Tag archives: parade

Montecito Association Third Annual Holiday Car Parade of Lights
By Joanne A Calitri   |   December 19, 2023

It was indeed a magical day for our 3rd Annual Montecito Holiday Car Parade of Lights (and music!), after being blessed with excellent warm weather. The Holiday Parade Committee was Houghton Hyatt, Megan Orloff, and Andrea Newquist. This was Hyatt’s first year doing the event and she shared:  “With all the twinkling lights and every […]

Red, White, and Blue on a Boat
By Richard Mineards   |   July 18, 2023

Independence Day lived up to all its expectations with the annual village parade wending its circuitous new route along Coast Village and Hot Springs roads watched by colorful crowds, including Meghan Markle and Prince Harry holding his two-year-old daughter Lilibet. Having played King George III with the late Santa Barbara Polo Club publicist Charles Ward […]

Village 4th: Here Comes the Parade
By Sharon Byrne   |   July 4, 2023

It’s that time of year, when the sun finally breaks through the endless May-vember and the June Gloom. When American flags start unfurling, and people plan on getting together with family and friends to celebrate. Yes, it’s July 4th!  Because of the State Street promenade and other headaches, Santa Barbara will not be having a […]

Roots in Solstice. The Longest Day Needs You
By Jeff Wing   |   June 20, 2023

Yes. Our warm, wet, and lovely home planet is tilted weirdly on its axis – like a white-wine lightweight after an author’s luncheon, more or less. As it races around the local ball of fire at around 67,000 mph, Earth’s angular disposition in relation to the sun makes the days here longer, there shorter. Over […]

Imagine Your Float: Setting the Stage for a Successful Solstice 
By Steven Libowitz   |   May 2, 2023

The official workshop for this year’s Summer Solstice Parade on June 24 won’t open until mid-May, but festival veterans and newcomers can get a jump on participating in a big way, thanks to a new workshop taking place this weekend. Artist and former high school art teacher Judith Raimondi is facilitating the “Imagine Your Float” […]

Second Annual Montecito Holiday Car Parade
By Joanne A Calitri   |   January 3, 2023

It was indeed a magical day for our 2nd Annual Montecito Holiday Car Parade, and the weather was most excellent after weeks of rain. Kids from 1 to 92 lined the streets of the parade route, cheering on the brightly-lit decorated cars and some with pets including Shetland ponies, holiday music, and more! Leading the […]

The Montecito Holiday Magic Parade Rolls Saturday!
By Sharon Byrne   |   December 20, 2022

We hope you’re thinking about where to find a hot chocolate, pick up some last-minute gifts, and the best spot on the route to watch the Second Annual Montecito Holiday Magic Parade! It’s this Saturday, December 17, and there’s a lovely confluence of things happening. From 3-5 pm, some of our Montecito Village and Coast […]

Welcome to December! We’re very excited to announce our Second Annual Montecito Holiday Magic Parade December 17!
By Sharon Byrne   |   December 6, 2022

We’ll have the coolest classic cars, lit up to brighten the night sky (briefly). We’ll have dancers, singers, and so much fun! The route starts from the Upper Village, and heads down Hot Springs to Coast Village, and then back up Olive Mill to the end. We encourage you to support our local merchants and […]

Thank You for the Most Amazing Village 4th Ever!
By Sharon Byrne   |   July 12, 2022

If you came out and watched the Village 4th motorcade roll by, you know it was a smash hit. From the flyover of vintage planes that kicked it off, to a slew of historic autos in the Loudest, Proudest motorcade, all festooned with July 4th decorations, our terrific Grand Marshall Diane Pannkuk, the Sheriff’s Paddy […]

Montecito’s 27th Village Fourth Parade
By Joanne A Calitri   |   July 12, 2022

It was the perfect sunny day for the Montecito Village Fourth car parade to celebrate Independence Day. The parade drew a huge turnout with the crowds along the route cheering and waving flags, most dressed in red, white, and blue. It is our town’s great privilege to start the parade with the annual flyover of […]

Solstice Shines on Parade
By Joanne A Calitri   |   July 5, 2022

To bring some Shine into the summer, the Santa Barbara Solstice Parade returned on June 25 with that theme, and a new route up Santa Barbara Street. Perhaps it should have been on this historic road all along. An estimated over 100,000 attendees paid homage to the sun, and yes, ‘60s hippies crawled out of […]

Summer Solstice Seeks Volunteers
By Montecito Journal   |   June 28, 2022

The days are at the longest and the Summer Solstice Parade is coming back at full force and with a new Santa Barbara Street route. This upcoming weekend promises to be full of costumed revelry and to live up to this year’s theme: Shine. The Solstice crew is also seeking some last-minute volunteers to help […]

Mission Possible: I Madonnari Returns
By Steven Libowitz   |   May 31, 2022

Art intended to be much more ephemeral makes its heralded return this Memorial Day weekend as the I Madonnari Festival Street Painting event resumes its annual three-day takeover of the plaza in front of the Santa Barbara Mission after two years as a virtual event. It’s also the first festival since the retirement of Kathy […]

1st Annual Montecito Car Parade of Lights
By Joanne A Calitri   |   December 14, 2021

With the theme “Holiday Magic,” it was indeed a magical evening for the 1st Annual Montecito Holiday Car Parade. Huge nod to the co-chairs Sharon Byrne, Mindy Denson, and Dana Newquist, along with their committee members, for a most upbeat treat for our town and its annual visitors.  Kids from 1 to 92 lined the […]

Holiday Magic Parade
By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   December 2, 2021

This Saturday, December 4, Montecito Association presents the first annual Holiday Magic Parade of Lights. Twenty-five cars and vehicles, decked out in their holiday finery, will parade through Montecito beginning at 5:30 pm.  The parade route will leave Upper Manning Park, turn onto North Jameson and onto Coast Village Road, through the roundabout onto Hot […]

Get Ready for the First Annual Montecito Magical Nights Holiday Parade
By Sharon Byrne   |   November 23, 2021

Yes, we’re going to do it: a nighttime holiday motor parade through Montecito on Saturday, December 4 at 5:30 pm. It’s been a tough few years for Montecito, and we could all use more light, love, and magic in our lives, particularly as we head into the time of year at the Winter Solstice when […]

Hot Wheels and Holiday Cheer
By Eva Van Prooyen   |   November 22, 2021

NatureTrack is a nonprofit headquartered in Los Olivos aiming to champion access to the outdoors with field trips and new ways to engage with nature. Historically, NatureTrack has focused on introducing schoolchildren to outdoor spaces from the seashore to the inland oak woodlands of Santa Barbara County by providing cost-free outdoor field trips (more than […]

Fourth of July Parade is Happening!
By Sharon Byrne   |   June 17, 2021

You asked, and we’re delivering. A crew of dedicated Montecitans is busily pulling together a Fourth of July Parade. We’re sensitive to our emerging-from-the-pandemic status, and to the President’s pledge that all Americans will be able to celebrate with your families.  We plan to keep everyone safe, welcoming you to be with your family at […]

Annual Ghost Village Road Event a No-Go This Halloween
By Nick Schou   |   November 5, 2020

Every Halloween since 1996, the year after Montecito Journal’s first issue hit local newsstands, Coast Village Road has turned into “Ghost Village Road.” The annual event typically drew upwards of 1,000 parading trick-or-treaters along Coast Village Road, where local shop owners, restaurateurs, and hoteliers would hand out candy and in some cases create pop-up haunted […]

Fiesta Comes to Montecito
By Steven Libowitz   |   August 6, 2020

Virtually all of Old Spanish Days’ annual celebration of the city’s heritage have been cancelled due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. But apparently even a deadly disease can’t rain metaphorically on the most popular events in the five-day Fiesta as the 2020 El Desfile Historico has been reimagined as the Caravan Fiesta Parade. As always, […]