The Santa Barbara Education Foundation’s 2011 HOPE Awards were held Saturday at the QAD facilities and honored retiring Santa Barbara School District Superintendent Dr. Brian Sarvis and philanthropist Dr. Virgil Elings for their longtime support and commitment to public education in Santa Barbara County.
The annual event attracted more than 300 guests, including educators, public officials and local students from the community who mingled on the patio with a stunning ocean view.
The evening kicked off with entertainment from the Dos Pueblos Engineering Academy, whose students demonstrated their latest robotic creations developed for the 2011 First Robotics Challenge, an international robotics competition. The highly acclaimed San Marcos High School Madrigal Singers wowed the crowd with a vocal performance.
Janet Garufis, CEO of Montecito Bank & Trust, welcomed attendees and introduced Rep. Lois Capps, D-Santa Barbara, who stressed the importance for continued support of education programs within the community.
“There is nothing more important than education for our children,” Capps said, “and despite the challenges today, our young people are getting a top-notch education.”
Amir Abo-Shaeer, director of the Dos Pueblos Engineering Academy and focus of the book The New Cool, thanked Dr. Elings for helping improve the facilities at Dos Pueblos and for his continued support for the DP Engineering Academy. Abo-Shaeer presented Elings with the 2011 HOPE Award for Outstanding Philanthropist.
“People make things happen; what I try to do is let things happen — I try to give back,” Elings said during his acceptance speech.
Santa Barbara Education Foundation board member Craig Price and county Superintendent of Schools Bill Cirone presented Dr. Sarvis with the 2011 HOPE Award for Outstanding Educator. Sarvis, who is retiring after 36 years of service in public education, thanked his family, friends and co-workers with a special tribute to educators in the community.
“There are 2,500 professionals dedicated to providing what is best for our kids — people that pour their lives into the community,” Sarvis said. “I am very proud.”
The Santa Barbara Education Foundation’s sponsors include Title Sponsor Montecito Bank & Trust; Platinum Sponsors MarBorg Industries and Venoco Inc.; Gold Sponsors Griffith & Thornburgh and Noozhawk; Silver Sponsors Camino Real Marketplace, Granite Construction, InTouch Health, KBZ Architects, MedBridge Development and Pueblo Radiology; and in-kind donations by Bridlewood Winery, Island Brewing Company, Jensen Audio & Video, MacMechanic and Summerland Winery.
— Noozhawk society correspondent Melissa Walker can be reached at mwalker@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkSociety, @NoozhawkNews, and @NoozhawkBiz. Become a fan of Noozhawk on Facebook.
