Some 300 people gathered at the La Cumbre Junior High School theater on Saturday to celebrate the life of longtime Principal Jo Ann Caines, who died June 6 at age 70. 
Annette Caines, daughter of the late La Cumbre Junior High School Principal Jo Ann Caines, describes her mom’s dedication as an educator during Saturday’s memorial service. 
Santa Barbara Unified School District trustee Kate Parker says Caines’ vision was for “every student on the Westside to have every opportunity in life.” 
Programs and tissues were available for those in attendance at Jo Ann Caines’ memorial service at La Cumbre Junior High School.
A picture of a smiling Principal Jo Ann Caines stood at the front of La Cumbre Junior High School’s theater on Santa Barbara’s Westside, where her family and friends gathered Saturday to celebrate her life.
Caines, an influential educator who had worked in the Santa Barbara Unified School District since 1987 and took the junior high school principal position in 2005, died June 6 of an undisclosed illness.
A statement issued by her family said the 70-year-old died with her children at her side at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital “following a tremendously difficult last few months battling with her health.”
Her daughter, Annette Caines, welcomed more than 300 guests Saturday afternoon.
“My mom was dedicated,” she said. “She was passionate. She loved her job. She and I talked many times about retirement — and she had never planned to. It was not an option. She cared for many people.”
The Santa Barbara native graduated from Peabody, Santa Barbara Junior and Santa Barbara High schools.
Caines had a passion for linguistics and languages in her early years, and took a break from her UCLA studies to teach English in Spain and travel Europe. At one point, she spoke five languages.
She finished her English linguistics and Spanish degrees at UCLA, met her husband, and moved to the Virgin Islands to start a family and earn her master’s degree in education.
Caines returned to Santa Barbara, where she started working for the Santa Barbara school district as an English as a second language teacher in 1987 at La Cumbre Junior High.
She was offered the position as principal at nearby Adams School in 1995 and, 10 years later, returned to La Cumbre as principal.
Over the years, Caines earned a host of community awards from the school district and the Anti-Defamation League for her dedicated service. She also began the PEAC program (Program for Effective Access to College), which supports high school students as they apply to college and take higher-level courses.
“She loved her family, was proud of her children and grandchildren, and she loved her staff,” said Kate Parker, an SBUSD trustee who was introduced Saturday as a good friend.
“She would bend over backward to help. She was one of the best educational collaborators.”
Parker paid tribute to Caines’ vision and her mission.
“She wanted every student on the Westside to have every opportunity in life,” she said. “She wanted the middle school years to open the doors to children in high school and beyond — not close them. She kept her eyes and heart on the children’s future.”
A GoFundMe page has raised nearly $6,000 of its $7,000 goal for Caines’ memorial service. Click here to make an online donation.
— Noozhawk staff writer Brooke Holland can be reached at bholland@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
