Hospice of Santa Barbara’s (HSB) virtual event Navigating Re-Entry Town Hall brought together a panel of community leaders to discuss the fears, anxiety and questions relating to the return to society after the pandemic.

The event was in response to questions coming from throughout the community. The Town Hall addressed questions, concern, and feelings of uncertainty. While the expert panel did not have all the answers, they expressed the comforting sense that “we are all in this together and feeling many of the same things.”

Audience emotions ranged from hopeful, nervous, relief, stress, and feelings of whiplash. The conversation hit on such key topics as dealing with immediate family members/social circles who are in different stages of these feelings; those who are vaccinated but who have young children or others in their lives who are not; and fear about new variants.

“By giving a voice to concerns about stepping back into society and naming them, HSB’s Navigating Re-Entry Town Hall was an important first step in to understanding this new reality,” said David Selberg, CEO of Hospice of Santa Barbara. “We hope everyone in the community gets a chance to watch the virtual video and know that we are getting through this together.”

Panelists included Catherine Remak, Gary & Catherine show co-host, K-LITE FM; Suzanne Grimmesey, PIO/chief quality care, Santa Barbara County; Susan Salcido, Santa Barbara County superintendent of schools; Eddie Ellner, founder, Yoga Soup; Kristen Rohm, spiritual care coordinator, HSB; and Charles Caldwell, moderator, HSB.

To watch the event, visit https://youtu.be/U5dJOhIFp_k for English; https://youtu.be/Hr0VWBQ3zAc for Spanish.