Cover Story

When Anna Ferguson-Sparks reached her late 20s without getting married, her mom told her she’d to have to start looking for a husband among men coming off of divorces. “That was not a very nice thing to say,” Anna said over the phone, laughing. But that was the attitude she—and many women—grew up with: The […]

The day Ivan Nunez turned 16 years old, he threw a party and invited family and friends to his house in the 500 block of West Hermosa Street. It was the day after Christmas. There was music and dancing in his backyard that evening and everyone was having a good time, except for Ivan. Without […]

Water flushes out from under the tires that roll south through Arroyo Grande Creek toward a wall of sand stacked 4 to 6 feet high on the other side. Nick Lalanne hits the gas pedal of his white Chevy to motor up the bank and park, overlooking something that hasn’t happened in several years. The […]

The dimly lit hallway seems to grow narrower as I pass through it, trying to ignore the balmy air’s musty stench. I fix my gaze on the grimy-looking floor as I step past a row of metal doors, barring inmates in their isolation cells. They bang on their windows, yelling at me and my escorting […]

Staying active is challenging in many ways, but for senior citizens, getting older compounds the predicament. It takes longer to recover from an illness; soreness and stiffness are a daily companion; and getting injured is a much more serious concern. But for some local seniors, the prospect of staying active isn’t a challenging one at […]

Young students can always use some help with homework, but sometimes their teachers need help too. Thanks to the Santa Barbara County Education Office’s Partners in Education, which oversees the Countywide Volunteer Program, students and businesses alike are able to get involved in the schools, meeting the needs of students, educators, and programs.   In […]

It all began with a Facebook post. In April 2014, Micci Robertson used the social media platform to share her personal story: She had miscarried three times, and wanted other mothers who’d gone through similar heartbreak to know she was there for them. Robertson lost her first two pregnancies, a boy and a girl, at […]

Volunteers appointed to the service of the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) are often paid, but then there are those who aren’t, like the men and women in the USCG Auxiliary.  Established by Congress in 1939, and then later re-designated in 1941, the auxilary supports all missions by the USCG except for direct law enforcement or […]

Between the holiday good will and cold weather, winter is a time when the plight of the homeless population is on our collective consciousness—even in sunny Santa Maria. As the rainfall increases, warming shelters spring up across Santa Barbara County for the season. But inside apartments and houses across the Central Coast, a different kind […]

Like countless hikers and horsemen, dog walkers and joggers, Doreen Lopez has been riding and hiking the trails through Nipomo’s eucalyptus groves and along its sandy bluffs for decades. Like untold numbers of property owners, Jim Harrington hoped to enjoy the peace and quiet of country living in the privacy of his own home. Today, […]

Let’s just get it out of the way: 2016 was rough, mostly thanks to that nasty election season. Regardless of whether the results worked in your favor, I’m sure most can agree we’re glad it’s over. It was a long and stressful road, on both national and local levels. Beyond the election, the Central Coast […]

Veterans dealing with trauma and stress have a variety of treatment options available to them, but despite its legality in some states—and some say, its superior effectiveness—marijuana is not one of those options.  Fred* deployed to Iraq with the U.S. Army’s 25th Infantry Division in 2008, and returned with trauma-induced mental health issues. Though he […]