Megan Birney Rudert isn’t one to rest on her laurels. On the last Sunday in April, the Unite to Light president & CEO received a 2026 Environmental Hero award from the Community Environmental Council. The setting was the 56th annual Santa Barbara Earth Day Festival, where the award publicly recognized Birney Rudert’s leadership of the […]

Ahoy, Santa Barbarans! Have you noticed the presence of Santa Barbara’s Official Tall Ship, the Mystic Whaler, docked in the protective waters of the Santa Barbara harbor? She returns to Santa Barbara from the Ventura harbor where she hosted a series of marine related educational programs and dock tours for young people and guests. After […]

Elder Abuse / 100 block of Evans Ave — Tuesday, January 06, at 13:00 hours Deputies responded to a report of an adult son causing issues at his father’s home. The reporting party, his father, advised that his son was in the home refusing to leave and had an active warrant for his arrest. The […]

Car Vandalism / Olive Mill Road — Thursday, September 25, at 16:20 hours On 9/25 at approximately 15:15 hours, the victim parked his vehicle on Olive Mill Road near the railroad tracks. The victim was gone for approximately one hour and when he returned, he found his front passenger side window had been broken with an […]

Burglary / 2200 block Camino del Rosario — Monday, June 23, at 08:19 hours An unknown subject was seen on security camera in the back of the residence. Deputies found where he entered the residence from the back French doors. The unknown suspect ripped off the alarm keypad once he was inside the house (probably […]

Disturbance, Warrant / Finney Beach Monday, May 5, at 07:57 hours A County Parks ranger called to report a 415 verbal disturbance in the Finney Beach parking lot. Deputies contacted a female & her ex-boyfriend. The male was found to have an outstanding warrant. He was arrested for 273.5PC (Corporal Injury) and was booked at […]

Arrest / 3700 block Santa Claus Lane — Sunday, April 20, at 16:39 hours Deputies initiated a traffic stop. The driver refused to identify himself. The driver resisted arrest and attempted to pull away. The driver was taken to ground and handcuffed, and transported without further incident. Stolen Check / US Post Office Montecito — […]

Trespassing / Eucalyptus Lane — Wednesday, April 4, at 05:50 hours Subject returned to the trespassed property from which they had been escorted the day prior. Subject was arrested and booked at SBCJ for trespassing.  Fraud / 1470 East Valley Road — Wednesday, April 4, at 08:32 hours The victim posted a check for $1,295 […]

James (Jimmy) Searcy passed away on January 30, 2025. He was a beloved Husband/Father/Brother/Grandfather/Great-Grandfather, Uncle, and friend to so many and will be deeply missed by all who knew him. Jimmy was born in Cleveland, OH on September 19, 1932. He was the son of Frank Ellsworth Searcy and Margaret Spruit.  Jimmy was in the […]

I also mark the passing of banker Ken Walker, one of the founding members of the Santa Barbara Polo & Racquet Club, at his Buena Park home at the age of 97. He took the helm of his family’s Farmers & Merchants Bank in Long Beach in 1979 having started at the age of 11 […]

Negligent Discharge from a Firearm, Victim Injured / 400 block Woodley Rd — Wednesday January 15, 11:35 hours Deputies responded to the 400-block of Woodley Road for a report of a shooting. When deputies arrived, they found an adult male victim who had been shot in the upper arm while he was walking his dog. […]

It is with deep sadness we announce the passing of Howell Douglas Wood, known to all as Doug, on December 28, 2024, in Santa Barbara, California. Doug was born on March 31, 1932, in Los Angeles, California, to Lillian and Henry Wood. His life was marked by a passion for learning, creativity, celebration and connection. […]

The Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara’s 2024 Community Leaders lunch saw 315 guests descending on the Hilton to mark yet another successful year during which they raised a hefty $7.1 million for 1,800 students, bringing the total to more than $150 million since its founding in 1962. However, 1,600 eligible students had their applications turned […]

Your faithful correspondent was not able to attend as many MAW performances as he would have liked this summer, but the few that were attended revealed that the Academy is making great progress in its ambitious endeavor to be the most important summer institute in the land, a good omen for the just-launched Shauna Quill […]

The Santa Barbara-based Dream Foundation received a hefty check from Major League Baseball’s Chicago White Sox when CEO Kisa Heyer and staffers flew to the Windy City to pick up the gift. The team also presented checks to Stand Up to Cancer, the University of Chicago Medicine and the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center […]

Star Wars tycoon George Lucas celebrated his 80th birthday in grand style. The Carpinteria resident hosted a mega bash at his Skywalker Ranch, 40 minutes north of San Francisco. The ranch is home to a sprawling main house, the man-made Lake Ewok and Skywalker Sound, a 153,000 square foot post-production facility with a 300-seat theater. […]

I was one of many people who spoke in favor of the Miramar project at a recent Montecito Association Board Meeting. There were a significant number of residents who joined me, reflecting what I believe to be the consensus among many in the broader Montecito community; this is a great plan that will improve the […]

Dr. Richard Carlton Schultz Sr., a renowned plastic surgeon and educator, passed away peacefully at his home, surrounded by family in Montecito, California, on January 18th, 2024, at the age of 96.  Dr. Schultz led a long and distinguished life, achieving remarkable success in his field. He was predeceased by his beloved wife of 61 […]

Local doctor Michael Behrman and his wife Sonia, both foster parents, opened the gates of their picturesque oceanfront Hope Ranch estate for the third consecutive year for Angels Foster Care’s 11th annual al fresco lunch with 270 guests raising around $250,000 for the non-profit founded in 2006 by Meichelle Arntz, who was Mistress of Ceremonies, […]

Sharon (Sherry) Bevan’s legacy of light and love came to a beautiful close on October 28th, 2023, at home in Casa Dorinda surrounded by her loving family. A private family ceremony will be held January 26, 2024, at Santa Barbara Cemetery. Sherry was a rare Mayflower descendant and fourth-generation Californian. In 1923, her parents built […]

Congratulations to Westmont men’s and women’s golf head coach Joshua Ault, who won his first mid-amateur tournament in the AmateurGolf.com Winter Invitational December16-17 at Corica Park Golf Course in Alameda. Ault finished at 2-over with rounds of 72-74. He led by one stroke heading into the challenging final two holes. Facing wind and rain, he […]

Gwyn Lurie is my business partner and political opposite. The one thing we agree on is that we make each other better. Well, better and more tired. I was proud that Gwyn was honored this past Sunday as the Dem Women of Santa Barbara’s ‘Woman of the Year.’ Had the Dem Women checked with me […]

Violinist Frank Huang is deep into his ninth year as concertmaster of the New York Philharmonic, but the joys of performing as part of much smaller ensembles has never strayed far from his heart. “Before I got into the orchestra world, I was pursuing life as a quartet player,” shared Huang, who was the first […]

Don Bushnell was born January 7, 1927, as an identical twin. Both he and his twin brother, David, were radio Quiz Kids, and both were awarded scholarships to the University of Chicago at age 16. Their adult lives followed very similar educational and professional paths. Don was devoted to social issues his entire life, starting […]

Through her decades-long work as an executive, producer, and on-air reporter for Court TV and the Nancy Grace show on HLN, Wendy Whitman has become an acknowledged expert on the subject of murder in America. A graduate of the Boston University School of Law, Whitman, who also used to work for comedians Lily Tomlin and […]

A great deal has happened since the late 1960s when the first reverse mortgage was issued to a high school teacher by one of her former students. Back then, what began as privately issued reverse mortgage loans ultimately became insured by the Federal Housing Authority in the 1980s and gradually saw the birth of proprietary “JUMBO” […]

(The following is the second installment of an interview with Cold Spring School Foundation President Holly Kane. The previous installment can be found in last week’s edition, MJ Volume 28 Issue 12.)  Q. We’ve been reporting on the school’s new cross-curricular building on campus. Tell us about it.  A. We have a beautiful yet aging […]

Two years ago, British pianist Benjamin Grosvenor was set to launch his first U.S. tour, including a concert at the Lobero Theatre for CAMA, the Community Arts Music Association. But the pandemic put paid to that with all venues being closed and Grosvenor flying back to the U.K., having not played one note. Now, with […]

Girls Rock SB + Amplify has partnered with Parisian ready-to-wear and accessories brand Zadig & Voltaire, for Women’s History Month. For the entire month of March, the French company is donating 10 percent of proceeds for every full-price purchase made from its boutiques and online stores. Syryn Records, a youth-run record label and internship program […]

Montecito Journal sponsored Zoom Town Meeting designed to address your questions and concerns regarding Santa Barbara County’s COVID Vaccine Rollout Plan. Hour-long Virtual Town Meeting joined by Congressman Salud Carbajal, County Supervisors Das Williams and Gregg Hart, County Director of Public Health Van Do-Reynoso, Public Health Officer Dr. Henning Ansorg, and State Senator Monique Limón […]

Ever see a beautifully restored vintage pickup truck and think you’d love to have one? Well, here is your chance and be able to do so from the safety and comfort of your own home. We are excited to raffle off this beautiful 1956 GMC truck valued at $60,000. Tickets are $150.00 each and the […]

The results for the Santa Barbara County Election are trickling in! Click the links below to be in the know. Nationally, the race to the presidency has yet to be called. Mail-in ballots in crucial states are still being counted to determine our next president, which may take some time to complete. But in the […]

Donald Lee Margerum passed peacefully at home in Montecito, California on May 24, 2020. He lived a long and beautiful life, and was ready to leave this life as his health declined. Don was born on March 29, 1926 in Ferguson, Missouri to parents Donald Cameron Margerum and Ida Lee Nunley. His early years were […]