[Click here for a related Noozhawk photo gallery.]
A large crowd of eager diners recently descended on the Montecito Country Club to enjoy a sumptuous meal prepared by some of the finest chefs in Santa Barbara at the 16th annual “Reaching for Stars” fundraiser benefiting Youth & Family Services YMCA.
The event started more than 15 years ago with some chefs and volunteers who wanted to do something meaningful to raise funds to support young people in need.
Youth & Family Services YMCA is an independently managed and funded branch of the Channel Islands YMCA, and the event gathered supporters in helping Santa Barbara County teenagers reach their full potential.
Guests enjoyed delicious appetizers and wines to begin the evening soaking in a scenic ocean view from the club’s lobby before entering the main dining room for a delectable meal that included a main course of smoked brisket with savory grits, “shake n’ bake” braised beef and roasted bone marrow.
Youth & Family Services programs provide social services for pre-teens, teens and young adults, including My Home, St. George Family Youth Center and Noah’s Anchorage Youth Crisis Shelter.
A video presentation elaborated on the effect these important programs have for the community, featuring My Home, a partnership with the City of Santa Barbara Housing Authority that provides supportive housing and services to homeless and former foster youth, ages 18 to 21. Also featured was a segment on Noah’s Anchorage and its services for homeless, runaway or at-risk youth.
Closing out the seven-minute video was a piece on the St. George Family Youth Center, a new building being built in Isla Visa this year with the generosity of Claudia and Ed St. George. The center serves youth in grades six through 12, with bilingual and bicultural after-school services that include tutoring, field trips and leadership training
Following the video, Karlson introduced the evening’s featured speaker, Santa Barbara County District Attorney Joyce Dudley.
Dudley shared a stirring testimonial from a Noah’s Anchorage client who was a trafficking victim in a case that DA’s office recently prosecuted.
“I don’t think I should’ve ever been forced to become a prostitute, and deep down I know that it was not my fault,” Dudley shared from the trafficking victim’s words. “My father was in and out of prison my whole life and when my mom wasn’t in jail herself, she prostituted to try and support herself and her drug habit.”
The difficult story continued as Dudley relayed the words of the young woman’s challenging upbringing that served to further emphasis the important work of the Youth & Family Services programs in our community.
“Shortly after I turned 13, I was sold to a pimp by someone I thought was my friend. I was sold for $500 in marijuana. The day that I was sold to that pimp, I have never been so scared. I was terrified. I couldn’t imagine why or how someone could do that to me, someone I thought was my friend. Looking back on it now I think that the worst part was that I could not think of a single adult in my life that I could reach out to — to save me.”
The tragic victim emphasized the importance of keeping an open mind and heart when children reach out for guidance or assistance.
“I hope that people learn from my story and they believe children when they reach out and tell you that something bad is happening to them. When you ignore a child reaching out, you only condition them the way that I was conditioned to not allow people in my life that really cared.”
Dudley somberly finished the touching and impactful story with an update that the trafficker has received a life sentence, “but then so did this victim. Now she must try to not just rebuild her life but to create one. When this victim came to Santa Barbara there was no place for her to go — no place at all — except Noah’s Anchorage.”
The Noah’s Anchorage program provides a warm bed, hot meals and 24-hour access to counseling, for youth ages 10 to 17, as well as a place for parents to come with their children when a cooling off period is needed, and before parents may resort to violence or turning their child away.
“We can no longer hide from the fact that our community’s teenagers are in fact our problems,” Dudley concluded. “I strongly support Youth and Family Services because I truly believe it is a matter of life and death.”
The delicate mix of impact and support ended when all of the evening’s chefs formed a line onstage for a well-deserved standing ovation from the satisfied crowd. The generous group of tastemakers also offered a memorial tribute to private chef Don “Skip” Skipworth, who had been one of the event’s longstanding participants.
The list of star chefs included Mari Bartoli, private chef; Michael Blackwell of Montecito Country Club; Randy Bublitz of the Santa Barbara City College School of Culinary Arts; Alessandro Cartumini of the Four Seasons Restort The Biltmore; Gereamy Cater of C’est Cheese, Christine Dahl-Hutchings of Christine Dahl Pastries; Jessica Foster of Jessica Foster Confections; Michael Hutchings of Michael’s Catering; Becca Iglesias of C’est Cheese, Jocelyn Kuzminski of C’est Cheese, Jamie Libardi of C’est Cheese, Greg Murphy of bouchon; Brian Parks of Georgia’s Smokehouse; Stephane Rapp of the SBCC School of Culinary Arts; David Rosner of Wine Cask; Charlie Ruston, private chef, James and Annie Sly of Sly’s; students at the SBCC School of Culinary Arts; Mossin Sugich of the Santa Barbara Yacht Club; Vincent Vanhecke of The Valley Club of Montecito, who also orchestrated the event; Jamie West, private chef; and Eric Widmer of La Cumbre Country Club.
— Noozhawk iSociety columnist Melissa Walker can be reached at mwalker@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkSociety, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Become a fan of Noozhawk on Facebook.
