Santa Barbara News-Press: December 05, 2020

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The waiting game continues

Tree of the Month

Christmasberry Tree is both naughty and nice - A4

Our 165th Year

Start of high school sports postponed again by CIF - A7

75¢

s at u r day, de c e m be r 5, 2 0 2 0

Season of Hope

Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation brings Christmas to families in need

Business groups prepare for stay-at-home order By JOSH GREGA NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER

Another rough patch for local businesses appears to be on the horizon since Gov. Gavin Newsom issued another a stay-at-home order on Thursday. The order will go into effect whenever a California region’s ICU capacity falls to below 15%. According to the governor’s Thursday press conference, all regions including Santa Barbara County’s region of Southern California are projected to see ICU capacities fall to this level within the month. As the stay-at-home order demands restaurants only do take out and retail stores only operate at 20% capacity, the new development is an unwelcoming one for businesses that have already gone through a tough year and are about to go enter an important earnings period, the holiday season. Local business community organizations told the News-Press that they are gearing up for the stay-at-home order and prepared to help businesses in whatever ways they can. Though he deferred the News-Press to local businesses for comment, Santa Maria Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Glenn Morris

told the News-Press in an email on Friday, “I am spending most of my time on that issue today.” Santa Maria-based jewelry store Fischer’s Fine Jewelry owner Katherine Fischer, one of the business proprietors Mr. Morris deferred the News-Press to, said her store has already been operating at limited capacity for many months. Under COVID-19 conditions, the jewelry store hosts at most four customers at a time, as opposed to the 15 or so it could hold prior. Ms. Fischer remarked that she doesn’t expect the stay-athome order to reduce her capacity to less than four people, but she still said it’s “very sad” that the region is likely to be hit by strict restrictions again. Downtown Santa Barbara Executive Director Robin Elander called the new stayat-home order a “devastating blow to our economic situation here,” particularly because many restaurants have made investments in new infrastructure for outdoor dining areas such as chairs, heaters, and patios. She estimated that investments Downtown Santa Barbara restaurants have made range from $5,000 and $50,000. “They knew it was going to be their life blood. It was do that, or there’s no alternative,” she said. Please see order on A8

KENNETH SONG / NEWS-PRESS PHOTOS

Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation Executive Director Corey Pahanish stands in front of dozens of toys and food items ready to be packaged for families in need at the office in Santa Barbara on Friday.

By GRAYCE MCCORMICK

By MITCHELL WHITE

NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER

The Santa Barbara Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation launched its “Season of Hope” fundraising campaign on Friday with “Teddy Bear Elves” ready to help families in need. In its annual tradition of Project Christmas, TBCF staff and volunteers prepared a mountain of gifts and holiday decorations to deliver to tricounty families with children with pediatric cancer and their siblings. This weekend, TBCF volunteers will have served 35 families, which is around 100 gifts, to families through Project Christmas (families with the highest need) and 84 families outside of Project Christmas, according to Tessa Boyce, the TBCF volunteer coordinator. “Everyone’s had a difficult year, but the community still does want to support our families in a time when they need support the most,” she told the News-Press. “Project Christmas is a program in which we want to sponsor a family for Christmas so they don’t have to worry about anything having to do with Christmas.” The deliveries include a real or fake Christmas tree (whichever the family prefers), $100 worth of gifts for each child in the family based on their Christmas lists, a grocery gift card, holiday lights, hot chocolate and stocking stuffers. The families outside of Project Christmas receive $25 gifts. This year, because of COVID-19, staff put the children’s wish lists on Amazon so donors had the option to ship gifts straight to the office. Volunteers will leave the gifts and trees at the front door of each household today at a prearranged time, ring the doorbell

NEWS-PRESS ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Volunteer coordinator Tessa Boyce places gift-wrapped toys inside a bag adorned with the face of Santa Claus to be delivered to children and families in need at the Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation office.

and step back safely before family members open the door. The “Season of Hope” campaign will run through the holidays into 2021. Ms. Boyce is a cancer survivor herself, and said she knows firsthand what it’s like to go through treatment. “You feel really alone and isolated, and especially this year, I think people kind of got a glimpse into what it is like for a cancer family with the isolation and loneliness,” she said. “This year, more than any other year, it’s so important that we not only are able to support these families

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that maybe wouldn’t be able to have Christmas without our financial help, but to give them a little bit of joy and normalcy — that is what everybody is wishing for and wanting.” Nanci Alvarado, a social worker for the Pediatric Oncology Clinic at Cottage Health, is one of the individuals identifying the families most in need of support. “2020 is crazy in and of itself, especially if you have a kid with cancer,” she told the News-Press. “Families are forced to be home, which really isn’t that different for a kid with cancer anyway. Wearing a mask is what they’re

used to — this is their jam. “But it does pose a lot of issues as well with families.” She pointed out that while one parent typically has to stay home to care for their child enduring cancer, right now, the other parent could be out of work because of COVID-19. “A lot of people don’t have money for even food, much less Christmas or Thanksgiving or any of that,” Ms. Alvarado said. “It takes a lot of pressure off the parents for sure, and every kid will get a Christmas present when they normally wouldn’t.” Please see teddy bear on A7

Although the 2020 Fiesta was “reimagined” and held virtually or on television due to COVID-19, the rich tradition will resume again next year. Last month, Old Spanish Days announced the results of its recent election of their leadership team for the 2021 event. The executive committee will include: La Presidenta Stephanie Petlow; Primero Vice Presidente Alex Castellanos; Segundo Vice President and current Secretario David Bolton; and La Tesorera Cassie Killgore. The elected division chiefs will include: Division Chief of Celebrations Janice Howell; Division Chief of Dance and Entertainment Maria Cabrera; and Division Chief of Pageantry Gary MacDonald. “2020 has certainly made all of us realize the importance of family, friends and our special community of Santa Barbara,” Ms. Petlow said in a news release. “We are thankful for the continued support during this pandemic from our Sponsors, the City of Santa Barbara, the County of Santa Barbara and our community collaborators. “The entire Board of Directors and Past Presidentes are committed to presenting a safe and wonderful Fiesta 2021 to continue our rich history and tradition.” Now in its 97th year, what makes Fiesta unique is that it is run by a volunteer board of directors and is supported by only one full-time staff member. The board annually selects an El Presidente or La Presidenta who presides over the board and serves as the general manager of

COURTESY PHOTO

Stephanie Petlow has been named La Presidenta of the 2021 Fiesta.

the organization. The Primer Vice Presidente is responsible for the operation of the entire organization, while the Segundo Vice Presidente is responsible for raising the funds that allows the historical festival to continue. The Division Chiefs oversee all the volunteer committees that support the official Old Spanish Days events and activities in the venues around the city. The 2021 event is scheduled for Aug. 4 to 8. First held in 1924, Fiesta celebrates a period of romance and hospitality through pageantry, dance music, costume and cuisine. Old Spanish Days is a nonprofit corporation dedicated to honoring and preserving Santa Barbara’s history, spirit, culture, heritage and traditions. For more information, visit www.sbfiesta.org. email: mwhite@newspress.com

LOTTERY

ins id e Classified............... A7 Life.....................A4-5

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Fiesta leadership team announced

Obituaries............. A8 Sudoku................. A6 Weather................ A8

Wednesday’s SUPER LOTTO: 6-8-13-31-38 Meganumber: 26

Friday’s DAILY 4: 5-9-8-5

Friday’s MEGA MILLIONS: 3-19-24-44-50 Meganumber: 8

Friday’s FANTASY 5: 2-10-17-26-34

Friday’s DAILY DERBY: 09-11-07 Time: 1:42.00

Wednesday’s POWERBALL: 28-31-40-41-46 Meganumber: 4

Friday’s DAILY 3: 4-9-2 / Sunday’s Midday 8-4-1


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