For 10 years, the Pacific Pride Foundation has offered youth programs, HIV and hepatitis C testing, and a syringe exchange program in Santa Maria. Those programs are about to be a little more easy to access following the opening of the foundation’s newest location at 123 S. College Drive.
The 17,000-square-foot space has several rooms dedicated to each of Pacific Pride’s programs.
“We’re dedicated to serving the entirety of Santa Barbara County, even beyond its border,” Executive Director Colette Schabram told the Sun.
Pacific Pride is headquartered in Santa Barbara, but Schabram said, “We are out and around in communities often and making sure that our other major city in the county [Santa Maria] has a physical office and presence is really important and key to us to make sure that our full county can access our programs. And also so that community and surrounding area has a landing spot that is convenient and drivable and walkable to where its people live, work, and are.”
Pacific Pride’s new office holds walk-in testing hours for free and anonymous HIV and hepatitis C tests along with the only syringe exchange program in the county every Wednesday from 4 to 6 p.m. Education about harm reduction, called PrEP, and opioid overdose prevention is given in the office individually and in presentations across the county in both English and Spanish. PrEP, or pre-exposure prophylaxis, is when people at very high risk of contracting HIV take HIV medicines daily to lower their chances of getting infected, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
The Santa Maria location already hosts several youth programs, Schabram said, including a monthly group for LGBTQ-plus youth ages 12 to 17 and their allies to connect, meet new friends, and find support. The group will meet every second Monday of the month and is run by a licensed therapist and youth specialists from Pacific Pride and includes guest speakers from the community.
The North County office will also host the (90) Days of Summer Program, a 10-week summer program in which youth advocate leaders “implement and co-lead a life skills-building curriculum.” After organizing and leading (90) Days of Summer, the leaders make a commitment to lead their Genders and Sexualities Alliance clubs at their individual schools.
Schabram said she thought the new location had great accessibility and would hopefully be a space the foundation could use for at least the next decade.
“We wanted to make sure it was something as many people as possible could access and that it was in our budget so it could be sustained for years to come,” Schabram said.
Community members can learn more about Pacific Pride’s North County programs and services by visiting pacificpridefoundation.org or by calling (805) 963-3636, Ext. 108.
“There’s been a rise in hate crimes and incidents throughout Santa Barbara County—and even nationally—over the last year,” Schabram said. “We’re fighting against that and the spread of HIV and Hep C, and we are committed to having a presence in Santa Maria and letting residents know that we are countywide and accountable for the community.”
Highlights:
• Fitch Ratings has affirmed its “AA” rating for Santa Maria’s Water and Wastewater Revenue Refinancing Bonds, according to a statement issued by the city on April 2. The stable rating outlook “reflects the agency’s opinion of the city’s strong financial profile, limited capital needs, and robust water supply,” the city stated. “The ratings agency observed that the city: Does not expect to issue any additional debt for capital needs, and will be funding the capital improvement plan projects on a pay-as-you-go basis; has a robust water supply through groundwater wells and imported supplies from the State Water Project; and a stable customer basis.”
• Homebridge Financial Services, a residential mortgage lender in Santa Maria, was recently highlighted by the city’s chamber of commerce. To learn more about their services, call (805) 900-0568 or visit homebridge.com/branch/santa-maria/.
Staff Writer Spencer Cole wrote this week’s Biz Spotlight. Information should be sent to the Sun via fax, mail, or email at spotlight@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Apr 5-12, 2018.