Tag archives: local people

‘Whiskey Throttle’: A New Short Film by MUS Alum Matthew Rollins
By Stella Haffner   |   December 13, 2022

When a motocross racer crashes in the middle of nowhere, a mysterious man responds in haste. But who is he – A lonely doctor? A good Samaritan? A satanic mechanic? Watch Matthew Rollins’ new short film Whiskey Throttle to find out!  Q. How did this project get started? A. I took a year off from […]

We have 8,000 Reasons to Be Grateful in This Week of Giving Thanks
By Sharon Byrne   |   November 29, 2022

It’s the height of autumn now, with cold nights, falling leaves, pumpkins everywhere, and the most heartwarming of holidays this week. As we look back over this past year, we have a tremendous amount to be grateful for here in Montecito. Yes, the weather and scenery are lovely, and it’s fun to visit the villages […]

New Rocking Racks
By Richard Mineards   |   November 29, 2022

Local fashion designer Catherine Gee has opened her eponymous 2,400-square-foot flagship boutique in La Arcada. Around 150 guests turned out for the opening bash, which showed off a host of all-silk wares she has been designing since 2015. Catherine became known for her core slip dress style and has since grown the brand into full […]

Waterhouse Turns 38
By Richard Mineards   |   November 29, 2022

Social gridlock reigned when Ralph and Diane Waterhouse celebrated the 38th anniversary of their eponymous art gallery in La Arcada. The popular establishment, just a tiara’s toss from the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, was founded in 1984 by Diane. It moved to its current location in 1991 and represents some of the city’s finest […]

Mark Okrusko: The Local Surfer Giving People of All Abilities a Floating Hope
By Rachael Quisel   |   November 22, 2022

In 2010, Mark Okrusko, founder of Airtime Watertime, was surfing at Rincon Beach when he was caught in a rip current. He struggled to swim toward the surface, but his efforts amounted to nothing. Rip currents, “powerful, narrow channels of fast-moving water,” catch tens of thousands of people in the United States every year. According […]

Future Leaders of America: Jose Martin
By Stella Haffner   |   November 15, 2022

Established in 1982, Future Leaders of America was a joint initiative by Santa Barbara and Oxnard County to address pressures facing Latinx youth. By providing programming to encourage education and leadership, the founders created an environment where students learn what it means to effect change in their community. Today, we’re speaking to up-and-coming community leader […]

Jeanette Petrus Le Renard: Baby Steps
By Dalina Michaels   |   November 1, 2022

Jeanette Petrus Le Renard gets to play every day with her clients, and she wouldn’t have it any other way. “I work with babies on their level – and their parents as well. My goal is to meet them where they are and help them get where they need to be!” As a pediatric physical […]

Otto W. Laula
By Tom Moore   |   November 1, 2022

by Tom Moore This is a photograph of Otto Laula on his BMW motorcycle, Glen, and his beloved daughter Jessani, now the mother of four wonderful, grown children. Jessani’s mother Sue was killed in a tragic landslide on Mount Shasta 46 years ago, and since that time Otto has been a devoted single parent to […]

Jacqueline Rubinstein: July 25, 1958 – September 6, 2022
By Montecito Journal   |   October 25, 2022

Jacqueline Hiske Rubinstein passed away September 6th at the young age of 64. Jacqueline was born July 25th, 1958, in Singapore to Hiske and Jack Forsyth. Jacqueline was a citizen of the world; speaking five languages and growing up in areas including Suriname, Netherlands, Denmark, Finland, New York, Montecito, and Los Angeles. She was a […]

Nelson Huber: July 10, 1949 – September 18, 2022
By Montecito Journal   |   October 4, 2022

Nelson Huber came here for one purpose: To make music. For him, music was a sacrament capable of healing us and lifting us out of the ordinary and into the sublime. The term sui generis – in a class by himself – does not even begin to describe him. He tells the story of his […]

Lawrence Wayne Kelly 1942 – 2022
By Montecito Journal   |   September 27, 2022

Lawrence (Larry) Wayne Kelly passed away surrounded by family at the age of 80 at Keck Hospital in Los Angeles on August 31, 2022. Larry courageously battled serious medical issues over the past year, and his tremendous light and spirit lives on for all who knew him. Larry was born to Gerald and Sally Kelly […]

Natalie Salter Myerson (Mrs. Raymond King Myerson)
By Montecito Journal   |   September 27, 2022

Natalie Myerson passed away peacefully at her home in Santa Barbara on September 19, 2022. She was 102.  Born Natalie Salter in Chelsea, Massachusetts, she grew up in Brookline, Massachusetts with her parents and three older brothers. The Salter family often summered at a family home on Cape Cod. Natalie graduated from Goucher College in […]

Cal-SOAP: Providing Education about Financial Aid to Boost Local College-Going Rate
By Stella Haffner   |   September 20, 2022

During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, questions concerning “education accessibility” become central to our discussion about school. But as the team at Cal-SOAP Santa Barbara knows, barriers to education did not simply appear with the pandemic lockdowns. At California Student Opportunity and Access Program (Cal-SOAP), they ask: What is keeping students out of higher […]

Writing from the Wound: Resh Grewal
By Stella Haffner   |   August 23, 2022

For young writers, the advice is often “write what you know.” And so, the question becomes: What do I know? In many ways, this may be a question that young people seek to avoid. In painful periods of self-growth and in mundane life trials – your chemistry pop quizzes and the like – what you […]

Helene Zalk Pollock
By Montecito Journal   |   June 7, 2022

Helene Zalk Pollock was born on January 8, 1919, in Duluth, Minnesota. Her parents Estelle and Louis Zalk moved to Los Angeles in the early 1930s. Her father Louis found success in the early days of the steel industry and later as a business leader when he introduced theosophy to Southern California and co-founded the […]

Youth Makers Market
By Stella Haffner   |   June 7, 2022

If one thing is true about Santa Barbara, it’s that our young people have a world-class entrepreneurial spirit. Sisters Aaliyah and Bella Rubio are no exception.  Starting as a way to escape pandemic boredom, Aaliyah (14) and Bella (12) dreamt up the Youth Makers Market as a space for the young people of Santa Barbara […]

Local People: Addi Zerrenner
By Rachael Quisel   |   May 31, 2022

If health is wealth, why isn’t everyone rushing to work out? Or making time every day to meditate? Addi Zerrenner, Personal Trainer at Physical Focus and Olympic qualifier, addresses common barriers to getting healthy and talks through techniques you can use to boost your physical and mental wealth.  Q. When it comes to getting fit, […]

Zander Meyer
By Stella Haffner   |   May 24, 2022

It was easy to get swept up in the liminal space of lockdown. Who can appreciate this more than the high school students who were asked to pivot from hour-to-hour classes to the vacuum of a stay-at-home education? With this country’s competitive college admissions space, our high school students are masters of the micro-scheduled and […]

David Mitchell: Blue Ridge Honey
By Carly Williams   |   May 17, 2022

Hot tea or golden toast topped with a drizzle of locally crafted honey in the morning is therapeutic… and delicious. Crafted locally in Ventura, each drop of the delicate, sweet molten gold of Blue Ridge Honey is 100% pure, raw, and unfiltered. Beginning as a family hobby in the late 1970s, Blue Ridge Honey has […]

Block Party Revival 
By Joanne A Calitri   |   May 10, 2022

Spring has sprung, bringing with it the revival of our town’s neighborhood block parties. Recent Montecito town gatherings were the Holiday Tree decorating on San Ysidro Lane in December, and the last block party in April 2019 before the lockdowns. Both events were spawned by members from the Montecito Association, whose love of our town […]