Santa Barbara Independent 1/29/26

BY LESLIE DINABERG & JOSEF WOODARD

Santa Barbara

Brunner’s Radiant Solitude

About Art, Inspiration, and Growing Up in S.B.

Draws Hundreds, Celebrity Couple

Sharon Reeg in Minneapolis Administration over Sable Pipeline Restart

MeNU

February 14, 2026

FirST

Lobster Ravioli

Parmesan Emulsion, Confit Fennel, Lobster Bisque, Elysium Blossom

Chestnut Gnocchi

Local Chanterelle, Mushroom Velouté, Crispy Sunchoke

Japanese A5 Wagyu

•

•

•

•

•

Black Garlic Jus, Satsuma Marmalade, Pickled Mustard Seed

secoNd

Scallop Crudo

Blood Orange Shiro Dashi, Radicchio, Sicilian Pistachio

Golden Beet Carpaccio

Cara Cara, Herbed Chèvre, Red Rhône Lettuce

Sauternes Poached Pear

Bleu d’Auvergne, Winter Greens, Payne Walnuts

SRF Wagyu Eye of Ribeye

Potato Rösti, Sweet Onion Soubise, Mustard Greens, Morel Mushrooms

Pan-Seared John Dory

Fennel Mascarpone Risotto, Confit Tomato, Lucques Olives, Saffron Velouté

Coffee-Spiced New Zealand Venison Loin

Pickled Red Cabbage, Ginger & Carrot Purée, Pomegranate Jus

ThirD fOURtH

Berries Pavlova

Lemon Cream, Meringue Pavlova, Lemon Confit, Diplomate, Local Strawberries

Valrhona Chocolate Blood Orange

Chocolate Palet, Valrhona Cacao Biscuit, Chocolate Crémeux, Orange Marmalade, Rhum Sabayon

•

•

•

•

Sustainable Heart

Sustainable Heart

Sustainable Heart

Sustainable Heart ~ Transformational Life Counseling ~

Sustainable Heart ~ Transformational Life Counseling ~

~ Transformational Life Counseling ~

~ Transformational Life Counseling ~

Sustainable Heart ~ Transformational Life Counseling ~

Counseling ~

Relationships • Occupation and Career • Meditation

Relationships • Occupation and Career • Meditation

Relationships • Occupation and Career • Meditation

Relationships • Occupation and Career • Meditation

Grief and Loss

Relationships • Occupation and Career • Meditation

Grief and Loss

• Major Life Transitions • Anxiety

Grief and Loss

• Major Life Transitions • Anxiety

Grief and Loss • Major Life Transitions • Anxiety

Grief and Loss

Grief and Loss

• Major Life Transitions • Anxiety

Spiritual Issues • Communication

• Major Life Transitions • Anxiety

Spiritual Issues • Communication • Conflict

• Major Life Transitions • Anxiety

• Conflict

Spiritual Issues • Communication • Conflict

Spiritual Issues • Communication • Conflict

Spiritual Issues • Communication • Conflict

Michael H Kreitsek, MA

Michael H Kreitsek, MA

Michael H Kreitsek, MA

Michael H Kreitsek, MA

Michael H Kreitsek, MA

Transpersonal Counseling Psychology

Michael H Kreitsek, MA

Transpersonal Counseling Psychology

Transpersonal Counseling Psychology

Transpersonal Counseling Psychology

Transpersonal Counseling Psychology www.sustainableheart.com

Transpersonal Counseling Psychology

Counseling From a Buddhist Perspective 805 698-0286

Counseling From a Buddhist Perspective 805 698-0286

Counseling with Wisdom and Compassion 805 698-0286

Counseling with Wisdom and Compassion 805 698-0286

Counseling From a Buddhist Perspective 805 698-0286

Counseling From a Buddhist Perspective 805 698-0286

Mindful Support for Uncertain Times 805-698-0286

“Drawing on her formidable range of vocal color, DiDonato captures the drama within each song, and across the cycle.”

The Guardian (U.K.)

“With their staggering technique and freewheeling genre-crossing, it’s hard not to be swept up in the force of their contagious energy.”

NPR on Time for Three

“The dancers and musicians manage to combine a high-gloss finish with a convincing air of spontaneous excitement.”

The Independent (U.K.)

“Sheer physical energy and beauty.”

Joyce DiDonato, mezzo-soprano

Time for Three

Emily – No Prisoner Be

Thu, Feb 5 / 7 PM / Granada Theatre

FREE for all students (with valid ID)

“Liu can do the impeccable glitter, but his playing is more than pyrotechnics. It is powerful, polished, and emanates from a disciplined mind.”

The Telegram

Winner of the International Chopin Piano Competition

Bruce Liu

Thu, Feb 12 / 7 PM / UCSB Campbell Hall Program includes:

Ligeti, Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, Ravel, Albéniz and Liszt

Les Ballets Africains

Fri, Feb 6 / 7:30 PM / Granada Theatre

Taj Mahal and Patty Griffin

Tue, Feb 17 / 7:30 PM / Arlington Theatre

“A multi-instrumentalist wizard… While often described as a blues musician, he’s more of an international griot.” Datebook on Taj Mahal

“Sometimes with tenderness, with family and loss, sometimes with fierce poignant critique, her wordplay is profound, challenging and unrivaled.” – Robert Plant on Patty Griffin

Dinaberg Calendar Editor Terry Ortega

Isabella Venegas News Reporters Ryan P. Cruz, Callie Fausey, Ella Heydenfeldt Senior Arts Writer Josef Woodard Mickey Flacks Fund Fellow Christina McDermott Assistant Editor Tiana Molony

Copy Chief Tessa Reeg Copy Editor Nathan Vived Sports Editor Victor Bryant

Web Content Manager Don Brubaker Social Media Coordinator Maya Johnson

Food Writer George Yatchisin Travel Writers Macduff Everton, Mary Heebner

Art Director Xavier Pereyra Associate Production Manager Bianca Castro Graphic Designers Leah Brewer, Diego Melgoza

Columnists Dennis Allen, Gail Arnold, Sara Caputo, Christine S. Cowles, Laura Gransberry, Betsy J. Green, Shannon Kelley, Austin Lampson, Melinda Palacio, Cheri Rae, Hugh Ranson, Amy Ramos, Starshine Roshell

Contributors Ingrid Bostrom, Rob Brezsny, Cynthia Carbone Ward, Ben Ciccati, Cheryl Crabtree, John Dickson, Roger Durling, Camille Garcia, Chuck Graham, Keith Hamm, Rebecca Horrigan, Gareth Kelly, Kevin McKiernan, Zoë Schiffer, David Starkey, Ethan Stewart, Brian Tanguay, Tom Tomorrow, Kevin Tran, Jatila Van der Veen, Isabelle Walker, Maggie Yates, John Zant

Director of Advertising Sarah Sinclair Marketing and Promotions Administrator Richelle Boyd

Advertising Representatives Suzanne Cloutier, Bryce Eller, Ariana Hugo, Tonea Songer, Scott Maio

Digital Marketing Specialist Graham Brown Business Operations and Accounting Manager Erin Lynch

Office Manager/Legal Advertising Tanya Spears Guiliacci Distribution Gregory Hall Interns Alice Dehghanzadeh, Nataschia Hadley, Nestor Manzanares, Madeline Slogoff, Emily Vesper Columnist Emeritus Barney Brantingham Photography Editor Emeritus Paul Wellman

Founding Staff Emeriti George Delmerico, Richard Evans, Camille Cimini Fruin, Laszlo Hodosy, Scott Kaufman Honorary Consigliere Gary J. Hill IndyKids Bella and Max Brown; Elijah Lee, Amaya Nicole, and William Gene Bryant; Henry and John Poett Campbell; Emilia Imojean Friedman; Rowan Gould; Finley James Hayden; Ivy Danielle Ireland; Madeline Rose and Mason Carrington Kettmann

Print subscriptions are available, paid in advance, for $120 per year. Send subscription requests with name and address to subscriptions@independent.com. The contents of the Independent are copyrighted 2026 by the Santa Barbara Independent, Inc. No part may be reproduced without permission from the publisher. The publisher assumes no responsibility for unsolicited material. A stamped, self-addressed envelope must accompany all submissions expected to be returned. The Independent is available on the internet at independent.com. Press run of the Independent is 25,000 copies. Audited certification of

(805) 965-5205; FAX (805) 965-5518

EMAIL news@independent.com,letters@independent.com,advertising@independent.com Staff email addresses can be found at independent.com/about-us

We are sad to announce the death of Rick Grand-Jean, one of the founders of the Santa Barbara Independent. From the very beginning, he was a steady influence, a ready and trusted advisor who served on our board of directors for more than two decades. Throughout these 40 years of the Independent, Rick stood as an outspoken supporter of editorial independence, committed to the importance of local news. He cheered us on in tough times and always congratulated us in the good times. He was, in fact, a stand-up guy, and we will miss him. Read his obituary at Independent.com or on page 17 of this issue.

—Marianne Partridge, Editor-in-Chief

SPONSOR: ESPERIA FOUNDATION

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2026

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2026

Paolo Tagliamento, violin soloist Giacomo Catana, orchestra leader

Celebrate Venice’s glittering Carnivale with the Venice Baroque Orchestra and violinist Paolo Tagliamento. Their spirited program, “A Venetian Duel of Bows,” rekindles the rivalry and virtuosity of 18th-century masters—Vivaldi, Veracini, Tartini and Locatelli— transporting you to a world of fiery cadenzas, shimmering strings and dazzling showpieces. 7:30 PM · Lobero Theatre 7:30 PM · Lobero Theatre

Seven-time Grammy®-winning pianist Emanuel Ax returns to Masterseries with a fascinating program centered on the theme of fantasy. A champion of both the core repertoire and new music, Ax showcases the depth and warmth that have made him one of the most beloved artists of our time.

Country

Join us in the store as we host author Brian Schaefer for his debut novel!

Town & Country is a “big-hearted and true” novel set in a small rural town amid a congressional race that forces the candidates, their families, and a clique of gay second homeowners to confront lies, betrayals and shifting allegiances.

A kaleidoscopic portrait of a community in flux. For readers of Fredrick Backman and Jen Beagin, this book asks the essential and timeless questions: What makes a home, and what do we owe our neighbors?

A 2025 Most Anticipated Book: • LGBTQReads • Kirkus Reviews •

JAN. 22-29, 2026

NEWS of the WEEK

by RYAN P. CRUZ, CALLIE FAUSEY, JACKSON FRIEDMAN, TYLER HAYDEN, ELLA HEYDENFELDT, CHRISTINA McDERMOTT,

Vigil for Minneapolis Shooting Victims Draws Hundreds, Celebrity Couple

Hundreds of people including celebrity couple Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi (pictured right) gathered Monday evening in front of the Dolphin Fountain at Stearns Wharf for a candlelight vigil to mourn the deaths of Renee Nicole Good and Alex Jeffrey Pretti, two U.S. citizens shot and killed this month by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis.

Good, a mother of three, was killed by an ICE agent on January 7 during a traffic encounter on a residential street in Minneapolis. Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse for the VA, was killed by U.S. Border Patrol officers on January 24. Multiple videos of Saturday’s incident contradict the Trump administration’s claim that Pretti approached federal agents with a handgun intending to carry out a mass shooting.

Organized by Indivisible Santa Barbara, Monday night’s vigil came two days after a related demonstration Saturday morning along upper State Street and another vigil that evening at the County Courthouse, where a similar vigil was held following Good’s death.

“This is about giving people space to grieve together,” said Ian Paige, a member of Indivisible Santa Barbara’s steering committee, of Monday’s vigil. “To be with one another, to acknowledge the loss, and to understand that we don’t have to carry this alone.”

COURTS & CRIME

There were no speeches, outside of a brief call-and-response recitation of words attributed to Alex Pretti: “Today we remember that freedom is not free. We have to work at it, nurture it, protect it, and even sacrifice for it.”

The feeling was heavy but warm. People meandered through the crowd of around 800, asking one another how they were doing and handing out candles. Among them were DeGeneres and de Rossi, who kept a low pro-

file, holding candles and talking quietly with people around them.

“We are out here to show that we care and this matters,” DeGeneres said. Monday night also marked her 68th birthday. “This is how I choose to spend it.”

—Ella Heydenfeldt

Read the full story and see more of Ingrid Bostrom’s photos at independent.com/news.

State Sues Trump Admin over Sable Pipeline Restart

Attorney General Says Federal Government

by Callie Fausey

California Attorney General Rob Bonta has thrown another punch in the state’s legal boxing match against Sable Offshore Corp. and the Trump administration.

In front of a gleaming backdrop of breaking waves on a Los Angeles beach to “show what’s at stake” Bonta announced on Friday that the state is suing to take back jurisdiction of the Las Flores oil pipelines, after the federal government ripped that jurisdiction from the hands of the State Fire Marshal and granted Sable an emergency permit to restart oil production along the Gaviota Coast.

One of the pipelines Sable is attempting to restart is the same one that infamously ruptured and leaked 142,000 gallons of oil into the ocean and the coastline in the 2015 Refugio Oil Spill. In its attempts to repair it, the Houston-based oil company has been hit with a number of roadblocks in the form of lawsuits, fines, and permitting denials from the county and the state.

With the state doing everything in its power to make Sable comply with its envi-

ronmental and safety regulations which Sable has treated more as an inconvenience than a hindrance, resulting in much regulatory pushback from state agencies such as the Coastal Commission Sable “went crying to Trump,” in Bonta’s words.

Sable was seeking the approval it needed to restart production, which the state was so stubbornly withholding. On October 22, the State Fire Marshal decided that Sable’s repair work on the corroded pipeline was not up to par, pushing any dreams of a restart much, much further down the line.

Sable turned to the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) to take back jurisdiction of the pipeline and grant it the approval it needed

to restart production from its Santa Ynez Unit including three offshore platforms and onshore oil and gas plant Sable bought from ExxonMobil in 2024 and pump it across the coast.

COUNTY

The Board of Supervisors passed a set of zoning ordinances and amendments on 1/27. The county says these amendments, which are phase two of three, will modernize the permitting process while still protecting the county’s characters and natural resources. Changes include increasing the height limit to 45 feet for residential areas with a density of 20 units per acre, creating exceptions to design reviews for some ADUs, and increasing the required open space for some projects. The new ordinances will grant the planning director, not planning commissions, the power to grant time exemptions.

ENVIRONMENT

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is proposing to open roughly 850,000 acres across Central California to new oil drilling and fracking, nearly half of which are public lands, including parks, beaches, and wildlife habitat, the agency announced this month. Environmental groups warn that sensitive areas are in the line of fire, including a 40-acre parcel located within 2,000 feet of Cate School in Carpinteria, a 42-acre public park in Lompoc, and land bordering Lake Cachuma. The outcry follows the BLM’s release of an updated study that maps out where oil and gas development could occur and assesses its potential impacts. With the study now released, the BLM is on track to approve its drilling and fracking plan later this year. Public input is being accepted through 3/6.

TRANSPORTATION

Travelers will encounter the intermittent closure of both directions of State Route 154 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. this week as Caltrans conducts emergency maintenance between Painted Cave Road and Camino Cielo Road. Working behind traffic control, crews will clear catchment areas and repair anchors and rock fences, which filled up with debris after early winter storms, and loosen larger material above the roadway to ensure that these important safety features will be serviceable during other storms this winter. U.S. 101 remains a viable alternate route for travel between Los Olivos and Santa Barbara. The project is expected to be complete by February 2026.

PUBLIC SAFETY

Ocean water contact at East Beach near Mission Creek is once again allowed after county health officials lifted the closure 1/23, nearly a month after a Christmas Eve sewage spill sent approximately 4,500 gallons of untreated waste into the creek and out to sea. According to the County of Santa Barbara Health, recent ocean water quality testing confirmed that bacteria levels have fallen below state health standards, clearing the area for recreational use. Residents can track current conditions and learn more about water quality efforts at sbprojectcleanwater.org.

Jonathan Lundahl, 65, died 1/22 after being found unresponsive in his single-person cell in the county’s Main Jail and transported to a local hospital, where he later went into cardiac arrest, according to the Sheriff’s Office. “Preliminarily, this death appears to be the result of natural causes; however, a full death investigation is underway to determine an official cause and manner,” the Sheriff’s Office said. An administrative investigation is also being conducted, in accordance with department policy. Lundahl had been in custody since September 2025 on a felony allegation of elder abuse.

Two Convicted in Double Homicide

ASanta Barbara jury has convicted two members of the small but particularly violent Carpas street gang of murder in the January 2021 shooting that claimed the lives of two teens. After a two-month trial and a full week of deliberations, the jury found Angel Varela, 31, and Oscar Trujillo-Gutierrez, 29, each guilty of two counts of first-degree murder. They face life in prison without parole. The pair was also found guilty of the attempted murder of two additional victims, both of whom were critically wounded in the lower Eastside shooting but survived.

In a separate, bifurcated trial, the jury found Varela and Trujillo-Gutierrez had committed the murders as active members of the Carpas gang, which claims the city of Carpinteria as its territory and whose feuds with Santa Barbara rivals stretch back decades. In addition, they were convicted of felony assault for attacking fellow inmates at the county jail while awaiting trial.

The Sunday-afternoon shooting took place at the intersection of Liberty and Canada streets, with Varela and TrujilloGutierrez opening fire with semiautomatic weapons at a group of people. Angel Castillo, 17, and Omar Montiel, 18, were fatally struck. Castillo was shot in the back as he fled. None of the victims fired back.

Friends and family described Castillo as

HOUSING

someone with dreams of one day owning his own auto body shop. Montiel-Hernandez, who had recently graduated from Santa Barbara High School, was “a great big brother who looked out for his younger siblings,” his family said.

At the time, authorities publicly stated that Varela and Trujillo-Gutierrez had “attacked a group of rival gang members.” But in an interview with the Independent, Rita Castillo, Castillo’s mother, emphatically denied her son had any involvement with gangs. She was 17 years old when she gave birth to Angel. “We kind of grew up together,” she said in the interview. As a child, Angel was calm, sweet, and shy. “He had the best smile,” she said. “Everyone would say, ‘Yeah, I remember his smile.’ ” Sentencing is set for March 24 in Department 12 of Santa Barbara Superior Court.

—Tyler Hayden

Council Adopts Rent Freeze

The Santa Barbara City Council officially adopted a temporary moratorium on rent increases in a 4-3 vote on Tuesday. The pause on rent increases will go into effect in late February, and will last through the end of the year or until the city approves a permanent rent stabilization ordinance.

The temporary rent freeze was previously discussed and moved forward with the same 4-3 margin after a lengthy hearing packed with landlords and tenants on January 13.

At Tuesday’s meeting, the item was pulled from the council’s consent agenda to allow for some last-minute public comments and council deliberation.

Councilmember Mike Jordan, one of three to vote against the moratorium, said he had concerns about unanswered questions in the ordinance and messaging to the public on policy changes. “I think there’s work to do there,” he said.

Councilmember Kristen Sneddon wanted to make sure the city prioritized public messaging by providing updated information on which property owners would be affected by the temporary moratorium. This would include a “Frequently Asked Questions” page which is already in the works and a clear list of what units would be exempt, such as single-family homes and any units built after 1995.

Sneddon said she had already met with many housing providers and other groups

to start drafting ideas for the permanent ordinance and emphasized that this was not a permanent freeze on rent but “just a very temporary moratorium on increases while we can collect and establish all of these really meaningful and good ideas to be able to protect the local, small-scale property owners and tenants.”

Mayor Randy Rowse voted against the moratorium and said he worried the city was making a major economic decision that broadly applied to a large group of property owners without consideration of individual circumstances. He asked the council to wait until there was a better understanding of how many units and tenants would be affected by the moratorium. “We do not have the facts,” he said.

Councilmember Wendy Santamaria has been one of the most vocal supporters of rent stabilization, and she said the temporary pause on rent increases was necessary to allow the city to draft the permanent ordinance. “I don’t see the option of sitting idly by, and not voting on this, and not taking a stand on this issue,” Santamaria said.

The temporary rent moratorium will go into effect on February 27, 2026, and is expected to last through December 31. The city will provide updates on the development of a permanent rent stabilization ordinance on its website. —Ryan P.Cruz

S.B.’s First Chumash Harbor Commissioner

Santa Barbara’s newest Harbor Commissioner Spenser Jaimes took his seat on the dais with a big smile across his face during his first official meeting after being appointed on January 15. A group of family, friends, and members of the Chumash community sat in the crowd watching with pride as he was introduced, becoming the city’s firstever Indigenous representative on the commission.

Jaimes, a 23-year-old Indigenous rights advocate, waterman, and descendent of the Coastal Band of the Chumash Nation, was selected by Santa Barbara City Council out of 13 applicants, earning the support of Councilmembers Meagan Harmon, Wendy Santamaria, Kristen Sneddon, and Oscar Gutierrez. He will serve on the commission until January 2029.

Jaimes traces his Šmuwič Chumash family roots to before the region was even called Santa Barbara, when the waterfront was known as the village of Syuxtun. In his first remarks as a member of the commission, Jaimes shared his memories of joining his family for paddle-outs in the traditional redwood plank tomols, and the deep connection it created with the harbor.

“Growing up in Santa Barbara, the waterfront was never something separate from

To accomplish this, on December 17, PHMSA declared the onshore pipeline an interstate pipeline (meaning it crosses state boundaries), placing it under federal oversight, despite it never leaving the state of California effectively negating PHMSA’s 2015 determination that it was an intrastate pipeline under California authority. A few days later, it also granted Sable an emergency start-up permit, despite the protests of environmental groups.

This declaration, bolstered by the administration’s “bogus National Energy Emergency,” Bonta argued, was far more than stretching the truth. It was a “fallacy,” a blatant disregard of the truth saying the pipeline crossed state lines when that is not the case to benefit the oil industry, in the pocket of which Trump is comfortably perched, Bonta charged. And that was categorically unlawful, he said.

Bonta said the lawsuit is not about whether oil should be able to run through the pipelines or not, but about who gets to decide the president or the state of California. He wants to get the “right” jurisdiction in place, he said. And he’s moving forward with the lawsuit to get ahead of federal approvals the “sham” emergency permit, Bonta called it that would allow Sable to restart production under Trump’s not-so-watchful eye.

Filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, Bonta’s petition for review challenges PHMSA’s

our daily life,” Jaimes said. “It was not a backdrop; it was a teacher to not only me, but to our whole community and our family.”

Jaimes says he learned to love the rituals of loading up the tomol and then greeting all the familiar faces from the harbor kiosks to the marina and the launch ramp. He carries on the tradition to today, maintaining the tomols and organizing regular community paddle-outs. Over the past several years, Jaimes has emerged as a young leader in the community, traveling the world as an Indigenous advocate, reviving Chumash diving practices, and serving as a boardmember with the Museum of Contemporary Art Santa Barbara. Now, Jaimes hopes to continue his work in his new capacity as harbor commissioner. —Ryan P.Cruz

COMMUNITY

Student Athlete Levels Playing Field

Astudent-led initiative is making sports more accessible to Santa Barbara–area youth. Ready Set Play Sports, founded and led by Dos Pueblos High School junior Johnny Duffy, held its first sports equipment donation drive last week, with the intention of distributing the lightly used gear for free.

“I really want to level the playing field and make it more accessible, because sports have really benefitted me since an early age, both mentally and physically, and so just making that opportunity more available to everyone is really important to me,” Duffy said.

Last week, community members dropped off baseball bats, tennis rackets, lacrosse sticks, cleats, and more in red donation bins located at Dos Pueblos High School and Goleta Valley Junior High School. Duffy and several other students then cleaned and refurbished the equipment. This past weekend, they organized the first of what they hope will be many redistribution events.

On Saturday morning, local families picked up the equipment at no cost at Goleta Valley. On Sunday, January 25, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., youth and their families picked up more free gear in the Dos Pueblos parking lot.

Duffy says he was inspired to develop the project after seeing peers struggle with financial barriers around athletics. “A lot of people resort to high school sports because the club fees are astronomical,” he

ENVIRONMENT

attempt to evade state regulation and usurp California’s authority, his office said. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of the Office of the State Fire Marshal, argues that PHMSA’s orders violate the Administrative Procedure Act and asks that the Court overturn PHMSA’s “illegal” orders. It marks Bonta’s 55th lawsuit against the Trump administration.

“The Office of the State Fire Marshal is committed to its mission to protect the people, property, and natural resources of California,” said State Fire Marshal Daniel Berlant in a statement. “Our team has worked diligently to uphold the terms of the consent decree and ensure the safety of [the Las Flores oil pipelines].”

Santa Barbara County’s assemblymember, Gregg Hart, commended the Attorney General for his action to “protect our coastline, our communities, and our economy.”

“The State of California will not allow Sable nor the Trump administration to come to California, ignore our laws, and expect to get away with it,” Hart said. “The people of the Central Coast have been clear: we do not want another oil spill. This legal action is about accountability, safety, and making sure that decisions affecting our coast are made through a public process not behind closed doors in Washington.”

The Independent reached out to Sable Offshore Corp. for comment but did not receive a response by press time. n

said. “I mean, you can see club fees just for yearly participation within the program are upward of $3,000 a year, not even including gear and tournament fees and everything else. So, for some people, it’s really just not very feasible for them to get involved in the sports they want to be at the level that they want to be.”

Any unclaimed gear will be sold to Play It Again Sports, said Duffy. He plans to use the proceeds to create a college scholarship for a Santa Barbara County studentathlete. Ready Set Play Sports will host another donation drive later in the semester. —EmilyVesper

Greenhouse-Gas Goals Unreachable?

In the past five years, greenhouse-gas emissions throughout Santa Barbara County increased by one percent despite two major planning initiatives launched by the county supervisors to bring such emissions down by 50 percent by the year 2030. County sustainability planners yoked to the task of reducing these emissions conceded there was little hope the 50 percent goal could be achieved by 2030.

Supervisors Joan Hartmann and Laura Capps sought to put a brave face on the numbers, noting that the increase in greenhouse gases would have been significantly higher absent the county’s green-minded exertions. Supervisor Roy Lee observed optimistically that four of the county’s five supervisors now drove electric vehicles.

More fatalistic, Supervisor Steve Lavagnino stated, “Americans are addicted to convenience. That’s what we do.” He described getting stranded without juice

after having rented an electric car during a recent trip to Phoenix where the dearth of charging stations was inconvenient in the extreme.

Supervisor Hartmann, for whom climate change is of paramount importance, noted that China is now filling the global void in cheap electric vehicles. Donald Trump, she said, abdicated what could have been a lucrative market to Chinese manufacturers because of his hostility to EV. Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill decimated EV subsidies.

Michael Chiacos with the Community Environmental Council said the numbers were better than they looked at first blush. Non-residential natural gas use declined by 30 percent, he said, and emissions produced by the internal combustion engine dropped by 8 percent. County stats indicate total fuel sales dropped significantly since the peak of 2018.

While such sales have climbed back somewhat, they still remain lower. Onshore oil well production countywide dropped by 26 percent, but associated emissions declined only by 13 percent. That discrepancy might be explained because companies generating less than 10,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide are not required to report such emissions to the state.

While individual supervisors disagreed over what to make of these numbers, they voted unanimously to accept the report.

—Nick Welsh

Now Accepti ng Applications for hom e repai rs!

‘ICE Not Welcome Here’

SBCC to Strengthen Policies in Response to Feds on Campus

by Ryan P. Cruz

When federal immigration enforcement used Santa Barbara City College’s parking lot as a staging ground before conducting an operation in the nearby Westside neighborhood on December 11, 2025, students in the library huddled in fear for about an hour before the school administration sent out an official message to the campus community.

By that time, volunteers with 805 UndocuFund’s Rapid Response Network had already sent an emergency alert confirming the presence of ICE on campus, and hotline operators reported taking a flood of calls from students afraid to leave the library out of fear of running into masked federal agents.

Leslie Marin-Juarez, 805 UndocuFund Rapid Response Network coordinator, asked trustees to take concrete steps to ensure students feel secure without the fear of aggressive federal enforcement. She said working with the organizations on the front lines would help lead to policies guided by real-time experience and data.

“Collaboration with these groups is essential in ensuring that students can safely remain enrolled and complete their studies,” she said.

Many referenced the recent violence in Minneapolis and the increased rhetoric around immigration across the country. But local volunteers reminded the trustees that immigration enforcement was already creating real fear in Santa Barbara’s most vulnerable neighborhoods.

While no students were arrested on campus, SBCC officials confirmed that federal enforcement with FBI and ICE arrived at the West Campus parking lot shortly before 6 p.m. without any prior notification to the school. According to SBCC Executive Director of Public Affairs Jordan Killebrew, this is the first and only time ICE has used a California college as a staging area for immigration enforcement.

“It’s chilling, and heartbreaking, and so infuriating,” said Ellen Carey, a SBCC librarian and Rapid Response volunteer who has documented ICE arrests firsthand. “It’s completely different from watching it unfold from a distance or on a screen, and it’s happening regularly here in Santa Barbara.”

Later that week, community members and immigrant rights advocates showed up to the SBCC Board of Trustees hearing to voice their concerns about the incident and to demand that SBCC do more to protect students from immigration enforcement on campus.

Board Vice President Kyle Richards spoke strongly against the presence of ICE on campus, calling it “vile and shameful” activity that was disruptive and went against the college’s educational mission.

The board could not officially discuss the item during that hearing, so at its January 22 meeting, the Board of Trustees agendized a report on law enforcement on campus to discuss how SBCC could tighten up its policies to make students, staff, and faculty feel safe from immigration enforcement.

Board President Jonathan Abboud, who previously condemned the presence of ICE on campus, said school officials had met with members of community defense groups 805 UndocuFund and SBResiste to get their input prior to the meeting.

A large group of campus employees and community organizers spoke during public comment, urging the board to consider adopting a resolution drafted with the help of those who are organizing and documenting ICE activity on the ground.

“They are harming, terrorizing our friends, our neighbors, our colleagues, and our family members,” Richards said. “So let me say it clearly. No way, no how. ICE is not welcome here.”

Board President Abboud and Trustee Charlotte Gullap-Moore both spoke in support of making the campus safer for students. Gullap-Moore asked if the school could increase security at night, and Abboud said he would consider dipping into the reserves if necessary to address the needs.

The board unanimously voted to direct staff to return with a resolution on legal policies and procedures to ensure community coordination and safety for all on campus, “including those that are undocumented, in light of immigration actions on and around campus.” These could include policies preventing the use of parking lots or collaborations with local community defense groups. n

Massage Therapists Tense over New Regulations

Police Argue Updated Ordinance Needed to Curb Prostitution, Human Trafficking

by Tyler Hayden

When they were first proposed in November, updates to the Santa Barbara city ordinance that regulates massage therapists and businesses drew significant pushback from industry professionals who said the new rules would unfairly burden legitimate practitioners. Increased fees, unannounced inspections, and additional training requirements were among the changes that police argued are needed to comply with state law and to curb prostitution, human trafficking, and related criminal activity.

Since then, city officials have softened a handful of the suggested requirements for example, only conducting inspections based on complaints and lowering fees for sole proprietors but the remaining framework is still making some Santa Barbara practitioners tense. The ordinance has not been updated since its original passage in 1976.

“We all know where they are,” she said. “Just go get rid of them.”

COURTS & CRIME

“First off, I have to say I am pleased that they heard the public comment and have made changes to [the proposed ordinance],” said Kathy Gruver, who has been practicing in town since 2002. “But I think there is still a ways to go.”

Chief among Gruver’s concerns, which is shared by many of her colleagues, is a requirement that would force many therapists some of whom have been practicing for decades to go back to school. Practitioners were previously required to complete 250 hours of training to be certified through the California Massage Therapy Council. The new ordinance would increase that number to 500 hours.

“At this point in Santa Barbara, there are many experienced massage therapists who entered the profession when 250 hours was the standard, and they have completed thousands of hours of hands-on work,” said Pam Tanase, owner and operator of Massage Envy, at a recent Ordinance Committee meeting. “Requiring them to return to school for another 250 hours risks pushing skilled therapists out of the workforce.”

Phia Altman said the massage therapy school she attended in 1981 no longer exists. “I’m almost 67,” she said. “I’m closer to retiring. I don’t really want to have to go back to school at this point to do what I’ve been doing since the ’80s.” The ordinance originally mandated that therapists complete the extra hours by 2028, but the deadline has since been extended to 2029.

The new rules would also require all administrative staff at massage businesses to undergo Live Scan fingerprinting and background checks, a measure that police say is necessary to protect clients in vulnerable situations. Some critics worry, however, that the process could impact immigrant employees. Concerns also remain how the enhanced oversight would affect massage therapists who operate out of their homes.

Gruver has her doubts that the new regulations will truly address the illegal activity taking place at certain establishments. “My main concern is that nothing’s going to change,” she said. “Over a decade ago, I helped investigate these places in a neighboring city, and zero of them are shut down.” Gruver acknowledged the enforcement process can be “difficult and expensive,” but she also wondered why police can’t target businesses that are regularly suspected of prostitution.

Gruver pointed to websites that promote and review massage parlors where customers can receive “extra services.” The top two most active locations, according to the user-generated testimonials, are Asian Care Center on upper State Street and Chinese Dragon Massage on Calle Real. “It’s a sure thing,” wrote one of the reviewers. Both businesses declined to comment when reached by phone.

Commander Brian Miller with the SBPD noted the current ordinance has not been updated for 50 years and said it “is being reviewed with the goal of enhancing community safety and ensuring that all businesses in the city operate in compliance with current laws and regulations.” Miller said there are approximately 40 massage establishments and about 284 massage therapists operating within the city.

“It’s important to note that these figures do not account for any massage providers who may be operating without a business license,” Miller said. “One of the benefits that would result from updating the ordinance would be having the ability to have the exact number of massage therapists operating in the city.”

When asked how many enforcement actions police have carried out in recent years, Miller estimated the department has investigated “at least a dozen complaints” over the past three to five years. “It is difficult to pinpoint an exact number of actions taken,” he explained, “as they often come to the police department through various channels,” including tips, criminal complaints against individual service providers, or code enforcement and fire code violations related to living conditions.

“The Santa Barbara Police Department is continuing to conduct community outreach related to the proposed ordinance updates with the goal of gathering input to ensure the updates are in line with the needs and concerns of local residents and businesses,” Miller said.

At the recent Ordinance Committee meeting, Councilmember Oscar Gutierrez said more work is needed to finalize the new regulations. “After hearing the perspectives of the people that are going to be affected by this, it does seem unfair,” he said. “I’m just trying to find some kind of middle ground where we can come to an understanding of just making this a safer, law-abiding practice.” The ordinance is expected to go before the full City Council this spring. n

Los Angeles man Kayode “Kay” Agbolade Ogunba (pictured), 61, was arrested 1/20 on multiple felony charges after investigators say he sexually abused two vulnerable adult patients in November 2025 while working as a certified nursing assistant at a Goleta care home on South Patterson Road. Ogunba was booked into the county’s Main Jail and is being held on $100,000 bail. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges. Detectives learned that similar allegations involving Ogunba had previously been reported in the L.A. area and believe he may have worked as a CNA in other states including Washington and Texas within the past seven years. Detectives are releasing his booking photo and asking anyone who may have information or who believes they may have been victimized to contact Detective F. Arnoldi at (805) 681-4150 or leave an anonymous tip at sbsheriff.org or (805) 681-4171.

Santa Maria man Ernest James Lattimer, 79, was arrested and arraigned on multiple felony charges related to the sexual abuse of children, with investigators urging any additional survivors to come forward. He was arrested 1/22 at his current residence in the 3900 block of Chatham Way following an investigation that began in 2019, when survivors first reported sexual abuse that allegedly occurred at an in-home childcare facility in Santa Maria. Detectives say the abuse occurred between 1995 and 2012 at a daycare operated out of a home in the 800 block of Emerald Way. Lattimer’s spouse ran the daycare, though investigators said they do not believe she was criminally involved. Lattimer was booked into the Northern Branch Jail with bail set at $1 million. At his arraignment on 1/27, he pleaded not guilty to four counts of sex acts with a minor under the age of 10, three counts of oral copulation with a victim under 10, and 10 counts of lewd acts with a child under 10 years of age by force. Anyone with information can contact Detective M. Sosa at (805) 934-6170 or leave an anonymous tip at sbsheriff.org or (805) 681-4171.

S.B. man Jhonathan Duran-Carrasco, 20, was arrested 1/21 on suspicion of felony DUI and hit-and-run after police say he fled two separate traffic collisions on the Westside within minutes, leaving at least two people injured. According to the Santa Barbara Police Department, officers were first dispatched at approximately 9:17 p.m. to a reported two-vehicle hit-and-run at the intersection of Wentworth Avenue and West Cota Street that sent one person to the hospital. As officers were responding to the first accident, they were flagged down by a citizen near the intersection of San Pascual Street and Del Monte Avenue regarding a second collision, which resulted in injuries to one party who was treated at the scene. Officers were directed by a citizen to the suspect’s vehicle in the 600 block of Wentworth Avenue, where he was taken into custody on suspicion of felony DUI, felony hit-and-run, and committing a felony while out on bail.

S.B. police responded to a report of a stabbing on the first block of West Ortega Street at approximately 12:45 a.m. on 1/22. Upon arrival, officers found a victim suffering from an abdominal wound and immediately began providing medical aid. The victim was transported to Cottage Hospital, where they were treated for injuries that police described as non-life-threatening. Officers searched the surrounding area but were unable to locate a suspect. “Preliminary information suggests this attack was an isolated incident and there is no indication of an ongoing threat to the public,” police said in a media release. Detectives are actively investigating the incident. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact SBPD at (805) 897-8900.

Lompoc resident Ashlee Buzzard, who has been charged with the murder of her 9-year-old daughter, Melodee, appeared in court again on 1/21. At the hearing, Judge Stephen Dunkle extended the gag order prohibiting law enforcement from speaking about the case to the public for the duration of the trial and ordered that the search warrants and affidavits in Buzzard’s case, including the warrants and affidavits to search her house, her storage locker, her electronic devices, and her bank account, be made available to the defense but remain sealed for the public. Buzzard, who has pleaded not guilty to all charges and is being held without bail, is scheduled to appear in court again for another preliminary hearing setting on 2/11. n

The Path Ahead

As Americans, we share more common ground than we sometimes realize. We do not want war at home or abroad. We do not want armed officers killing our community members.

We live in a representative democracy; when we stand together and demand better, our leaders must listen if they want to remain in office. That’s the promise of our country, but it only works if we actively protect our rights.

We can disagree on policies and still agree on principles: that citizens should not be subjected to violence by the state, that foreign leaders should not be abducted, and that military escalation should not be the default solution. These are not fringe views; they are grounded in respect for human rights, the rule of law, and the Constitution.

Many voters supported the current administration because they believed promises to lower costs, reduce conflict, and put Americans first. This is not what is happening. When elected leaders’ actions diverge from campaign commitments, it is not disloyal to speak up it is a responsibility.

We must ALL stand up for our shared rights, or we risk losing them. No one should assume they are untouched by these issues. When armed agents act without accountability, when citizens are harmed and killed without consequence, the danger extends to every one of us regardless of what we look like or who we voted for.

The path ahead will be shaped by us: by our willingness to speak, to vote, to question, and to hold power accountable. If we stand together, we can reaffirm the country we want to live in: one defined not by fear and conflict, but by liberty, dignity, and justice.

Our rights are preserved only when we exercise them. Now is the time to do so.

—Kelsey Maloney, Carpinteria

Reopen State Street

As a small business owner who spends a significant amount of time downtown, I feel compelled to share my perspective on State Street because its current configuration directly affects my business and the overall health of the downtown economy.

I respectfully urge the City Council to reconsider reopening State Street to vehicular traffic

while a long-term vision is still being developed.

When State Street was closed during the pandemic to allow outdoor dining, the decision was understandable and necessary. Today, those circumstances no longer exist, yet State Street remains closed. If there is no fully formed plan ready to implement, why not reopen the street?

State Street has long been our main thoroughfare, a place where cars, pedestrians, cyclists, businesses, and visitors once coexisted and shared the experience of our city. Giving up this central artery to create one long, continuous bike lane has come at the cost of accessibility, visibility, and economic vitality.

Reopening State Street would be the most immediate, practical, and least costly step to restoring the heart of our city. It would support small businesses, revive community traditions, and reunite the city, while still allowing for future improvements.

—Colleen

Macey, Santa Barbara Interiors

The American Dream

As an educator, I have had the pleasure of working with students protected by the Dream Act. I met one 12-year-old boy who was brought here as a 3-year-old, and I proudly attended his high school graduation.

For years, he and I contacted government agencies and our representatives about applying for American citizenship. We were assured he was protected by his DACA status, but he could not apply for citizenship yet.

He wasn’t as worried as I was; he firmly believed in the American Dream. He’s made a good life for himself and his young family. Any parent or former teacher would be proud of the man he’s become.

After reading the nightmare of lawless deportation kidnappings in your well-written account of the man deported to Mexico City, I fear for all of these “kids” who trusted our government to keep its promise. We cannot let this stand.

—Vickie Gill, Los Alamos

The Independent welcomes letters of less than 250 words that include a daytime phone number for verification. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. Send to: Letters, S.B. Independent, 1715 State St., Santa Barbara, CA 93101; or fax: 965-5518; or email: letters@independent.com. Unabridged versions and more letters appear at independent.com/opinions

A Letter from the Front

Welcome Isla Vista

Minneapolis, January 2026: Life Under ICE Occupation

Political I.V., Ep. 4

to independent.com/welcome-to-iv

Mickey Flacks Fellow Christina McDermott take us to 1970 when the Bank of America was set on fire. That brought both police brutality and political engagement to Isla Vista. But why didn’t I.V. ever become a city? And how did tragedy bolster support for the Community Services District?

Listen at or wherever you get your podcasts!

IBY BOB POHL

n the darkness of a frigid, early Friday morning, I left our loft in the Mill District of Minneapolis, driving to the northeast section of the city to pick up Miguel and take him to work in neighboring St. Paul. As I pulled into the parking lot behind the six-unit apartment building where he lives with his wife, Mercedes, I sent him a text saying that I had arrived. (Thank goodness for Google Translate, which allows us to communicate back and forth in English and Spanish.)

Following the instructions I had been given, I waited next to my car until he came out, then I walked up to him, we shook hands, and I accompanied him to the passenger-side door. We then drove the 20 minutes to his day job in St. Paul. There, he asked if he could stay in the car until his boss arrived.

It was far too dangerous for Miguel to stand by himself outside his workplace. The fear of being seized by ICE without warning is the plight of every person of color who now lives now in Minneapolis. After about a 10-minute wait, his boss arrived.

As I watched the two men disappear into the building, I thought with initial relief that Miguel would now be safe. But that is not true. For people of color, nowhere in Minneapolis is truly safe. Schools, churches, homes, businesses, and parking lots can be invaded by ICE at any time.

Miguel and I are unlikely comrades a workingclass Hispanic man and yours truly, an affluent white guy but on Friday, our worlds came together for the first time, courtesy of ICE. How we crossed paths came about because, one day when my wife, Susan, and I were at our local café, we were chatting, as we often did, with the manager. She told us how her workers were so afraid of ICE that they wouldn’t drive to work, or God forbid, take public transportation. At her request, I volunteered to provide transportation if needed. It was needed. Could I drive Miguel to his day job on Friday? She then outlined the safety protocol for such a trip.

While the experience of this drive was unique to Miguel’s schedule, the reality of the situation is not unique in this city. Miguel and the citizens of Minneapolis are experiencing daily life in an occupied city patrolled by unhinged federal agents who deliver the fear that secret police must always bring with them when they invade a community. It has forced all of us,

as we strive to live our “normal” lives, to face the truth of what is happening around us, and to acknowledge what often feels like an overwhelming sense of doom. ICE agents roam our streets, masked and without identification, grabbing people randomly and attacking those who protest such actions. There are no guardrails. It is dystopian.

Fear is in the air we breathe, and the whole city is now experiencing the consequences of that fear. Anger underlies even the most casual conversation. Many stores are shut, restaurants are short of workers, schools have been invaded, students from families of color are now taking classes online rather than risk being separated from their parents. And for me I feel sad all day.

How did my Friday end with Miguel? It was a cold, snowy afternoon when I arrived at his workplace at 4 p.m. When he came out, he quickly walked to the car and indicated that he wanted to sit in the back. I urged him to come up front where the passenger seat was warmer. He complied, but I was clueless to his reality.

As soon as he entered the car, he pulled down his hat and told me that ICE had been in the neighborhood. That afternoon, he and his boss had witnessed ICE in front of the driveway to his workplace. He was scared.

As we drove out, he kept glancing behind him. I was so terrified he might get captured by ICE that we were almost hit by a truck when I rushed a right turn. But after about 15 minutes, he decided ICE was not following my car and told me we were safe.

But is he really safe? I received my answer when I pulled into his apartment parking lot and saw the face of his wife, Mercedes, standing at the backdoor of the building. Fear is in the air that his family breathes. While the occupation of our city is taking place now, here, this is not a Minneapolis problem. It is an American reality. It is clear to me that ICE and the federal government hate liberals and people of color, wherever they call home, wherever they live. We, me, you, and Miguel are all in this together what a shame if we fail each other.

BY TESSA REEG

Sharon Gail Reeg

1953–2025

Leading with Love and Laughter

It’s not often you come across a person who cares deeply for the people around her, meets them where they are with kindness and compassion, and reminds everyone to look for the joyful moments around them. I had the extraordinary privilege to have such a person as my mother.

Sharon Gail Van Dorn was born January 29, 1953, in Westfield, New York, to parents Howard and Olympia Van Dorn. In 1954, her brother, Eric, was born, and a few months later, the family moved to Kernville, California. The following year, the family moved to Bakersfield, where a younger sister, Ingrid, was born in 1956. After another move, this time to Burlingame in the Bay Area, the family put down roots in San Mateo, buying a beautiful two-story house with a stately pine tree in the front yard where the children could grow up, a house that is still in the family today.

Howard taught French at the nearby Aragon High School, and Olympia would substitute teach, usually French and Spanish. When Sharon, Eric, and Ingrid were all in high school, it was not unusual that most if not all of the family would be on campus at the same time, saying hi to one another in the hallways.

Sharon graduated high school with the Class of 1971 and headed south to attend UC Santa Barbara, graduating in 1975 with a BA in sociology after years of making friends, playing basketball, and riding horses on the beach. In 1977, she took off on an adventure to Maui, where she lived with friends in Nāpili and spent her time swimming in the bay, hiking in the bamboo forests of Hāna, exploring the island of Lāna‘i, and waitressing and spending long hours in the library in Lāhainā.

In 1980, Sharon returned to Santa Barbara, where she found her calling. In March 1981, she started work at Alpha Resource Center, an organization that began in 1953 with the mission of empowering children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities and providing resources to their families. Sharon worked her way up from instructor to program manager of Alpha’s Adult Services, working directly with the program participants while also managing staff, and even volunteering her time for events such as the Special Olympics. She became known as a tireless advocate for the participants, creating an environment where they could thrive and become more independent, discover passions, and navigate the world with confidence. Those who worked with Sharon described her calm, warm, and approachable manner, and they emphasized her high integrity, fairness, honesty, and dedication to providing both the participants and the staff with an environment in which they could be their best.

One day in 1989, a job applicant named Thomas Reeg came to Alpha to tour the program and see exactly what the position would entail. Sharon took him through a day at Alpha, and her warmth, friendliness, and respect for the participants made an impression on him. It was plain to see, he told me, that she truly cared for the participants, and that they adored her. Tom ended up deciding that he wouldn’t be a fit for the job but he gave Sharon a call.

They began dating, with one of their favorite spots in town being Mom’s Italian Village on East Cota Street. They also enjoyed weekend getaways; one particular trip to Napa Valley found the weather so hot that they ditched the wine tasting for root beer floats. Not minding doing things a little nontraditionally, they married on March 30, 1996, at the Santa Barbara County Courthouse, in a small, intimate ceremony officiated by a friend, Judge Denise de Bellefeuille, and I followed soon after: their only child, born May 10, 1996. My mom loved animals, and I never wanted for a sibling growing up I was always surrounded by playmates, as

we always had cats, dogs, and rabbits. She also enjoyed cooking and baking, as well as gardening, and she would try her hand at growing all kinds of things, from lemons to tomatoes to pumpkins. She also enjoyed traveling, and she and her sister, Ingrid, had lots of adventures that included exploring the castle in Edinburgh and Shakespeare’s house in Stratford-upon-Avon; seeing Richard Harris perform Shakespeare in London; bayou tours and Bourbon Street in New Orleans; historical sightseeing and art shows in Boston and Concord; and enjoying the spooky, witchy fun of Salem. When I was born, I joined the group, and my mom, Ingrid, and my grandma Olympia, and I took trips up and down California, from Sacramento and San Francisco to Bakersfield, Kernville, and San Diego, and we had countless laughs and good times along the way.

One of the most important things my mother taught me was the power of humor and the importance of finding the balance between working hard and yet never taking life too seriously. I certainly inherited her goofy sense of humor, and the two of us had a thousand silly inside jokes that keep me laughing even as I write this. She also taught me to never be afraid to laugh at yourself; often, she’d come to me to tell me about something funny that happened to her that day, and while sometimes it might be something that another person might be mortified to tell, my mom would be cracking up, eager to share the laugh with me!

My mother had the gift of seeing the good and unique qualities in just about everyone she met. It’s what made her such a kind and compassionate mentor at her job, a loving and thoughtful wife at home, and a caring and encouraging mother to me. She knew how to bring out the best in people, and she led by example.

Sharon passed away on November 26, 2025, at Cottage Hospital. Here to remember her are her husband, Thomas Reeg; daughter, Tessa Reeg; sister, Ingrid Van Dorn; brother, Eric Van Dorn; and countless friends.

My mom is wonderful proof of the fact that you don’t have to be famous or groundbreaking to make the world a better place. With her steadfast passion, giving spirit, and endless kindness, she improved the lives of innumerable people around her and set the groundwork for those people to help others in return. Her legacy is one of warmth and compassion for everyone, no matter your level of ability. She led her life with love, and with plenty of laughter along the way.

To honor my mother’s memory, I encourage you to make a donation to Alpha Resource Center or its art studio, Slingshot, to help them continue their incredible work in making the world a kinder place.

Timothy Brophy 1953-2026

With great sadness we announce the peaceful passing of Tim Brophy, 72, in the presence of family at Serenity House in Santa Barbara on January 21st. Born in Milwaukee, WI to Patrick John Brophy and Mary Ann (Gardner) Brophy, the family later moved to the city of Sunland, CA where Tim and his brother Kevin spent their formative years in the Shadow Hills neighborhood. Tim was active in 4-H and had a passion for animals, especially horses and dogs.

Drafted into the Navy during the Vietnam War in the early 70’s, he served for several years. Tim and his first wife Kathleen welcomed their daughter Bridget during this time. Tim and Kathleen divorced in the following years. Tim later settled in Santa Barbara where he met his second wife, Stephanie (“S.A.M.”) in 1987, and their son Aaron was born the following year. Tim and S.A.M. later divorced.

Those who knew Tim will remember his selflessness and compassion for others. He was always an advocate for those in need, and spent years as a proud volunteer at schools and organizations for people with disabilities, and was a longtime supporter of the Special Olympics.

Tim spent the bulk of his career as a general contractor, and ran Tim Brophy Construction in Santa Barbara for decades.

A longtime resident of the East Camino Cielo neighborhood, he was a man of nature and loved the peace and solitude of the forest. He was also a member of the Wildland Residents Association and their volunteer fire department.

For nearly the past 30 years, Tim battled numerous chronic and acute health conditions, facing each bravely with his trademark optimism and sense of humor. In the months leading up to his passing, he spent an extended time at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, eventually making the courageous choice to transition to hospice care at Serenity House.

Tim is predeceased by his parents. He is survived by his daughter Bridget (partner James), son Aaron (husband Jimmy), and brother Kevin (wife Lisa.)

The family thanks the physicians, nurses, and staff at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, and the team at Serenity House who provided compassionate care for Tim in the final days of his life.

In lieu of flowers, the family encourages donations in Tim’s name to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, Serenity House, or an organization of your choosing that would honor Tim’s life.

Funeral services will be held in Summer 2026 and will be announced separately.

Tom Banks Carvey Jr 04/12/1922-01/08/2026

A gentle man and a gentleman, Tom was known to his many friends, co-workers, and family for his captivating beating sense of humor and easy laugh, but was humble and expressed love and kindness. His is missed!

Tom was born April 12, 1922, in Fort Worth, Texas, to Tom Banks Carvey and Florence Haney Carvey. He passed away January 8, 2026, with his wife of 52 years, Donna, by his side, at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital from complications of a fractured hip.

His father's occupation took them to Nashville, Tenn. where he was introduced to golf by the Scottish golf pro at age 2 who then made him a set of clubs at five years old. A fine golfer, Tom continued to play and love the game throughout life. Family returned to Ft. Worth when Tom was eight and he lived there until he graduated from Paschal High School and matriculated to Stanford University. Along with academics, Tom's dorm room was a fre-

quent gathering place for other students as he shared his love for music and his extensive jazz record collection. He also held various jobs and volunteered as the Cardinals' football manager (Rose Bowl during his Senior year). Tom did receive his lowest grade while at Stanford, a C in golf! He graduated with a AB in mechanical engineering magna cum laude, class of '43 and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and Tau Beta Pi honorary societies. Later he became a graduate of the UCLA Executive Management program.

In WWII Tom joined the U.S. Navy as a Junior Officer. During training for his initial assignment, he worked in the early days of the jet propulsion era at Pratt & Whitney and on weekends was able to take the train to NYC to enjoy the big city Jazz Clubs. Assigned to the west coast to be a part of commissioning an escort carrier aboard the USS Shipley Bay in Astoria, Oregon, he served as a Catapult and Arresting Gear Officer in the Pacific Theater. During the Navy tradition of crossing the equator and the hazing-type rite of passage, Tom was blasted by a fire hose and an eardrum damaged. His military career changed course and with his technical training he was reassigned to the Navy's Bureau of Aeronautics in Washington, D.C. His first marriage, to Dorothea Crile, took place and then by train headed to his new assignment.

At the conclusion of WWII, Lieutenant Tom Carvey, Dorothea and first son moved to So. California. After two years working at Marquardt and No. American, in 1948 he began his esteemed 40 year career at Hughes Aircraft. In the early days, he worked in line management, rocket motors for Falson & Tow, a Hughes subcontractor and was deeply involved as manager in propulsion power systems and guided missiles. Moving into space technology in the 1960s, his focus was primarily space power devices and NASA's Surveyor lunar program. This program sent 7 robotic spacecrafts to demonstrate the feasibility of soft landings on the lunar surface. The Hughes Aircraft Space and Communications Group was formed in 1970 and Tom was on board as Director of Materiel and Administration. His expertise was also valued as a manager, with Hughes as prime contractor, for NASA's Syncom, Early Bird, Intelsat IV, and other application technology satellites, then in the 1970s-80s, with the

Hughes geosynchronous orbit satellite program. Before his retirement as Vice President, a career guided by the principles he advocated. he acted as a spokesman on business ethics. He took personal risk to uplift and advocate for women and minorities during the civil rights era when doing so was an act of moral courage. Tom was one of the few people who could instantly bond with anyone, regardless of who they were or their personal background.

Tom enjoyed community activities, fishing, hiking and camping. In addition, he was Chairman of Coordinating Councils, president of Great Books where he lived, YMCA Board, L.A. Executive Council, and volunteered for local and statewide Democratic political activities. Divorced, Tom became active with the California Democratic Council and served two terms as its third president from 1961-1965. He served as California delegate to the Democratic National Conventions from 1956 to 1968, maintaining close contacts and interaction with four U.S. Presidents throughout his political career, then serving Congressman Glenn Anderson as MC for many of his functions. Tom was driven by an unshakeable belief in integrity and equality. These were not just political stances but the enduring ethical compass that guided his entire life.

Marriage in 1973 to Donna Killough in Sun Valley, Idaho, and living in Pacific Palisades, CA, Tom began a love of recreational downhill skiing, primarily focused in Sun Valley and Europe. Moving to Santa Barbara, CA in 1988 provided a new style of living and easier access to golf and tennis. Tom was a member and participant of the S.B. Channel City Club and Birnam Wood Golf Club (35 years), played team golf, and regularly scoring under his age. Tom aided Donna in her community activities, often an active participant with Montecito Association and S.B. Art Museum. Tom enjoyed the great outdoors as reflected in his love for the mountains and a variety of connected sports, all leading to maintaining a second home in the Sun Valley area since 1984. They enjoyed their time together, relaxing at home, and with friends. Whether for work, play or adventure, they traveled extensively, Hawaii and France being favorites.

Tom was a trailblazer dedicating his life to dismantling barriers for others and fighting for justice with conviction that

was decades ahead of his time. He had an exceptional life. With six children, family was a strong element in Tom's life. He is survived by his wife, Donna, his sister Jane Taylor, and by his children: Tom B Carvey III (Susan), Crile Carvey (Laora), Geoffrey Webb Carvey (Kristin), Christopher [Buddy] Dennis Carvey (Alisa), Bradley "Scott" Tabor, Denise Carvey Hill. He has 14 grandchildren, 13 great-grandchildren, 3 greatgreat grandchildren, and multiple nieces and nephews.

Please consider donating to Friendship Center Adult Day Services in Tom's honor, 89 Eucalyptus Lane, Santa Barbara, CA 9108 as they were a wonderful part of socialization and caring during the last few years of his life.

07/31/1941-12/26/2025

Born and raised in Barrington, Illinois in a golden age of America. He excelled in academics, sports and charm.

Four years at Dartmouth College and law school at Stanford University.

Being a real estate lawyer in Santa Barbara led him to being a real estate investor where he became a landlord extraordinaire. His tenants became family. He kept the rents reasonable and was quick with the repairs. He learned plumbing, electrical, tiling, woodworking, landscaping.

He loved to travel. He loved his dogs. He loved tennis. He loved his friends. He loved Santa Barbara. He was a prince amongst men. So generous and kind.

Shout out to parents Helen and Wifred, brother Tom, Lin Reetz, WW Bradbury who are all waiting for him at the pearly gates. Ran, you are missed. Your biggest fan, Chris.

Nancy Bryson Schlosser 03/15/1928-01/12/2026

Nancy Bryson Schlosser, born March 15, 1928, in Evanston, Illinois, to Arthur Earl Bryson and Helen Decker Bryson, was the youngest of five children. She felt privileged to have been part of such a fine family, and to be educated in the Winnetka, Illinois school system. She was elected president of her Junior class at New Trier High School and always felt it was a great honor. She went on to attend her father's alma mater, Colorado College, in Colorado Springs. She joined the Kappa Alpha Theta sorority and was elected homecoming queen. It was there that she met her best friend’s brother, Bill Schlosser, and they were married after a whirlwind courtship in September 1948. She then moved to Defiance, Ohio with her husband who was in the manufacturing business with his father. They had three children, Elizabeth, Mary, and Charles, who were outstanding in her eyes.

After her husband started a new company in Colorado Springs in 1965, they had 25 busy, productive years in that lovely spot. She was active in her church, the Garden Club of America, where she was a director on the national board, and the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, where she served as chairman of the board. She was a trustee of Colorado College for twelve years, and she and her husband endowed a professorship in the arts at the College. She was awarded an honorary Bachelor of Arts in 2001. She and her husband traveled extensively, seeing most of this beautiful world.

Santa Barbara became her home in the 1990’s. She was a member of the Valley Club, the Santa Barbara Club, Birnam Wood, the Little Town Club, and the Garden Club of Santa Barbara. The visual arts were always her passion - home decor, gardening, arts and music brought her joy. She was an avid reader and loved bridge. She was devoted to Direct Relief International and served on their board and later became chairman. She was a conscientious volunteer whenever she became involved in an organization.

She is survived by her three children Elizabeth Schlosser (Charles Jordan,) Mary Schaefer (Hugh Rice,) and Charles Schlosser, Jr. (Persis Schlosser) as well as eight grandchildren and thirteen great-grandchildren.

Richard Lawrence Grand-Jean 08/04/1942-01/16/2026

Richard Lawrence Grand-Jean died January 16, 2026.

Beloved husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle, Rick was devoted as well to his many close friends. He was wise, decent, a fierce believer in social justice, a towering and resilient spirit in the face of relentless illness during his last chapter.

Born August 4, 1942, in St. Louis, Missouri, to Fred and Esther Grand-Jean, along with his beloved identical twin Steven, he graduated from Clayton High School in 1960, Princeton in 1964, and the University of Chicago Law School in 1967. He helped create the London office of the Salomon Brothers Investment Bank and later became a partner in the firm. He worked in the 1968 McCarthy presidential campaign, was a founder of Democrats Abroad in London, a founder of the influential local newspaper The Santa Barbara Independent, and led a life of political activism to the end. Rick was an avid tennis player with a mean American twist serve, a huge fan of the Chelsea Football Club, a born storyteller, polymath intellect, and voracious reader. He married the journalist Christine Doudna in 1983, had two magnificent children, Molly and Michael, and lived the second half of his life in New York City and on Martha’s Vineyard. He had a gift for deep and lasting friendship, a sparkling wit, a great love of life. In addition to his wife and children, he leaves behind two adored grandsons, Beckett and Hugo, his brother Steven and sister Mimi, and many nephews and nieces. He also leaves a world bereft of his passion to make it better.

We will carry him in our hearts forever.

A celebration of Rick's life will be held this summer on Martha's Vineyard.  Donations in his memory may be made to the Martha's Vineyard Community

Services or the Martha's Vineyard Dialysis Center.

Gloria Nelson McManus 07/22/1945 – 01/26/2026

Gloria Nelson McManus, who began her life on the austere prairie of northern Saskatchewan, Canada, departed life from Santa Barbara on Monday, January 26.

It was quite a journey. As a child, Gloria worked with her family to clear their homesteaded land for farming, but at the same time she was fascinated by the stories and photos of far-off lands that she saw in the magazines that her aunt would bring when visiting the family farm. Gloria vowed to travel to the exotic places that she saw in those magazines.

And did she ever!

She moved to Los Angeles within weeks of graduating from Crystal Springs (Saskatchewan) High School and attended El Camino College prior to joining Los Angeles Airways and then, in 1969, Pan American World Airways. It was at Pan Am where she met John McManus, who had the same urge to explore the world. They were married in 1971 in Pago Pago, American Samoa, and savored a life of magical travels together.

Taking what they learned during their years of international travel with Pan Am, John and Gloria founded Magellan’s Travel Supplies in 1989 (after Gloria put in several years at Raytheon in Goleta). It was truly a “kitchen table” startup. They began the company with a small blackand-white catalog mailed from their home in Santa Barbara, and grew it into a successful international company with over 100 employees, with retail stores in Santa Barbara and Santa Monica and an extensive Web site (www. magellans.com). One of Gloria’s accomplishments was the development of a successful line of travel clothing (comfortable, wrinkle-free, fast-drying) for the company.

They successfully sold Magellan’s in 2005 and began to travel again. It was only in 2020 that Alzheimer’s Disease brought Gloria’s travels to an end, eventually forcing a move into Casa San Miguel in Santa Barbara, owned by Katerina Marcellin and

operated by an incredibly wellqualified and compassionate staff (especially Vefa Gasanova) for whom, along with Central Coast Home Health and Hospice, and dear Jeanne West, John is so very grateful.

Surviving Gloria is her husband John (Santa Barbara), as well as her brothers Elvin Nelson and Larry Nelson, her sisters Ann Sackville and Donna Rude, and many much-loved nieces and nephews (all still residing in Canada). Two other sisters, Leone Inkster and Della Pederson, predeceased her several years ago.

Funeral services will be held in St Barbara Parish at Old Mission Santa Barbara in the near future. In support of Gloria’s fierce support of a society where all people are treated equally and with dignity, it is suggested that Gloria’s favorite charity, the Immigrant Legal Defense Center of Santa Barbara, be remembered on her behalf in lieu of flowers.

Tayden Lake Tomblin 2008-2025

Tayden Lake Tomblin tragically passed away on Thanksgiving Day, November 27, 2025.

After sharing Thanksgiving dinner with his family and close friends, Tayden went outside to skateboard. During his ride, he fell and sustained a severe traumatic brain injury. He was rushed to UCLA Harbor Trauma Center, where he spent two days in the ICU under close monitoring by doctors and nurses.

Twenty four hours after his admission, the neurology team began the official process of brain apnea testing. Following the completion of the first series of tests, a second set was performed. Tayden later left UCLA Harbor in a Walk of Honor, a powerful tribute to his courageous decision to donate his organs and help others live. He was surrounded by more than 50 family members and friends who will forever miss him.

From a young age, Tayden was introduced to the beauty of nature. As a family, many hours were spent hiking, exploring the outdoors, and enjoying time together at the beach and in the mountains. Tayden especially loved backpacking and snowboarding trips and was already

begging to go to Mammoth this winter.

He had an adventurous spirit and thrived on being active. Whether rock climbing with friends, skateboarding, or surfing, Tayden was always eager for the next experience.

Tayden’s deepest passion was the ocean. He loved spearfishing, fishing, and snorkeling, and he volunteered at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History Sea Center, working toward a goal of completing 200 volunteer hours by graduation. The ocean was the place where he felt most free.

Tayden was an ecstatic member of the swim and water polo teams at San Marcos High School. Coaches Peera and Chuckie, along with all the assistant coaches, taught Tayden invaluable life skills such as teamwork and dedication, and through these sports he formed lasting friendships.

Tayden was also a member of the Culinary Arts Pathway, working under Ms. Donna Barker. This past semester, he proudly served as her teacher’s assistant. He was very fond of Ms. Barker, and his parents are deeply grateful that she took him under her wing during his freshman year. Tayden was also a member of the San Marcos Entrepreneurship Academy, the National Honor Society, and the California Scholarship Federation. He dreamed of pursuing a career in the medical field and becoming a cardiologist or an otolaryngologist.

Tayden is survived by his father, Tyler; his mother, Rosalyn; his younger sister, Hudzyn; his grandmother, Kathy Bachelor; his aunts and uncles, Keegan and Ashley Bachelor, Trenton and Ashley Bachelor, Debbie George; and his cousins, Maddux, Ava, McCall, Stephanie, Christopher, and Natalie.

Tayden will be remembered for his adventurous soul, his love for the water, and the kindness and generosity reflected in his final gift to others. His spirit will live on in the lives he touched and the lives he saved.

A celebration of life will be held at Leadbetter Beach Picnic Area on June 6th, 2026. Gather at 11am, paddle-out 12pm, Celebrate until 8pm.

Emma Louise Grimm 03/04/1938-01/11/2026

Emma Lou Grimm, age 87, was called to her heavenly home on January 11, 2026, following complications from a prolonged and courageous battle with breast cancer.

Born on March 4, 1938, in Santa Barbara, California, Emma was raised in the community she loved and knew so well. She attended Montecito Union School, Santa Barbara Junior High School, and Santa Barbara High School (Class of 1955), and later attended Santa Barbara Junior College. Emma dedicated approximately 31 years of service to GTE, where her strong work ethic and determination were well known.

Emma was independent and passionate, proudly embracing her German and Swedish heritage. She was deeply kind, compassionate, and unwavering in her Lutheran faith, which guided her throughout her life. Highly social and a true Santa Barbara native, Emma seemed to know everyone in town and was friends with people from all walks of life. She was a beloved sister, aunt, great-aunt, great-great-aunt, and friend, and to many she was simply known as “Auntie Emma.” That title extended well beyond family, a reflection of her welcoming spirit and the genuine connections she formed throughout her life.

Emma loved gardening, birds, and travel. She was known for her signature white hair and for faithfully sending cards to family, friends, and even beloved pets— never missing a birthday, holiday, or special moment. She faithfully attended local performances, games, and parades in Santa Barbara for her great-nieces and great-nephew, always showing her support and pride.

Emma is survived by her brother, Karl H. Grimm; her nieces, Tammy (Dean) and Marcy (Robert); her great-niece Ashlyn (Andy) and their children; great-niece Tessa; greatnephew Cameron (Kara) and their children; and her cousins Wolfgang (Marianne), Caroline, and Mary. She was preceded in death by her parents, Herman and Louise Grimm, and her

sisters-in-law, Dorothy Grimm and Louise Andrae.

The family extends heartfelt gratitude to the compassionate caregivers at Casa Cambria and at Westmont of Santa Barbara / Mariposa, and special thanks to her oncologists, Dr. Gregg Newman and Dr. Alan Rosenblum.

Emma Lou Grimm will be remembered for her strength, faith, loyalty, and the countless connections she made throughout her life—leaving a lasting imprint on Santa Barbara and all who knew her.

A memorial service will be held Saturday, February 28, at 10:30 a.m. at Emanuel Lutheran Church, 3721 Modoc Road, Santa Barbara. A light lunch will be provided following the service. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Emanuel Lutheran Church Memorial Fund.

Hon. Robin Riblet 05/08/1949-12/26/2025

Hon. Robin L. Riblet, retired United States Bankruptcy Judge and cherished member of the Santa Barbara community, passed away peacefully on December 26, 2025, at the age of 76, after a courageous battle with cancer. She spent her final two weeks in hospice care, surrounded by compassion, dignity, and the quiet presence of those who loved her.

Robin’s life was defined by intellectual rigor, curiosity, generosity, and a deep appreciation for the world around her. A devoted scholar, she graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Florida in 1971, earned her J.D., cum laude, from the University of San Diego School of Law in 1975, and completed an LL.M. in Corporate Law at New York University School of Law in 1979. Her distinguished legal career began at Stutman Triester & Glatt PC, where she practiced from 1979 to 1988. In 1988, she was appointed a United States Bankruptcy Judge for the Central District of California, serving the Santa Barbara Division with fairness, clarity, and unwavering integrity for more than 25 years. She retired from the bench in 2014, leaving behind a legacy of thoughtful jurisprudence and deep respect from colleagues,

attorneys, and litigants alike. Robin was an active contributor to the legal community, serving with the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges, the California Bankruptcy Journal, the Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum, the Financial Lawyers Conference, and multiple bar associations. She was admired not only for her legal acumen but for her generosity as a mentor and her genuine interest in the people she worked with.

In 1997, Robin married John Brennand, the beloved “Godfather” of recreational and competitive running in Santa Barbara. Together they built a joyful, adventurous life filled with travel, friendship, and shared curiosity. They hiked throughout Italy year after year—sometimes with friends, sometimes with family, and often just the two of them—guided by their trusted Italian hiking guide, Peter, whose knowledge and companionship enriched their journeys. These European hiking tours became some of their most treasured shared experiences.

In 2001, they purchased a mountain retreat in Canmore, Alberta, which became a cherished haven for hiking, skiing, and gathering with loved ones. Robin remained a devoted and loving partner to John throughout their 25 years of marriage. After John’s passing in 2022, Robin continued to embrace life with courage and openness. She traveled frequently, especially to Europe with her close friends. Conversant in French and Italian, she delighted in immersing herself in European culture, language, and food. Robin was also an avid knitter, finding joy and companionship in the craft. She often knitted with her friends. Many friends and family members cherish the beautiful pieces she created with care and quiet artistry.

A lifelong reader, Robin especially loved novels and mysteries, and she could often be found with a book in hand. She was a devoted supporter of the arts, attending local concerts, theatrical performances, and the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, which she looked forward to each year. Her appreciation for culture, storytelling, and creativity enriched her life and the lives of those around her.

Robin was also a generous philanthropist, contributing quietly and consistently to charities and nonprofit organizations that reflected her values and compassion.

Those who knew Robin remember her warmth, gentle humor, and thoughtful presence.

She had a gift for listening deeply, offering wise counsel, and bringing calm to difficult moments. Her friendships were marked by loyalty and genuine care, and her home was a place of welcome, conversation, and comfort.

Robin is survived by John’s three children and their spouses: Bob (Sally), Karen (Kent), Scott (Betty) and 6 grandchildren, as well as her sister-in-law Edwina Riblet, nieces and nephews Andrew (Cynthia), Christian (Anne) and Abigail (Alan), 6 great nieces/nephews, her North Carolina cousins, dear friends, colleagues and a wide circle of people whose lives were brightened by her kindness, intellect, and grace.

In Lieu of flowers, please donate to Santa Barbara Assistance League.

A memorial will be held at All Saints by the Sea Episcopal Church on Wednesday, February 4th at 3pm. May her memory be a blessing.

Stanley Joe Nicholson 1942-2025

Stanley Joe Nicholson passed away unexpectedly on December 14th, 2025. He was born in September 1942, near Joplin, Missouri. In 1950, three years after his brother Michael's birth, the family moved to California, settling in the bedroom community of Castro Valley. It was clear early on that Stan had a great love for cars, a fondness for cats, and an ear for music. Stan excelled academically throughout his school years and graduated in 1960. He enrolled at San José State College and later earned a BA in education.

Stan married his first wife, Peggy (nee Erspamer), in 1965, and they welcomed their only child, Mark, in the spring of 1967. Soon after, he was accepted into Stanford's doctoral program and earned his PhD in Educational Psychology. In 1971, while working on his PhD, Stan landed a job at UCSB in the Instructional Development department, where he would spend his 35-year career. In the next decade, Stan and Peggy divorced, and he married his second wife, Sally (nee Hughes). After several years together, they also separated. In the late 1980s,

Stan became a grandfather and enjoyed frequent trips to visit his two granddaughters.

He married his third wife, Cathy (nee Scholl), in 1991, gaining a stepdaughter, Erin. Stan and Cathy enjoyed 20 years together, including traveling across the US in an RV after Stan’s retirement in 2005. Stan had a string of tragedies hit, including his son, Mark, passing away in 2006; losing his vision in 2011; his wife, Cathy, passing in 2012; and his first wife, Peggy, passing in 2015.

Despite his daily struggles, Stan cherished time spent with friends—Saturday dinners with Bob and Lois, Fridays at Harry’s with Bart, evenings with Phila, and plenty of long phone conversations. He made a point of staying connected and found joy in keeping up his many relationships. Stan was a kind, thoughtful man who always made time to listen. He may not have had the answers, but he was always willing to help you search for them. Stan will be remembered for his intellect, resilience, warmth, and for his genuine love for friends and family.

He is survived by his brother, Michael Nicholson (Donna Pierino), his stepdaughter, Erin Scholl, his granddaughters, Ashley and Alissa Nicholson, his two beloved cats, as well as many cousins and close friends. In lieu of flowers, please donate to The Braille Institute.

Paul Sulzman

Paul Sulzman, beloved son, brother, husband, friend and student of the humanities, has taken his final bow here on earth to boldly go on to his next voyage.

A lifelong seeker, Paul’s life was a testament to the quintessential ethos of community and the enduring necessity of the arts, not as luxury, but as indispensable to the well-being of humankind. He will be missed for his depth of spirit, his precocious sense of humor and his distinct insights into what it means to be human.

Read his full obituary at https://www.legacy.com/legacy/ paul-sulzman

The GoFundMe link is, support-for-leeann-in-memory-ofpaul-sulzman

Kathleen C. Sullivan-Schiffmann 12/25/1951-01/01/2026

Kathleen C. Sullivan was born in Seattle, WA on December 25, 1951, and passed away in her Newbury Park home on January 1, 2026. With her enchanting eyes and smile, her high spirit and great sense of humor, Kathleen was the life of any gathering. She was known for her wild and bedazzled outfits. ‘Katrinka’ is still ever-present in every pearl, sequin, rhinestone, glitter, faux fur, bangle and animal print. So full of dazzle and life, yet so down to earth! Take a good witch’s brew: tincture of Mae West, splash of Madonna and a good dose of Mother Teresa! But she was sharp as a razor. She had a bright mind for facts, dates, and memories for things some people might wish were forgotten! She was funny as hell.

Kathleen’s work career started as a waitperson at Birnam Wood Golf Club, where she made several life-long friends. After that, she worked at St. Vincent’s with adolescent boys having developmental disabilities. She was totally devoted to those boys and they loved her dearly. She was more than an “Independent Life Skills Teacher”; she was a friend and advocate. She brought out the music, dancing, parties, great food and pure love. Next, she was a job counselor for emotionally challenged teens at the Santa Barbara School District. Kathleen made her students feel special, made them laugh, and had their backs. She ended her career as a Special Ed Assistant with the Las Virgenes Unified School District.

In 1994, Kathleen married Jan Schiffmann, with whom she spent 31 happy years. She loved her dog and cats, and periodic vacations in Europe and Mexico. In the last years of her life, Kathleen was beset with medical issues. Despite the inconveniences these issues caused, she stayed strong and persevered without complaint while repeatedly defying the pessimistic predictions of her doctors.

Kathleen is survived by her husband Jan; her brothers Dan, Terry and John; her sister Colleen; and nieces, nephews,

grandnieces and grandnephews.

Our dear, beloved Kathleen will be sorely missed by all who knew her. We are so grateful to have been part of her life.

A Celebration of Life will be held in Santa Barbara. For more information, please send a text message to 1-805-455-2126.

Maureen McMullen Groves

07/16/1957-10/30/2025

On October 30, Maureen Groves left the bonds of this earthly life to be reunited with her beloved mother, grandmother, and grandfather. She passed surrounded by love, leaving behind a legacy of strength, compassion, and deep devotion to family and friends.

Maureen was born on July 16, 1957, at Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital to Doni Hurd McMullen and Michael McMullen. She spent her childhood years in Hillsboro, Oregon, and Hemet, California, experiences that helped shape her lifelong love of nature and the outdoors. Maureen graduated from Patrick Henry High School in San Diego in 1975 and went on to attend the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she majored in pre-med.

Following her studies, Maureen began a fulfilling career with the Santa Barbara Medical Foundation Clinic as a physical therapist. Through her professional life, she touched countless lives with her care, empathy, and dedication.

Throughout her adult life, Maureen faced significant health challenges, including Type 1 diabetes, chronic kidney disease, and heart disease. She met these battles with remarkable courage and grace. Among her greatest blessings was becoming a mother to her cherished child, Courtney, lovingly known as “Court,” who was the true love of her life. She also shared a deep and enduring partnership with her husband, Mark, to whom she was married for 47 years.

Maureen found joy in the outdoors and embraced adventure. She loved camping, windsurfing, water skiing, and snow skiing. She also delighted in life’s simple pleasures and had a lifelong

fondness for Mickey Mouse, a reflection of her warm spirit and playful heart. Her deep love for animals was evident in the care and affection she gave to her beloved companions, Maxwell, Murphy, and Maggie.

Maureen is survived by her husband, Mark; her son, Courtney (Court), and daughter-inlaw, Crissy; her brother, William McMullen; her nephews, Jared and Ryan; and her sister-in-law, Debbie Darrel. She will also be profoundly missed by her many friends, former patients, and all whose lives she touched with her kindness and strength.

A celebration of Maureen’s life will be held on Saturday, March 14, 2026 at the Palm Park Beach House, 236 E. Cabrillo Blvd, SB from 1:00pm to 4:30 pm.. All relatives, friends, former patients, and those who knew and loved her will be welcome to attend and honor a truly remarkable woman.

Maureen will forever be remembered as a devoted mother, a loving wife, a loyal friend, a resilient spirit, and a beautiful soul.

Richard Dean Sellers 04/18/1957-12/29/2025

Richard Dean Sellers, 68, of Santa Barbara, California, passed away peacefully in December, 2025. He was born in April 1957, to Richard and Deanna Sellers and grew up in Goleta, California, where he attended Dos Pueblos High School.

Rick worked as a cement mason, a trade that reflected his strong work ethic and steady hands.

He was married to Lisa Aguailar and they had three children together before parting ways in divorce. Rick found his best friend and life partner remarrying Annette White, with whom he spent his final days in love.

He had a lifelong passion for the mountains, hunting, and fishing. He was a modern mountain man—a legend to many who knew him. Rick believed deeply in core traditional values: respect, duty, responsibility, honesty, and most of all, family. He was a loving father, a dedicated husband, and a stalwart friend whose presence will be deeply missed.

He is survived by his wife, Annette Sellers; his children, Jade Ortiz, Tyler Sellers, and Tate Sellers; his stepson, Cory White; five grandchildren; and his two remaining siblings, Carol Sellers Gauthier and Carrie Bugni.

A celebration of life will be held in Goleta, California, on February 21, 2026, and is open to all who knew him. Stow Gove Park 580 N La Patera Ln. Pot luck 12:00pm

Douglas Sisk 08/03/1950-01/10/2026

Dr. Douglas Sisk passed away on January 10 at the age of 75 after battling cancer for three years. His wife of 50 years, Hendrica, passed away on June 30.

He is survived by his loving daughters, Daena (Sam) Rogowski and Jessica Sisk; his grandson, Joseph Rogowski; and his younger siblings, Carolyn (Karl) Baum and Tom (Pam) Sisk.

Doug was born in Elkhart, Indiana, on August 3, 1950. He graduated from Concord High School in 1968 and went on to attend Indiana University South Bend. He earned his Ph.D. in Psychology from The George Washington University in 1983. He then began a postdoctoral fellowship as a Humboldt Fellow at the University of Bonn in Germany, finishing his research in 1985.

Doug had several careers throughout his life but always found his greatest joy in education. He taught psychology classes at Indiana University South Bend for two years before becoming a financial planner. In 2002, he earned his teaching license and began working at Marian High School. He retired in 2017 after 15 years of teaching Honors and AP Chemistry. Doug took great pride in his students and found real joy in helping them learn and succeed. Following his retirement, he relocated to Santa Barbara, California, with his wife.

Doug was deeply loved and appreciated for his sense of humor, intelligence, and energy. Conversations with him were never dull. He could debate, joke, or dive into thoughtful discussion on nearly any subject.

Besides teaching, he enjoyed road biking, playing and collecting guitars, traveling, coaching his daughters’ sports teams, and getting frustrated while watching Manchester United. Above all else, Doug valued his family and the connections he made throughout his life. He will be remembered for his curiosity, humor, generosity, and the lasting impact he had on so many people.

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to the Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara. Donations may be made through their website: https://cfsb.org/ support-local-cancer-care/ giving/.

A celebration of Doug’s life will be held at a later date. Please contact Jess at jessicasisk1@ gmail.com if you would like to receive details once available.

Mario Enrico Passanisi 06/20/1971– 01/06/2026

Mario Enrico Passanisi, 54, passed away January 6, 2026, at his home in Santa Barbara, CA. Born June 20, 1971, on Father’s Day, Mario lived with generosity, curiosity, and a joyful spirit that lifted those around him.

He is survived by his parents, John and Liana; siblings Vincent, Liana, and Marisa; and beloved nieces and nephews.

Services: Monday, January 26 Viewing and Rosary 4:00–8:00 PM Rosary at 6:00 PM Luyben Dilday Mortuary Long Beach, CA Tuesday, January 27 Requiem Mass, 10:30 AM St. Hedwig Catholic Church Los Alamitos, CA

Burial to follow: All Souls Cemetery Long Beach, CA Reception, 2:00–6:00 PM Old Ranch Country Club Seal Beach, CA

Roger Alan Haines 07/27/1938-01/12/2026

Roger Alan Haines passed away on January 12, 2026, at the age of 87.

Roger was born on July 27, 1938, in Yakima, Washington, to Harold and Ethel Haines. He grew up as the son of a military officer, alongside his sister, Janet. His early childhood was shaped by frequent moves to military bases, including time spent living in Greece, experiences that fostered his lifelong curiosity, adaptability, and love of history.

At the age of 15, Roger arrived in Santa Barbara, California, in 1953. He graduated as a Don from Santa Barbara High School in 1956, where he was actively involved in ROTC and developed a passion for hot rods. After high school, he joined the California National Guard and later enlisted in the United States Marine Corps, completing his service prior to the Vietnam War.

In September 1960, Roger met the love of his life, Nancy(Nikki) Wood Gorham. They were married on August 13, 1967, and together built a life rooted in independence, creativity, and hard work. The couple moved to the mountains above Santa Barbara, settling in the community of Painted Cave, where Roger purchased raw land and began the long, hands-on process of pioneering it into a family home.

Roger and Nikki raised two sons: Nathaniel Jason Haines, born April 21, 1969, and Thaddeus Sage Haines, born June 24, 1971. Roger continued shaping both his land and his family life while working as a tree trimmer, plumber, and selfdescribed guerrilla farmer.

Known as an excellent storyteller and true raconteur, Roger had a gift for bringing history and personal adventures vividly to life. He loved camping and hiking, mule packing in the Sierra Nevada with friends, riding motorcycles, and studying history. He was a proud member of E Clampus Vitus and cherished the camaraderie and

lore that came with it.

Roger is survived by his wife, Nikki, his sons, Jason and Thaddeus; and his grandsons, Thorin, Getty, and Canyon.

Roger will be remembered for his independence, craftsmanship, humor, and deep appreciation for both the natural world and the stories of the past.

A memorial service will be held on February 19, 2026, at 3:00 p.m. at the Santa Barbara Carriage Museum.

Anderson 10/05/1936-01/07/2026

Rosemarie (Bertarini)

Anderson of Santa Barbara, passed away peacefully on January 7, 2026, at the age of 89. Rosemarie, an only child, was born in Santa Barbara on October 5, 1936, to Serafino and Maria Bertarini, both immigrants from Italy who instilled strong family values in her.

Rosemarie attended Dolores Catholic School from kindergarten through eighth grade and later graduated from Santa Barbara Catholic High School. She went on to attend Hart Business College and landed a job at KEYT from 1955 to 1959, where she wrote the daily production scripts. It was during this time that a friend set her up on a blind date with Bill “Andy” Anderson. What began as a lighthearted introduction quickly became a lifelong partnership. Rosemarie and Bill were married on June 8, 1957, and started a family two years later.

Together they had three sons—Jeff, Michael, and Brian—all of whom were born and raised in Santa Barbara. While raising her boys, Rosemarie began a career with the Goleta DMV, where she worked

for 30 years until her retirement. She moved up through the ranks to become branch manager and helped countless residents throughout the years. Rosemarie kept busy with a variety of hobbies. She was a member of the Channel City Kennel Club, and she and her family traveled in their camper while competitively showing dogs for several years. She also served as the den mother for her sons’ Cub Scout troop. Rosemarie loved baking cakes for family and friends’ birthdays, weddings, and special occasions, and she took great pride in creating themed birthday cakes for her grandchildren.

After retiring, Rosemarie volunteered extensively and served as president of the Breast Cancer Resource Center. She also remained active at St. Raphael Catholic Church, where she attended for most of her life.

In 2007, Rosemarie suffered a massive stroke that changed her life. Despite paralysis and other disabilities, she fought tirelessly to regain as much independence as possible.

Rosemarie lived at the Santa Barbara Convalescent Hospital (now known as The Californian) for 18 years, making her their longest-living resident. During her time there, she ran the activities committee and planned countless bake and craft sales. The Californian became her second home, and the staff her second family. Her family will be forever grateful for the compassion, care, and support they provided her throughout the years.

Rosemarie is survived by her sons Michael and Brian; daughters-in-law Carol, Dottie and Lisa; her grandchildren Allen (Shelby), Nicole (Mike), Christine (Victor), and Danielle; and her great-grandchildren Aubree, Carter, Jaxon, Melanie, and Leilani, along with numerous nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, husband of 48 years, Bill, and her oldest son, Jeff.

A funeral service will be held at St. Raphael’s Church in Goleta on Friday, February 13, 2026, at 10:00 a.m., with a reception to follow.

In lieu of flowers, Rosemarie requested that donations be made to the Breast Cancer Resource Center of Santa Barbara or St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Barbara Sharp

04/27/1959-01/13/2026

Barbara Sharp, 66, passed away peacefully at her home in Santa Barbara on Tuesday, January 13, 2026, after living with cerebellar ataxia. She was a pioneering engineer, an intrepid traveler, a lifelong Deadhead, and a devoted sister, mother, and friend.

Born in Denver, Colorado, Barbara moved with her family to San Jose in 1962. She attended St. Christopher Elementary and Presentation High School before heading to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering in 1982. She later completed coursework for a Master's degree in Systems Engineering at San Jose State University. After a brief time in Irvine, Barbara settled in Santa Barbara, where she would live for many years.

Barbara built a remarkable career in infrared and thermal imaging technology; a field she helped define. Beginning at General Dynamics and IBM, she moved through Seagate Magnetics and Raytheon before joining Amber Engineering in Goleta in 1990, where she helped transform a researchfocused company into a manufacturing powerhouse. In 2000, she joined Indigo Systems, a company at the forefront of microbolometer and uncooled infrared detector development and became manager of the growing Engineering group and when FLIR Systems acquired Indigo she became Special Projects Leader under the FLIR CTO. During this period, she was part of the team that developed the Lepton camera, a ground-breaking infrared camera that enabled the first use of a thermal camera in a cell phone.

Barbara continued her work in the CTO group until her retirement in 2016. Over her career, she was named as co-inventor on more than 60 patents in infrared camera technology and microbolometers - innovations that have found their way into everything from military night-vision equipment to automotive safety systems to wildlife conservation efforts. She was known among colleagues for her energetic, handson management style and she always found a way to approach even the most difficult problems with a positive attitude and a problem-solving approach.

But Barbara's sense of adventure extended far beyond the laboratory. She was fascinated

by auroras and traveled repeatedly to Alaska, Canada, and Finland to witness them, using her expertise with cameras to capture stunning images. These trips held special meaning - her mother Virginia had been a nurse in the Alaskan interior in the early 1950s, and Barbara followed in her footsteps by taking a multi-day dog sled trip in winter, just as her mother had done decades before in Kotzebue. After retiring, Barbara bought a motorhome and embarked on a series of road trips to visit every National Park in the United States.

She and her sister JoAnn were constant traveling companions, whether journeying to Baja California to see gray whales, chasing northern lights across the Arctic, or their capstone trip to Africa; a months-long safari staying in lodges, tent camping and a Chobe River photography cruise. Barb joined her nephew Garrison on an epic adventure through all of Eastern Europe, Germany, France, and Italy, and took nephew Sean to New Zealand for Hobbits and glaciers. Barbara had a gift for bringing people along on her adventures - there was always room for one more.

Her son Justin, born in June 1982, was the center of her world. From his earliest days, he was part of whatever adventure Barbara had planned. When he was barely six months old, she flew with him to meet her brother Michael when he got out of the Navy in 1983, and together they drove across the country visiting relatives and friends. That same year, while camping at Prairie Creek Redwoods with Michael and a friend, Barbara's determination got the better of her when she tried to photograph a large Roosevelt elk guarding his herd. The elk chased her into the bushesMichael had to hand baby Justin off and run to her rescue, throwing rocks to drive the animal away. They laughed about it for years afterward. Justin preceded Barbara in death in the spring of 2007.

Barbara loved dogs of all kinds, and there was always one by her side. Of all her beloved companions, Mariah held the closest place in her heart. Barbara was preceded in death by her parents, DeWayne and Virginia Sharp, and her son Justin on September 13, 2007. She is survived by her brother Michael Sharp, her sister JoAnn Rogers, and her nephews Sean Rogers and Garrison Sharp, and her niece Madeline Olesen.

Maria “Ria” Van Son 10/01/1930– 01/22/2026

Maria “Ria” Johanna Helena (Van Straalen) Van Son, age 95, passed peacefully into her heavenly home on January 22, 2026, in her own home, surrounded by her loving family.

Ria was born on October 1, 1930, in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, to Cornelus and Anna Van Straalen. She was the fifth of nine children in a close-knit Dutch family that shaped her deep love for family, faith, and togetherness.

At 23 years old, Ria began a courtship with her neighbor from across the street, Kees Van Son. Throughout their four-year relationship, Kees dreamed of marrying Ria and moving to the United States. Ria hesitated, not wanting to leave her large and beloved family. Then, one New Year’s Eve celebration, she turned to Kees and said, “OK, I will go to America with you.” They were married on October 28, 1957. Family legend has it that the very next day, Kees left on his “honeymoon” to the United States with his mother, while Ria followed three months later.

They settled in Arcadia, California, and two years later welcomed their firstborn daughter, Margie. After Margie’s birth, the family moved to Azusa. Over the next ten years, Ria and Kees were blessed with four more daughters and one son. In 1969, Ria asked Kees if they could move to a town with fresher air, and they found their forever home in Goleta. Ria remained in her Goleta home for 56 years, where she lovingly raised her family.

Ria was a devoted homemaker who created a home filled with warmth, routine, and love. The breakfast table was set every morning before the children left for school, family dinner was shared every night, and she faithfully attended countless sporting events. She was a talented seamstress, making many matching dresses for her five daughters and shirts and shorts

for her son.

Ria also loved crocheting and knitting and was rarely without a project in her hands. She delighted in giving her creations away—beanies, scarves, sweaters, and blankets that now live on throughout her family. She donated baby blankets, sweaters, booties, and beanies to needy patients at a local pediatric office and scarves to the homeless. One especially fond memory was when she knitted red beanies for her grandson Hayden’s entire second-grade class in inner-city Chicago.

A longtime member of St. Raphael Catholic Church, Ria participated in the church bowling league for many years and enjoyed monthly game days with other women from the parish. Ria truly enjoyed life—she was the life of the party. She loved hosting gatherings, barbecues, and celebrations, bringing family and friends together whenever she could. She was immensely proud of her Dutch heritage and cherished her Dutch foods, traditions, and friendships.

Above all, Ria loved her family with her whole heart. She signed her cards “All my love,” words she lived by every day. She loved unconditionally and forgave easily. She was extremely proud of the large, loving family that she and Kees created together.

Ria was preceded in death by her parents; her eight siblings; her beloved husband, Kees; her oldest grandson, Nathan; and her ten in-laws and their spouses. She was the last of our parents’ generation.

She is survived by her six children: Margie (Jeffery) Grill, Jennifer (Steve) Winnewisser, Teri (Joe) Salcedo, Monique (Raphael) Morelos, Pauline Halop, and David (Jill) Van Son; 21 grandchildren; 19 great-grandchildren; and one great-grandson on the way. It was a blessing that every family member was able to visit with her in her final days.

Ria is now at home with our Lord and joyfully reunited with her beloved husband, Kees, who passed in 2001.

A Rosary will be held on Wednesday, February 4 at 7:00 p.m. at St. Raphael Catholic Church. The Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, February 5, at St. Raphael Catholic Church, followed by interment at Calvary Cemetery and a reception afterward.

Arrangements entrusted to Pueblo del Rey Funeral Services

Frank J. Frost Jr. 12/03/1929– 01/09/2026

Frank J. Frost Jr., beloved husband, father, grandfather, scholar, musician, veteran, archeologist and public servant, passed away on January 9, 2026, at the age of 96. Widely known as a true Renaissance man, Frank lived a life defined by curiosity, creativity, public service, and deep devotion to the people and places he loved.

Born in Washington, D.C., Frank spent his early years moving west with his family before settling in Palo Alto, California. Exceptionally bright, he entered college at sixteen, but at eighteen chose to enlist in the United States Army. He served honorably during the Korean War, including frontline duty and later assignment to atomic testing, experiences that shaped his lifelong moral seriousness and commitment to civic responsibility.

After his discharge, Frank settled in Santa Barbara, where he supported his young family as a professional jazz pianist. Music remained a constant throughout his life, and he continued performing in local venues until just months before his passing, becoming a beloved and familiar presence in the Santa Barbara community.

Frank later returned to academia, earning a Ph.D. from the UCLA whole mastering multiple languages. He taught at the UCR and Hunter College, before fulfilling his dream of joining the faculty at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He also served as a visiting professor at Princeton University.His scholarly interests were wide-ranging and included classical studies, underwater archaeology, and fiction.

In the 1970s, Frank entered public life and was elected Santa Barbara County Supervisor on a pioneering environmental and managed-growth

platform, helping to shape the region’s land-use and environmental policies for generations to come.

In 1978, Frank married Amanda “Mandy” Clark, the great love of his life. Their partnership was rooted in shared intellectual, cultural, and artistic passions. Together they built a rich life that included years spent living part-time in Provence, France. Frank is survived by Mandy, who will miss him deeply, as will all who knew and loved him.

Frank is the father of Frank J. Frost III; Esmé Eugenia Frost, who predeceased him; and Victoria Rufina Frost. He is also survived by his grandchildren Jacqueline, Nicholas, Kristin, Alexandra, and Jared, as well as great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held at Santa Barbara Cemetery on Friday, January 30, at 12:00pm, with a reception to follow. Those wishing to attend the reception are asked to RSVP to vrfrost@cox.net.

Joyce Hull 09/09/1937-11/04/2025

My mother, Joyce Ann Hull, died in the early morning hours of November 4, 2025 at the age of 88.

Joyce, the eldest of three sisters, was born in St. Louis, Missouri on September 9, 1937, to Robert and Louise Coleman. The day after turning 18, she married Ben Hull and never looked back. They were married for 67 years until Ben’s passing in 2022. In 1960 they, along with several of their childhood friends, moved to California, fortuitously choosing Santa Barbara as home. Ben and Joyce built a happy and successful life here, raising two children and remaining close with their childhood friends.

Joyce was a character. She did not mince words; she did not hold back and always told it like it was. She was her own person. At the same time, she had a great sense of humor and was generous to a fault. The needs and wants of her children, grandchildren and great-

grandchildren were always first and foremost. She was described by her sister Billie’s children as “both prickly and beautiful”, an apt description. She loved to read, travel, play golf, shop, go winetasting, eat out with friends, be extravagant at Christmas and host family dinners. Friday nights will always be remembered as drive-in movie nights with those same Missouri friends and all their kids. What good, old-fashioned fun! Known for her organizational skills, neatness and ability to run a tight ship, Joyce was a professional, effective administrative assistant: at GE Tempo, Devereux School and finally at UCSB’s College of Engineering.

We would like to extend heartfelt thanks to Katerina Marcellin and Anton Zamyatin who oversee Casa San Miguel with love, care, integrity and tireless support; her kindhearted main caregiver, Vefa Gasanova who is truly an angel on earth; and Ella Asanova who nourishes everyone at Casa San Miguel with her amazing meals.

We are also grateful for the personal and compassionate care provided by Central Coast Home Health and Hospice as well as Dr. Jeffrey Bourne and his staff for attentively looking after Mom’s health and welfare.

Joyce is survived by her daughter and son-in-law, Karen and Steve Thompson; her grandson Andrew Hull, his wife Darcy French-Myerson and their children Ruby and Llewyn Hull; her grandson Oliver Thompson and his wife Daniela Thompson; and her daughter-in-law Pam Bohn.

She will be terribly missed by her family and her friends (Ginny, Bev, Donna, Sue). Private interment will be at Goleta Cemetery where she will be placed next to her husband Ben and her son Bryan. She was also pre-deceased by sisters Billie White and Sandra Keeney.

Mom/Joyce/ Grandma, we thank you for the wisdom, knowledge and love you gifted to each and every one of us. We will never forget you.

PHOEBE BRUNNER’S MIND THE LANDSCAPE OF

Visionary Painter’s New Show, A Radiant Solitude, Comes to Sullivan Goss Gallery

by Roger Durling

Photos by Ingrid Bostrom

Phoebe Brunner’s enlivening new show at Sullivan Goss Art Gallery titled A Radiant Solitude surveys the hidden, transcendent and emotional depths within our familiar Santa Barbara scenery. She uses dream logic and unexpected juxtapositions to reveal the true fundamental nature of a place we think we know so well. Within this extremely mature, cohesive, and sophisticated exhibit, she explores the universal cycles of life, death, and rebirth making nature’s mystery and beauty palpable and disquieting. She combines surrealism with her innate quixotic connection to the land using magic realism to represent inner experiences and resonance.

“In the history of Santa Barbara painting, Phoebe’s vision is unique,” said Nathan Vonk, owner of Sullivan Goss. “She creates scenes that are a fascinating and beguiling combination of the familiar and the imagined. We look at her work and could swear we recognize the place, but in fact, her subjects are rarely specific places. She is able to capture the essence of this area through entirely imaginary locations.”

Studying her paintings, in particular the show’s centerpiece, “Where I’m Bound,” a big canvas with mountains in the distance and a sprig in the foreground blowing in the wind the viewer is compelled to interpret the natural elements as metaphors. The mountains may be construed as symbols for challenges ahead, and the lack of trails urge you to discover your own paths and the clouds may be emblematic of emotions. Her colors reflect internal feelings rather than external reality warm tones for joy or cool, dark tones for heaviness and solitude.

“I’m constantly aware when I’m doing paintings for an exhibit of having a cohesiveness,” explained Brunner. “This group of paintings is an extension of what I have been doing philosophically. The land, the distance, the lighting. I want people to wake up to nature.”

In Brunner’s paintings, her landscapes function as representational theaters where inner life meets outward existence, encouraging exploration of personal significance, or even spiritual realms, in the way that indigenous cultures feel about sacred places.

“Her paintings feel rooted in reality yet elevated by imagination,” said Nora Hurley, philanthropist and art collector. “She captures the essence of a place while inviting the viewer to move beyond strict realism and engage emotionally and imaginatively. Her work is transportive, fantastical, yet deeply true.”

Brunner’s work suggests landscapes are not just attractive scenery but dynamic environments for processing emotions and philosophies, blurring lines between the real and imagined. Reflecting on her work, Brunner said, “These paintings are elevated. They have another layer other than just a landscape. They have a spirituality. They’re an invitation to a journey.”

She continued, “For me, art is a genuine expression of one’s self. With luck, the manifestation of that expression will find its way into the world and affect many people’s

lives. It will somehow expand the consciousness of people I will never meet. It will tell stories and encourage people to see beyond their normal everyday idea of life, our natural surroundings, and our humanity.”

In early November 2025, I drove to Phoebe’s home on the Mesa for the first of three gatherings for this story. Her residence is one of the quirkiest, most endearing, and most artistic homes I have visited. Every detail, from the gate to the doorway, invites you in while simultaneously making you aware that this is not your typical home. The shapes and architecture are slightly askew, and the colors are unexpectedly bright recalling something out of Lewis Carroll’s world.

Did I just go through the looking glass?

I was greeted by a rambunctious Welsh terrier named Buster, who was full of energy and happy to interact. Brunner kept apologizing for his behavior. She’s a formidable character, and one of the most fascinating people I have met in this town. She speaks softly but with an intensity, especially when it is directed toward her work.

“I do feel that 50 percent of whatever I am currently working on derives from all the art I’ve done up to now,” she said, with a distinctive combination of confidence and vulnerability. “A continuum. An organic thread that I hold on to. A connection to what is me and what is the natural world out there. What’s new and what’s fresh is often a surprise to me. Maybe a new pattern, an unusual plant, or an odd way of lighting appears, and then becomes part of my repertoire… . I consider myself an instinctive painter. So, much of the time, the painting speaks to me and guides me, and I trust it and go with it. But there are plenty of times when I am completely lost and empty. I put the paint on all day, then scrape it off and have to wait for those internal instructions, for that vision to reappear. This is the process. There is magic involved here.”

Brunner and Buster led me to her paint studio a highceilinged room with plenty of light. It looks like a gallery space with its white walls and all of the paintings that are going into her exhibit at Sullivan Goss are on display.

“Phoebe’s profound dedication to her practice is evident

in everything she paints,” said Patricia Rovzar, owner of her namesake gallery in Seattle, which showcases Phoebe’s work. “Over the years, Brunner has thoughtfully refined and adjusted her process, consistently raising her own bar. This maturity and development have allowed her work to speak to a much broader audience than earlier in her practice.”

Brunner, Buster, and I sat in her studio, studying her paintings. “The most formative experience of my life happened when I was 9 years of age,” Brunner said. Born in N.Y.C., she went to live with the Hollister family on their 15,000-acre coastal cattle ranch, one of the original Spanish Land Grant ranchos near Santa Barbara.

“My fondest memories,” she reflects, “that inform my art today are roaming alone on horseback for hours and hours, up and down the canyons, seeing the land go on forever, absorbing the colors and patterns of the natural world around me.”

One of the ranchers would saddle a horse for her. There were no buildings, no paved roads. Young Phoebe felt connected to nature and was impressed by how serene it all was, how quiet. For her, nature was a refuge, and it was full of spirituality. The landscape was her family; it was her friend. She loved traveling through those hills.

“My paintings are rooted in memory and experiences,” she said. “The contemporary landscape paintings that I still do today are tied to those memories and experiences in a deeply primal way.” It is worth noting that in her work, you rarely see people or buildings. “In my paintings, the most I put in is a road,” she said. “I want to wake up people to nature.”

The title of the exhibit, A Radiant Solitude, alludes to this seminal time in Phoebe’s life. “I think the works in this show celebrate moments of solitary wonder,” Nathan Vonk said. “They try to capture the magic of a longed-for seclusion, where the fact that you are alone heightens the beauty of the world around you.”

“I have never been a realist,” Brunner tells me. “I started with my own vision from the beginning. I listen to the painting. You have to have courage and confidence, and be

open to let the painting guide you. There are no rules in art. It’s good to have some base, to have technique, but then break the rules bend them.”

In putting together her dream landscapes, she said she combines a real location that she has visited with dream images. She also uses photographs that she then enhances. The work remains recognizable enough to the viewer that it tricks them into thinking that what they’re seeing is an actual place or in some other instances, it makes them question what they’re seeing. They find enough familiarity in the work that it speaks to them. Brunner is conscious that her work has to be rooted in an actual place, and then she adds the artifice to extend the reality. The result is an emotional work that recreates a memory or an experience, like the physical feeling of a breeze on your skin.

“I seduce the viewer with beauty,” Brunner said. “There is a physicality that allows the viewer to travel through the painting, beckoning it’s an invitation.”

She uses forced perspective; vanishing points; a strong composition exploiting foreground, midground, and background; and a balance of light. “The light I want the light to draw the viewer in like the moth to the flame,” she said. “With it, I create the sensuality you see in the work. I’m getting better at making the light more powerful.” We spoke about how she’s able to generate a contrast of temperatures within the paintings with her usage of lighting. It’s very cinematic and intense. Brunner explains that she uses multiple layers of paint, and that is how she’s able to convey a sense of depth and luminosity. “I have a love affair with oil paint,” she said. “It allows me to have a richness. I’m intrigued by what it offers me … a juicy depth.”

Brunner confesses that she feels like a third-generation Santa Barbaran. She attended Laguna Blanca School for 5th and 6th grade. She recalls her art teacher, Natalie Hansen, and hanging out in her classroom, for all she wanted to do was art. Hansen provided young Phoebe with the space and the outlet she needed. Brunner lived for a while in San Francisco with renowned theater actress Kathleen Chalfant (a Tony nominee as part of the original cast of Angels in America) and her husband, the painter Henry Chalfant.

In 1968, Brunner graduated from Santa Barbara High School, where beloved art teacher Jack Baker further encouraged her creativity. Immediately after, she went to Chouinard Art School (before it became CalArts) from 1968 to 1970. She acknowledges that she had a difficult time in art school. She wasn’t doing the assignments, and she was adamant about sticking to her own vision. In 1970, she returned to Santa Barbara and enrolled in the College of Creative Studies at UCSB. She worked with biologist Dr. Beatrice Sweeney on a notebook of wildflowers as one of her graduation requirements.

After graduating in 1972, she returned to Mexico, where she had spent the summer of

1970 in the Escuela de Artes Plásticas in Guadalajara. She was intrigued by the folk art. “I loved the bright colors,” she said. “It’s hard for me to be subtle.” At 21 years old, she had her first show in a gallery in the Upper Village in Montecito, where she sold paintings. For many years, she was represented at the Ellen Easton Gallery, in addition to numerous other galleries up and down the West Coast, and has won several awards. She had her first show at Sullivan Goss in 2015.

This uncommon artist has been painting for more than 50 years.

I am intrigued by a series of paintings in this exhibit of wildflowers that seem to be mutating into agaves. “I am starting to explore cactus forms,” she said. “When I pick a flower, it has to be indigenous, or there has to be something wild about them. They’re attached to something thorny.”

The flowers depicted are strong, fierce creations defiantly in the foreground with a landscape in back of them. Phoebe tells me that during the drought, she did a series called The Seeding. She no longer paints the seeds but has continued with the flowers. There is a human characteristic to these works. They come across as portraits. They are fluid swaying with the wind or because of some internal necessity. I cannot help but think of the painter as I admire these works: Phoebe the uncompromising artist dancing to the beat of her own drum.

“She has a remarkable ability to interpret nature in all of its vibrancy, movement, and power,” said Nora Hurley. “Her subjects seem to breathe and pulse with life, whether she is painting rolling valleys, coastal hills beneath enchanting skies, dramatic clouds releasing rain, spiraling floral blooms, or crashing surf reaching toward the shore. Each element feels individual and full of character.”

Phoebe Brunner: A Radiant Solitude is on view at Sullivan Goss Gallery (11 E. Anapamu St.) January 30-March 23. Meet the artist at a 1st Thursday opening reception on February 5, 5-8 p.m. See sullivangoss.com.

“[Jlin creates] something frenetic and physical but also heavy with emotion, like chamber music breaking out on the dance floor.” Stereogum

“Third Coast Percussion is blurring musical boundaries and beguiling new listeners.” NPR

OCver the years, the Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF) has kicked off its grand event in gala-style blowout converging on the historic Arlington Theatre, replete with klieg lights beaming, red carpet, and requisite regalia. Whatever the film showcased on that night, and however it is received, crowds show up for the notable festive occasion of it all. The conventional wisdom is that the vast pageantry of cinema from the world with 200-plus films will generate its own centrifugal buzz. But you gotta start somewhere.

IT’S ALMOST TIME FOR MOVIE MAGIC

inephiles rejoice! The 41st edition of the Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF) arrives next week for 11 days and nights, including 46 world film premieres and 80 U.S. premieres from 50 countries, along with a brand-new headquarters — the SBIFF McHurley Film Center at 916 State Street — as well as a star-studded lineup of tributes to big-screen superstars, Oscar-nominated auteurs, seminars on the nuts and bolts of

filmmaking, and free daily films. Read on for our first pick of films to watch, including the scoop on opening night, and a peek behind the scenes with SBIFF poster artist Baret Boisson as well as the tribute to Adam Sandler on February 5. We’ll have even more for you as SBIFF progresses February 4-14. See sbiff.org for the complete schedule and check back frequently for updates, as more things tend to be added through the festival. See you at the movies! n

SBIFF OPENING NIGHT FILM | To India with Love, and Hurdles

by Josef Woodard

The SBIFF opener list over its past 40 years has included last year’s light literate comedy Jane Austen Wrecked My Life, which went onto a theatrical run, Sarah’s Key (with Kristin Scott Thomas) in 2011, and a slight but enjoyable Woody Allen film, Melinda and Melinda, in 2005, (before Woody Allen became alleged sex offender non grata).

For opening-night film number 41 in the SBIFF annals, the film will be A Mosquito in the Ear, given its U.S. premiere on Wednesday, February 4. Writer/director Nicola Rinciari, along with co-writer Emily Dillard, have adapted Andrea Ferraris’s graphic novel Una Zanzara nell’Orecchio, with a plot and location shot in India, trying into the festival’s agenda with its international spin.

In the saga, an American couple travels to India to take home an adopted 4-year-old orphan named Sarvari. Good intentions aside, things go wrong and wronger with the process, the child’s reluctance to leave the orphanage, and the marriage itself.

The film stars Jake Lacy (The Office, White Lotus) and the Iran-born Nazanin Boniadi (The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power). Italian-born director Rinciari, who has worked on animation and live action productions in Hollywood, is making his feature film debut with the film. In a mission statement, the director asserts, “I feel called to communicate the beauty of life even in its faults and harshness. This is reflected in my work across all genres from fantasy, comedy, to drama. Every form of expression is a form of poetry.”

He continued, “In my work, I aim to show the audience a piece of our reality from a different perspective. I start with an issue, a topic, a feeling, and transform it into a story that connects with the viewer both on an intellectual and an emotional level.”

Rinciari and co-writer Dillard will be on hand at the Arlington gala, with others to be announced.

It’s a night to crank up the klieg lights and bask in cinema in a community hub. Early the following morning will be the unveiling of the eagerly awaited and lavishly renovated and rethought SBIFF McHurley Film Center downtown, which will be the five-screen hub of festival action for the next 10 days.

See sbiff.org.

Baret Boisson the artist behind the stunningly thought-provoking painting designed for the 2026 Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF) poster may be a new name to some festivalgoers, but this is definitely not her first brush with Hollywood fame.

Her vibrantly whimsical art commands precious wall space in estates around the world, including Santa Barbara, and she has done multiple commissions for stars such as Elizabeth Taylor, Seth Rogen, Kathy Ireland, and Jimmy Fallon, whose wife, Nancy Juvonen, famously didn’t want any wedding gifts other than paintings by Baret Boisson. “When they got married, the only thing she registered for was my paintings,” smiled Boisson. “I did four different ones for their wedding and they keep doing things like family portraits.”

Talking Art, Freedom, and Inspiration with the Creator of the 2026 SBIFF Poster

by Leslie Dinaberg

Elizabeth Taylor also gave Boisson this ringing endorsement before her death in 2011: “Baret Boisson is a brilliant artist whose talented work lives in my personal collection. We are all only temporary custodians of beauty, and it is a pleasure to care for Baret’s beautiful art.”

And more recently, Santa Barbara International Film Festival Executive Director Roger Durling (who wrote a 2024 Santa Barbara Independent cover story about Boisson) entrusted her with complete creative freedom as the 2026 festival poster artist.

In publicly showing off the poster for the first time an otherworldly, multidimensional, textured painting with a compelling and very timely message about the importance of artistic expression Boisson said she didn’t want to go too deeply into the meaning because “I want you guys to feel what you feel about it.”

Boisson, who often uses quotations in her work, chose a quote from John F. Kennedy, made during a 1963 visit to Amherst College, to illustrate the theme of artistic freedom: “If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him.”

When Durling, out of the blue, contacted her to ask if she wanted to create the SBIFF poster painting, Boisson was incredibly flattered. “I said, ‘Absolutely. … Do I need to know anything?’ And he said, ‘No, just leave room for the logo.’ That was the only thing he gave me,” she laughed.

She started her brainstorming about special places in Santa Barbara, but her vision quickly broadened. The more she

Artist Baret Boisson’s Brush with Film and Fame

thought about it, the more she wanted it to be bigger than Santa Barbara and about more than the film festival.

“I wanted it to be about art. I wanted it to be about artistic freedom. And so, that’s what I decided to do. The conceit to the film festival is the reel in the eye. But it’s all about vision, just the path to different realms of freedom, playing with that idea.”

Her initial concepts were more literal than the final piece. “I thought I would do a film reel, coming down with different films. Then I wanted it to be weirder. I want it to be like, part snakeskin part Wizard of Oz, part Milky Way, just like weird and then bringing in the other worlds, the other realms

that we visit and how we’re transported when we watch a good film. I also want people to just see it and feel something and not have to explain too much. Different people will probably see different things, because that’s how that works.”

As for the JFK quote, Boisson said, “I thought it was super timely. I’ve used that quote before, but never before has it been so timely. The fact that artists have to be free, whether they’re in Iran, Russia, or the United States. And, I mean, we’re seeing it in real time. So, I’m so glad it’s not this prosaic little Santa Barbara beach scene, you know, because I have a lot to say.”

She continued, “It’s kind of meta. Roger gave me freedom, total freedom to create. And my message is about creative freedom.”

Freedom of all types has been a recurring theme for Boisson, whose powerful portrait series Inspiring Greatness was the subject of a solo show at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee. “For me, I want to evoke strong feelings with everything I make. And you know, there’s some art that does that for you, and there’s some art that doesn’t, and obviously everyone responds to things differently, right?”

She continued, “For me, everything I make, I love. So, it can live in my place as long as it’s not sold and I’m happy, because I’m not like, ‘Oh, I made this hoping it would sell,’ you know? I mean, I think some things are more commercial than others, but I’m never thinking about the commercial aspect, which, in a way, is really bad, but also distinguishing my art, because it’s totally personal.”

Boisson added, “I’m still really blown away and flattered to do the film festival poster.”

Asked what Durling’s first response to the painting was, she shared, “When he came to my studio, he loved it right away. He was like, ‘This is why I chose you.’ ”

View the painting in person in the window of Sullivan Goss Gallery (11 E. Anapamu St.) during SBIFF. The Santa Barbara International Film Festival takes place February 4-14. For the complete list of films, synopses, and other special events, please visit sbiff.org or the SBIFF app.

Aquarter-century ago, it would have been inconceivable to find Adam Sandler on the list of the lofty tribute evening of the Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF). In his early breakout and career-building stage, Sandler honed his persona as a mumbly doofus capable of sudden throaty outbursts, on Saturday Night Live (SNL) and films such as Billy Madison, Happy Gilmore, The Wedding Singer, and The Waterboy. Then came PT Anderson’s brilliant 2002 film Punch-Drunk Love, which gave Sandler a ripe opportunity to demonstrate the more complex dramatic and more subtle and dryly comic talents he hadn’t shown elsewhere.

Jr., and last year’s celeb in the spotlight, Angelina Jolie.

Suddenly, Sandler joined the rare ranks of famed comedians crossing the border into serious acting, alongside Robin Williams, Steve Carell, Bill Hader, and Bill Murray. With Punch-Drunk Love, and his impressive work as a hyperactive jewelry-racket con man in Josh Safdie’s Uncut Gems and now his solid, gag-free role as George Clooney’s manager in Jay Kelly, Sandler’s serious actor cred solidified. Now Sandler’s viability for a SBIFF tribute crown becomes a reality when the 41st annual festival gives him a “this is your life” Maltin Modern Master Award night at the Arlington on Thursday, February 5.

Sandler, now 59, has amassed enough of a body of work, with enough diversity and critical thumbs-up, to make for a full evening’s tribute. He lands on a list of Modern Master honorees including Bill Murray, Brad Pitt, Jamie Lee Curtis, Robert Downey

As for Santa Barbara connections, Sandler’s classic “The Chanukah Song,” appearing on his second album, What the Hell Happened to Me? (1996), was a live recording from his UCSB appearance. Speaking of his alternative holiday tune, veteran critic and award namesake Leonard Maltin comments, “Adam Sandler won me over when he sang ‘The Chanukah Song’ on SNL, then amassed a huge following in tailor-made movies like The Waterboy and The Wedding Singer I love that he’s left his comfort zone and delivered potent performances in Uncut Gems and Jay Kelly. I can’t wait to share the stage with him in Santa Barbara.”

Another Santa Barbara connection, once removed, is that Montecitan Dennis Miller “discovered” Sandler as an aspiring 17-yearold comic in Los Angeles and recommended him to SNL’s Lorne Michaels, who hired him first as a writer in 1990 but quickly moved him into the cast. Michaels was also who fired Sandler in 1995, along with Chris Farley, during a slump in the show’s history. But Sandler more than bounced back, starring in ’90s films, starting with Billy Madison (1995) and Happy Gilmore (1996), hence his production company portmanteau, Happy Madison. These and other ’90s titles soared, commercially and in terms of creating a bankable brand. And as of 2026, Sandler is a formidable presence in Hollywood, one with serio-comic, SBIFF-worthy cred.

info and tickets, see sbiff.org.

A First Look at SBIFF Films of Note

Faced with a daunting list of more than 200 choices on the SBIFF program menu, it can be a formidable task to zero in on which films to see, which to miss, and which films are suited to one’s taste. Some of that option anxiety is relieved when the films start to roll out and recommendations, word of mouth, and literal buzz on the street start to roll in.

moving story song, “Lighthouse in Little Lorraine,” which Hines made the video for and expanded into a feature project.

A Small Selection of Recommended Films at SBIFF Represents the Program’s Built-in Diversity of Offerings

by Josef Woodard

From a short list of films available for advance screening, we can offer a bit of help from the front, with a seven-pack of recommended films to watch out for. The variety of this selection from drama (light and dark) to documentary (nature-oriented and humanity-leaning) to family-friendly animation and back is a good indication of the festival’s traditional attention to the importance of being diverse and inclusive.

Belgian director Laura Wandel draws on a naturalistic, almost doc-style approach, with a handheld camera and sans musical score, with Adam’s Sake (L’intérêt d’Adam). It’s about a pediatric ward doctor wrestling with legalities, a troubled young mother, and a son (Adam) who refuses to eat shades of the narrative in the excellent If I Had Legs I’d Kick You. It’s a close-up story, with ample close-up shots and a rare intimacy with characters trapped in complex situations.

From a more feel-good-ish zone comes director Hernán Jiménez’s Abril, a warm, sweet, and comedy-dusted drama from Costa Rica about a woman fighting for the love of her temperamental teenaged daughter and looking for love, and finding it at home. A variation on the rom-com theme, with heart and refreshing subtlety.

Part of the allure with writer-director Andy Hines’s emotionally charged crime saga Little Lorraine is its “exotic” setting, on the rugged coast of Cape Breton, with its ambience conveyed with the classic Scottish fiddling of the region and work in the fishing and mining fields. And, as happened in the late ’80s, the area was also an unloading shore for boatloads of cocaine and hashish, a temptation for out-of-work protagonists lured in by the shady Uncle Huey. In a twist, the basis for the film is heard under the end credits Adam Baldwin’s gritty and

In the documentary Dear Lara, the #MeToo movement circles around to the insular, self-protective world of classical music a theme also woven into the satirical classical world send-up, Todd Fields’s brilliant Tár. The “Lara” is respected Canadian violinist Lara St. John, who has performed in Ventura County and around the world. News of the deeply rooted tradition of sexual abuse in classical music education and professional practices began to leak into the public sphere around the time of the Harvey Weinstein–driven toppling of film industry sins, through such exposé sources as Anne Midgette’s Washington Post story on the subject in 2018, and St. John’s personal testimonial story in the Philadelphia Inquirer about her own brush with abuse as a 14-yearold at the prestigious Curtis Institute of Music. The film names names, as it should, including James Levine, David Daniels, Placido Domingo, and Steven Shipps.

The result in the St. John–directed doc is fascinating, chilling, and necessary.

Another truth crusader is in the documentary spotlight in Steal This Story, Please!, about the veteran activist radio/television journalist and Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman. The title shouldn’t be confused with Abbie Hoffman’s book Steal This Book; the title refers to Goodman’s wish that the alternative news and “scoops” her team uncovers would be “stolen” by the often-repressed corporate media. What began humbly in 1996 out of New York’s WBAI has grown from 19 radio stations carrying it to nearly 1,500 (including Santa Barbara’s own KCSB). Directed by Tia Lessin and Carl Deal, the film winner of this year’s “SBIFF Social Justice Award sponsored by The Fund for Santa Barbara” blends Goodman’s own story and stories she has passionately covered through the decades, from the East Timor tragedy through 9/11, the Gaza conflagration, and the current reign of Trump-ian terror.

A Life Illuminated, directed by Tasha Van Zandt, is a sterling model of a science-related doc with information and entertainment content in check, along with storytelling verve and a visual allure. The film, filed under the “Great Outdoors” subcategory at the festival, is a portrait of the famed oceanographer (and UCSB graduate) Edith Widder, best known for her work with deep sea “bioluminescence,” created by animals that generate their own light. A dogged curiosity and fascination with the relatively untapped world of deep-sea life led her, over several decades, to go diving and

inventing machinery a problematic stationary camera called “Eye in the Sea” to her “electronic jellyfish,” as a “way to talk to the animals, Dr. Doolittle–style.”

She does so, in a triumphant moment of a first sighting of the massive and mysterious giant squid.

The film, engaging for oceanographic geeks and the rest of us, traces her history through to a recent mission in pursuit of deep-sea life-emitting “flashback,” which she calls “the language of the planet.”

Moving from deep inner space to outer space and the part of the longstanding Canadian cinema ethos involved in creative uses of animation Space Cadet is a sweet and all-ages-suitable “family” saga, with no dialogue, a coating of savory ambient music, and a winning empathetic nanny robot (a k a “guardian bot”) character at the tender core of the story, tugging at our heartstrings in unexpected ways. His young charge, a female Space Academy graduate sent off to the moon on a six-month mission, fends off nasty green cosmic critters and navigates plant life and a music-generated scheme to return home. A dreamy winner of an animated invention directed by Kid Koala.

The Santa Barbara International Film Festival takes place February 4-14. For the complete list of films, synopses, and other special events, please visit sbiff.org or the SBIFF app.

I NDEPENDENT C ALENDAR

THURSDAY 1/29

1/29: Conversation with Thomas E. Chávez: Spain and the Independence of the United States Thomas E. Chávez author, historian with a PhD from the University of New Mexico, and member of Spain’s Real Academia de la Historia and the Orden de Isabel la Catolica will talk about how Spain turned a rebellion of 13 British colonies into a world war that forced Britain to make decisions that resulted in the eventual peace and birth of the United States of America. RSVP required. 6-8pm. S.B. Mission Archive-Library, 2201 Laguna St. $25-$30. Call (805) 682-4713 x131. sbmal.org/events

1/29: Mania: The ABBA Tribute From London’s West End, this show re-creates the magic of ABBA’s music with a cast of talented musicians and performers and delivers an authentic tribute to the legendary Swedish band that has captured the hearts of fans for generations. 7:30pm. Lobero Theatre, 33 E. Canon Perdido St. $42-$72. Call (805) 963-0761. lobero.org

FRIDAY 1/30

1/30-2/1:

Folk Orchestra of S.B. Medieval Concert Enjoy an epic journey into the music of the Middle Ages from lively dances to hauntingly beautiful tunes in a program that draws from music from across England, Spain, France, Sweden, and beyond that will mix medieval instruments, including crumhorn, gemshorn, nyckelharpa, recorder, and gaitas. Fri.: 7pm. El Presidio de Santa Bárbara State Historic Park Chapel, 123 E. Canon Perdido St. $45; Sat.: 7pm. Trinity Episcopal Church, 1500 State St. $35; Sun.: 4pm. St. Mark’s-in-the-Valley Episcopal Church, 2901 Nojoqui Ave., Los Olivos. $35. Email adam@folkorchestraSB.com. folkorchestrasb.com

1/30: Chumash Casino Resort Presents Hank Azaria and The EZ Street Band Acclaimed actor and voice artist Hank Azaria, who dedicated months to mastering his impression of Springsteen’s distinctive speaking cadence and singing voice, and his band will perform an authentic Springsteen experience. All proceeds will go to the Four Through Nine Foundation (founded by Azaria) which is committed to social justice, education, and addiction recovery. 8pm. The Samala Showroom, Chumash Casino Resort, 3400 E. Hwy. 246, Santa Ynez. $20-$55. Ages 21+. Call (805) 686-3805. chumashcasino.com/entertainment

1/30-1/31: S.B. Elks Lodge and Theatre Eclectic Present an Evening of Two One-Act Plays: Smiling Through It All See the one-act comedies Neighborhood Watch by area playwright Lynne Herrell, and The Proposal by Anton Chekhov, performed by underrepresented older artists who perform for underserved audiences to create community through theater. 8pm. S.B. Elks Lodge, 150 N. Kellogg Ave., Goleta. $15. Call (805) 403-6679. tinyurl.com/Eclectic-Theatre

SATURDAY 1/31

THURSDAY

Carpinteria: 800 block of Linden Ave., 2:30-6:30pm

FRIDAY

Montecito: 1100 and 1200 blocks of Coast Village Rd., 8-11:15am

SATURDAY

Downtown S.B.: Corner of State and Carillo sts., 8am-1pm

SUNDAY

Goleta: Camino Real Marketplace, 10am-2pm

TUESDAY

Old Town S.B.: 500-600 blocks of State St., 3-6:30pm

WEDNESDAY

Solvang: Copenhagen Dr. and 1st St., 2:30-6:00pm

FISHERMAN’S MARKET

SATURDAY

Rain or shine, meet local fishermen on the Harbor’s commercial pier, and buy fresh fish (filleted or whole), live crab, abalone, sea urchins, and more. 117 Harbor Wy., 6-11am. Call (805) 259-7476. cfsb.info/sat

1/31: Storytelling for the Screen: Clueless See a screening of 1995’s Clueless, the stylish update of Jane Austen’s classic novel Emma, and one of the most fashion-forward films in American culture, that follows the wealthy and popular Beverly Hills teenager Cher Horowitz (Alicia Silverstone), a shallow matchmaker who becomes capable of empathy and improving the lives of those around her. A Q&A with costume designer Mona May will follow the screening. 2-4:30pm. Pollock Theater, UCSB. Free. Call (805) 893-4637. carseywolf.ucsb.edu/events

1/31: Poncho Sanchez and His Latin Jazz Band

Take in a night of the Latin jazz, gritty soul, and infectious rhythms from Grammy Award–winning bandleader, conguero, and percussionist Poncho Sanchez, who has been making music for more than 40 years, with recent works including 2025’s Live at the Belly Up Tavern. 7:30pm. Lobero Theatre, 33 E. Canon Perdido St. GA: $47-$57; premium: $107. Call (805) 963-0761. lobero.org

1/29-2/2:

1/30: Carr Winery Barrel Room Sessions: Tony Buck & Cadillac Angels, 7pm. 414 N. Salsipuedes St., Santa Barbara. Free. Call (805) 965-7985. Ages 21+. carrwinery.com/events

1/30: Eos Lounge Rush to the Disco: Larry Dance Jr. + Jack Roy, 9pm. Free 500 Anacapa St. Ages 21+. Call (805) 564-2410. eoslounge.com

1/30-1/31: M.Special Brewing Co. (S.B.) Fri.: Aliway, 8pm. Sat.: Duncan and the Dragonslayers, 7:30pm. 634 State St. Free. Call (805) 308-0050. mspecialbrewco.com

1/30-1/31: Maverick Saloon Fri.: Jimi Nelson Band, 8:30pm. Sat.: Flannel 101, 9pm. 3687 Sagunto St., Santa Ynez. Call (805) 686-4785. Ages 21+. mavericksaloon.com/eventcalendar

1/31: Hook’d Bar and Grill SB 1200, 2-5pm. 116 Lakeview Dr., Cachuma Lake. Free. Call (805) 350-8351. hookdbarandgrill.com/music-onthe-water

1/31: M.Special Brewing Co. (Goleta) The Nombres, 6:30pm. 6860 Cortona Dr., Bldg. C, Goleta. 7-9pm. Free Call (805) 968-6500. mspecialbrewco.com

2/1: Longoria Wines Live music, 3-5pm. 732 State St. Free. Email info@ longoriawine.com longoriawines.com/events

2/2: The Red Piano Church on Monday: Doc Ventura, 7:30pm. 519 State St. $5. Call (805) 358-1439. theredpiano.com

1/31-2/1:

Cold Spring Tavern Sat.: Paradise Kings Sun.: Tom Ball and Kenny Sultan. 5995 Stagecoach Rd. 1:30-4:30pm. Free Call (805) 967-0066. coldspringtavern.com

Tue, Feb 24 & Wed, Feb 25 / 7 PM / Arlington Theatre

Curated and hosted by Roman Baratiak, A&L Associate Director Emeritus

Experience the world’s best mountain films at larger-than-life scale as the Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour returns for two nights of thrilling outdoor adventures.

Major Local Sponsor: Justin Brooks Fisher Foundation

The Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour is presented by Banff & Lake Louise Tourism and Rab and is sponsored by Oboz, YETI, World Expeditions, The Lake Louise Ski Resort, DUER, Grangers, HOVERAir, NOLS, and Nossa Familia Coffee

Join online or in person, December 15 - January 31! Visit us during our Open House on January 24 th and see all that we have to offer.

español

Culture and Social Support

Heejung Kim (Psychological and Brain Sciences, UCSB) shows how cultural values shape relationships and social support, influencing stress responses,

1/31: Ojai Music Festival and Black Barn Session Present Sound Unseen Experience a unique musical experience where the visual element of the performance is removed, and the audience is enveloped in sound as the music fills the space and surrounds the listeners with new work created for this event and will be played by members of the new music collective Wild Up. Choose from four sessions: 6, 6:45, 7:30, and 8:15pm. Red Canteen, Ojai Unified School Campus, 703 El Paseo Rd., Ojai. $20. Email boxoffice@ojaifestival.org ojaifestival.org/sound-unseen

1/31: Santa Barbara Chamber Players Fundraising Concert Enjoy an evening of Romantic-era orchestral music from Felix Mendelssohn and Robert Schumann under the baton of Zig Reichwald and featuring acclaimed pianist Pascal Salomon. Select area high school students will perform side-by-side with the orchestral musicians in a unique educational collaboration. 7:30pm. Hahn Hall, 1070 Fairway Rd. Free-$20. Email info@sbchamberplayers.org. sbchamberplayers.org

1/31: The 13th Annual S.B. Botanic Garden Conservation Symposium: Plant with Purpose: Growing Resilience Through Native Plants The garden will kick off its centennial presented by the Nakashima-Rennie family by honoring entomologist and best-selling author Doug Tallamy, known for the influential books Nature’s Best Hope and Bringing Nature Home, and one of the most compelling voices in native plant conservation. This event will be in-person and virtual. Registration is required. 10am-1pm. Fe Bland Auditorium/BC Forum, SBCC West Campus, 800 Cliff Dr. Inperson: $15-$40; virtual: free. Call (805) 682-4726. sbbotanicgarden.org/calendar

SUNDAY 2/1

2/1: Yoga Soup Concert: Andy Fischer-Price Join for an evening of folk and medicine music from singer-songwriter Andy Fischer-Price, who sings songs for healing, the breaking of intergenerational cycles of trauma, and nurturing of a kinder, more conscious, and loving world. 7pm. Yoga Soup, 28 Parker Wy. $35. Call (805) 9658811. tinyurl.com/AndyFischer-Price

2/1: Full Moon Meditation Join in the sanctuary for a nondenominational meditation designed for beginner and experienced meditators with Tom G. O’Brien. 5pm. Unity of S.B., 227 E, Arrellaga St. Members of 12-step program: donation; GA: $20. Text to RSVP: (805) 453-8965. tinyurl.com/Meditation-Unity

2/1: Compline Story & Sound This evening service, intended for rest and contemplation, will begin with ambient music by DJ Andrew Elia, be led by Rev. Sarah Thomas, transition with loose-leaf brewed herbal tea, and conclude with people sharing a personal story. Incense and candlelight are used during the service. 7-8pm. Trinity Episcopal Church, 1500 State St. Free. Call (805) 965-7419. trinitysb. org/compline

MONDAY 2/2

2/2: UCSB Library Presents Culture and Social Support: Implications for Health and Well-Being Heejung Kim (Psychological and Brain Sciences) will present her research on how relationships lie at the heart of human life, strongly influencing health and well-being, and the cultural differences that influence the way people use and benefit from social support when dealing with stress. A Q&A will follow the talk. Advance registration is recommended. 4pm. UCSB Library. Free. Call (805) 893-2478. tinyurl.com/Heejung-Kim

TUESDAY 2/3

2/3: Chaucer’s Book Talk and Signing: Brian Schaefer California-bred, New York–based novelist and journalist Brian Shaefer will talk about and sign copies of his debut novel, Town & Country, about a congressional race in a trendy rural town in a swing state that forces the candidates, their families, and a clique of gay second homeowners to confront lies, betrayals, and shifting allegiances. 6pm. Chaucer’s Books, 3321 State St. Free. Call (805) 682-6787. chaucersbooks.com/events

WEDNESDAY 2/4

2/4:

Ensemble Theatre Company Presents: The Shark Is Broken See this razorsharp, behind-the-scenes look at the making of 1974’s Jaws when the mechanical shark malfunctions, the schedule is in shambles, and the three actors Robert Shaw, Richard Dreyfuss, and Roy Scheider are stuck on a boat, battling egos, alcohol, and artistic frustration. Ages 13+. The play previews on February 4-6 and runs through February 22. 7:30pm. The New Vic Theatre, 33 W. Victoria St. Pay-What-You-Can, $5+. Call (805) 965-5400. etcsb.org

2/4: CAMA 107th Concert Season: A Season of Legacy, Emanuel Ax Seven-time Grammy Award–winning pianist Emanuel Ax will perform a program of Romantic masterpieces, including an all-Chopin second half that will showcase Ax’s profound affinity for this composer. 7:30pm. Lobero Theatre, 33 E. Canon Perdido St. $68-$78. Call (805) 963-0761. lobero.org

2/2: Late Archaic Rock Art of the Desert Southwest The S.B. Archaeological Society and area rock art enthusiast Chris Rhodes, who has photographed and studied hundreds of rock art panels from the middle-to-late archaic periods to the present, will look at three main styles of rock art that emerged in the Desert Southwest around 4,000 years ago. 7-8:30pm. S.B. Museum of Natural History, 2559 Puesta del Sol. Free. Email sbcas@sbnature2.org. sbnature.org/calendar

JAN 31

PONCHO SANCHEZ

AND HIS LATIN JAZZ BAND

The GRAMMY® winning bandleader, conguero, and percussionist is among the most influential percussionists in jazz.

DAN WALTERS

Talks CA Politics, Past, Present

& Future

Famed Columnist Dan Walters Speaks About The Hottest Political Topics Facing CA Today

Hosted by Spotlight and Noozhawk’s Bill Macfadyen Limited $35 Tickets Still Available

“Hits like ‘American Pie’, ‘Vincent’, ‘Castles in the Air’ and the beautiful ballad ‘And I Love You So’ all share the same elusive component that makes them timeless.” - Irish Examiner

“Four decades after her new-waif debut, Suzanne Vega retains her knack for lucid reflections and crisp music to match ... Her voice remains both knowing and observant.” – Rolling Stone

“Whoever your favorite guitarist might be ... they wouldn’t want to be in the same room with Kottke, which is probably why he plays solo.” — FolkWorks

“An exhilarating display of musical ability and technical dexterity.”

– All About Jazz

HOME SLICES OF LIFE

DJ JAVIER DRAWS ON HIS VARIED TALENTS IN MCASB EXHIBITION

The unique experience of DJ Javier’s exhibition San Milano Drive begins at the beginning, at the very portal of its host space of the Museum of Contemporary Art Santa Barbara (MCASB). The artist has elegantly splashed his bold-lined, color-basted design, an abstraction vaguely referencing ocean wave action, all over the entrance to MCASB, and it’s an enticing and integrated welcome screen to what carries on inside.

Dodging the notion of museum as a neutral walland-floor display opportunity for incoming art, Javier has concocted an immersive, multisensory, and multidimensional environment, utterly transforming the space.

MCASB has become a space of his own devising, between the dozens of vibrant fluorescent-hued paintings and “sculptural” design features in the room, with a welcoming “Nipa Hut,” a padyak (Filipino pedicab), and turning the museum’s central pillar into a stylized painting of a palm tree, that “pillar” of the Santa Barbara landscape. As such, the show is as much about the atmospheric whole as it is a sum of its parts.

It is a logical and laterally expressive forum for an artist whose skills have extended into life as a painter, muralist, commercial and graphic artist, T-shirt designer, graffiti-inspired thinker, and proud product of his Filipino-American family growing up in the Goleta ‘hood of San Milano Drive.

This is an auspicious debut solo exhibition for the Goleta-bred Javier, whose reputation has expanded exponentially in recent years, around SoCal. He was, reportedly, strongly inspired by the installation aesthetic of Barry McGhee’s S.B. Summer Mid Summer Intensive show in this space, back in 2018, and Javier was subsequently both thrilled and duly challenged when museum heads Freddy Janka and Dalia Garcia put out the invitation for him to let his creativity run loose with a show here.

Whereas the Bay Area–based, street-credible artist McGhee brought his outsider’s passion and curiosity to the S.B. factor of the locality and art space, Javier’s

achievement is a lived-in homecoming tribute. In his case, Javier culls from the often-linked subcultures of skateboard, surfer, and tattoo art, with imagery ranging from mythology, gonzo comix, Catholic references, and various Filipino iconography. As a trompe l’oeil footnote, he sneaks fragments of exposed brick wall images onto some of the museum’s walls, a sly urban-esque wink. Classic Cali surf visions are filtered through his particular visual sensibility, in the form of iconic wave forms, but in a style suitable for graffiti graphic shorthand.

On the homey front, one corner of the main gallery doubles as a leisure zone, with beanbag furniture, a Filipino “videoke” karaoke machine, and screens sporting Jackie Chan–beaming film clips, cartoons, video game captures, and ethnographic footage from the Philippines. A side gallery is devoted to Javier’s ample talents and designs in the T-shirt realm, and, near the museum’s entrance/exit, the show comes equipped with its own mercado of Javier-picked products. The shop serves as both a functional, for-profit nook and an implied comment on the art-world “exit through the gift shop” tradition (to paraphrase the film title of the 2010 doc about such street artists as Banksy and Shepard Fairey).

Although the show, on impact and on paper, may seem like a dizzying assortment of stimuli packed into the museum, it coheres into a surprisingly organic artistic statement and serio-casual place to hang for a bit. And beyond the ready allurements of San Milano Drive, on the basis of its art and design aspects, the exhibit serves to remind us of the diversity of life, ethnicities and cultural enclaves in the 805.

Ours is not nearly as easily described or homogenous a place as some might expect, and vive les différence. That may be a tacit theme of Javier’s home show.

—Josef Woodard

Javier: San Milano Drive is on view at Museum of Contemporary Art Santa

through April 26.

Wed.-Sun., 11 a.m.-6 p.m. with free admission. See mcasantabarbara.org.

SSANTA BARBARA’S SOCIAL JUSTICE FILM SERIES AT SBIFF

SLATE OF FIVE FILMS THAT CLUSTER AROUND THE IDEA THAT INDIVIDUAL ACTION CAN SPUR PROFOUND CHANGE

teal This Story, Please! a documentary following journalist Amy Goodman on her more-than-30-year journey as she becomes a leader in the movement for independent media that amplifies voices excluded from the mainstream and faces off against forces trying to silence her has been selected as the winner of The Fund for Santa Barbara’s Social Justice Film Series at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival.

A slate of five films will be presented at SBIFF, all centered around the theme of “People Have the Power”: things such as the critical importance of investigative journalism to the preservation of democracy, the ongoing fight to address the devastating impacts of the fossilfuel industry, the profound psychological toll of war and conflict, the rebuilding of urban environments degraded by structural racism, and the historic abuse of native communities.

While the topics are diverse, the films are imbued with a common idea: that individual action can spur profound change. Steal This Story, Please! (U.S.) screens on February 6 at 8:20 p.m. and February 7 at 11:40 a.m.

Additional films in the series include:

As the world teeters on the brink of irreversible climate disaster, actor and activist Jane Fonda ventures deep into oil and gas country in Gaslit (U.S.), meeting the people who are exposing the fossil fuel industry’s lies. Gaslit screens on February 5 at 3 p.m. (at the Riviera Theatre), on February 8 at 11:40 a.m., and February 10 at 8 a.m.

In Cuba & Alaska (Ukraine, France, Belgium), two best friends are wisecracking medics on

Ukraine’s frontline, and living the same battlefield story as all soldiers: The longer they fight for Ukraine, the more they lose touch with friends, family, and their former lives. Cuba & Alaska screens February 5 at 5:20 p.m. and February 6 at 11:20 a.m.

Saving Etting Street (U.S.) is a riveting documentary by Dena Fisher and Amy Scott, in which master carpenter Shelley Halstead trains three young Black women in carpentry, electrical work, and plumbing. They transform a block of abandoned row houses in Baltimore into a community of Black women first-time homeowners. But when tensions arise with the group and a suspicious fire breaks out, Halstead questions her vision of community. Saving Etting Street screens on February 5 at 8:20 a.m. and on February 10 at 3:20 p.m.

What We Carry (Canada) follows the story of a restless teacher in 1964, who spots an ad in a teacher’s magazine for a position in Northern Alberta. Leaving her life in England behind, she arrives by bush plane to Wabasca-Desmarais, an isolated place with bad roads, no electricity, limited services, and the Desmarais Indian Residential School, where she teaches for five years. In 2022, her daughter and granddaughter return to this beautiful northern lakeside community in the heart of Treaty 8 territory with questions and a trunk full of history. What We Carry screens on February 12 at 11:40 a.m. and February 13 at 5 p.m.

—Leslie Dinaberg

Unless otherwise noted, all screenings will take place at SBIFF’s new McHurley Film Center at 916 State Street. For more information about SBIFF and a complete list of programs, see sbiff.org.

create and connect Beber, aprender, crear y conectar

SATURDAY MARCH 28TH SANTA BARBARA, CA TICKETS ON SALE BOLETOS A LA VENTA

Thurs 1/29 8:00 pm LOC DAWGS WITH DISLOCATED AND PETMEDZ SKATE/ALT-ROCK

Fri 1/30 8:00 pm AN EVENING WITH DO NO HARM DISCO & ROCK HITS

Sat 1/31 7:15 pm SPENCER THE GARDENER WITH SO COYOTE SURF/LATIN ROCK

Sun 2/1 7:30 pm AN EVENING WITH SONS OF CREAM PSYCHEDELIC ROCK

Mon 2/2 7:00 pm PAUL DEISS SMITH II WITH TONY YBARRA FOLK AND JAZZ

Wed 2/4 7:00 pm COMMUNITY JAZZ JAM

FEAT. MATT PERKO SEXTET SPONSORED BY UCSB JAZZ ENSEMBLE

Thurs 2/5 8:00 pm WHERE'S WEST, ETERNAL WAVE, AND BIG HUNGRY SURF ROCK

JOYCE DIDONATO CHANNELS

EMILY DICKINSON,

IN

INTERACTIVE PACKAGE

Almost exactly two years ago, famed mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato appeared at The Granada Theatre in one of her various unorthodox projects, EDEN. We knew we were in for something different this way came, as we were handed seed-embedded paper discs, tied to the project’s theme of regeneration and gardens, actual and symbolic. Her musical menu, lighting, and staging touched on the music she is known for on the opera stage, by Handel and Gluck, but wended through Charles Ives and Mahler, and the sounds from living composers such as Rachel Portman. It was anything but a garden-variety recital.

On Thursday, February 5, DiDonato returns to the Granada in another tradition-challenging role, with a production of Emily No Prisoner Be by composer Kevin Puts whose Virginia Woolf–based opera The Hours featured DiDonato. In this program, hosted by UCSB Arts & Lectures, she will be joined by the innovative Time for Three, and the show will also feature stage direction and interactive links to the audience.

From all appearances and reports, the show will present Emily Dickinson in a new and reconsidered light, for a contemporary sensibility. The fruits of the effort, at least in musical form, are also available for all to hear on a newly released album.

The Emily No Prisoner Be production sounds fascinating, and another one of your conceptual and crossdiscipline projects. Can you tell me about its origins and intentions? This idea belongs entirely to Kevin Puts, who approached me while I was singing Virginia Woolf in his opera The Hours at the Metropolitan Opera. He had come across a poem of Emily Dickinson’s, “They Shut Me Up in Prose,” and he immediately began to hear music and dream of my singing it alongside the incredible trio Time for Three. He heard it all, dreamt it all up, and then happily invited us to collaborate and help shape the direction of the piece. While this is a project I would have jumped at under any circumstance, the fact that it aligns so well with my previous two world tours is something very powerful to me.

Emily Dickinson was such an iconic, and enigmatic, American hero in hiding, in a way. How do you view her place in the pantheon of American poetry, and art more generally? Absolutely at the pinnacle. I find her daring, revolutionary, human, fragile, groundbreaking, spiritual, bold, confrontational and so much more. Her poetry continues to reveal the more you live with it, and I find this to be a pillar of great art. Just the sheer number of times thousands her poems have been set to music demonstrates the level of inspiration she provides through her words.

We checked in with DiDonato recently to get an update on her latest labor of love and music. As for our town, she exclaimed, “I wish I could call it home. Now, any tour I do truly won’t feel complete without a stop in Santa Barbara.”

You, of course, played a key role in Kevin Puts’s The Hours, which also mated music and a legendary literarypoetic figure, who happened to be a woman. Do you see a connection between The Hours and Emily — No Prisoners Be, and do you have a special artistic chemistry with Kevin’s work? Not only do I, but I believe that Kevin feels this connection very strongly and would also likely include Georgia O’Keeffe in that grouping, as well. There is something about these monumentally creative women and I would add Camille Claudel to this impressive list who lived in times where the world actively worked to suppress and limit the contribution of strong women, and yet through very difficult limitations, they managed to make their voice heard throughout history in way that inspires and uplifts us today. I find it deeply inspiring. —Josef Woodard

See Joyce DiDonato and Time for Three at The Granada Theatre (1214 State St.) on February 5. See bit.ly/4abRrMM. For a longer version of

THE LIBRARIANS FILM SCREENING KICKS OFF ‘I LOVE MY LIBRARY’ CAMPAIGN

DOCUMENTARY CHRONICLES THE

CAMPAIGN

FOR BOOK BANNING AND CENSORSHIP WITHIN THE PAST FIVE YEARS, IN TEXAS, FLORIDA, AND BEYOND

Santa Barbara Public Library is kicking off an

“I Love My Library” campaign with a special screening of the new documentary The Librarians, presented at the Riviera Theatre on January 29 in collaboration with the Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF).

The film directed by Kim A. Snyder, who will be on hand for a Q&A following the 7 p.m. screening takes the issues of censorship to the front-line warriors of the current battle for rights and freedom of speech. Her skillfully assembled and topical saga dips into relevant and sometimes darkly kitschy film clips and sobering remnants of book burnings around the world.

But this historical and global backdrop frames the doc’s central point of focus, the scourge and surge of book banning efforts in America just within the past five years, particularly in Texas and Florida. Books on the hit list include many titles dealing with LGBTQ issues, race (including African-American authors and subjects), and sexuality, which parent-fueled groups are fervent about keeping out of the eyeshot of young children.

In such cities and towns as Granbury, Texas; Clay County, Florida; and even New Jersey among the sites the film closely covers there are organized campaigns to remove books from public schools, sometimes demonizing and making villans out of brave librarians resisting the efforts. We get a sense of the fraught and vulnerable atmosphere for outspoken librarians from the outset in the film, as we meet an anonymous librarian in silhouette fearing reprisals, firings, criminal charges, and death threats for their effort.

The film opens with a quote from the opening of Ray Bradbury’s book-burning classic Fahrenheit 451, “It was a special pleasure to see things eaten, to see things blackened and changed.” Then, our anonymous testifier comments, “We’re not necessarily meant to be seen and heard. We’re the stewards for the people. Now, we’re in the vanguard. We have to speak up.”

“We are thrilled that SBIFF is screening this important film,” said Brandon Beaudette, Library Director of Santa Barbara Public Library. “This film illuminates the work libraries are doing every day to protect access to information, uphold intellectual freedom, and serve our communities with integrity.”

Library on the Go will be onsite beginning at 5 p.m. before the screening, offering attendees the chance to learn more about library services, check out and return materials, get library cards, and connect directly with library staff.

The “I Love My Library” campaign, an initiative coordinated and run by Library Support Groups, invites the Santa Barbara community to show support for its public libraries and library staff through letters and personal stories. From February 1 to 14, Valentine-themed collection boxes will be placed at participating local businesses and schools throughout Santa Barbara with pre-printed postcards, making it easy and fun for people of all ages to write a valentine to the library. These messages will be used in ongoing advocacy efforts to demonstrate broad public support for libraries.

“As libraries face continued attacks nationwide, we need community voices more than ever to push back,” said Lauren Trujillo, Executive Director of the Santa Barbara Public Library Foundation. “The ‘I Love My Library’ campaign is a tangible way for people of all ages to show their support and help us and Library stakeholders advocate for the future of our libraries.”

—Josef Woodard

Tickets are now on sale at sbifftheatres.com/film/the-librarians. For a longer version of this film review, see bit.ly/4bKNIaa.

FEBRUARY

FEBRUARY

FEBRUARY

LATHIM ON LIGHT

ROD LATHIM DEBUTS NEW SOLO SHOW, LIT: LOVE, ILLUMINATION, TRANSCENDENCE , ON FEBRUARY 5 AT ART & SOUL GALLERY

Rod Lathim’s fingerprints are all over town. The wine cellar at The Big Yellow House, an icon of Summerland, was the site of his first spiritual awakening. The legacy of his award-winning Access Theatre resides in modern-day organizations such as the Grace Fisher Foundation’s Inclusive Arts Clubhouse. And his exploration into fine art has been seen scattered around the city at places such as Helena Mason Gallery, GreySpace, Voice Gallery, and others.

On February 5, Lathim will unveil his largest solo exhibition to date at Art & Soul Gallery. LIT: Love, Illumination, Transcendence will debut 30 pieces that evolve around his work exploring neon, deconstruction, and assemblage.

On a cloudy afternoon, I stepped into Lathim’s world — if only for a moment. It was an extraordinary experience to visit both his home and studio in person. For most locals, Lathim is a known figure — associated with the stage. But a few years ago, he started “downloading” (his term) images of neon art from his spiritual muses. At first, he assumed they had the wrong guy. But when the images wouldn’t stop, he reconsidered the messages — and discovered that neon was the perfect medium for him.

“Sculpting with light reflects my spiritual path,” he told me in his living room, where pieces such as “Thawang!” and “Neon Nocturne” are on display. “Neon is costly, but there’s nothing like it.”

experiences with the spiritual world and her eventual posthumous exhibition at the Guggenheim Museum. “She painted from spirit,” he says. “I’ve created my version of [Altarpiece No. 2] in three dimensions with neon, wood, and a sphere.” The resemblance is uncanny, but in a way that perfectly articulates Lathim’s passions of light and space. He also reveals more about his process than ever before (and teases that there’s even a chapter dedicated to af Klint in his new book, Finding the Divine Child: A Journey of Spirit, Light, and Art, which also will be available at Art & Soul Gallery).

So much of the exhibit tells the tale of Lathim’s journey from the stage to the studio. In many ways, it’s an homage to all he’s loved, accomplished, and explored in his 60-plus years. For so many artists, of any medium, a piece of oneself stays with the art once showcased. In LIT, for perhaps the first time ever, Lathim is putting his entire self on display. His work has always been vulnerable, of course, but he’s never revealed so much of his spiritual journey before.

There’s a twinkle in his eye when he tells me, “What do I have to lose?”

That couldn’t be more true about the piece titled “Ode to Hilma.” Inspired by Hilma af Klint and her painting “Altarpiece No. 2,” he recounts af Klint’s own

In “Sondheim’s Sunday,” Lathim details his love of composer Stephen Sondheim’s musical Sunday in the Park with George, and its inspiration, Georges Seurat’s 1886 masterpiece “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte.” As Lathim talks about the last song in Sondheim’s show, titled “Sunday” (Reprise), he becomes visibly emotional. Not just in recounting the song and the final French horn notes, but the moment he was able to visit the iconic painting in Chicago. “This piece is a tribute to that song,” he says. Combining his passion for music with a little part of his soul, it’s both familiar and revealing.

In this show, Lathim illuminates pieces with movement using beaded neon. Many people may never have seen or experienced beaded neon before. Made from krypton, it’s a naturally occurring gas that’s mined. “It’s kinetic,” he says. Both “Ode to Hilma” and “Sondheim’s Sunday” use both solid and beaded neon, bringing life and movement into his already energetic pieces. —Meaghan Clark Tiernan

Experience these pieces, along with many others, at LIT: Love, Illumination, Transcendence. It opens on February 5 for 1st Thursday Art Walk at Art & Soul Gallery (1323 State St.). For more information, visit artandsoulsb.com/pages/ events.

Animals

Celebrating the Life and Times of Max

Celebrating the Life and Times of Max

Multiple owl species live quietly among us often unseen, almost always unheard. And in a few weeks, the Santa Barbara community will gather to honor one in particular.

On February 7, the Santa Barbara Audubon Society (SBAS), in partnership with the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, will host a celebration of life for Max, a great horned owl who spent nearly three decades as an avian ambassador and, in the process, became one of the most recognizable raptors in Santa Barbara.

Museum of Natural History and Audubon Society will Host Tribute to One of Our Most Recognizable Raptors

by Ella Heydenfeldt

Max died recently at age 27, a venerable lifespan for a great horned owl. Though he could fly and hunt, Max could not survive in the wild after imprinting on humans as an owlet. Instead, he lived at the museum’s Audubon Aviary, where he served as a cornerstone of the Audubon Society’s Eyes in the Sky (EitS) program, introducing thousands of students to raptor ecology through classroom visits and public events across the county.

“Max was one of the original EitS raptors and a local celebrity,” said Janice Levasheff, Santa Barbara Audubon

Society board president. “Even to this day, many adults still remember Max from his visits to their classrooms while they were in elementary school.”

The Life of Max

After falling from his nest and imprinting on humans, he was deemed non-releasable and adopted into the Audubon Society’s education program. Over the years, he was introduced to thousands of students to raptor ecology at an appropriate arm’s length.

“He had an incredible positive impact on countless members in our community,” said Dr. Katherine Emery, executive director of the Santa Barbara Audubon Society. “He brought wonder and joy to learners of all ages and was a foster parent to dozens of orphaned owlets.”

That role foster parent is among the least-known aspects of Max’s legacy. Great horned owls will readily raise unrelated chicks if placed in their care. Max helped rehabilitators return orphaned owlets to the wild, quietly extending his influence far beyond the aviary.

The partnership that made Max’s long life possible was also unusual. While the aviary sits on museum grounds, the birds are cared for by the Audubon Society, which operates as an independent nonprofit separate from the national Audubon organization.

“We appreciate the partnership between the museum and SBAS that made possible a beautiful and safe Audubon Aviary setting for Max to live and be admired,” Emery said.

There are also some great perks of being an owl town. The apex predators of the night keep rodent populations in check and hold together fragile food webs. In addition, dissecting owl pellets the compact bundles of fur and bone regurgitated after feeding is a staple of environmental education. Inside are intact skeletons of mice, voles, and small birds, tangible proof of ecological connection.

“It’s an amazing tool,” Emery said. “Kids can learn what owls are eating, how ecosystems work, and how everything is connected.”

That educational mission is a big part of the Audubon Society’s work, which includes bird walks, conservation advocacy, citizen science projects such as the Christmas Bird Count, and public programs across Santa Barbara County.

“Our goal is to protect birdlife and habitat and connect people with birds through education, conservation, and science,” Emery said.

A City of Owls

Max’s life and death comes at a moment when interest in Santa Barbara’s urban wildlife is rising. From a bear wandering onto UCSB’s campus back in April to an owl caught in a car grille in December, residents are increasingly aware that the city’s human footprint overlaps with a much older ecological map.

According to Mark Holmgren, longtime ornithologist and coordinator of the Santa Barbara County Breeding

Bird Study, seven owl species are known to breed in Santa Barbara County. Four of them including great horned owls and western screech owls are widespread enough to be publicly mapped. The remaining three are considered sensitive, their nesting locations intentionally withheld to prevent disturbance.

“What I do is take public input to document the breeding of not just owls, but all of the 180-plus species that breed in Santa Barbara County,” Holmgren said. “We have a cool tool to reveal that information.”

That tool a countywide breeding bird map contains more than 13,800 records. In other words: If you think you haven’t seen an owl in Santa Barbara, it’s probably because the owl saw you first.

The mysticism of owls is thanks to evolution. They fly silently on velvety feathers that dampen air turbulence. Their eyes face forward for depth perception, fixed in place by bone, forcing them to rotate their heads instead up to 270 degrees.

For Dr. Emery, executive director of the Santa Barbara Audubon Society, that combination of power and mystery never gets old.

“One of the most magical times I saw great horned owls was up close at our protected open space at Lake Los Carneros in Goleta,” Emery said. “As dusk came, the adult soared out of the trees to be followed shortly after by three large plump young owls.”

“All four creatures landed a short distance away and then, swiftly and silently, flew off across the open space to, I presume, hunt and enjoy the wilderness,” she said.

Celebration of Life

Max’s celebration of life will take place February 7 from 3 to 5 p.m. in Fleischmann Auditorium at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History (2559 Puesta del Sol). The event is free to attend and open to the public. n

My Life

II’m a Proud Pollyanna

I’m a Proud Pollyanna

was sitting in Irene’s car with three other women, driving over the San Marcos Pass to participate in a protest in Santa Barbara, an event organized by Indivisible. We’re in our seventies and never imagined that we would be spending so much of our lives at this point going to rallies and calling Congressional offices and writing postcards to voters and listening in horror to daily updates. We realize we are privileged to be able to do this, and I’m grateful to be part of a network of wise, kind, and mutually supportive friends, but it can be exhausting and discouraging. Rebecca tells me that one of her oldest friends, an educated, Leftleaning thinker, dismisses such protests as useless and called her a Pollyanna.

Because We Must Avoid Cynicism, a Cheap Poison Lapped Up by the Lazy

by

I, too, have been called a Pollyanna, long ago and recently. But I’ve decided to own the term. It goes back to a 1913 novel by Eleanor H. Porter, made into a 1960 Disney film starring Hayley Mills, and draws upon orphan Pollyanna’s habit of playing the “glad game,” in which she seeks and finds the bright side of every situation. And of course it can be ridiculous, even offensive, when taken to the extreme, denying or diminishing adverse realities. I don’t think there is any gladness to be found in the abandonment of our Constitution, the intrusion of masked thugs into our cities, the murder of an innocent woman. But as a Pollyanna, I am also noticing the fervor and solidarity in the response, a renewed devotion to our values, a reawakening.

“Trump doesn’t care how many people take to the streets in protest,” said Rebecca’s friend. But that isn’t the point at all. Representatives who want to remain in office notice. A theory in political science suggests that when 3.5 percent of the population of a country protest nonviolently against an authoritarian government, that government is likely to fall. And prompted by outrage and heartache, we are finding

one another in community and rediscovering the power we possess.

It’s all too easy to mock Pollyanna. “Be cool like me,” says the cynic. “Do nothing.” But being Pollyanna-ish can be a healthy coping mechanism and a viable strategy for making things better. Conversely, deciding that a situation is hopeless immediately precludes good outcomes, and silently acquiescing to injustice and brutality only empowers the authoritarians. Despair is a self-fulfilling prophecy, and cynicism is a cheap poison lapped up by the lazy. We must avoid cynicism at all costs.

No one has written as eloquently about optimism and hope as Rebecca Solnit. Hope is not false optimism, she explains, but an active and fierce commitment to the future, to the possibility that we can make things better. Hope is based on the premise that we don’t know what will happen, and that in the spaciousness of uncertainty, there is room to act and influence outcomes. “To hope is to give yourself to the future,” she writes.

And so, in our little red car, we drove over the pass into Santa Barbara and joined about two thousand fellow protesters along north State Street. Signs were blunt: “ICE Domestic Terrorists”; “Same Shit. Different Hat”; “Our Care Is Greater than Your Scare”; “When Power Goes Unchecked, People Die”; “Believe Your Eyes, Not ICE Lies.”

A strand of a Woody Guthrie song wafted through the air from a portable speaker. “This land is your land; this land is my land….” There were chants of, “This is what democracy looks like!” Passing vehicles honked their horns in support. (Well, all but one, in which the scragglybearded young driver of a U-Haul truck shouted, “Grow up!” and sped away. How sad it would be to grow up into that.)

The previous week, I had driven to Nojoqui Park to walk to the waterfall. In the aftermath of constant rain, it was sure to be a spectacular destination, but I also just needed to get outside and clear my head. The trail was wet and muddy, thick with the mulch of damp decaying leaves and broken branches, slippery at times. I wished I had brought a walking stick, but I stepped along gingerly, surprised by

the number of people out there: parents carrying babies or holding the hands of their toddlers, Gen Zers with tattoos and piercings, a conspicuously pregnant woman, a pair of Spanish-speaking aunties, a bearded old guy in a bike jersey … a motley procession of strangers all drawn by the same impulse, to behold something wondrous, and stand in awe. It was very like a pilgrimage, and it felt good to be a part of it. A woman saw me wobbling and handed me the branch she had been using as a walking stick. I gave it to someone else at the end of the trail. The Pollyanna in me was very pleased.

Alas, things have grown more dire since then. “We need a hero,” said a friend of mine. But I look around and see heroes everywhere. There is so much kindness, so much caring, so many voices speaking out. I see food being collected for hungry neighbors, and songs being written, and young people being tutored and coached and guided along bewildering paths. I see fledgling activists doing what they can, and diligent, decent people stepping up to protest the cruel and unconstitutional acts of the current administration.

I love this passage from Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring:

“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo. “So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”

This is our time, dear friends. Democracy will be saved by everyday citizens who have decided to resist, stepping outside their comfort zones, honoring the struggles of their forebears, and wanting their grandchildren to grow up in a country that is free and kind. We need to hold things together, keep doing what we know is right, vote like our lives depend upon it, and draw in some of the millions who didn’t vote at all. Call me Pollyanna, but maybe we will emerge even better than we were, chastened by what we almost lost, ferocious in our love. n

FOOD& DRINK

Three Wineries Garagiste Fest Three Wineries to Watch at Garagiste Fest

Though the wine industry is way different than when the Garagiste Festival first brought the Southern Exposure tasting to Solvang in 2013, the excited energy of small-batch winemakers maintains a steady buzz.

This year’s gathering, which kicks off with a rare and reserve tasting on February 6, will celebrate one of the original Santa Barbara garagistes, Greg Brewer, during the 11:30 a.m. session on February 7. Then comes the proper festival at 2 p.m. (or 1 p.m. for VIPs), with more than 30 wineries on hand, including 10 pouring for the first time.

Let’s meet three of those first-timers.

ROOTED VINE CELLARS

Given that wine country tour operators steadily visit vineyards, meet winemak ers, and witness the cutting edge of what’s happening in the scene, it’s a wonder that more haven’t developed their own brands. Then again, Iaon Pohlit of Rooted Vine Wine Cellars isn’t like most people in the wine business.

BOTTLES &BARRELS

BYMATTKETTMANN

-Rooted Vine, Barieau, and Fates’ Lieutenant Pouring in Solvang on February 7

For one, Pohlit lives on a wooden Tahitian catamaran and not in the harbor, but anchored to a mooring in the fool’s anchorage off East Beach. He’s an avid free diver and spearfisherman, regularly hunting massive tuna, halibut, and bass from the sea. And he singlehandedly built Rooted Vine Wine Tours into a successful enterprise, enjoying big years by driving across the wine country landscape even in these down times.

The pull between ocean and earth is at the heart of his work, now also as a winemaker. “For me, that tension that’s created in this environment is really what it’s all about,” explained the Wichita State art major who came to Santa Barbara 25 years ago, working for restaurants before launching his tour company a decade ago. “As an artist, I want to focus on the most soulful part of it or I won’t get the satisfaction out of it that I want. That journey inward that ethereal experience that wine gives you that you can’t get from beer or any other alcohol is the name of the game.”

Since launching with 50 cases of his Ocean & Earth pinot noir in 2021, Pohlit now makes nearly a dozen wines, hoping to hit 1,500 cases annually. He opened his Solvang tasting room in December, where his own art adorns the walls.

In the cellar, he prefers to let the vineyard do the work. “I’m inherently lazy,” he laughed. “The process is the focus for me, and reducing it to the simplest level, just like I do with art that’s my strongest suit.”

Tour guiding led him on this path. “I’ve seen behind the curtain a lot,” said Pohlit, and that didn’t discourage him.

The beauty of Santa Barbara keeps him coming back. “Certainly, for somebody who’s in snowy, gray conditions a lot of the year,” he said, “it’s invigorating to come out to California.”

See thefateslieutenant.com. Read a longer version of this story at bit.ly/4sPeKU8.

BARIEAU WINES

“Starting a wine label was something I did to challenge myself.”

See rootedvinecellars.com. Read a longer version of this story at bit.ly/4qsxeYZ.

FATES’ LIEUTENANT

Jeff Wooledge’s path to wine is far from atypical in today’s world: Man in corporate job learns to love wine during business dinners, starts vacationing to wine festivals, and then finds himself making a barrel during global pandemic. What is distinct about the story of Wooledge’s brand Fates’ Lieutenant which began in earnest with the 2021 vintage and now produces about 200 cases a year is how much he’s relying on his Midwestern roots to inform the future.

“You keep your head down and work hard it’s not a flashy lifestyle,” said Wooledge of growing up in Ohio and working in Michigan, where he’s been since 2011. “Winemaking in a lot of ways is well-suited for that background and skill set. It’s not sexy work, and I’m not somebody who’s afraid to work hard and get their hands dirty. That certainly helps.”

It was at the Nantucket Wine Festival in 2020 that a Sonoma winemaker invited Wooledge out to his first harvest. The next year, Wooledge connected with Jessica Gasca at Story of Soil in Buellton. “We’re philosophically very aligned,” he said. They make lean yet expressive pinot noirs and chardonnays together, with sauvignon blanc planned for next year.

The name refers to the three Fates of Greek mythology, as if the project was meant to be. “Maybe it was just destiny,” he said. “You need to be a little crazy to get into winemaking. Something about it just pulled me in.”

Growing up as the son of a true Santa Barbara County wine pioneer like Billy Wathen who cofounded Foxen Winery with Dick Dore in 1985 Bingo Wathen was never far from the scene, usually working harvests while a student at Santa Ynez High. “It was always part of my life,” he said. “I knew it was always here for me if I wanted to take that on.”

At first, he did not, studying global studies at UCSB and then Spanish while living in Spain with dreams of travel and writing. Bingo moved back in with his parents in 2013, figuring he would save money by working harvest while plotting his next move. But something was different this time, as he started drinking more wine and getting into the Santa Ynez Valley scene.

Bingo went the restaurant route first, working as a bartender and wine buyer at S.Y. Kitchen. In 2015, he started Barieau Wines as a one-barrel side project, naming the brand after his mom’s maiden name. “I wasn’t really sure that I wanted to take over Foxen, but I wasn’t sure that I didn’t want to either,” he said. “I wanted to keep my foot in the game.”

A few years later, he did officially take up the family mantle by joining Foxen, like his sister, Riley Wathen Slack, did around the same time. “Now I’m here more than full-time,” said Bingo, who works in both the vineyards and cellar.

He kept Barieau going too, slowly upping the volume until he doubled it in 2023 to about 350 cases. The brand now features albariño, pinot noir, syrah, and a Rhône red blend, each sporting proprietary Latin names that represent the forces of sea, sun, earth, and man. “I’m obsessed with the natural forces that go into winemaking,” said Bingo.

After years of selling his production to a handful of Central Coast restaurants and some via Instagram Bingo is building a website and attending events like the Garagiste Festival. He explained, “I need to step up and put my sales face on.”

See @barieauwines. Read a longer version of this story at bit.ly/3ZiqG30.

The Garagiste Festival: Southern Exposure event is in Solvang Friday-Saturday, February 6-7. See garagistefestival.com for the schedule, more details, and tickets.

Owner David Peterson and Manager Caroline Ramirez gave me and my family a tour of the birthplace of the Egg McMuffin, which debuted 50 years ago at McDonald’s restaurant at 146 South Fairview Avenue in Goleta. I had never worked at the Golden Arches, so this was a first for me. Peterson even showed me the original ring-shaped kitchen device that his father, Herb Peterson, had custom-made to allow eggs to be cooked in a form factor that fits on a muffin. The new breakfast creation, which had become a sensation in Santa Barbara and Goleta, was first shown to McDonald’s cofounder Ray Kroc at the upper State Street location. Kroc was so impressed that he decided to make it a main menu item and roll it out worldwide.

The first thing you notice when you tour this restaurant is that the drive-up window is the star of the show, generating 70 percent of sales for the eatery. There is a real-time statistics screen showing how many customers have pulled up to drive-through windows at various McDonald’s all across the Central Coast that morning, and Fairview was the king, with 241 customers by 9 a.m., more than all restaurants on the display. To help speed things up, there is a fully automated soft-drink dispenser that pops out a cup, fills it with ice, and then fills it with the correct flavor of soda, just in time to give to the customer. And in the back, where the soft-drink syrup comes from, you also notice that CocaCola is the star of the drink show. Most flavors come from a small cardboard box of syrup that feeds all dispensers, but Coca-Cola has numerous five-foottall metal canisters, probably holding 50 gallons each, to help meet demand. I also got to tour the walk-in freezer, which my son was particularly enamored by. The tour ended with my family making our own Egg McMuffins for a sitdown breakfast. All in all, it was a great

to see the behind-the-scenes action at a local restaurant that, 50 years ago, created something unique that ended up being served to billions of people.

POPUP BAGELS COMING TO FIVE POINTS: Reader

Eric let me know that PopUp Bagels is coming to 3925 State Street, the former home of Blaze Pizza, which closed in March 2025. PopUp Bagels began as a small backyard operation where a limited number of customers picked up preordered bagels during short service windows. The project developed into a structured business with scheduled popups and, later, permanent retail locations. The company operates on a preorder model, with customers placing orders in advance and picking them up during designated time periods. Bagels are baked for those pickup windows rather than held for all-day service.

Menu offerings are centered on a limited set of standard bagel varieties, including plain, sesame, poppy, salt, and everything-style bagels. The business also offers a rotating selection of creamcheese spreads, which change on a regular schedule. The company’s operating model emphasizes short pickup periods and controlled output. This structure limits the number of orders accepted and concentrates baking activity into defined time blocks. Visit popupbagels.com

EL POLLO LOCO RETURNING TO GOLETA:

Reader Eric let me know the El Pollo Loco is returning to G-Town. The restaurant chain closed locations at 5796 Calle Real in Goleta in August 2018 and at 2984 State Street in October 2021. Their reappearance will be at 7000 Hollister Avenue, #101, in the Hollister Village Plaza in the current home of Sleep Number, next to Choppa Poke and Kyle’s Kitchen. Kyle’s Kitchen will be moving to a space near Target and Raising Cane’s will take their spot in Hollister Village Plaza.

FOOD & DRINK

FLACKS JOURNALISM FUND FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE TODAY

Make a tax deductible contribution at sbcan.org/journalism_fund

Mickey Flacks was a dogged advocate for affordable housing, among other progressive causes, so the Santa Barbara Independent launched the Mickey Flacks Journalism Fund soon after she died in 2020 to keep her work alive.

McDermott’s quest is only possible due to the generosity of our readers who have supported the Mickey Flacks Journalism Fund. Christina is on the job. We want to keep it that way. Please give generously.

Thanks to her fellowship, our reporter Christina McDermott spends many of her waking hours trying to unravel Santa Barbara’s forbiddingly complex and expensive housing landscape.

Christina McDermott Read Christina’s Work below independent.com/mickeyflacksfellow

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY by Rob

Breszny

WEEK OF JANUARY 29

ARIES

(Mar. 21-Apr. 19): In 1953, Edmund Hillary of New Zealand and Tenzing Norgay of Nepal became the first climbers to trek to the summit of Mount Everest. They both said later that the climb down was as important and challenging as the ascent. The lesson: Achievement doesn’t end when you reach the peak. Aries, you may be nearing or have just passed a high point of effort or recognition. Soon you will need to manage the descent with aplomb. Don’t rush! Tread carefully as you complete your victory. It’s not as glamorous as the push upward, but it’s equally vital to the legacy of the climb.

TAURUS

(Apr. 20-May 20): Aurora borealis occurs when highly charged particles from the sun strike molecules high in the Earth’s atmosphere, causing them to glow. The display that looks like gorgeous magic is actually our planet’s invisible magnetic shield and upper atmosphere lighting up under the pressure of an intense solar storm. Dear Taurus, I think your life has a metaphorical resemblance. The strength you’ve been quietly maintaining without much fanfare has become vividly apparent because it’s being activated. The protection you’ve been offering and the boundaries you’ve been holding are more visible than usual. This is good news! Your shields are working.

GEMINI

(May 21-June 20): “Nothing in excess” was the maxim inscribed on the ancient Temple of Apollo at Delphi. “Moderation is a chief moral virtue,” proclaimed the philosopher Aristotle. But I don’t recommend those approaches for you right now, Gemini. A sounder principle is “More is better” or “Almost too much is just the right amount.” You have a holy duty to cultivate lavishness and splendor. I hope you will stir up as many joyous liberations and fun exploits as possible.

CANCER

(June 21-July 22): When sea otters sleep, they sometimes hold each other’s paws to keep from drifting apart. This simple, instinctive act ensures they remain safe and connected. I suggest making their bond your power symbol for now, Cancer. You’ll be wise to formulate a strong intention about which people, values, and projects you want to be tethered to. And if sea otters holding hands sounds too sentimental or cutesy to be a power symbol, you need to rethink your understanding of power. For you right now, it’s potency personified.

LEO

July 23-Aug. 22): To be healthy, we all need to continually be in the process of letting go. It’s always a favorable phase to shed aspects of our old selves to make room for what comes next. The challenge for you Leos is to keep showing up with your special brightness even as parts of you die away to feed new growth. So here are my questions: What old versions of your generosity or courage are ready to compost? What fiercer, wilder, more sustainable expression of your leonine nature wants to emerge? The coming weeks will be an excellent time to stop performing the hero you used to be and become the hero you are destined to become.

VIRGO

(Aug. 23-Sept. 22): The Haudenosaunee people practice “seventh-generation thinking”: making decisions based on their impact seven generations into the future. You would be wise to incorporate the spirit of their visionary approach, Virgo. Here’s the problem: You’re so skilled at fixing what needs urgent attention that you sometimes neglect what’s even more important in the long run. So, I will ask you to contemplate what choices you could you make now that will be blessings to your future self. This might involve ripening an immature skill, shedding a boring obligation that drains you, or delivering honest words that don’t come easily. Rather than obsessing on the crisis of the moment, send a sweet boost to the life you want to be living three years from now.

LIBRA

(Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Are you open to the idea that new wisdom doesn’t always demand struggle and strain? In the days ahead, I invite you to move as if the world is deeply in love with you, as if every element, every coincidence, every kind pair of eyes is cheering you forward. Imagine that generous souls everywhere want to help you be and reveal your best self. Trust that unseen allies are rearranging the flow of fate to help you grow into the beautiful original you were born to be. Do you dare to be so confident that life loves you?

SCORPIO

(Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Psychologist James Pennebaker did studies showing that people who write about traumatic experiences for just 15 minutes a day show improved immune function, fewer doctor visits, and better emotional health. But here’s a key detail: The benefits don’t come from the trauma itself or from “processing feelings.” They come from constructing a narrative: making meaning, finding patterns, and creating coherence. The healing isn’t in the wound. It’s in the story you shape from the wound’s raw material. You Scorpios excel at this alchemical work. One of your superpowers is to take what’s dark, buried, or painful and transform it through the piercing attention of your intelligence and imagination. The coming weeks will be an excellent time to do this.

SAGITTARIUS

(Nov. 22-Dec. 21): In Jewish mysticism, tikkun olam means “repair of the world.” This is the idea that we’re all responsible for healing what’s broken. But the teaching also says you’re not required to complete the work; you’re only asked to not abandon it. This is your message right now, Sagittarius: You don’t have to save everyone. You don’t have to heal everything, and you don’t even have to finish the projects you’ve started. But you can’t abandon them entirely, either. Keep showing up. Do what you can today. That’s enough. The work will continue whether or not you complete it. Your part is to not walk away from your own brokenness and the world’s. Stay engaged.

CAPRICORN

(Dec. 22-Jan. 19): The Talmud teaches that “every blade of grass has an angel bending over it, whispering, ‘Grow, grow.’ ” I sense that you are now receiving the extra intense influence of your own guardian angels, Capricorn. They aren’t demanding or threatening, just encouraging. Please tune into their helpful ministrations. Don’t get distracted by harsher voices, like your internalized critic, the pressure of impossible standards, or the ghost of adversaries who didn’t believe in you. Here’s your assignment: Create time and space to hear and fully register the supportive counsel. It’s saying: Grow. You’re allowed to grow. You don’t have to earn it. Just grow.

AQUARIUS

(Jan. 20-Feb. 18): In ecology, there’s a concept called “keystone species.” This refers to organisms that have a huge effect on their environment relative to their abundance. Remove them, and the whole ecosystem shifts. I bring this up, Aquarius, because I believe you are currently functioning as a keystone species in your social ecosystem. You may not even be fully aware of how much your presence influences others. And here’s the challenge: You shouldn’t let your impact weigh on your conscience. You don’t have to sacrifice yourself as you carry out your service. Instead, ask how you can contribute to the common good while also thriving yourself. Ensuring your well-being isn’t selfish; it’s essential to the gifts you provide and the duties you perform.

PISCES

(Feb. 19-Mar. 20): I foresee a dose of real magic becoming available to you: equivalent to an enchanted potion, a handful of charmed seeds, or a supernatural spell. But owning the magic and knowing how to use it are two different matters. There’s no promise you will instantly grasp its secrets. To give yourself the best shot, follow a few rules: (1) Keep it quiet. Only share news of your lucky charm with those who truly need to hear about it. (2) Before using it to make wholesale transformations, test it gently in a situation where the stakes are low. (3) Whatever you do, make sure your magic leaves no bruises behind.

CELEBRATING 40 YEARS!

Born in 1986, the Independent is proud to be turning 40 years old in 2026.

To mark our anniversary, we want to celebrate our entire community’s success stories and major milestones.

SO WE ARE REACHING OUT TO YOU, OUR DEDICATED READERS.

IF YOUR BUSINESS/ORGANIZATION IS 40 OR OLDER, SEE: INDEPENDENT.COM/ 40THBIZ or scan this QR code to fill out a quick survey.

WE’RE ALSO TOASTING PEOPLE WITH 1986 BIRTHDAYS, WHETHER YOU WERE BORN HERE OR LIVE HERE NOW.

IF YOU’RE A 1986 BABY, SEE: INDEPENDENT.COM/ 40THBDAYS or scan this QR code to fill out a quick survey.

Or you email us at birthday@independent.com. WE CAN’T WAIT TO SHARE YOUR STORIES!

SANTA BARBARA INDEPENDENT

CLASSIFIEDS

EMPLOYMENT

FINANCE

STRUGGLING WITH debt? If you have over $10,000 in debt we help you be debt free in as little as 24‑48 months. Pay nothing to enroll. Call Now:

1‑833‑641‑3437 (Cal‑SCAN)

HEALTH & FITNESS

ATTENTION: VIAGRA and CIALIS

USERS! A cheaper alternative to high drugstore prices! 50 Pill Special ‑ Only $99! 100% guaranteed. CALL NOW:1‑833‑641‑3889 (Cal‑SCAN)

DENTAL INSURANCE from Physicians Mutual Insurance Company. Coverage for 400 plus procedures. Real dental insurance ‑ NOT just a discount plan. Do not wait! Call now! Get your FREE Dental Information Kit with all the details! 1‑844‑203‑2677 www. dental50plus.com/calnews #6258 (Cal‑SCAN)

SAFE STEP. North America’s #1 Walk‑In Tub. Comprehensive lifetime warranty. Top‑of‑the‑line installation and service. Now featuring our FREE shower package and $1600 Off for a limited time! Call today! Financing available. Call Safe Step 1‑888‑989‑5749 (Cal‑SCAN).

PROFESSIONAL

EVENTS SUPPORT

SPECIALIST

INSTRUCTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

The Events Support Specialist provides support for events by assisting with client needs, staffing, and advice on audio‑visual media needs and capabilities based on the event and venue. Sets up all aspects of event including a variety of audio, video, computer, projection, and lighting equipment. Serves as additional staffing for event support. Works with the department and campus network administrators to ensure network connectivity, as needed, for events. Assists Video Services staff with audio, video, computer display and lighting elements of video production. Works with repair and maintenance staff to ensure that equipment is working properly and reliably. Supervises and trains student assistants in the field to support events. Meets with clients and other staff to confirm schedules and client requirements. Advises on equipment purchases. Reqs: Associate’s Degree required in related area and/or equivalent experience/training; 1‑3 yrs work experience in related area and/ or equivalent experience/training.

Notes: Satisfactory completion of a criminal history background check; mostly night and weekend work; this position requires a very flexible schedule, based on event needs. Most events take place during the afternoons, nights and weekends, but must also be available to support events throughout the day. Hiring/ Budgeted Salary Range: $29.50 ‑ $31/hr. The University of California is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status, or other protected status under state or federal law. Open until filled. Apply online at https://jobs.ucsb.edu Job #83686

FRONT HOUSE KITCHEN

SUPERVI SOR

CAMPUS DINING

Ensures the highest quality of recipe preparation and presentation.

Supervises service areas during meal hours, and monitors customer service to maintain our high standard. Responsible for organizing training sessions for new student kitchen employees and ensuring all kitchen employees are meeting safety and sanitation requirements. Acts as sole floor manager some weekend meals and weekday evening meals. This involves directing full‑time and student staff in amounts of food to cook and serve for up to 1300 customers per meal. Works with other managers to provide floor coverage at lunch and dinner during all other work days. Reqs: Minimum 2 years supervisory experience. Ability to utilize computers, learn new software, and work with Microsoft Word. Excellent communication and customer service skills including ability to actively listen and effectively convey information, policy and procedures both orally and in writing. Ability to effectively work in a high volume operation with continuous personnel actions. Ability to effectively work with other managers and full time staff as a team. Notes: Satisfactory criminal history background check. Work hours/days may vary. Ability to lift up to 50 pounds and work standing for up to 8 hours per day. Visa sponsorship is not available for this position. Hiring/Budgeted Salary Range: 55,400/yr‑$57,000/yr. Posting Salary Range: $55,400/yr‑$60,000/ yr. The University of California is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status, or other protected status under state or federal law. Open until filled. Apply online at https://jobs. ucsb.edu Job #83762

LEGALS

ADMINISTER OF ESTATE

NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF: THOMAS WAYNE TOURVILLE No.: 25PR00539

To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate, or both of: THOMAS WAYNE TOURVILLE, THOMAS W. TOURVILLE

A PETITION FOR PROBATE has been filed by: JOHN EDWARD TOURVILLE in the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Barbara.

THE PETITION requests that (name): JOHN EDWARD TOURVILLE be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent.

THE PETITION requests the decedent’s will and codicils, if any, be admitted to probate. The will and any codicils are available for examination in the file kept by the court.

THE PETITION requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. (This authority will allow the personal representative to take many actions without obtaining court approval. Before taking certain very important actions, however, the personal representative will be required to give notice to interested persons unless they have waived notice or consented to the proposed action.) The Independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority.

A HEARING on the petition will be held in this court as follows: 02/05/2026 AT 9:00 a.m. Dept: SB

5 SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF SANTA BARBARA, located at 1100 Anacapa Street Santa Barbara, CA 93101. ANACAPA

DIVISION

IF YOU OBJECT to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney. IF YOU ARE A CREDITOR or a contingent creditor of the decedent, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the later of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined in section 58 (b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code. Other California statutes and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law.

YOU MAY EXAMINE the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE‑154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code Section 1250. A Request for Special notice form is available from the court clerk. Darrel E. Parker, Executive Officer 12/18/2025 by Nicolette Barnard, Deputy. Attorney for Petitioner: Mark B. Stephen; 1230 Coast Village Cir, Ste K, Santa Barbara, CA 93108; 805‑963‑0434. Published: Jan 15, 22, 29 2026.

Reaching 68,000 Readers Each Week

NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF: ANDREW TODD SHUPE No.: 26PR00001

To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate, or both of:

ANDREW TODD SHUPE

A PETITION FOR PROBATE has been filed by: DEAN LIPSITZ in the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Barbara.

THE PETITION requests that (name): DEAN LIPSITZ be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent.

THE PETITION requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. (This authority will allow the personal representative to take many actions without obtaining court approval. Before taking certain very important actions, however, the personal representative will be required to give notice to interested persons unless they have waived notice or consented to the proposed action.) The Independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority.

A HEARING on the petition will be held in this court as follows: 03/12/2026 AT 9:00 a.m. Dept: SB 5 SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF SANTA BARBARA, located at 1100 Anacapa Street Santa Barbara, CA 93101. ANACAPA

DIVISION

IF YOU OBJECT to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney. IF YOU ARE A CREDITOR or a contingent creditor of the decedent, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the later of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined in section 58 (b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code. Other California statutes and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law.

YOU MAY EXAMINE the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE‑154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code Section 1250. A Request for Special notice form is available from the court clerk. Darrel E. Parker, Executive Officer 1/7/2025 by Monica Buenrostro, Deputy. Attorney for Petitioner: Seth P. Shapiro, Esq.; 300 E. Esplanade Drive, Suie 850, Oxnard, CA 93036; 805‑981‑8555.

Published: Jan 15, 22, 29 2026.

NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER

ESTATE OF KATHERINE DILLON

AKA KATHERINE

DILLON OHARA

CASE NO. 25PR00606

To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the

will or estate, or both, of:

KATHERINE DILLON AKA

KATHERINE DILLON OHARA

A Petition for Probate has been filed by JON FREDERIK PYZEL in the Superior Court of California, County of SANTA BARBARA. The Petition for Probate requests that JON FREDERIK PYZEL be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent.

The Petition requests the decedent's will and codicils, if any, be admitted to probate. The will and any codicils are available for examination in the file kept by the court. The Petition requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. (This authority will allow the personal representative to take many actions without obtaining court approval. Before taking certain very important actions, however, the personal representative will be required to give notice to interested persons unless they have waived notice or consented to the proposed action.) The independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority.

A hearing on the petition will be held in this court on February 26, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. in Dept. SB 5 located at 1100 Anacapa Street, P.O. Box 21107, Santa Barbara, CA 93121‑1107, Anacapa Division.

If you object to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file

written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney.

If you are a creditor or a contingent creditor of the decedent, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the later of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined in section 58(b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code.

Other California statutes and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law.

You may examine the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE‑154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code section 1250. A Request for Special Notice form is available from the court clerk.

Attorney for Petitioner: BLAKE D. BAXTER, JR. ‑ BAXTER

LAW GROUP, 144 WEST D STREET, SUITE 101, ENCINITAS, CA 92024, Telephone: 760.845.7526 1/22, 1/29, 2/5/26

CNS‑4001152#

SANTA BARBARA

INDEPENDENT

NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF: TOKIE L. SHYNK No.: 25PR00557

To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors,

contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate, or both of: TOKIE L. SHYNK

A PETITION FOR PROBATE has been filed by: JOHN J. SHYNK in the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Barbara.

THE PETITION requests that (name): JOHN J. SHYNK be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent.

THE PETITION requests the decedent’s will and codicils, if any be admitted to probate. The will and any codicils are available for examination in the file kept by the court.

THE PETITION requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. (This authority will allow the personal representative to take many actions without obtaining court approval. Before taking certain very important actions, however, the personal representative will be required to give notice to interested persons unless they have waived notice or consented to the proposed action.) The Independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority.

A HEARING on the petition will be held in this court as follows: 2/26/2026 AT 9:00 a.m. Dept: SB 5 SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF SANTA BARBARA, located at 1100 Anacapa Street, P.O. Box 21107 Santa Barbara, CA 93121. ANACAPA DIVISION

IF YOU OBJECT to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney. IF YOU ARE A CREDITOR

Continued on p. 48

MARKETPLACE

ANNOUNCEMENT

CONNECT TO the best wireless home internet with EarthLink. Enjoy speeds from 5G and 4G LTE networks, no contracts, easy installation, and data plans up to 300 GB. Call 855‑873‑2215

DENTAL INSURANCE from Physicians Mutual Insurance Company. Coverage for 400 plus procedures. Real dental insurance

‑ NOT just a discount plan. Get your FREE Dental Information Kit with all the details! 1‑866‑430‑5905

DID YOU KNOW Newspaper‑generated content is so valuable it’s taken and repeated, condensed, broadcast, tweeted, discussed, posted, copied, edited, and emailed countless times throughout the day by others? Discover the Power of Newspaper Advertising. For a free brochure call 916‑288‑6011 or email cecelia@cnpa.com (Cal‑SCAN)

DIRECTV‑ ALL your entertainment. Nothing on your roof! Sign up for Directv and get your first three months of Max, Paramount+, Showtime, Starz, MGM+ and Cinemax included. Choice package $84.99/mo. Some restrictions apply. Call DIRECTV 1‑855‑606‑4520

ELIMINATE GUTTER cleaning forever! LeafFilter, the most

advanced debris‑blocking gutter protection. Schedule a FREE LeafFilter estimate today. 20% off Entire Purchase. 10% Senior & Military Discounts. Call 1‑855‑424‑7581 (Cal‑SCAN)

MOBILEHELP, AMERICA’S Premier Mobile Medical Alert System. Whether You’re Home or Away. For Safety and Peace of Mind. No Long Term Contracts! Free Brochure! Call Today! 1‑877‑667‑4685

PREPARE FOR power outages today with a Generac Home Standby Generator. Act now to receive a FREE 5‑Year warranty with qualifying purchase. Call 1‑866‑381‑0627 today to schedule a free quote. It’s not just a generator. It’s a power move.

STOP OVERPAYING FOR AUTO INSURANCE! A recent survey says that most Americans are overpaying for their car insurance. Let us show you how much you can save. Call Now for a no‑obligation quote: 1‑833‑399‑1539

THE DIFFERENCE in winning and losing market share is how businesses use their advertising dollars. CNPA’s Advertising Services’ power to connect to nearly 13 million of the state’s readers who are an engaged audience, makes our services an indispensable marketing solution. For more info

SERVICE DIRECTORY

Call: 1‑833‑795‑0042

call Cecelia @ (916) 288‑6011 or cecelia@cnpa.com.

WE BUY Houses for Cash AS‑IS! No repairs. No fuss. Any condition. Easy process: Call, get cash offer and get paid. Call today for your fair cash offer: 1‑877‑939‑1331.

WESLEY FINANCIAL Group, LLC Timeshare Cancellation Experts

Over $50,000,000 in timeshare debt and fees cancelled in 2019. Get free informational package and learn how to get rid of your timeshare! Free consultations. Over 450 positive reviews. Call 888‑960‑1781

MUSIC

INSTRUMENTS

WE BUY Vintage Guitars! Looking for 1920‑1980 Gibson, Martin, Fender, Gretsch, Epiphone, Guild, Mosrite, Rickenbacker, Prairie State, D’Angelico, Stromberg. And Gibson Mandolins / Banjos. These brands only! Call for a quote: 1‑833‑641‑6624

WELL BEING ANNOUNCEMENTS

ATTENTION: VIAGRA and CIALIS

USERS! A cheaper alternative to high drugstore prices! 50 Pill Special ‑ Only $99! 100% guaranteed. CALL NOW: 1‑833‑641‑6594 GOT AN UNWANTED CAR??? DONATE IT TO PATRIOTIC HEARTS. Fast free pick up. All 50 States. Patriotic Hearts’ programs help veterans find work or start their own business. Call 24/7: 1‑833‑426‑0086

REAL ESTATE AUTO

MONEY TO LOAN

RETIRED COUPLE $$$$ for business purpose Real Estate loans. Credit unimportant. V.I.P. Trust Deed Company www.viploan.com Call 1‑818‑248‑0000. Broker‑principal DRE 01041073. No consumer loans. (Cal‑ SCAN).

CARS WANTED

GOT AN UNWANTED CAR??? DONATE

IT TO PATRIOTIC HEARTS. Fast free pick up. All 50 States. Patriotic Hearts’ programs help veterans find work or start their own business. Call 24/7: 1‑833‑426‑0105 (Cal‑SCAN)

TIENE UN vehiculo no deseado? Donelo a Patriotic Hearts! Recogida rápida y gratuita en los 50 estados. Patriotic Hearts ofrece programas para ayudar a los veteranos a encontrar trabajo o iniciar su propio negocio. Llama ahora: 1‑833‑ 695‑1947 (24/7) (Cal‑SCAN)

crosswordpuzzle

ByMattJones

Across

1. Comic Sans lack

6. Gather

11. Taste of tisane, e.g.

14. KitchenAid competitor

15. Dark time

16. Prefix for brow or tasker

17. Social psychology topic

19. Some hosp. staffers

20. “Stath ___ Flats” (Jamie Demetriou Britcom that’s a mouthful to say)

21. Concept derived in part from the “I Ching”

22. It may be light or dark at Thanksgiving

23. Quarter, quaintly

26. The magic word?

28. “___ with the fur”

29. Kal ___ (pet food brand)

32. Secret stuff

33. AMA members

34. Picasso and Braque, for two

36. “The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science” author

41. “Hey Ya!” duo

42. Sounds in a dentist’s office

44. Walk of Fame insignias, usually

47. Joan of Arc, e.g., for short

48. Jail, slangily

50. Barry Manilow’s longtime label

52. “It’s a deal!”

54. Way serious

55. Acting coach Strasberg

58. Lackluster

59. Arced tennis shot

60. Remove a controversial post without warning (thereby removing the resulting discussion)

64. Academic URL ending

65. Sheepish

66. Senior church official

67. Valentine’s Day color

68. Tablelands

69. Vacuum inventor Sir James ___

Down

1. “Casablanca” pianist

2. Longtime U.K. record label

3. Went astray

4. Owing

5. “Truth be told ...”

6. ___ Taylor LOFT (clothing brand)

7. Oven protection 8. Indian tourist city 9. 1993 Salt-N-Pepa hit 10. Initials on a Cardinals cap

11. Least tentative 12. From birth

13. Prop for Yosemite Sam 18. East, in Berlin

22. Organization with a lot of tests

23. “We don’t know yet,” on schedules 24. Vocation

25. Moves furtively

27. Cracker brand with seven holes

30. “I’m on ___” (late-2000s “SNL” song)

31. Late hip-hop phenom Hussle or comedian/game show panelist Russell 34. Op. ___ (footnote abbr.) 35. Complete collection 37. Like Yggdrasil 38. Nothing but

Locations where silt settles

Vincent van Gogh’s brother 43. Thesaurus entry, for short

Retired NASCAR driver Elliott

Early radio component

“Ain’t no rule that says a dog can’t play basketball” movie

Made baby food out of

By mouth

Kicking partner

Like 7, but not 6

Largest known dwarf planet

Sicily’s highest peak

Peter DeLuise’s father

“That’s correct”

Former Notre Dame football player Manti

West end?

LEGALS (CONT.)

or a contingent creditor of the decedent, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the later of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined in section 58 (b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code. Other California statutes and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law.

YOU MAY EXAMINE the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE‑154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code Section 1250. A Request for Special notice form is available from the court clerk. Darrel E. Parker, Executive Officer 01/22/2026 by Monica Buenrostro, Deputy. Attorney for Petitioner: Joanne Nava & Braden R. Leck of Rogers, Sheffield & Campbell, LLP, 427 E. Carrillo St, Santa Barbara, CA 93101; 805‑963‑9721

Published: Jan 29. Feb 5, 12 2026. NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF: PEI‑HUNG LIU No.: 26PR00032

To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate, or both of: PEI‑HUNG LIU

A PETITION FOR PROBATE has been filed by: YUNGHUEI TENG LIU in the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Barbara.

THE PETITION requests that (name): YUNGHUEI TENG LIU be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent.

THE PETITION requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. (This authority will allow the personal representative to take many actions without obtaining court approval. Before taking certain very important actions, however, the personal representative

will be required to give notice to interested persons unless they have waived notice or consented to the proposed action.) The Independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority.

A HEARING on the petition will be held in this court as follows: 03/26/2026 AT 9:00 a.m. Dept: SB 5 SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF SANTA BARBARA, located at 1100 Anacapa Street Santa Barbara, CA 93101. ANACAPA

IF YOU OBJECT to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney. IF YOU ARE A CREDITOR or a contingent creditor of the decedent, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the later of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined in section 58 (b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code. Other California statutes and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law.

YOU MAY EXAMINE the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE‑154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code Section 1250. A Request for Special notice form is available from the court clerk. Darrel E. Parker, Executive Officer 01/22/2026 by Monica Buenrostro, Deputy. Attorney for Petitioner: Andrew Miller; 1505 E Valley Road #B Santa Barbara, CA 93108; 805‑969‑4451 Published: Jan 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF: STANLEY C. HATCH CASE No.: 26PR00029 To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors,

contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate, or both of:

STANLEY C. HATCH

A PETITION FOR PROBATE has been filed by: MERRIE MORRIS‑MAZZETTI in the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Barbara.

THE PETITION requests that (name): MERRIE MORRIS‑MAZZETTI be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent.

THE PETITION requests the decedent’s will and codicils, if any, be admitted to probate. The will and any codicils are available for examination in the file kept by the court.

THE PETITION requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. (This authority will allow the personal representative to take many actions without obtaining court approval. Before taking certain very important actions, however, the personal representative will be required to give notice to interested persons unless they have waived notice or consented to the proposed action.) The Independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority.

A HEARING on the petition will be held in this court as follows: 03/19/2026 AT 9:00 a.m. Dept: 5

SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF SANTA BARBARA, located at 1100 Anacapa Street PO Box 21107 Santa Barbara, CA 93101.

Anacapa Division

IF YOU OBJECT to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney. IF YOU ARE A CREDITOR or a contingent creditor of the decedent, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the later of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined in section 58 (b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery

to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code. Other California statutes and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law.

YOU MAY EXAMINE the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE‑154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code Section 1250. A Request for Special notice form is available from the court clerk. Darrel E. Parker, Executive Officer 1/23/2026 by Monica Buenrostro, Deputy. Attorney for Petitioner: Justin D. Fox; Thyne Taylor Fox Howard, LLP; 205 East Carrillo Street Suite 100, Santa Barbara, CA 93101; 805‑963‑9958

Published: Jan 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF: ERIC

JOSEPH JOHANSING

CASE No.: 26PR00030

To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate, or both of: ERIC

JOSEPH JOHANSING

A PETITION FOR PROBATE has been filed by: MARIE THERESE JOHANSING and HARRY JOHANSING in the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Barbara. THE PETITION requests that (name): MARIE THERESE JOHANSING and HARRY JOHANSING be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent.

THE PETITION requests the decedent’s will and codicils, if any, be admitted to probate. The will and any codicils are available for examination in the file kept by the court. THE PETITION requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act. (This authority will allow the personal representative to take many actions without obtaining court approval. Before taking certain very important actions, however, the personal representative will be required to give notice to interested persons unless they have

waived notice or consented to the proposed action.) The Independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority.

A HEARING on the petition will be held in this court as follows:

03/19/2026 AT 9:00 a.m. Dept: 5 SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF SANTA BARBARA, located at 1100 Anacapa Street PO Box 21107 Santa Barbara, CA 93101. Anacapa Division

IF YOU OBJECT to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney. IF YOU ARE A CREDITOR or a contingent creditor of the decedent, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the later of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined in section 58 (b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code. Other California statutes and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law.

YOU MAY EXAMINE the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE‑154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code Section 1250. A Request for Special notice form is available from the court clerk. Darrel E. Parker, Executive Officer 1/23/2026 by Monica Buenrostro, Deputy. Attorney for Petitioner: Justin D. Fox; Thyne Taylor Fox Howard, LLP; 205 East Carrillo Street Suite 100, Santa Barbara, CA 93101; 805‑963‑9958

Published: Jan 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

FICTITIOUS

BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: THE SNIFF AND SNACK SHACK: 1300 E. Airport Ave. Lompoc, CA 93436; Dustin D Forrest (same address) This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Dec 21, 2025. Filed by: DUSTIN D FORREST/ OWNER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Dec 29, 2025. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E35. FBN Number: 2025‑0002940. Published: Jan 08, 15, 22, 29 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: MEGHAN BIEDERMAN INTERIORS: 306 W De La Guerra St Santa Barbara, CA 93101; Meghan Biederman (same address) This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Nov 21, 2025. Filed by: MEGHAN BIEDERMAN/ INDIVIDUAL with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Nov 21, 2025. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2025‑0002674.

Published: Jan 08, 15, 22, 29 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: CONEJO VALLEY AIR: 2550 Azurite Circle. Newbury Park, CA 91320; Conejo Services, LLC, CONEJO VALLEY APPLIANCE REPAIR, CONEJO

VALLEY APPLIANCE, CONEJO VALLEY SOLAR, SOLAR SOLUTIONS, CONEJO VALLEY MECHANICAL, CONEJO VALLEY HEATING, CONEJO VALLEY REFRIGERATION, CONEJO VALLEY HEATING AND AIR, CONEJO VALLEY AIR CONDITIONONING AND HEATING, CONEJO WATER HEATERS, CONEJO TANKLESS, CONEJO VALLEY WATER HEATERS, CONEJO HEATING, CONEJO VALLEY TANKLESS, CONEJO VALLEY

ADVERTISING DISTRIBUTION SERVICES To place an ad go to communitypublishers.com/ads-networkSupported by the members of the Association of Community Publishers

Donate Your Car to Veterans Today! Help and Support our Veterans. Fast - FREE pick up. 100% tax deductible. Call 800-245-0398

TOP DOLLAR PAID for old vintage guitars! Gibson, Fender, Martin, Grecsch, Rickenbacker, Epiphone, Etc. 1930’s to 1980’s. Call 866-433-8277

Peace of mind & early detection - Now more than ever, it’s important to screen for Stroke & Cardiovascular Disease risk. Life Line Screening is simple & painless. 833-9704172

We buy houses for cash as is! No repairs or fuss. Any condition. Easy 3-step process: Call, get cash offer, get paid. Get your fair cash offer today. Liz Buys Houses: 844877-5833

Portable oxygen concentrator may be covered by Medicare! Reclaim independence & mobility w/the compact design & long-lasting battery. Inogen One free info kit! 877-305-1535 (not avail. In AL)

Consumer Cellular - same reliable, nationwide coverage as large carriers. No long-term contract or hidden fees, free activation. All plans unlimited talk & text starting at just $20/mo. 877-751-0866

Become a published author. We want to read your book! Dorrance Publishing trusted since 1920. Consultation, production, promotion & distribution. Free author`s guide 877-729-4998 or dorranceinfo.com/ads

No cleaning gutters guaranteed! LeafFilter - most advanced gutter protection, backed by a no-clog guarantee & lifetime warranty. 833-610-1936 schedule free inspection & estimate. Get 75% off install & $250 bonus discount! Limited time. Restrictions apply, see rep for warranty & details. (not avail. in AK, AZ, ID, MT, ND, NM, NV, SD) - -

Replace your roof w/the best looking & longest lasting material steel from Erie Metal Roofs! 3 styles/multiple colors available. Guaranteed to last a lifetime! Limited time offer up to 50% off install + additional 10% off install military, health & 1st responders. 833-370-1234

Inflation at 40-year highs. Interest rates are up. Credit cards, medical bills, car loans. Have $10k+ in debt? Call National Debt Relief to find out how to pay off your debt for much less than you owe! Free quote: 844-955-4930 (not available in OR, VT, WV)

Don't let the stairs limit your mobility! Discover the solution for anyone who struggles on the stairs, concerned about a fall or wants to regain access to their entire home. AmeriGlide 833-399-3595

Home break-ins take less than 60 seconds. Don't wait! Protect your family, home, assets now for as little as 70¢/day! 833-890-1262

Jacuzzi Bath Remodel can install a new, custom bath or shower in as little as 1-day. Limited time, waving all installation costs! Additional terms apply. Subject to change & vary by dealer. Ends Soon. 844-501-3208

Pest control: Protect your home from pests safely. Roaches, Bed Bugs, Rodent, Termite, Spiders & more. Locally owned & affordable. For service or inspection today! 833-860-0657 Have zip code ready!

- - ---

MobileHelp America's premier mobile medical alert system. Home or away. For safety & peace of mind. No long term contracts, free brochure! 888-489-3936 - - - ---

Aging roof? New homeowner? Storm damage? You need a local expert provider that proudly stands behind their work. Fast, free estimate. Financing available. 833-640-4753 Have zip code ready when calling!

Water damage cleanup & restoration: A small amount of water can lead to major damage in your home. Our trusted professionals do repairs to protect your family & home value! 833-887-0117. Have zip code ready! - - -

Professional lawn service: Fertilization, weed control, seeding, aeration & mosquito control. Free quote. Ask about first application special! 833-860-0811

DIRECTV Stream - Carries the most local MLB games! Choice Pkg $89.99/mo for 12 mos Stream on 20 devic-es. HBO Max included for 3 mos w/Choice Package or higher. No contract or hidden fees! Restrictions apply. IVS 866859-0405

Wesley Financial Group, LLC timeshare cancellation experts over $50 million timeshare debt/fees cancelled in 2019. Free info package. Free consultations. Over 450 positive reviews. 833-308-1971 (not avail. in FL)

Bath & shower updates in as little as 1-day! Affordable prices - No payments for 18 months! Lifetime warranty & professional installs. Senior & military discounts available. 1-877-543-9189

Prepare for power outages today - Generac Home Standby Generator. Receive free 5-Year warranty w/qualifying purchase. 855-948-6176 to schedule free quote. It’s not just a generator. It’s a power move.

Dental insurance from Physicians Mutual Insurance Company. 400+ procedures. Real dental insurance - not a discount plan. Free info kit! 855-526-1060 www.dental50plus.com/ads #6258

Reach millions of homes nationwide with one easy, affordable buy in the ADS Network! For more information www.communitypublishers.com/category/all-products

HEATING & AIR CONDITIONING, PLUMBING AND ROOTER, CVHA PLUMBING AND ROOTER, CONEJO VALLEY SOLAR SOLUTIONS, CONEJO VALLEY PLUMBING AND ROOTER, CONEJO VALLEY INSUATION, CVHA PLUMBING, LOCAL ROOFS.COM, LOCAL. ROOFS, CONEJO VALLEY HOME SERVICES, CONEJO SERVICES, CONEJO SERVICES HEATING & AIR, PLUMBING & ROOTER AND ELECTRICAL, CONEJO SERVICES HEATING & AIR, CONEJO SERVICES HEATING & AIR, CONEJO SERVICES ELECTRICAL & GENERATORS, CONEJO SERVICES INSULATION, CONEJO VALLEY HEATION & AIR CONDITIONING, PLUMBING & ROOTER AND GENERATOR, CONEJO VALLEY GENERATORS, CONEJO SERVICES PLUMBING AND ROOTER, CONEJO SERVICES PLUMBING AND ROOTER, CONEJO HEATING, AIR, PLUMBING AND ELECTRICAL, CONEJO VALLEY AIR WINDOWS, CONEJO ELECTRICAL AND SOLAR, CONEJO VALLEY ELECTRICAL, CONEJO VALLEY ROOFING AND SOLAR (same address) This business is conducted by A Limited Liability Company commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on N/A. Filed by: GARY SOLTANI/CFO with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Dec 23, 2025. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E35. FBN Number: 2025‑0002914. Published: Jan 08, 15, 22, 29 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: DLIKESCOACHING: 5142 Hollister Ave, #4011 Santa Barbara, CA 93111; Demelza Shaefer (same address) This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Dec 17, 2025. Filed by: DEMELZA SHAEFER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Dec 22, 2025. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E24. FBN Number: 2025‑0002902. Published: Jan 08, 15, 22, 29 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: LITTLE MOMENTS CALENDARS: 4358 Modoc Road, F. Santa Barbara, CA 93110; Tara C Rengifo (same address) This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Nov 18, 2025. Filed by: TARA RENGIFO with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Dec 18, 2025. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E24. FBN Number: 2025‑0002877. Published: Jan 15, 22, 29. Feb 5 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: DIOJI K‑9 RESORT & ATHLETIC CLUB: 7340 Hollister Avenue. Santa Barbara, CA 93117; Dioji, Inc. 315 Meigs Road Suite A #651 Santa Barbara, CA 93109 This business is conducted by A Corporation commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Sep 1, 2014. Filed by: BRYCE WENDEL/PRESIDENT with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 5, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2026‑0000009. Published: Jan 15, 22, 29. Feb 5 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SHENNIE SMITH

LEGALS (CONT.)

commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Dec 19, 2024. Filed by: SHENANDOAH

SMITH/OWNER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Dec 23, 2025. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2026‑0002921. Published: Jan 15, 22, 29. Feb 5 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SUNSET HOME HEALTH SERVICE: 321 Arboleda Rd. Santa Barbara, CA 93110; Jacklyn C Stevens (same address) This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on N/A. Filed by: JACKLYN CATALINA STEVENS/OWNER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 1, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E73. FBN Number: 2026‑0000007. Published: Jan 15, 22, 29. Feb 5 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT

The following person(s) is/are doing business as: CONEJO SERVICES ROOFS, CONEJO SERVICES ROOFS AND GARAGE DOORS, CONEJO SERVICES ROOFS, POOLS AND GARAGE DOORS: 2550 Azurite Circle Newbury Park, CA 91320; Local Roofs LLC (same address) This business is conducted by A Limited Liability Company commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on N/A. Filed by: GARY SOLTANI/CFO with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 7, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2026‑0000033. Published: Jan 15, 22, 29. Feb 5 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: BOYATT CARDIOLOGY: 101 W. Arrellaga Street, Suite 5 Santa Barbara, CA 93101; Jason E. Boyatt, M.D., INC 4085 Lago Drive Santa Barbara, CA 93110 This business is conducted by A Corporation commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on N/A. Filed by: JASON E. BOYATT/ SECRETARY with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Dec 15, 2025. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2025‑0002833. Published: Jan 15, 22, 29. Feb 5 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: CLEAR INTERIORS, CLEAR ENGINEERING, CLEAR DESIGN: 525 garden Street Santa Barbara, CA 93101; Clear Architecture Corp. (same address) This business is conducted by A Corporation commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Jan 6, 2026. Filed by: LESLIE

THOMPSON/OFFICE COORDINATOR with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 9, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2026‑0000067. Published: Jan 15, 22, 29. Feb 5 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: BLANCO

SMILE STUDIO: 1292 Coast Village Rd Santa Barbara, CA 93108; Cadavid And Feusier Dental Inc. (same address) This business is conducted by A Corporation commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Apr 1, 2025. Filed by:

DANIELA CADAVID/VICE PRESIDENT with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 9, 2026. This

statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E24. FBN Number: 2026‑0000059. Published: Jan 15, 22, 29. Feb 5 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: KM WALKER DESIGN: 2963 Valencia Dr Santa Barbara, CA 93105; Kristen M Walker (same address) This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Jan 1, 2026. Filed by: KRISTEN WALKER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 9, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2026‑0000069. Published: Jan 15, 22, 29. Feb 5 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT

File No. FBN2026‑0000118

The following person(s) is doing business as:

FERGUSON HOME, 602 E. MONTECITO ST, SANTA BARBARA, CA 93103, County of SANTA BARBARA. FERGUSON ENTERPRISES, LLC, 751 LAKEFRONT COMMONS, NEWPORT NEWS, VA 23606; VA

This business is conducted by A LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY.

The registrant commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on NOV 3, 2025 /s/ IAN T. GRAHAM, MANAGER

This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on 01/15/2026. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk 2/5, 2/12, 2/19, 2/26/26 CNS‑4007136# SANTA BARBARA INDEPENDENT

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: BOYATT CARDIOLOGY: 101 W. Arrellaga Street, Suite 5 Santa Barbara, CA 93101; Jason E. Boyatt, M.D., Inc. 4085 Lago Drive Santa Barbara, CA 93110 This business is conducted by A Corporation commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on N/A. Filed by: JASSON E. BOYATT/SECRETARY with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Dec 15, 2025. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2026‑0000022. Published: Jan 22, 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: LOMA LINDA LANDSCAPING: 4400 Carpinteria Ave Carpinteria, CA 93013; Guadalupe Ortiz Villegas PO Box 3091 Santa Barbara, CA 93130 This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Dec 7, 2025. Filed by: GUADALUPE ORTIZ VILLEGAS/ INDIVIDUAL/SOLE PROPRIETOR with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 6, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2026‑0000020. Published: Jan 22, 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: GIRL IN THE MEADOWS: 213 San Napoli Dr. Goleta, CA 93117; Michelle D Wheelus (same address) This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Dec 29, 2025. Filed by: MICHELLE WHEELUS with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Dec 31, 2025. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph

E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2026‑0002958. Published: Jan 22, 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: PAPE KENWORTH PACLEASE: 1322

White Ct. Santa Maria, CA 93458; Pape Truck Leasing, Inc. 355 Goodpasture Island Road Eugene, OR 97401 This business is conducted by A Corporation commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Jul 1, 2007. Filed by: LANCE JORGENSEN/CFO with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Dec 22, 2025. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2026‑0002910. Published: Jan 22, 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: YOUR TRAVEL CENTER INC, MONTECITO VILLAGE TRAVEL: 3329 State Street Santa Barbara, CA 93105; Your Travel Center Inc (same address) This business is conducted by A Corporation commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Dec 11, 1984. Filed by: GEANA BIELENDA/ CFO with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 8, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2026‑0000055. Published: Jan 22, 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as:

MPATH THERAPY: 5020 Alvarado St. Carpinteria, CA 93013; MPATH MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPY

PROFESSIONAL CORPORATION

PO Box 924 Carpinteria, CA 93014

This business is conducted by A Corporation commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Jan 7, 2026. Filed by: MATTHEW

CHARLES CHUNG/CHIEF EXECUTIVE

OFFICER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 7, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2026‑0000030. Published: Jan 22, 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT

File No. FBN2026‑0000032

The following person(s) is (are) doing business as: GUFI, 1500 Corsica Dr, Santa Maria, CA 93455 County of SANTA BARBARA

GIBSON UNITED FUTURE INDUSTRIES INCORPORATED, 1500 Corsica Dr, Santa Maria, CA 93455

This business is conducted by a Corporation

The registrant(s) commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on N/A. GIBSON UNITED FUTURE INDUSTRIES INCORPORATED

S/ ROBERT GIBSON, PRESIDENT,

This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on 01/07/2026. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk 1/22, 1/29, 2/5, 2/12/26 CNS‑3997038# SANTA BARBARA

INDEPENDENT

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: MEGHAN

BIEDERMAN INTERIORS: 306 W De La Guerra St Santa Barbara, CA 93101; Meghan O Biederman (same address) This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Aug 28, 2025. Filed by: MEGHAN

BIEDERMAN with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan

14, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2025‑0000103. Published: Jan 22, 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: BONYTA BEAUTY: 924 Anacapa St. Suite 3A1 Santa Barbara, CA 93101; Julianna Ruiz (same address) This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Jan 1, 2026. Filed by: JULIANNA RUIZ/ OWNER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 14, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2026‑0000101. Published: Jan 22, 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SANTA

BARBARA DOJO: 177 S Turnpike Road Santa Barbara, CA 93111; Goleta Dojo LLC (same address) This business is conducted by A Limited Liability Memebr commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on N/A. Filed by: MELODEE

MEYER/MANAGING MEMBER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 14, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E71. FBN Number: 2026‑0000099. Published: Jan 22, 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: BEYOND ZEBRA INC.: 1443 East Washington Bouldard Suite 641 Pasadena, CA 91104; Beyond Zebra Inc. PO Box 4300 Burbank, CA 91503‑4300 This business is conducted by A Corporation commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Feb 16, 2001. Filed by: THERESE YAMATE/PRESIDENT with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Dec 26, 2025. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E71. FBN Number: 2025‑0002934. Published: Jan 22, 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: SHALHOOB BEER COMPANY, SHALHOOB MEAT CO: 220 Gray Ave Santa Barbara, CA 93101; Santa Barbara Style Inc. (same address) This business is conducted by A Corporation commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Nov 17, 2025. Filed by: JOHN SHALHOOB/ PRESIDENT with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Dec 22, 2025. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E24. FBN Number: 2025‑0002904. Published: Jan 22, 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: THE MULTIFAITH INTIATIVE: 1129 State Street 15 Santa Barbara, CA 93101; The Interfaith Initative of Santa Barbara County 1129 State Street 15 Santa Barbara, CA 93101 This business is conducted by A Corporation commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Jan 10, 2026. Filed by: MAHOMED KHAN/PRESIDENT with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 16, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E49. FBN Number: 2026‑0000121. Published: Jan 22, 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: PILATES CULT: 11 W. Figueroa Street Santa Barbara, CA 93101; Pilates Cult Inc. 151 Sierra Vista Rd Montecito, CA 93108 This business is conducted by A Corporation commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Jan 8, 2026. Filed by: ALISSA DISALVO/PRESIDENT with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 9, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E49. FBN Number: 2026‑0000063. Published: Jan 22, 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT

File No. FBN 2025‑0002951

The following person(s) is doing business as: Cuyama Cattle Company, 2211 Castro Canyon Rd., New Cuyama, CA 93254, County of Santa Barbara. Russmith Partners LLC, 2211 Castro Canyon Rd., New Cuyama, CA 93254; CA This business is conducted by A Limited Liability Company. The registrant commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Not Applicable /s/ Mart G Smith IV, Manager This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on 12/30/2025. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk 1/22, 1/29, 2/5, 2/12/26 CNS‑4002382# SANTA BARBARA INDEPENDENT

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: THE CALIFORNIAN, THE CALIFORNIAN OF SANTA BARBARA, SANTA BARBARA CONVALESCENT HOSPITAL: 2225 De La Vina St Santa Barbara, CA 93105; California

Notice

Convalescent Hospital of Santa Barbara Inc. (same address) This business is conducted by A Corporation commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Jun 13, 2013. Filed by: HALEY ANDERSON/PRESIDENT with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 6, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E49. FBN Number: 2026‑0000022. Published: Jan 22, 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: THE WINSTON: 486 1st Street Solvang, CA 93463; GF Old Mill, LLC 2082 <ichelson Drive, 4th Floor Irvine, CA 92612 This business is conducted by A Limited Partnership commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Dec 17, 2019. Filed by: MICHAEL B. EARL/MANAGING MEMBER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 22, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E24. FBN Number: 2026‑0000157. Published: Jan 29. Feb 5, 12, 19 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT

File No. FBN 2026‑0000041

The following person(s) is doing business as:

My Tours, 745 Calle de los Amigos, Santa Barbara, CA 93105, County of Santa Barbara. Richard Tubiolo, 745 Calle de los Amigos, Santa Barbara, CA 93105

This business is conducted by An Individual. The registrant commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Not Applicable /s/ Richard Tubiolo

This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on 01/08/2026. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk 1/22, 1/29, 2/5, 2/12/26

CNS‑4005494# SANTA BARBARA INDEPENDENT

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: WINSTON PROPER: 7015 Marketplace Drive, #1077 Goleta, CA 93117; Shannon M Blomst (same address) This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Jan 05, 2026. Filed by: SHANNON BLOMST/ OWNER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 8, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2026‑0000056. Published: Jan 29. Feb 5, 12, 19 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: GOLETA ACUPUNCTURE WELLNESS CLINIC: 5266 Hollister Ave, Suite 204 Santa Barbara, CA 93111; Daijing I. Wang (same address) This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Aug 05, 2008. Filed by: DAIJING WANG/ OWNER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 15, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E66. FBN Number: 2026‑0000110. Published: Jan 29. Feb 5, 12, 19 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: WEDDINGS BY THE SEA: 12833 Landale Street Studio City, CA 91604; Catherine

Questions About the Request

For questions about this application, please contact SCE at via phone at (800) 655-4555, or via email at case.admin@sce.com. The mailing address is:

LEGALS (CONT.)

A Forester (same address) This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Nov 28, 2016. Filed by: CATHERINE FORESTER/ OWNER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 9, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E24. FBN Number: 2026‑0000061. Published: Jan 29. Feb 5, 12, 19 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: BEAUTY BALANCE: 1129 State Street, Suite 12 Santa Barbara, CA 93101; Jada A Geiser 6173 Barrington Drive Goleta, CA 93117 This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Nov 15, 2025. Filed by: JADA GEISER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 15, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2026‑0000112. Published: Jan 29. Feb 5, 12, 19 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: FIRSTCLASS LAB SERVICE: 601 E Micheltorena St Unit 69 Santa Barbara, CA 93103; Naseem Barati (same address) This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Jan 20, 2026. Filed by: NASEEM BARATI/ OWNER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 20, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E49. FBN Number: 2026‑0000138. Published: Jan 29. Feb 5, 12, 19 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: WARMSTONE ESTATES, WARMSTONE COMMERCIAL: 351 Paseo Nuevo, Floor 2 Santa Barbara, CA 93101; Warmstone, Inc. (same address) This business

is conducted by A Corporation commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Dec 30, 2025. Filed by: MICHAEL WARM/ OFFICER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 5, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2026‑0000013. Published: Jan 29. Feb 5, 12, 19 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: ENERGIZED solutions : 5381 Parejo Dr Santa Barbara, CA 93111; Michael A Martins (same address) This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on 12/23/2025. Filed by: MICHAEL A MARTINS/OWNER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 8, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E73. FBN Number: 2026‑0000038. Published: Jan 29. Feb 5, 12, 19 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: 805 ENGINE WORKS LLC: 14000 Calle Real Santa Barbara, CA 93117; 805 Engine Works LLC PO Box 1795 Goleta, CA 93116 This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on N/A. Filed by: DANIEL JOSEPH LARA/OWNER with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 5, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E30. FBN Number: 2026‑0000014. Published: Jan 29. Feb 5, 12, 19 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: THE DUCT PLUG COMPANY: 225 W Quinto St D Santa Barbara, CA 93105; The Randal J Lynch (same address) This business is conducted by A Individual commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name

ORDINANCE NO. 26-01

or names listed above on Jan 1, 2026. Filed by: RANDAL J LYNCH with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 20, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E73. FBN Number: 2026‑0000131. Published: Jan 29. Feb 5, 12, 19 2026.

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT The following person(s) is/are doing business as: WILDLAND PRO, BULLKELP BEDROLLS: 2353

Hollister St Los Olivos, CA 93441; Ganibi Holdings LLC PO Box 1314 Santa Ynez, CA 93460 This business is conducted by A Limited Liability Company commenced to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on Jan 1, 2020. Filed by: PETER GANIBI/CFO with the County Clerk of Santa Barbara County on Jan 22, 2026. This statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the Office of the County Clerk. Joseph E. Holland, County Clerk (SEAL) by E73. FBN Number: 2026‑0000159. Published: Jan 29. Feb 5, 12, 19 2026.

NAME CHANGE

AMENDED IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME: MISA

MIELE MANDIGO KELLY NUMBER: 25CV05015 TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS:

PETITIONER: MISA MIELE MANDIGO

KELLY A petition has been filed by the above named Petitioner(s) in Santa Barbara Superior Court for decree changing name (s) as follows:

PRESENT NAME: MISA MIELE

MANDIGO KELLY

PROPOSED NAME: IOLANI PUU

KOLENC

THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter shall appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is

AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF GOLETA, CALIFORNIA, AMENDING SECTION 17.41.030 OF THE GOLETA MUNICIPAL CODE RELATING TO ACCESSORY DWELLING UNITS AND JUNIOR ACCESSORY DWELLING UNITS AND FINDING THE ACTION TO BE STATUTORILY EXEMPT FROM THE CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT UNDER PUBLIC RESOURCES CODE SECTION 21080.17 (CASE NO. 25-0005-ORD)

On January 20th, 2026, at 5:30 P.M., at the Goleta City Hall, 130 Cremona Drive, Goleta, California, the City Council of the City of Goleta (“City”) conducted the second reading and adopted Ordinance No. 26-01 that amends Title 17 (Zoning) of the Goleta Municipal Code related to Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) and Junior Accessory Dwelling Units (JADUs). Changes to the City’s ADU and JADU regulations relate to: ADU and JADU Sizes, Quantity of Building Permit Only ADUs, ADU Permitting Process, ADU Processing in the Coastal Zone, Fire Sprinklers, JADU Owner-Occupancy, Disaster-Affected Areas, and Impact Fees. Additional revisions include minor alignments with State ADU law and clarifying clauses and subsection titles, where appropriate.

The City Council of the City of Goleta passed and adopted Ordinance No. 26-01 at a regular meeting held on the 20th day of January, 2026, by the following roll call vote:

AYES: MAYOR PEROTTE, MAYOR PRO TEMPORE SMITH, COUNCILMEMBERS KASDIN, KYRIACO, AND REYES-MARTÍN.

NOES: NONE

ABSENT: NONE

ABSTAIN: NONE

The ordinance will be effective 31 days from the date of adoption. A copy of the ordinance is available at the City Clerk’s Office, cityclerkgroup@ cityofgoleta.org, 130 Cremona Drive, Goleta, California, or by calling the office at (805) 961-7505.

Deborah S. Lopez City Clerk

Publish: Santa Barbara Independent, January 29, 2026

timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing. Notice of Hearing February 9, 2026, 10:00 am, DEPT: SB 5, SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF SANTA BARBARA 1100 Anacapa St Santa Barbara, CA 93101, ANACAPA

DIVISION

A copy of this Order to Show Cause shall be published in the Santa Barbara Independent, a newspaper of general circulation, printed in this county, at least once each week for four successive weeks prior to the date set for hearing on the petition. Dated 12/29/2025, JUDGE Thomas P. Anderle of the Superior Court. Published Jan 8, 15, 22, 29 2026.

IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION TO SHOW CAUSE FOR

CHANGE OF NAME: MEGANN ELSIE

DROST NUMBER: 25CV07481

TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS: PETITIONER: MEGANN ELSIE

DROST A petition has been filed by the above named Petitioner(s) in Santa Barbara Superior Court for decree changing name (s) as follows: PRESENT NAME: MEGANN ELSIE DROST

PROPOSED NAME: MEGANN ELSIE

THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter shall appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing. Notice of Hearing February 13, 2026, 10:00 am, DEPT: 4, SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF SANTA BARBARA 1100 Anacapa St Santa Barbara, CA 93101, SANTA BARBARA‑ ANACAPA

A copy of this Order to Show Cause shall be published in the Santa Barbara Independent, a newspaper of general circulation, printed in this county, at least once each week for four successive weeks prior to the date set for hearing on the petition. Dated 12/15/2025, JUDGE Donna D. Geck of the Superior Court. Published Jan 8, 15, 22, 29 2026.

IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME: WILLIAM NASH BLANKENSHIP NUMBER: 25CV07919 TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS: PETITIONER: WILLIAM NASH

BLANKENSHIP A petition has been filed by the above named Petitioner(s) in Santa Barbara Superior Court for decree changing name (s) as follows:

PRESENT NAME: WILLIAM NASH

BLANKENSHIP

PROPOSED NAME: WILLIAM NASH KONIG

THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter shall appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing. Notice of Hearing March 4, 2026, 10:00 am, DEPT: 3, SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF SANTA BARBARA 1100 Anacapa St Santa Barbara, CA 93101, A copy of this Order to Show Cause shall be published in the Santa Barbara Independent, a newspaper of general circulation, printed in this county, at least once each week for four successive weeks prior to the date set for hearing on the petition. Dated 01/09/2026, JUDGE Thomas P. Anderle of the Superior Court. Published Jan 15, 22, 29. Feb 5 2026.

IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME: NATALIE SARAH GAIKWAD NUMBER: 25CV07869

TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS: PETITIONER: NATALIE SARAH

GAIKWAD A petition has been filed by the above named Petitioner(s) in Santa Barbara Superior Court for decree changing name (s) as follows: PRESENT NAME: NATALIE SARAH GAIKWAD

PROPOSED NAME: NATALIE SARAH

JOSHI RAVADE THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter shall appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing. Notice of Hearing March 2, 2026, 10:00 am, DEPT: 5, SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF SANTA BARBARA 1100 Anacapa St Santa Barbara, CA 93101, A copy of this Order to Show Cause shall be published in the Santa Barbara Independent, a newspaper of general circulation, printed in this county, at least once each week for four successive weeks prior to the date set for hearing on the petition. Dated 01/08/2026, JUDGE Colleen K. Sterne of the Superior Court. Published Jan 15, 22, 29. Feb 5 2026.

IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME: KC RAY MISSOFF NUMBER: 25CV07885 TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS: PETITIONER: KC RAY MISSOFF

A petition has been filed by the above named Petitioner(s) in Santa Barbara Superior Court for decree changing name (s) as follows:

PRESENT NAME: KC RAY MISSOFF

PROPOSED NAME: KC RAY GOODWIN

THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter shall appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing. Notice of Hearing February 27, 2026, 10:00 am, DEPT: 4, SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF SANTA BARBARA 1100 Anacapa St Santa Barbara, CA 93101, ANACAPA DIVISION

A copy of this Order to Show Cause shall be published in the Santa Barbara Independent, a newspaper of general circulation, printed in this county, at least once each week for four successive weeks prior to the date set for hearing on the petition. Dated 01/07/2026, JUDGE Donna D. Geck of the Superior Court. Published Jan 22, 29. Feb 5, 12 2026.

IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME: NORA CATHERINE PETERSEN NUMBER: 26CV00120

TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS:

PETITIONER: HOLLY CATHERINE

PETERSEN and SCOTT ALEXANDER

PETERSEN A petition has been filed by the above named Petitioner(s) in Santa Barbara Superior Court for decree changing name (s) as follows: PRESENT NAME: NORA CATHERINE

PETERSEN

PROPOSED NAME: NICO RODGERS

PETERSEN

THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter shall appear

before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted.

Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing.

Notice of Hearing March 23, 2026, 10:00 am, DEPT: 5, SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF SANTA BARBARA 1100 Anacapa St Santa Barbara, CA 93101, ANACAPA DIVISION

A copy of this Order to Show Cause shall be published in the Santa Barbara Independent, a newspaper of general circulation, printed in this county, at least once each week for four successive weeks prior to the date set for hearing on the petition. Dated 01/22/2026, JUDGE Colleen K. Sterne of the Superior Court. Published Jan 29. Feb 5, 12, 19 2026.

PUBLIC NOTICES

CELLCO PARTNERSHIP and its controlled affiliates doing business as Verizon Wireless (Verizon Wireless) proposes to build a 50‑foot‑tall faux water telecommunications tower at the approx. vicinity of 2800 Telephone Road, Santa Maria, Santa Barbara County, CA 93454, Lat: [34‑54‑ 15.16], Long: [‑120‑22‑ 56.85]. Public comments regarding potential effects from this site on historic properties may be submitted within 30 days from the date of this publication to: Trileaf Corp, Randi Honeycutt, r.honeycutt@trileaf.com, 2121 W Chandler Blvd., Suite 108, Chandler, AZ 85224, 480‑850‑0575. 1/29/26

CNS‑4003806# SANTA BARBARA INDEPENDENT

PUBLIC NOTICE

Public Notice is hereby given by the Goleta Sanitary District (GSD) pursuant to Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations Section 403.8(f) (2)(viii) of dischargers in Significant Noncompliance with Pretreatment Standards.

The following business was in Significant Noncompliance with their wastewater discharge permit requirements during 2025:

Industry Name: SB Wildlife Care Network Address: 1460 N. Fairview Ave. Goleta, CA 93117

Violation(s): After several years of site visits, communications, violations and issuance of wastewater discharge permit # C‑247‑25 with prohibitions, a compliance schedule and specific best management practices, BMPs, odor problems were not resolved. Failure to reliably implement BMPs in accordance with the permit compliance schedule caused recurring odors, infrastructure damage and worker safety concerns. These discharge permit violations constitute Significant Noncompliance under Section 11, subdivision H of Sewer Use Ordinance #92 and prompted an escalated Show Cause Compliance Hearing on April 24, 2025. As required, SBWCN hired a Certified Engineer to investigate the situation and report viable pretreatment solutions. They now are working to consistently eliminate hydrogen sulfide gas, H2S from the SBWCN wastewater discharge under a new compliance schedule requiring ongoing action, monitoring and monthly reporting with final and consistent compliance as verified by regular monitoring by June 30, 2026 to avoid further enforcement and/or termination of service.

TRUSTEE NOTICE

TS NO: CA07000887‑24‑2‑HC APN: 079‑610‑010 TO No: 2726621CAD NOTICE OF DEFAULT AND FORECLOSURE SALE

WHEREAS, on October 22, 2004, a certain Deed of Trust was executed by GERALDINE R. ROPER, AS TRUSTEE OF THE GERALDINE R. ROPER REVOCABLE TRUST‑ 1996 as Trustor in favor of WELLS FARGO BANK, N.A. as Beneficiary and FIDELITY NATIONAL TITLE INSURANCE COMPANY as Trustee, and was recorded on October 28, 2004, as Instrument No. 2004‑0114411 in the Office of the County Recorder, Santa Barbara County, California; and WHEREAS, the Deed of Trust was insured by the United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (the Secretary) pursuant to the National Housing Act for the purpose of providing single family housing; and WHEREAS, the beneficial interest in the Deed of Trust is now owned by the Secretary, pursuant to an assignment dated September 27, 2018, and recorded on September 28, 2018, as Instrument No. 2018‑ 0041821, in the office of the County Recorder, Santa Barbara County, California; and WHEREAS, a default has been made in the covenants and conditions of the Deed of Trust in that the payment due on November 7, 2022, was not made and remains wholly unpaid as of the date of this notice, and no payment has been made sufficient to restore the loan to currency; and WHEREAS, the entire amount delinquent as of January 12, 2026 is estimated to be $446,296.80; and WHEREAS, by virtue of this default, the Secretary has declared the entire amount of the indebtedness secured by the Deed of Trust to be immediately due and payable; NOW THEREFORE, pursuant to powers vested in me by the Single Family Mortgage Foreclosure Act of 1994, 12 U.S.C. 3751 et seq., by 24 CFR part 27, subpart B, and by the Secretary’s designation of MTC Financial Inc. dba Trustee Corps as Foreclosure Commissioner, recorded on October 27, 2015, as Instrument No. 2015‑0056962, notice is hereby given that on March 4, 2026 at 01:00 PM, local time, all real and personal property at or used in connection with the following described premises (“Property”) will be sold at public auction to the highest bidder: Commonly known as: 313 NORTHGATE DRIVE #B, GOLETA, CA 93117 PARCEL ONE: ALL THAT PORTION OF LOT 1 OF TRACT 11,470, ACCORDING TO THE MAP THEREOF RECORDED IN BOOK 79 OF MAPS, PAGES 15 AND 16, ON FILE IN THE OFFICE OF THE COUNTY RECORDER OF SAID COUNTY, SHOWN AND DEFINED AS UNIT 10 ON THAT CERTAIN CONDOMINIUM PLAN RECORDED DECEMBER 27, 1972, IN BOOK 101, PAGES 70 TO 82, INCLUSIVE, OF CONDOMINIUMS, IN THE OFFICE OF THE COUNTY RECORDER OF SANTA BARBARA COUNTY. PARCEL TWO: AN UNDIVIDED 1/40TH INTEREST IN AND TO ALL THAT PORTION OF LOT 1 OF SAID TRACT, 11470 SHOWN AND DEFINED AS COMMON AREA ON SAID CONDOMINIUM PLAN. The sale will be held at the main entrance to the County Courthouse, 1100 Anacapa Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101. The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development will bid $453,300.42. There will be no proration of taxes, rents or other income or liabilities, except that the purchaser

LEGALS (CONT.)

A deposit need not accompany each oral bid. If the successful bid is oral, a deposit of $45,330.04 must be presented before the bidding is closed. The deposit is nonrefundable. The remainder of the purchase price must be delivered within 30 days of the sale or at such other time as the Secretary may determine for good cause shown, time being of the essence. This amount, like the bid deposits, must be delivered in the form of a certified or cashier’s check. If the Secretary is the highest bidder, he need not pay the bid amount in cash. The successful bidder will pay all conveying fees, all real estate and other taxes that are due on or after the delivery date of the remainder of the payment and all other costs associated with the transfer of title. At the conclusion of the sale, the deposits of the unsuccessful bidders will be returned to them. The Secretary may grant an extension of time within which to deliver the remainder of the payment. All extensions will be for 15‑day increments for a fee of $500.00, paid in advance. The extension fee shall be in the form of a certified or cashier’s check made payable to the Secretary of HUD. If the high bidder closes the sale prior to the expiration of any extension period, the unused portion of the extension fee shall be applied toward the amount due. If the high bidder is unable to close the sale within the required period, or within any extensions of time granted by the Secretary, the high bidder may be required to forfeit the cash deposit or, at the election of the foreclosure commissioner after consultation with the HUD representative, will be liable to HUD for any costs incurred as a result of such failure. The Commissioner may, at the direction of the HUD representative, offer the property to the second highest bidder for an amount equal to the highest price offered by that bidder. There is no right of redemption, or right of possession based upon a right of redemption, in the mortgagor or others subsequent to a foreclosure completed pursuant to the Act. Therefore, the Foreclosure Commissioner will issue a Deed to the purchaser(s) upon receipt of the entire purchase price in accordance with the terms of the sale as provided herein. HUD does not guarantee that the property will be vacant. The scheduled foreclosure sale shall be cancelled or adjourned if it is established, by documented written application of the mortgagor to the Foreclosure Commissioner not less than 3 days before the date of sale, or otherwise, that the default or defaults upon which the foreclosure is based did not exist at the time of service of this notice of default and foreclosure sale, or all amounts due under the mortgage agreement are tendered to the Foreclosure Commissioner, in the form of a certified or cashier’s check payable to the Secretary of HUD, before public auction of the property is completed. The amount that must be paid if the mortgage is to be reinstated prior to the scheduled sale is $446,296.80 as of January 12, 2026, plus all other amounts that would be due under the mortgage agreement if payments under the mortgage had not been accelerated, advertising costs and postage expenses incurred in giving notice, mileage by the most reasonable road distance for posting notices and for the Foreclosure Commissioner’s attendance at the sale, reasonable and customary costs incurred for title and lien record searches, the necessary out‑of‑pocket costs incurred by the Foreclosure Commissioner for recording documents, a commission for the Foreclosure Commissioner, and all other costs incurred in connection with the foreclosure prior to reinstatement. Tender of payment by certified or cashier’s check or application for cancellation of the foreclosure sale shall be submitted to the address of the Foreclosure Commissioner provided below.

Effective March 1, 2026, new federal regulations (89 Fed. Reg. 70.258) will impact residential real property (1‑4 residential units) title transfers to covered entities trusts, with reporting requirements unless exempt. https://www.federalregister.gov/doc uments/2024/08/29/2024‑ 19198/anti‑money‑laundering‑ regulations‑for‑residential‑real‑ estate‑transfers Date: January 12, 2026 Rosenda Cardenas, Authorized Signatory MTC Financial Inc. dba Trustee Corps Foreclosure Commissioner 17100 Gillette Ave, Irvine, CA 92614 Phone: 949‑252‑8300 Fax: 949‑ 252‑8330 SALE INFORMATION CAN BE OBTAINED ONLINE AT www.nationwideposting.com FOR AUTOMATED SALES INFORMATION PLEASE CALL: Nationwide Posting & Publication AT 916.939.0772 NPP0483735 To: SANTA BARBARA INDEPENDENT 01/29/2026, 02/05/2026, 02/12/2026

Trustee Sale No. 175903 Title No. 95529303‑55 NOTICE OF TRUSTEE’S SALE YOU ARE IN DEFAULT UNDER A DEED OF TRUST, DATED 12/07/1995. UNLESS YOU TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT YOUR PROPERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC SALE. IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THE NATURE OF THE PROCEEDING AGAINST YOU, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LAWYER. On 02/25/2026 at 10:00 AM, PRIME RECON LLC, as duly appointed Trustee under and pursuant to Deed of Trust recorded 12/22/1995, as Instrument No. 95‑ 071530, in book xx, page xx, of Official Records in the office of the County Recorder of SANTA BARBARA County, State of CALIFORNIA, executed by VANITA LEE HANSON, A SINGLE WOMAN, WILL SELL AT PUBLIC AUCTION TO HIGHEST BIDDER FOR CASH, CASHIER’S CHECK/CASH EQUIVALENT or other form of payment authorized by 2924h(b), (payable at time of sale in lawful money of the United States), AT THE MAIN ENTRANCE TO THE COUNTY COURTHOUSE, SANTA BARBARA COUNTY COURTHOUSE, 1100 ANACAPA STREET, SANTA BARBARA, CA 93101. All right, title and interest conveyed to and now held by it under said Deed of Trust in the property situated in said County and State, described as: FULLY DESCRIBED IN THE ABOVE DEED OF TRUST. APN 053‑262‑ 009 The street address and other common designation, if any, of the real property described above is purported to be: 227 ARGONNE CIRCLE, SANTA BARBARA, CA 93105. The undersigned Trustee disclaims any liability for any incorrectness of the street address and other common designation, if any, shown herein. Said sale will be made, but without covenant or warranty, expressed or implied, regarding title, possession, or encumbrances, to pay the remaining principal sum of the note(s) secured by said Deed of Trust, with interest thereon, as provided in said note(s), advances, if any, under the terms of said Deed of Trust, fees, charges and expenses of the Trustee and of the trusts created by said Deed of Trust. The total amount of the unpaid balance of the obligation secured by the property to be sold and reasonable estimated costs, expenses and advances at the time of the initial publication of the Notice of Sale is: $25,706.15 IF THE TRUSTEE IS UNABLE TO CONVEY TITLE FOR ANY REASON, THE SUCCESSFUL BIDDER’S SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE REMEDY SHALL BE THE RETURN OF MONIES PAID TO THE TRUSTEE, AND THE SUCCESSFUL BIDDER SHALL HAVE NO FURTHER RECOURSE. The beneficiary under said Deed of Trust heretofore executed and delivered to the undersigned a written Declaration of Default and Demand for Sale, and written Notice of Default and Election to

Sell. The undersigned caused a Notice of Default and Election to Sell to be recorded in the county where the real property is located.

Dated: 1/12/2026 PRIME RECON

LLC By: Kristen Mazzara, Authorized Signer PRIME RECON LLC 27368 VIA INDUSTRIA, STE 201 TEMECULA, CA 92590 (888) 725‑4142 PRIME RECON LLC MAY BE ATTEMPTING TO COLLECT A DEBT. ANY INFORMATION OBTAINED MAY BE USED FOR THAT PURPOSE. FOR TRUSTEE’S SALE INFORMATION PLEASE CALL: (844) 901‑0998 OR VIEW OUR WEBSITE: HTTPS://SALESINFORMATION.P RIME‑RECON.COM NOTICE TO POTENTIAL BIDDERS: If you are considering bidding on this property lien, you should understand that there are risks involved in bidding at a trustee auction. You will be bidding on a lien, not on the property itself. Placing the highest bid at a trustee auction does not automatically entitle you to free and clear ownership of the property. You should also be aware that the lien being auctioned off may be a junior lien. If you are the highest bidder at the auction, you are or may be responsible for paying off all liens senior to the lien being auctioned off, before you can receive clear title to the property. You are encouraged to investigate the existence, priority, and size of outstanding liens that may exist on this property by contacting the county recorder’s office or a title insurance company, either of which may charge you a fee for this information. If you consult either of these resources, you should be aware that the same lender may hold more than one mortgage or deed of trust on the property.

NOTICE TO PROPERTY OWNER:

The sale date shown on this notice of sale may be postponed one or more times by the mortgagee, beneficiary, trustee, or a court, pursuant to Section 2924g of the California Civil Code. The law requires that information about trustee sale postponements be made available to you and to the public, as a courtesy to those not present at the sale. If you wish to learn whether your sale date has been postponed, and, if applicable, the rescheduled time and date for the sale of this property, you may call (844) 901‑0998 for information regarding the trustee’s sale or visit this internet website ‑

HTTPS://SALESINFORMATION.P

RIME‑RECON.COM ‑ for information regarding the sale of this property, using the file number assigned to this case: TS#175903. Information about postponements that are very short in duration or that occur close in time to the scheduled sale may not immediately be reflected in the telephone information or on the internet website. The best way to verify postponement information is to attend the scheduled sale.

NOTICE TO TENANT: You may have a right to purchase this property after the trustee auction pursuant to Section 2924m of the California Civil Code. If you are an “eligible tenant buyer,” you can purchase the property if you match the last and highest bid placed at the trustee auction. If you are an “eligible bidder,” you may be able to purchase the property if you exceed the last and highest bid placed at the trustee auction. There are three steps to exercising this right of purchase. First, 48 hours after the date of the trustee sale, you can call (844) 901‑0998 for information regarding the trustee’s sale, or visit this internet website

HTTPS://SALESINFORMATION.P

RIME‑RECON.COM for information regarding the sale of this property, using the file number assigned to this case TS#175903 to find the date on which the trustee’s sale was held, the amount of the last and highest bid, and the address of the trustee. Second, you must send a written notice of intent to place a bid so that the trustee receives it no more than 15 days after the

trustee’s sale. Third, you must submit a bid so that the trustee receives it no more than 45 days after the trustee’s sale. If you think you may qualify as an “eligible tenant buyer” or “eligible bidder,” you should consider contacting an attorney or appropriate real estate professional immediately for advice regarding this potential right to purchase. NPP0483614 To: SANTA BARBARA INDEPENDENT 01/29/2026, 02/05/2026, 02/12/2026

T.S. No.: 229‑019581 Title Order No. 91228368 APN: 065‑590‑083 & 065‑590‑077 Property Address: 4760 CALLE CAMARADA, SANTA BARBARA, CA 93110 NOTICE OF TRUSTEE&#39;S SALE YOU ARE IN DEFAULT UNDER A DEED OF TRUST DATED 5/4/2022. UNLESS YOU TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT YOUR PROPERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC SALE. IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THE NATURE OF THE PROCEEDING AGAINST YOU, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LAWYER. A public auction sale of the Trustor’s interest will be made to the highest bidder for lawful money of the United States, payable at the time of sale in cash, cashier’s check drawn on a state or national bank, cashier’s check drawn by a state or federal credit union, or a cashier’s check drawn by a state or federal savings and loan association, or savings association, or savings bank specified in Section 5102 of the Financial Code and authorized to do business in this state will be held by the duly appointed trustee as shown below, of all right, title, and interest conveyed to and now held by the trustee in the hereinafter described property under and pursuant to a Deed of Trust described below. The sale will be made, but without covenant or warranty, expressed or implied, regarding title, possession, or encumbrances, to pay the remaining principal sum of the note(s) secured by the Deed of Trust, with interest and late charges thereon, as provided in the note(s), advances, under the terms of the Deed of Trust, interest thereon, fees, charges and expenses of the Trustee for the total amount (at the time of the initial publication of the Notice of Sale) reasonably estimated to be set forth below. The amount may be greater on the day of sale. Trustor: KINGDOM HOSPITALITY GROUP, LLC , A CALIFORNIA LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY Duly Appointed Trustee: PLM LOAN MANAGEMENT SERVICES, INC. Recorded 5/10/2022, as Instrument No. 2022‑0023102, of Official Records in the office of the Recorder of Santa Barbara County, California, Date of Sale: 2/18/2026 at 1:00 PM Place of Sale: At the main entrance to the County Courthouse, 1100 Anacapa Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101 Amount of unpaid balance and other charges: $20,373,843.19 (estimated as of the first publication date) Street Address or other common designation of real property: 4760 CALLE CAMARADA SANTA BARBARA, CA 93110 The undersigned Trustee disclaims any liability for any incorrectness of the street address or other common designation, if any, shown above. The property heretofore described is being sold “as is”. If the Trustee is unable to convey title for any reason, the successful bidder’s sole and exclusive remedy shall be the return of monies paid to the Trustee, and the successful bidder shall have no further recourse. If no street address or other common designation is shown, directions to the location of the property may be obtained by sending a written request to the beneficiary within 10 days of the date of first publication of this Notice of Sale. The following statements; NOTICE TO POTENTIAL BIDDERS and NOTICE TO PROPERTY OWNER are statutory notices for all one to four single family residences and a courtesy notice for all other types of properties. NOTICE TO

POTENTIAL BIDDERS: If you are considering bidding on this property lien, you should understand that there are risks involved in bidding at a trustee auction. You will be bidding on a lien, not on the property itself. Placing the highest bid at a trustee auction does not automatically entitle you to free and clear ownership of the property. You should also be aware that the lien being auctioned off may be a junior lien. If you are the highest bidder at the auction, you are or may be responsible for paying off all liens senior to the lien being auctioned off, before you can receive clear title to the property. You are encouraged to investigate the existence, priority, and size of outstanding liens that may exist on this property by contacting the county recorder’s office or a title insurance company, either of which may charge you a fee for this information. If you consult either of these resources, you should be aware that the same lender may hold more than one mortgage or deed of trust on the property. Please be advised that the trustee may require entity or trust bidders at this trustee&#39;s sale to provide information, documentation and/or certification of the vesting instructions and the data required to be reported pursuant to FinCEN regulations effective for transfers of residential real property to covered transferees on or after March 1, 2026. The required information must be provided to the trustee before a trustee’s deed upon sale will be issued for covered transfers. Additional information regarding these regulations and the required transferee information and

certifications can be found at https://www.federalregister.gov/doc uments/2024/08/29/2024‑ 19198/anti‑money‑laundering‑ regulations‑for‑residential‑real‑ estate‑transfers and https://www.fincen.gov/rre‑ faqs#D_5 NOTICE TO PROPERTY OWNER: The sale date shown on this notice of sale may be postponed one or more times by the mortgagee, beneficiary, trustee, or a court, pursuant to Section 2924g of the California Civil Code. The law requires that information about trustee sale postponements be made available to you and to the public, as a courtesy to those not present at the sale. If you wish to learn whether your sale date has been postponed, and, if applicable, the rescheduled time and date for the sale of this property, you may call (916) 939‑0772 or visit this Internet Website http://www.nationwideposting. com/, using the file number assigned to this case 229‑019581. Information about postponements that are very short in duration or that occur close in time to the scheduled sale may not immediately be reflected in the telephone information or on the Internet Website. The best way to verify postponement information is to attend the scheduled sale.

NOTICE TO TENANT: You may have a right to purchase this property after the trustee auction pursuant to Section 2924m of the California Civil Code. If you are an “eligible tenant buyer,” you can purchase the property if you match the last and highest bid placed at the trustee auction. If you are an “eligible bidder,” you may be able to purchase the property if you exceed the last and highest bid placed at the trustee auction. There are three steps to exercising this right of purchase. First, 48 hours after the date of the trustee sale, you can call (916) 939‑0772, or visit this internet website http://www.nationwideposting. com/, using the file number assigned to this case 229‑019581 to find the date on which the trustee’s sale was held, the amount of the last and highest bid, and the address of the trustee. Second, you must send a written notice of intent to place a bid so that the trustee receives it no more than 15 days after the trustee’s sale. Third, you must submit a bid so that the trustee receives it no more than 45 days after the trustee’s sale. If you think you may qualify as an “eligible tenant buyer” or “eligible bidder,” you should consider contacting an attorney or appropriate real estate professional immediately for advice regarding this potential right to purchase. Date: 1/19/2026 PLM LOAN MANAGEMENT SERVICES, INC., as Trustee Phone: 408‑370‑ 4030 5446 Thornwood Drive, Second Floor San Jose, California 95123 Elizabeth A. Godbey, Vice President NPP0483832 To: SANTA BARBARA INDEPENDENT 01/29/2026, 02/05/2026, 02/12/2026

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING Design Review Board Hybrid Public Hearing – In Person and via Zoom Goleta City Hall – Council Chambers 130 Cremona Drive, Suite B Goleta, CA 93117 Tuesday, February 10, 2026, at 3:00 P.M.

ATTENTION: The meeting will be held in person and via the Zoom platform. The public may also view the meeting on Goleta Channel 19 and/or online at https://www.cityofgoleta.org/goletameetings

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Design Review Board (DRB) of the City of Goleta will conduct a public hearing for the projects listed below, with the date, time, and location of the DRB public hearing set forth above. The agenda for the hearing, including how to participate virtually in the hearing via a Zoom link, will also be posted on the City website at least 72 hours before the hearing (www.cityofgoleta.org).

For Preliminary Review:

Shelby Residential Subdivision and Development Plan 7400 Cathedral Oaks Road (APN 077-530-019)

Case Nos. 05-154-DRB/DP

For Conceptual/Preliminary/Final Review:

Community Assembly parking lot lighting & California Environmental Quality Act 478 Cambridge Drive (APN 069-560-031)

Case No. 25-0033-DRB

PUBLIC COMMENT: Interested people are encouraged to provide public comments during the public hearing in person or virtually through the Zoom webinar, by following the instructions listed on the Design Review Board meeting agenda. Written comments may be submitted prior to the hearing by emailing the Planning and Environmental Review Department at PERmeetings@cityofgoleta. gov. Written comments will be distributed to the Design Review Board and published on the City’s Meeting and Agenda page.

FOR PROJECT INFORMATION: For further information on the project, contact Mary Chang, at (805) 961-7567 or mchang@cityofgoleta.gov. For inquiries in Spanish, please contact Marcos Martinez at (805) 562-5500 or mmartinez@ cityofgoleta.gov. Staff reports and documents will be posted approximately 72 hours before the hearing on the City’s website at www.cityofgoleta.org

In accordance with Gov. Code Section 65103.5, only non-copyrighted plans or plans that the designer has given permission have been published on the City’s website. The full set of plans is available for review at the Planning Counter during counter hours or by contacting the staff member listed for the item 805-9617543.

Note: If you challenge the nature of the above action in court, you may be limited to only those issues you or someone else raised at the public hearing described in this notice or in written correspondence delivered to the City on or before the date of the hearing (Government Code Section 65009(b)(2)).

Note: In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, if you need assistance to participate in the hearing, please contact the City Clerk’s Office at (805) 961-7505 or cityclerkgroup@cityofgoleta.gov. Notification at least 48 hours prior to the hearing will enable City staff to make reasonable arrangements.

Publish: Santa Barbara Independent 1/29/26