SEEN (Continued from page 14) Cecilia Fund co-presidents and co-chairs Marian Schoneberger and Susan Johnson on either side of the tea hostess Bette Saks
Liza Presser Belkin with her daughter, Danya Belkin, who authored a children’s book and is one of the guest authors at the CALM luncheon bookstore
Sunni Thomas receiving the Claire Miles Award at the CALM event
Author Lisa See with husband Richard Kendale, whose parents Herb and Elain, live in Montecito
who has written Gray Matters. Rona blazed the trail for entertainment journalism, making Hedda Hopper and Louella Parsons seem out of date back in the 1950s. In Rona’s later life, her father got Alzheimer’s and she was his caregiver. This was the beginning of her work for seniors 65 and older who needed a place to go to be cared for. After many years, she has built the Golden Village in Santa Ynez Valley. She told us, “When it opened, I had 900 applications and only 60 rooms.” Her work and building plans are on going. Sunni Thomas was awarded the Claire Miles Award for outstanding service in the CALM Auxiliary, which consists of 50 women. She chaired the Sunshine Fund for 18 years. When a CALM therapist needs something special for a child or family member, they go to the Sunshine Fund. It might be a prom dress, or a pair of tennis shoes for a sport, or a bed. The late Claire Miles, founder of CALM, was a nurse and a wife of a Santa Barbara physician. After seeing the need of abused children, she put a hotline in her own home. Now, more than 1,500 children receive services yearly and another 6,000 receive education, outreach, and prevention in our County. The guest authors who had their books in the pop-up luncheon
30 MONTECITO JOURNAL
Johnson, Lashon Kelley, Sharon Kennedy, Stefanie Lopez, Mary Ellen McCammon, Nikki Rickard, Rochelle Rose, Bette Saks, Marian Schoneberger, Sigrid Toye, and Evie Vesper. They continually receive more requests than they can fund, so if you’d like to help in any way, log on to www.ceciliafund.org.
Donor Appreciation Luncheon The Santa Barbara Rescue Mission gave its annual donor appreciation luncheon at the First Presbyterian Church Hall. Julie Willig, president of the women’s auxiliary, gave the welcome and prayer. Board chair Joyce McCullough spoke of the “Miracle on Yanonali Street.” That’s where the Mission is located and where they recently had a graduation of recovered drug addicts and alcoholics. Wester Belmar told us how his life changed three and one half years
Cecilia Fund tea guest Joan Agress with speaker Dr. Chuck Fenzi and Barbara Andersen from the Santa Barbara FoundationA
“store” were: Danya Belkin, Melissa Broughton, Dr. Guy Clark, Kent Ferguson, Steven Gilbar, Walter Thompkins (republished for the Goleta Valley Historical Society), Betsy J. Green, Gail Kearns, Lindsey Moran, Denise Woolery, Lida Sideris, Elizabeth Stewart, Ph.D., and Howard and Judy Wang. The night before the event the auxiliary had a cocktail party at the Lobero tented courtyard, where the guest authors were introduced and had a few minutes to tell about their book. As CALM likes to say, “You can’t buy happiness, but you can buy a book.” And everyone did to help children. If you would like to know more, call CEO Alana Walczak at (805) 9652376.
The Cecilia Fund
The oldest nonprofit in town, The Cecilia Fund (TCF) met in the oldest club in town, the Santa Barbara Club for a tea. That would be 126 years for both. The Cecilia Fund used to call themselves the Saint Cecilia Society but rebranded recently so it wouldn’t be confused with a religious group. The reason it became Saint Cecilia originally was because she was the Patron Saint of music and the ladies played small recitals to raise money to help others in need – it was never meant to be religious. There is no office and no paid staff. It is all voluntary and run by a board, which oversees requests for healthcare aid for our community’s most vulnerable members. It could be dental, eyes, or anything medical. If approved (one time only) the funds are given directly to the provider, many times at a reduced rate. As the co-presidents and tea co-chairs Marion Schoneberger and Susan Johnson said, “We are a Go Fund Me,
Rescue Mission board member James Kinzler, president Rolf Geyling, and board John Ross at the appreciation luncheon
before there was a Go Fund Me. We help all ages and sexes.” Last year, they paid out $90,000 and received a grant from the Santa Barbara Foundation. They also work with a consultant, Barbara Andersen, from that foundation. As she said, “Many are just one paycheck away from being poor if something goes wrong.” Kari Weber told how much The Cecilia Fund helped when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. There are many stories such as the vet who couldn’t get a job because he didn’t have any teeth. TCF helped him. The keynote speaker was Dr. Charles Fenzi, chief executive officer and chief medical officer of the Santa Barbara Neighborhood Clinics. It is an organization that provides excellent health care at affordable prices to residents of Santa Barbara and surrounding areas. TCF has had a long-standing partnership with them. Dr. Fenzi is particularly proud of their pain management without opioids, mental health care, and helping with abuse issues. There are also clinics in schools. We think of Santa Barbara as totally prosperous, but 30 percent of our population is low-income and one out of five live in poverty. That hard-working TCF board includes: Victoria Bessinger, Sallie Coughlin, Barbara Howell, Susan
No hour of life is wasted that is spent in the saddle. – Sir Winston Churchill
ago since he became drug-free. He introduced his new wife, calling her the best thing in his life. I don’t think there was a dry eye in the house as he told how his mother left when he was nine months old because she was a drug addict. His father tried to do a good job raising Wesley, but he kept scamming dad to get money for drugs. Wesley did jail time. His mother finally became clean and encouraged him to come to Santa Barbara. “The Rescue Mission saved my life,” Wesley told us. Joyce told of another miracle, serving 3 million meals and 1 million nights of rest since the Rescue Mission began in 1997. After all that wear and tear, the facility is undergoing a major overhaul in every aspect. They need $10 million to complete the job and have about $8 million now. President Rolf Geyling told us, “This is our ninth annual appreciation luncheon. Last year, we had 4,500 donors.” It is much cheaper to rehabilitate than to incarcerate. The Rescue Mission staff envisions people who are experiencing the love of God, becoming healthy, living as productive citizens, rebuilding relationships, and leading others to recovery. If you’d like to be a donor, please call Rebecca Wilson at (805) 966-1316, ext. 105. •MJ 3 – 10 May 2018