Tag archives: SB Zoo
It’s not too big of a stretch to suggest that a lot of people probably felt like they might never get out from under the “new reality,” what with several surges and multiple levels of lockdown over the past 15 months. But the folks over at the Santa Barbara Zoo are emerging from the COVID […]
Five new members have joined Santa Barbara Zoo’s board of directors. The menagerie’s quintet includes attorney Jessica L. Diaz, Tracy Krainer, Bob Myman, retired veterinarian Dan Segna, and the Zoo’s former education director Betsy Turner. Montecito Bank & Trust executive George Leis chairs the board. Wedding Bells CBS morning show anchor Gayle King’s daughter, Kirby […]
The wildest place in town has to be the Santa Barbara Zoo and certainly a child’s favorite. When I moved here in the ‘70s I thought the Child estate related to children because the Zoo was there. I soon learned it had once been Lillian Child’s property. When she passed away it eventually became a […]
Ever since March 17, the Santa Barbara Zoo has been off limits to the public. That’s not surprising, given California’s stay-at-home restrictions, but it’s a disaster for the Zoo, its employees, and animals. In fact, the 57-year-old institution is facing the most dire financial crisis in its history. For that reason, on Saturday, April 25, […]
The Santa Barbara Zoo has been giving the wildest party in town for 34 years. The 500 or so animals don’t seem to mind when it’s time for the Zoofari Ball – this year’s theme was Summer Camp with the campsite being the hill at the Zoo. It was definitely glamping, not camping. Some […]
Memories reigned supreme when Santa Barbara Zoo held its 34th annual Zoofari gala with a Summer Camp theme, billed as “more fun than jumping off a dock and more exciting than flashlight tag.” More than 600 guests, dressed in camp counselor T-shirts, cargo shorts, lifeguard outfits, safari attire, flip flops, and hiking boots, converged on […]
Karen Zacarías’ theatrical adaptation of Into the Beautiful North, which gets its area debut in six performances over 10 days beginning Friday by UCSB Theater Department, is based on the novel by Pulitzer Prize finalist Luís Alberto Urrea – which served as the selection for UCSB Reads back in 2017. Urrea was inspired by the […]
It was clearly a mane event when Santa Barbara Zoo hosted its fifth annual Roar & Pour, a sell-out attracting 1,500 oenophiles and gourmands, raising around $100,000 for the popular menagerie. Some 300 of the party animals splashed out for VIP tickets, allowing them early entrance to the fun fête, avoiding the crowds and giving […]
Man and his machines form the basic elements of Cirque Mechanics, the modern company founded 14 years ago by former BMX bike champion Chris Lashua, who began by creating an innovative aerial apparatus. In his and his team’s vision, circus certainly has acrobatics and clowning around, but also is rooted in realism achieved by the […]
The wildest place in town, the Santa Barbara Zoo, gets a little wilder every August with the Zoofari Ball, this year the 33rd. Co-chairs Lisa Carter and Nancy McTolbridge and honorary chair Kathy Jensen deemed it the “Summer of Love” a la 1967. Remember when bell bottoms were de rigueur along with tie-dye anything – […]
Flower power reigned supreme when Santa Barbara Zoo held its 33rd annual Zoofari gala with a Summer of Love theme, the 1967 phenomenon that put the San Francisco neighborhood of Haight-Ashbury into the global spotlight and singer Scott McKenzie immortalized the heady moment in his homage to the City by the Bay. Pucci, Gucci, and […]
The party animals were out in force when Visit Santa Barbara held its annual general meeting and tourist celebration to recognize the local travel industry at Santa Barbara Zoo. The very in-tents occasion, with more than 200 guests, coincided with National Travel and Tourism Week, as well as California Tourist Month. Kathy Janega-Dykes, president, said […]
On Sunday, December 3, 80 tons of snow will be delivered for the Santa Barbara Zoo’s annual “Snow Leopard Festival,” which will take place from 10 am to 3 pm. The snow will be shaped into sledding runs for kids (sleds provided), deposited in a snow play area, and provided as enrichment to many of […]



