The Fund for Santa Barbara is getting it right with its Bread & Roses event, now in its 19th year. More than 700 supporters were a testament to that fact at the annual community dinner and auction held Saturday night at the beautiful oceanside QAD campus on the top of Ortega Hill in Summerland.
The nonprofit community foundation is dedicated to addressing the causes of social, economic, environmental and political challenges in Santa Barbara County and provides grants to grassroots organizations that support these causes.
“The Fund for Santa Barbara is having its best year ever,” Executive Director Geoff Green said in addressing the assembled crowd. “We plan to distribute $500,000 in grants this year. I thank you for being here to support our effort.”
A robust silent auction and animated live auction, led by longtime auctioneer Hannah Beth Jackson, helped garner these funds for the “Change Not Charity” recipients. Event co-chairs Carol Keator and Jane Brody directed the 100-plus volunteers who made the event such a success.
Veteran auction co-chairs Denise Eschardies and Kathleen Scott did a great job garnering hundreds of auction items, including a week in Kauai donated by Allen Associates, two nights at El Capitan Canyon, a stay at Steel Creek Ranch in Montana donated by Beartooth Capital Partners, a June Lake getaway from Robert Foster, and a generous package donated by the Santa Barbara International Film Festival.
Respectful of The Fund’s history, Green acknowledged founder Nancy Alexander as well as staff members Nancy Weiss, Gary Clark, Cristina Gonzalez and Elena Richardson. The Fund was batting nearly 100 percent with the local elected officials in attendance, including Rep. Lois Capps, D-Santa Barbara; Assemblyman Das Williams; Santa Barbara County Supervisors Salud Carbajal, Janet Wolf and Doreen Farr; Santa Barbara Mayor Helene Schneider; Goleta Mayor Ed Easton; Santa Barbara City Councilman Bendy White; Sheriff Bill Brown; and Judge George Eskin.
A moment of silence was observed for social activists who died during the past year, including Selma Rubin, Naomi Schwartz, Babatunde Folayemi and Matt Sanchez.
All-important sponsors who supported Bread & Roses included Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, Cojo Jalama Ranches, Deckers Outdoor Corp., the Hutton Parker Foundation, Ameriprise/Kate Silsbury, Antioch University Santa Barbara, Business First Bank, Classic Party Rentals, Harrington Investments, MarBorg Industries, Mullen & Henzell, Noozhawk, ParentClick, Rabobank, SAGE Publications, SEIU Local 620 and Sun Pacific Solar Electric.
Additional sponsors included Agility Capital, Danielle Siano Graphic Design, Easy Lift Transportation, Fielding Graduate University, GreenProject Consultants, Healing Grounds Nursery, Horny Toad, Island Seed & Feed, Kenji Photography, Montecito Bank & Trust, The Towbes Group, Walden Asset Management and Wells Fargo.
Attendees enjoyed the varied and generous food and beverage fare donated by Arlington Tavern, Del Pueblo Cafe, Flying Goat Cellars, Jalama Wines, Jessica Foster Confections, Kalyra Winery, Marmalade Café, Museum Café/The Secret Ingredient, Nimita’s Cuisine, Omni Fresco Catering, Opal, Palace Grill, Palmina Wines, Piedrasassi Wines, SOhO Restaurant & Music Club, Stolpman Vineyards, Telegraph Brewing Company, The Berry Man, Via Maestra 42 and World Cuisine Express.
Contributing to the tremendous work effort needed to produce the Bread & Roses fundraiser were board members Carol Keator, Ralph Armbruster-Sandoval, JoAnn Bell, Jane Brody, Sheila Davidson, Anna DiStefano, Tania Israel, Vijaya Jammalamadak, Kara Powis, Ted Rhodes, Wendy Sims-Moten, Geoff Slaff and Jack Ucciferri.
The Fund for Santa Barbara is a 501(c)3 nonprofit community foundation dedicated to addressing the root causes of social, economic, environmental and political challenges in Santa Barbara County. The Fund raises money through donations of all sizes in order to provide grants and technical assistance to local grassroots efforts. It supports community-based projects working for “Change, Not Charity” through a variety of strategies including community organizing, direct action, popular education, legislative advocacy and the arts.
For nearly 30 years, The Fund for Santa Barbara has been responsive philanthropy in the community, distributing more than $4 million to more than 800 grassroots projects working for social justice, fair and affordable housing, accessible education, economic renewal, and a clean and healthy environment.
For more information about The Fund for Santa Barbara, click here or call 805.962.9164.
— Noozhawk contributing writer Rochelle Rose can be reached at news@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews, @NoozhawkBiz and @NoozhawkSociety. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook and Noozhawk on Pinterest.