmas trees for decades now. Calling over the sound of the chugging engine, Holloway gives some direction to his two farmhands, local kids he’s hired to help him prepare for the…
It’s holiday time!
It’s the time of year again, when you dust off those boxes full of lights and tinsel and deck the halls with festive cheer. No matter how you celebrate the season, the Sun has your back with its annual Holiday Guide. Learn about an opportunity to make your own greetings cards, a Christmas tree farm…
SLO Jewish community to hold annual ‘Hanukkah Downtown’ in wake of Pittsburgh massacre
Mission San Luis Obispo may be best known as a landmark of Catholicism, but for eight nights in December, Mission Plaza transforms into an ecumenical hub. The 5-foot-tall wooden menorah holding burning candles stands right next to a towering lit-up Christmas tree. A “spin the dreidel” station is steps away from Santa Claus’ house. Traditional…
Christmas without kids
As difficult as it is to admit, I understand that holidays are mostly meant for young children. I don’t mean that fourth serving of your mother’s stuffing or that bowl of rum-heavy eggnog your uncle whips up every year. Clearly that’s the stuff we adults put up with all the insanity of the holidays for.…
Season’s greetings: Local workshops celebrate the art of holiday card crafting
There are only two kinds of people in this world—those that start listening to Christmas music after Halloween and those that wait until Thanksgiving is over. I’m a card-carrying member of the former, and I’m pretty sure most of the participants of Suzy McBride’s Stampin’ Up workshops are too. Well, at least the one I…
County supervisors hear report on Lompoc’s homeless triage center
The Lompoc homeless emergency shelter, or triage center, closed on Oct. 9 of this year but not before county social workers were able to assist some 70 affected individuals. According to Lompoc Police Capt. Deanna Clement, about half that number made what she called “positive moves.” At least three were relocated to permanent housing;…
Torta-tastic: Deli Delicias’ tortas are a big hit in a small space
Humberto Hernandez opened his first restaurant at the age of 16 in Jalisco, Mexico. He had spent the past five years learning to cook at home and working in kitchens and thought he was ready to take the next step. “We had a little bar and food,” he said. “It was hard because it was…
Local bands reunite for Thanksgiving Eve show featuring Joe Kidd and The Gash
The holiday season is the perfect time to get a band back together. First of all, everyone comes back to town for the holidays, so it’s easier to get people together for a show. That goes for both band members and the prospective audience, explained local singer-songwriter Joe Kidd, whose group Joe Kidd and The…
Former Central Coast journalist pens wine country thriller
The hills of San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara County are dotted with wine grapes as far as the eye can see. But in those twisted vines, former Santa Maria Times journalist Steve Corbett saw something more–a tale of bloody vengeance and even enlightenment. After five years of covering undocumented immigrants, outlaw bikers, the Michael…
Bold fold: Robert Salazar’s visionary origami work draws attention to conservation issues
Scrolling through Robert Salazar’s website yields some unusual finds. The artist, scientist, and activist, known for his intensely detailed origami works of art, has a lot going on besides folding paper. His website has tabs for “Research,” which lists projects such as Challenging Freshwater Scarcity with Solar Origami and Origami Inspired Transformers for a Lunar…
Tuesday surprises
It takes a lot to surprise this old bird, but the midterm elections on Nov. 6 did just that. Well, I wasn’t surprised by all of it. I rightly predicted (“Political exhaustion,” Nov. 8) that Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) would send his challenger Justin Fareed home, again, and help shore up the Democratic Party…
Business community eyes diversified approach to keeping and bringing “living wage” jobs to Santa Barbara County
It was a packed house at the Santa Ynez Valley Marriott on Nov. 8, and the topic at hand was jobs and how to bring more to Santa Barbara County. Business ranging from Pacific Coast Energy to Halsell Builders to communications giant Comcast shelled out $750 per table and $85 a plate to hear how…
Santa Barbara County firefighters, Sheriff’s Office help with fires
California is under a fiery siege, and emergency responders across the state and country have been dispatched in large numbers to stem the flaming tide. Santa Barbara County Fire sent a team of two engines on Nov. 9 to the 125,000-acre Camp Fire in Northern California. As of Nov. 13, the blaze had claimed more…
Guadalupe takes input on LeRoy Park repairs at community workshop
After a workshop on Nov. 11 where Guadalupe community members discussed the needs and future of LeRoy Park, it’s back to the drawing board for city staffers working to lay out plans for the park’s coming $4.5 million rehabilitation. Roughly 60 residents filled Guadalupe City Hall on Sunday to take part in the workshop, according…
Jarred Torres
Lompoc High School’s water polo team might not even exist today if it weren’t for senior Jarred Torres. Torres, who started playing water polo his freshman year, according to head coach Carl Thacker, has always been a committed athlete. But Torres went above and beyond last school year, when Lompoc High School officials failed to…
Great balls of fire: Krider suffers some technical difficulties on the racetrack
Even though I am a grown-ass man I still like to play with cars. As a little boy all I wanted to be when I grew up was a race car driver. It was a dream I never let go of. So, whenever the schedule will allow me to (for the record, my wife, whom…
New York City gallery features Orcutt artist
Local artist Lori Mole is featured in a new exhibit at the Amsterdam Whitney Gallery in New York City. The exhibit, titled Moulin Rouge Thanksgiving, features work celebrating the autumn season and November holiday. Mole, who recently moved to Orcutt, has a background in graphic design, art, and music. She was active in the arts…
Santa Maria Civic Theatre presents Boy
The latest production from the Santa Maria Civic Theatre is Boy, inspired by a true story. The play explores issues of sexual identity and falling in love as well as the complex bonds between a doctor and patient. Set in the 1960s, the play follows the story of a doctor who, after an accident, convinces…
Betteravia Gallery hosts Santa Barbara Printmakers juried exhibition
The Santa Barbara County Office of Arts and Culture presents a juried exhibit of the Santa Barbara Printmakers (SBP) at the Betteravia Gallery in Santa Maria through April 30. The SBP is a collective of 75 artists who exhibit works made with hand and press printing techniques such as lithography, screen printing, linocut, photopolymer plates,…
Hancock undervalues jazz
Thursday night is my favorite night of the week! Why? Because that is the night that I join other musicians from all over the Central Coast in performing jazz in the Allan Hancock College Jazz Ensemble. Last Thursday night we learned that Hancock’s Department of Fine Arts is canceling the Jazz Ensemble for Spring 2019…
The folly of nationalism
I once read a bestselling novel about the Great War called The Guns of August by Barbara Tuchman. The author vividly describes the horrors of the costly and tragic conflict; however, she also provides invaluable historical context that ultimately reveals the underlying rot of nationalism. Not only was the Great War a failure in American…
Our water is at risk
If we want to continue to have clean water for drinking and ag use, we need to step up. A company called ERG is planning a huge increase in oil production between Los Alamos and Santa Maria. These hundreds of oil wells would require a large amount of natural gas to power the steam generator…
My visit to the DMV
A couple of weeks ago I got a letter from the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) that required me to take a written driver’s test in order to renew my license. You see I am old, and I guess they wanted to make sure I still knew the rules after more than 50 years of…
Political Watch 11/15/18
• Santa Barbara County released its first post-election update on Nov. 9, updating vote counts for the Nov. 6 midterm elections. As of press time, approximately 56,000 ballots remained to be counted, but 101,501 were tallied of the county’s 217,417 registered voters. The total votes exceed a 70 percent turnout. That’s compared to a 57…
In the aftermath: Local Cal Lutheran students and parents reunite in wake of mass shooting, wildfire threat
Kaitlyn Domingues had been asleep for less than an hour in her Cal Lutheran dorm room on Nov. 7 when she woke up to a phone notification. It was a text from a friend, Domingues told the Sun, and her first indication that something was wrong. “It was at 11:45 [p.m.], so right after it…
Hancock’s new ag club announces plans for trip to Sacramento
Allan Hancock College has a new club for students hoping to learn more about the local agricultural industry and legislation that affects it. The Young Farmers and Ranchers Club became an officially recognized college group on Hancock’s campus just this fall, according to Hancock ag instructor Erin Krier, who spent nearly a year working to…
Community Colleges chancellor visits Hancock to discuss system-wide changes
Community colleges throughout California have seen big, systematic changes in the last two years, and while many of those are still being implemented, even more are coming. In an effort to ease some of the “angst” spurred by recent modifications to the California Community Colleges system’s goals, funding formula, and student placement assessments, Chancellor Eloy…
Spotlight on: Lompoc Valley Medical Center
Changes are coming to Lompoc’s health care industry. On Aug. 24, Lompoc Valley Medical Center (LVMC) announced the planned acquisition of the Lompoc Sansum Clinic and its 14-year-old building. A spokesperson said the medical center held an informational discussion on Nov. 13 with its CEO, Jim Raggio. The event, held at the Ocean’s Seven Cafe…
