The Noozhawk nest had some comings and goings this week. Or one of each, actually.
First, we said goodbye to Brooke Holland, who joined us in 2016 after graduating from CSU Northridge and, before that, Santa Barbara City College. She did a tremendous job over the last five years, tackling every assignment with enthusiasm and compassion.
Brooke was also integral to our COVID-19 coverage, especially with her series investigating the coronavirus’ toll in Santa Barbara County’s skilled nursing facilities and farmworker communities. Those stories were developed as part of a data fellowship she earned from the USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism.
I’m proud of how Brooke’s grown as a journalist, and I’m sure she’ll quickly be the star of the staff in her new job at the Pacific Coast Business Times weekly newspaper.
With Brooke’s departure, I’m excited to officially welcome Serena Guentz (pronounced ghence, like fence) as our newest full-time staff writer.
You’ve been seeing Serena’s bylines for a while now as she started freelancing for us in April, mostly helping North County editor Janene Scully report on, well, the North County.
Serena’s a local who grew up in Santa Maria, graduated from Orcutt Academy High School and was one of our Josh Molina’s journalism students at SBCC. Josh is a big fan of hers, and she caught our eye when she was editor of The Channels, SBCC’s award-winning student newspaper.
Identifying and developing talent are among Noozhawk executive editor Tom Bolton’s not-so secret skills; I’ve watched him do it for more than 30 years. And managing editor Giana Magnoli has a knack for that, too.
Serena has already demonstrated the potential we look for and I’m confident she’ll be a stalwart member of our staff soon enough. She joins Tom, Giana, Janene, Josh, Jade Martinez-Pogue and sports editor Barry Punzal as the best and hardest working local news staff in Santa Barbara County.
There’s been no shortage of work for them this month, and we’re about to give Barry a lot more.
In addition to the return of fall high school sports — and only fall sports, unlike the action-packed spring — we’ll be launching an audience survey about our sports coverage next week. Your feedback will be very much appreciated as we look to expand.
According to our Google Analytics, Noozhawk had an audience of 120,693 readers this past week. What follows is my take on the Top 5 stories you were reading.
This is where I remind you that this is my opinion column and not a news story. I’m the publisher, not a reporter. And in case you hadn’t heard, I’m also not a doctor or an epidemiologist.
1. Bill Macfadyen: Santa Barbara Father Charged with Killing His Kids on Trip in Mexico
There’s been little news in the gut-wrenching case of the Santa Barbara father accused of brutally murdering his two young children — son Kaleo, 3, and daughter Roxy, 10 months — outside of Rosarito, Mexico.
As our Giana Magnoli reported Aug. 18, 40-year-old Matthew Taylor Coleman has waived his right to a preliminary hearing, and is scheduled to be arraigned Aug. 31 in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California in Los Angeles.
Coleman was arrested Aug. 9 while trying to re-enter California from Tijuana and has been charged with the foreign murder of U.S. nationals under federal law. He has not yet entered a plea, but reportedly confessed to the killings during the FBI investigation.
He and the children arrived in Mexico on Aug. 7, after abruptly leaving their Santa Barbara home. Coleman’s wife, Abby, the children’s mother, reported her family missing that same day, but initially told Santa Barbara police she didn’t think they were in danger.
Using an app to track his cell phone, Abby Coleman located her husband in Mexico but it was too late. He allegedly had killed their children with a spearfishing gun and dumped their bodies in a ditch on a ranch outside Rosarito.
Coleman, who allegedly blamed his actions on crackpot conspiracy theories, is now represented by Elena Sadowsky of the Federal Public Defenders Office, according to court documents.
Family and friends of Abby Coleman established a GoFundMe account to assist her with funeral expenses and other needs. Her brother, Amory Droogsma of Arlington, Texas, has been named the designated recipient.
“It is with heavy and burdened hearts that close friends and community have created this GoFundMe to support Abby Coleman after the devastating loss of her beautiful children,” the organizers wrote.
“This fund will help cover the financial burdens that come along with such a tragic loss.”
As of Aug. 20, the account had raised more than $91,000. Click here to make an online donation.
The Colemans had founded Lovewater Surf School in 2011, and had been leaders in Santa Barbara’s tight-knit Christian surfing community.
Although friends are bewildered at what led the popular surf instructor to do what he allegedly did, the gruesome criminal complaint filed against him elaborates on some of the maniacal beliefs that reportedly were involved.
2. Motorcyclist Killed in Collision on Cathedral Oaks Road in Goleta
A Goleta man died the night of Aug. 17 when the motorcycle he was riding slammed into a car on Cathedral Oaks Road just west of Los Carneros Road.
Santa Barbara County Fire Department spokesman Mike Eliason told our Tom Bolton that firefighters arrived at the scene just after 8:30 p.m. and found the driver of a Subaru station wagon unhurt but the motorcyclist fatally injured in the roadway.
On Aug. 18, Sheriff’s Department Raquel Zick identified the dead man as 22-year-old Mikha Benedictus.
She said the circumstances and cause of the collision were under investigation but, “so far, it is apparent that drugs, alcohol, impairment and distraction were not a factor for the driver of the Subaru.”
Funeral arrangements are pending for Benedictus.
3. Driver Suffers Major Injuries in Crash on Fairview Overpass in Goleta
I can only imagine how this happened, but the driver of a compact SUV suffered major injuries when he crashed on a Goleta overpass just after midnight Aug. 14.
Santa Barbara County Fire Department spokesman Mike Eliason told our Tom Bolton that the vehicle had slammed into a concrete wall at the top of the Fairview Avenue overpass near the southbound entrance ramp to Highway 101.
Eliason said the driver, a male in his 20s whose identity was not released, was treated at the scene by firefighters and paramedics then transported by American Medical Response ambulance to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital. His condition was not available.
The Sheriff’s Department is investigating the circumstances and cause of the crash.
4. BizHawk: Coast Supply Co., Tap Thai, Jersey Mike’s Coming to Goleta
The old and long-closed Carrows and Denny’s location next to The Nugget in Goleta is getting a new lease on life — but it’s now out of the restaurant business.
Instead, Coast Supply Co. is turning the building at 5677 Calle Real into its newest showroom for custom flooring, windows, kitchens and other house furnishings.
Established in 1945, Coast Supply is a longtime local business with stores at 3821 Santa Claus Lane in Carpinteria and 14 Parker Way in Santa Barbara, as well as in Ventura.
Store manager Andres Quiroz told our Josh Molina that the place should be open by the end of the month.
In other good business news in Goleta the Goodland, Josh reported that Jersey Mike’s is adding a second Goleta store, this one at 145 N. Fairview Ave., next to Santa Barbara Chicken Ranch in the Fairview Shopping Center. The sandwich shop’s Camino Real Marketplace location already draws a steady crowd of customers.
And the popular Santa Barbara restaurant, TAP Thai, is branching out to Goleta, taking over 7060 Hollister Ave., Suite 106, next to Jeannine’s Restaurant & Bakery in Hollister Village Plaza.
5. Cottage Health Infectious Diseases Doctor Explains Delta Variant Risks, How it May Impact Kids
Almost alone among public health professionals anywhere — and by anywhere, I mean anywhere — Dr. Lynn Fitzgibbons has been a clear-eyed, knowledgeable, reassuring and eminently relatable leader guiding the community through the scourge that is COVID-19 and all of its tangential destruction.
Fitzgibbons, who heads up Cottage Health’s infectious diseases division, has been a ubiquitous presence throughout our 1½-year-ordeal, and her ability to explain the conditions, context and consequences of the coronavirus has been an enormous benefit.
She had another opportunity last week, and our Jade Martinez-Pogue zoomed in for a webinar on the Delta variant.
In a wide-ranging presentation co-sponsored by Cottage Health and the Santa Barbara Public Library, Fitzgibbons covered the COVID-19 mutation, its rapid and aggressive spread, its potential impacts on children, and what the community can do to prepare for it.
“It has become a far more infectious, far more contagious cause of infection,” she said of the Delta development.
Fitzgibbons also emphasized that unvaccinated people are “really bearing the brunt” of the Delta variant and noted that, although local hospitalizations have been rising as a result, the numbers are still lower than previous surges.
Read Jade’s story for Fitzgibbons’ complete presentation. It’s well worth your time and will tell you almost all you need to know.
• • •
Last Year on Noozhawk
What was our most-read story this time last year? Prince Harry, Meghan Markle Join the Ranks of Montecito Celebrities.
• • •
Bill Macfadyen’s Story of the Week
Not all Olympians make it about themselves: Polish Olympian Auctions Off Medal to Help with Infant’s Heart Surgery, But Winning Bidder Won’t Accept.
• • •
Best of Bill’s Instagram
Palm trees, food and @sadiethealaskanmalamute. They’re all in my Instagram feed this past week.
• • •
Watch It
Trigger warning: This parody makes no mention of COVID-19 masks. I’m sure I’ll be reported to the mask police in 5 … 4 … 3 … 2 …
(Holderness Family Vlogs video)
• • •
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— Bill Macfadyen is Noozhawk’s founder and publisher. Contact him at wmacfadyen@noozhawk.com, follow him on Instagram: @bill.macfadyen, or click here to read previous columns. The opinions expressed are his own.