Your Westmont by Scott Craig (photography by Brad Elliott) Scott Craig is manager of media relations at Westmont College
Donating Food for Toilet Paper
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ontecito community members are joining with Westmont to serve the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County, which has distributed 2.25 million pounds of food during the COVID-19 response. Residents can drop off food at the rear parking lot of Montecito Bank & Trust on Coast Village Road on Saturday, May 9, between 9 am and noon or ask that donated food be picked up from their homes by emailing their address to montecitofoodbankdrive@ gmail.com or texting their address to (805) 450-5971. In exchange, donors will receive wrapped rolls of toilet paper. People can also make a monetary gift online at foodbanksbc.org. In the comment field, write “TP” and an address to get TP delivered – or write “93108” to donate TP to the 93108 Fund for laid off hourly workers in Montecito. “The TP is just a gimmicky hook, but it’s a topical item these days and will, of course, be forever linked in history with the pandemic,” says Montecito resident and organizer David Taylor. “One can find TP a little easier than a month ago when our plan started forming, but ten to twenty rolls is a good addition to any household supply and also handy to share with needier neighbors.” Scott Lisea, Westmont campus pastor, says he is recruiting Westmont students to help run the touch-free, drop-off line. “We’re trying to work broadly in the Montecito community to serve the Foodbank, which is hard-pressed right now,” he says. Taylor and fellow Montecito dog-walker Edee Schulze, Westmont vice president for student life, came up with the idea for the event after witnessing the desperate needs of foodbanks across the country. The initiative also received 2,000 rolls of donated toilet paper from the local hotel industry. “Rather than just giving the TP to the Foodbank, we hope to leverage it into a much larger and more needed quantity of food,” Taylor says. The Foodbank of Santa Barbara County has served 85,000 individuals during the coronavirus pandemic, far more than during the 2019 government shutdown (51,000) and the Thomas Fire/debris flow (37,000). “It’s deep within our tradition to care for people who need help,” Lisea says. “This volunteer opportunity will help families who need food in this crisis. The Foodbank does beautiful work feeding those in need.”
gloves, masks, and hair nets, the Whitneys have taken their goodies to the emergency department and critical care units at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, AMR Ambulance Company, MarBorg Industries, and to each residence hall for the remaining students on campus and the Westmont Executive Team’s daily meetings. “For Easter, we delivered Easter baskets of baked goods to all six of Westmont’s occupied residence halls on campus as well as individual treat bags for the students at Ocean View Apartments,” Mary Pat says. She also committed to delivering cookies to anyone celebrating a birthday while sheltering at home. “Receiving homemade treats that they can enjoy with their families just makes an otherwise strange birthday a little happier,” she says. Mary Pat’s cookie craze hit an early snag when the nationwide baking boom sapped the local flour supply. However she sent out a wide-reaching email and Facebook post and the community responded. “I received lots of donations of unopened bags of flour that we went and picked up from people’s front porches,” says Mary Pat. “We bake and package items during the day and make a delivery run after dinner every night. It has been fun and has given us purpose.”
Wickham, Lecrae Perform for Graduating Seniors
Westmont College had to postpone its Commencement ceremony which was scheduled for May 2, but it celebrated its graduating seniors with a virtual concert featuring two popular Christian recording artists, Phil Wickham and Grammy award-winner Lecrae. The virtual event honored the class of 2020, while also marking the end of a very challenging semester for all Westmont students – both current and future new Warriors. In fact, this graduating class has endured evacuations due to the Thomas Fire, Montecito debris flows, and now the coronavirus. College officials have only postponed, not canceled, Commencement for the class of 2020, which it hopes to hold in October.
Spring Sing Performs Online
More than 500 people watched Emerson Hall win the 59th annual Spring Sing, “In Your Dreams,” live online April 25 for the first time in the event’s history. “Although it was challenging to come up with a format allowing students to participate while complying with social distancing guidelines, this Spring Sing showcased the creativity and resourcefulness of our community,” says Alex Cameron, Associate Director of Campus Life.
Warriors Claim Eighth Straight GSAC All-Sports Award
Taking Quarantine Treats to the Street
The Westmont men’s and women’s basketball teams celebrate after winning GSAC Regular Season Championships on February 27
Cookie Queen Mary Pat Whitney delivers her baked goods to President Gayle D. Beebe
Many Americans have taken to baking while sheltering at home. Mary Pat Whitney, Director of Public and Advancement Events at Westmont, has raised the bar, baking brownie bars and a whopping 12,000 cookies for the Westmont and Santa Barbara communities. This effort started as a way to show gratitude to local first responders and essential businesspeople and grew into a largescale operation for Mary Pat and her twin daughters, Emily and Kate. Donning 7 – 14 May 2020
For the eighth year in a row, Westmont has won the Golden State Athletic Conference All-Sports Award, given annually to the school with the best overall athletic performance. Westmont Athletic Director Dave Odell says the award reflects consistent excellence across all sports. “Prior to the suspension of spring sports and the cancellation of the national basketball tournaments, we were experiencing one of our most successful years athletically,” he says. The award is based on final regular season standings or conference championships. Schools earn 10 points for a first-place finish, nine for second, etc. Each school also receives a point for each GSAC sport the institution sponsors. Dividing the point total by the number of sports determines the score. “We had our highest overall winning percentage and grabbed at least a share of five out of seven GSAC championships, a phenomenal achievement,” Odell says. •MJ
• The Voice of the Village •
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