Scholarship Lunch

By Richard Mineards   |   December 13, 2018
Anne Howard, Jerry Parent, Janet Garufis, Jeff Pittman, Marion Schoneberger, Derek Swafford, Brianna Aguilar, Suzi Schomer, and Heather Ames at the Hilton (photo by Priscilla)

Community leaders gathered at the Hilton for the annual Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara lunch.

The 56-year-old organization, which started giving $100 awards, this year awarded $8.32 million in scholarships to 2,260 students from across the county, bringing the total to a handsome $108 million to more than 50,000 college-bound youngsters over the past five decades, more than half of them first generation college students.

Janet Garufis, Don Logan, and honoree Miguel Cruz (photo by Priscilla)

“College accessibility and affordability remains a challenge for local students and their families,” Don Logan, chairman of the foundation’s board, told the 350 guests.

Miguel Cruz, a Mexican immigrant student at CSU Channel Islands, whose father is a gardener and mother a cleaner, recounted growing up “angry, young, and poor,” selling drugs, losing his apartment, truck and custody of his daughter, and eventually trying to commit suicide before turning his life around, studying at City College and the University of London before graduating with a degree in psychology.

Janet Garufis, chairman of Montecito Bank & Trust, spoke as community leader, thanking her four-year scholarship at Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles for putting her on the career path to success.

Among the guests supporting the cause were new CEO Victoria Juarez, Susan Gulbransen, former mayor Helene Schneider, Jean Schuyler, Randy Weiss, Warren Staley, Maryan Schall, Luke Swetland, Nancy Schlosser, Sharol Siemens, Stan and Betty Hatch, Marybeth Carty, Joe Cole, Roger and Sarah Chrisman, Geoff Green, Dinah Calderon, Peter MacDougall, and Leslie Bhutani.

Roger Chrisman, Sarah Chrisman, Roberta Griffin, Sally Upton, Louise and Tim Casey, Barrett O’Gorman, Sally and Jay Smith, and Tom Upton at the Scholarship Foundation lunch (photo by Priscilla)
Mary Beth Carty congratulating Victoria Juarez, new President and CEO of the Scholarship Foundation, along with Barbara Ben-Horin (photo by Priscilla)
Helene Schneider, Molly Kemper, Barbara Robertson, and Nicole Jones (photo by Priscilla)
Barbara Askew, Arthur Gaudi, Susan Salcido, Raissa Smorol, Tony Askew, Amanda McMcIntyre, Herta Smorol, Kathy O’Leary, Lorna Hedges, and Joan Davidson (photo by Priscilla)
 

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