Santa Barbara community members will gather for Rescue Roundup 2026, the annual celebration and fundraiser benefiting the volunteers of Santa Barbara County Search & Rescue (SBCSAR).
The event will be 6-10 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 17 at the Santa Barbara Carriage Museum.
Rescue Roundup brings together Search & Rescue volunteers, community members, local businesses, donors and partners to honor the people who stand ready to respond when someone is lost, injured or in need of help across Santa Barbara County.
Attendees will enjoy dinner and drinks, live music and an auction, along with rescue demonstrations offering a look at how Search & Rescue volunteers prepare for and respond to emergencies in the field.
Behind the celebration is an important purpose: Keeping Santa Barbara County Search & Rescue ready, organizers said.
Santa Barbara County Search & Rescue is an all-volunteer team of more than 40 trained responders who are available 24/7, 365 days a year.
In 2025 alone, the team responded to 121 incidents and contributed more than 11,500 volunteer hours, including nearly 6,900 hours dedicated to training, SBCSAR reports.
Calls ranged from injured and overdue hikers to technical rescues; searches for vulnerable and missing individuals; helicopter-assisted operations; wildfire and evacuation support; and mutual-aid deployments throughout California.
Those missions take place across a county of more than 2,500 square miles, spanning coastal bluffs, front-country trails, remote backcountry, inland wilderness and the Channel Islands.
“That level of response does not begin when a 911 call comes in,” SBCSAR officials said. “It requires year-round training, specialized equipment, medical supplies, communications and navigation technology, rescue vehicles, K-9 capabilities and countless hours of preparation.
“Rescue Roundup helps make that readiness possible,” they said.
Funds raised through Rescue Roundup will support the equipment, training, technology and operational needs that allow SBCSAR volunteers to respond safely and effectively.
This year’s fundraising priorities include outfitting volunteer rescue packs; replacing and upgrading medical and technical rescue equipment; supporting advanced training; and maintaining the vehicles and operational resources relied upon during missions.
Every responder carries essential equipment into the field — often 20 to 50 pounds of navigation tools, medical supplies, communications equipment, lighting, food, water, weather protection and personal safety gear, SBCSAR officials said.
Much of that gear is carried across steep and remote terrain, in darkness, extreme heat and changing weather conditions, they said.
“The Santa Barbara Search & Rescue Foundation exists to ensure these volunteers have the resources behind them to do that work,” they said.
General admission tickets to the benefit at are $250, with sponsorship opportunities also available. Space is limited.
Tickets and sponsorship information:
Email rsvp@sbsarfoundation.com if you have any questions about tickets or sponsorships.
The Santa Barbara Search & Rescue Foundation is a separate nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting the all-volunteer Santa Barbara County Search & Rescue team through fundraising, donor stewardship and long-term investment in operational readiness.
Community support helps provide technical rescue equipment, medical and safety supplies, advanced training, communications and navigation technology, vehicle support and emerging tools that improve mission effectiveness.