1. Santa Barbara Teenager Struck by Truck, Killed While Crossing Milpas Street
Sergio Romero, a 15-year-old San Marcos High School sophomore, died the night of Oct. 7 when he was struck by a truck while crossing Milpas Street at Ortega Street on Santa Barbara’s Lower Eastside. The 19-year-old driver stopped to administer first aid but Sergio died of his injuries. Santa Barbara police say no charges have been filed and alcohol does not appear to be a factor, but the crash investigation is continuing.
It turns out Sergio had been jamming with friends at Jasmine’s Alternative Music School, 631½ N. Milpas St., and had only crossed the street to lend a buddy his bus pass. He was on his way back to the other side to wait for his dad to pick him up when he was hit.
2. San Marcos High School Community Mourns Loss of Student Sergio Romero
News of Sergio’s death spread quickly across the San Marcos High campus, stunning classmates and faculty alike. The popular kid with the shy smile was a member of the AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination), the Royal University Club and the school’s wrestling team.
Hundreds of mourners paid their last respects at Holy Cross Catholic Church on the Mesa on Oct. 14. A funeral Mass will be held at the church Saturday and Sergio will be buried next week at Santa Barbara Cemetery.
The Sergio Romero Memorial Fund has been set up at Wells Fargo Bank and deposits to account No. 8175972200 can be made at any Wells Fargo branch. Donations also can be dropped off at the San Marcos High business office, 4750 Hollister Ave.
3. Check Out Noozhawk’s Online Forum for 2011 Santa Barbara City Council Election
Drawing a fair amount of traffic this week was the index page for our coverage of next month’s Santa Barbara City Council election. We’ve posted Noozhawk’s always-popular Candidate Q&As and followed that with our candidate profiles. Thank you to all of the candidates who took the time to participate. Ballots in the mail-only Nov. 8 election were delivered this week to registered voters in Santa Barbara.
4. South Coast Basks in October Heat Wave
It took summer until fall to get here, but for two glorious days this week, Santa Barbara was baking in a dry heat, with daytime temperatures in the 80s and 90s on Oct. 12 and 13. Noozhawk staff writer Alex Kacik had the details but photographer Nick St.Oegger’s picture was worth a thousand words. Nick captured a sea of paddleboarders seemingly walking on water off Leadbetter Beach. All good things must come to an end, however, and this weekend is expected to be considerably cooler, with highs in the low to mid-70s and dense overnight fog.
5. Awareness, Disposal Key Elements to Reversing Tide of Prescription Drug Abuse
We’ve received a lot of positive feedback for our Prescription for Abuse series, which wraps up next week. On Oct. 11, Noozhawk staff writer Giana Magnoli outlined how to arm yourself with information about prescription medication abuse, so you’ll know what to look for with family and friends, how to ask questions and where to properly dispose of the drugs. We’ll continue with that theme next week.
The Prescription for Abuse project is the result of a partnership between Noozhawk and USC’s Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism, with a big assist from the Noozhawk-sponsored Santa Barbara Teen News Network. The project is sponsored by the Santa Barbara Foundation, the Mosher Foundation, Reckitt Benckiser Pharmaceuticals, Zona Seca and KEYT.
Meanwhile, former Noozhawk staff writer Ben Preston continued his reporting on the recent Clinton Global Initiative annual meeting. In a series sponsored by the Foundation for Santa Barbara City College, last week Ben wrote about science, technology, engineering and math education. This week he explored the question of whether a college education was still worth it. What do you think?
A college education appears to have been worth it for Ben. On Halloween, he’ll be starting a new job as associate editor at the Telluride Daily Planet in Colorado ski country. I’m sure Ben’s brand-new master’s degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism may have had something to do with the job offer, but I like to think it was because of his Noozhawk experience.
If you own a shelter or rescue dog and haven’t sent us a photo of you and your furry friend, it’s not too late to email it to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). October is Adopt-a-Dog Month and we’re running a slideshow of your pictures to mark the occasion.
At the end of the month, we’ll have readers vote for their favorite photo. Thanks to the generosity of La Cumbre Feed, 3652 Calle Real, the winning adopted dog will be dining on $100 worth of free dog food from WellPet.
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