It’s a New Year and a new life for Gigi Schneider, one of six people chosen in 2017 to move into El Carrillo, the only apartment complex in Santa Barbara exclusively serving a formerly homeless clientele. Schneider is one of only 123 homeless people in Santa Barbara County who were placed in permanent housing in 2017 by county and city housing authorities and Peoples’ Self-Help Housing, a nonprofit group. That’s out of a total homeless population of 1,860, or about 1 out of every 15. The...

Today's Press Democrat featured this promising article: "Sonoma County supervisors Tuesday created a new government office to help the region bounce back from this year’s devastating wildfires and assist with charting a formal vision for the long-term recovery of the local housing supply, the economy and other key areas. The new Office of Recovery and Resiliency will have its own budget and seven staff members, three of whom will come from the ranks of current county employees. Housed within...

Health officials have handed out more than 200,000 free N-95 face masks over the past week to guard against the toxic cloud of smoke in the air thrown up by the raging Thomas Fire , which is burning in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties. Still, some people insist on folding a scarf, wearing a dust or surgical mask or even holding their hand over the mouths. Those methods, however, are useless for the most part. “Dust masks and surgical masks aren’t effective at filtering out the particles,”...

More masks will be distributed Wednesday in Santa Barbara County as air quality in some areas of the county due to the Thomas Fire remain at "unhealthy" levels. N95 masks will be available at the following locations: • Goleta Costco, 7095 Market Place Dr., from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. • Goleta Valley Community Center, 5679 Hollister Ave., from 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. • Goleta City Hall, 130 Cremona Dr., from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. • Franklin Community Center, 1136 East Montecito St. in Santa...

As the Thomas fire raged across Ventura County, neighboring Santa Barbara County took to its English language social media accounts targeting its Latino audience to keep them informed on el incendio . Over the last year, through disaster and crisis, the official county accounts have morphed into a mix of Spanish and English Facebook posts and tweets, said Gina DePinto, the county's communications manager. "We're really moving toward an effort to support our Spanish-speaking audience with...

Youth leaders in Santa Maria are calling for more mental health services for themselves and their families. In October, some Santa Maria students ran a "Youth-Led Town Hall" to discuss ways to reduce youth violence. The meeting was in response to the Santa Maria Mayor's Task Force on Youth Safety. Nearly a month and a half later, the data collected from the nearly 100 students at the meeting has been compiled. At a December 4 press conference organized by C.A.U.S.E., data released showed...

To see the conference agenda, list of all-star speakers, and to register go to: http://www.theresourceinnovationgroup.org/california-2018-conference/

On October 16, I joined in Santa Barbara's Second Annual Bridges to Resilience Conference . Surrounded by "our people" or 300+ folks like us who care deeply about ending childhood adversity, I basked in the waves of passion passing back and forth between presenters, participants, and organizers. With the fires raging in our community at the same time, it was hard for me to consider leaving my post at one of the shelters to participate in this event. However, I convinced myself attending this...

Thanks to Alejandra Labrado from First 5 Sacramento for providing the links to these resources! Sesame Street's Traumatic Experiences: https://sesamestreetincommunities.org/topics/traumatic-experiences/ When a child endures a traumatic experience, the whole family feels the impact. But adults hold the power to help lessen its effects. Several factors can change the course of kids’ lives: feeling seen and heard by a caring adult, being patiently taught coping strategies and...

Sara Bazan MA, MFT is offering her workshop again, Pathways to Resilience, due to the positive response that she received at the Bridges to Resilience Conference. This workshop is free for professionals working in the Children's System of Care. It will be held on November 4, 2017 from 1-4pm at The Healing Hub in La Cumbre Plaza. Please RSVP to Resiliencestar@gmail.com . For more information: (805) 403-0270 or email Resiliencestar@gmail.com Click below for the flyer.

Over 200 teachers, staff members, school psychologists, principals, and superintendents from eight school districts within the Santa Ynez Valley came together on October 9th for the 8th Annual All-Valley Schools Conference. The theme for this year's conference was Resilience, and the day started with a screening of the documentary film by KPJR Productions, RESILIENCE: The Biology of Stress and the Science of Hope. A panel discussion followed the film and panelists shared their personal and...

Santa Barbara County Children’s System of Care presents the Bridges to Resilience conference. The conference is for anyone who works with children, youth and families, has an interest in the science of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), and has the goal of building a resilient and resourceful community. Educators, early care providers, social workers, probation officers, law enforcement, health and mental health professionals, resource families, and community partners will have the...