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William S. "Tom" Thomas

 Board Chair

John T. Hanna

First Vice Chair

Diane B. Doiron

Second Vice Chair

Blas Garza 

Third Vice Chair

G. Paul Didier

Secretary

Rick W. Scott

Chief Financial Officer

General Members: 

James Armstrong

Gayle Beebe

Thomas Brashears

Lance Connor

William Curtis

Henry Dubroff

Janet Garufis

Joe Holland

George Leis 

Bob Montgomery

Richard Nightingale

Michael Noling

David Prichard

Brian Sarvis

Andreea Serban

Ron Werft

John Wigle

United Way's 20th Day of Caring will take place Saturday, September 17, 2011. Over 60 local non-profit...

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For a second year, United Way of Santa Barbara County partnered with Mentor Corporation in Goleta to organize a Community Works Day of Service...

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 Record Demand for Volunteers for the 20th Annual Day of Caring  

Day of Caring Volunteers at Elings Park

This year, there has been a striking increase in the number of requests for Day of Caring volunteers, with over 1600 requests to date, compared to 1200 requests in 2010-and potentially more on the horizon.  

United Way of Santa Barbara County's 20th Day of Caring takes place on Saturday, September 17th, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.  After a kick-off breakfast at the Ben Page Youth Center sponsored by Albertsons individuals and teams from schools, employers, faith groups and families will volunteer at more than 60 local sites. The deadline for volunteers to sign up is September 12th; however, we do accept walk-ins the day of the event.

"Even as our economy improves, our community partners continue to be challenged by the great need for human care services," says Randy Weiss, Santa Barbara Bank & Trust's Community Relations Officer. "We've already received a record number of Day of Caring work requests ... and now need your help more than ever. With only a few hours of gratis labor - together, we can make a 'world of difference' right here at home. That's the real power of volunteering."

Volunteers of all ages are needed for a wide range of important projects, including painting the front porch at Casa Serena Women's Recovery Home, participating in habitat restoration for the Santa Barbara Audubon Society, assisting with general clean-up at Girls Inc., doing landscaping at the Botanical Gardens, and aiding in clean-up of many local beaches.  With last years' volunteer hours estimated to be worth $250,000, Day of Caring has a significant impact on the area where we live and work and is a testament to the spirit of volunteerism in our community.

We would like to thank our generous sponsors: ABC-Clio, Albertsons, Allied Waste, Ben Page Youth Center, Cottage Health System, Cox, Easy Lift Transportation, Exxon Mobile, Home Improvement Center, K-Lite, La Arcada Investments, MarBorg Industries, Montecito Bank & Trust, Pacific Coast Business Times, ParentClick, Penfield & Smith Engineers, Raytheon, Sambo's Restaurant, Santa Barbara Bank & Trust, The Daily Sound, The Santa Barbara Independent and Woodstocks.

Volunteers can sign up or find out more information at unitedwaysb.org/dayofcaring, or contact Kerstin Padilla, Day of Caring Project Manager at (805) 965-8591 or dayofcaring@unitedwaysb.org.

 Fun in the Sun Completes its 15th Year!

Fun in the Sun participants

Fun in the Sun (FITS) has just completed its 15^th year in Santa Barbara County! The 2011 summer program was filled with engaging curriculum and fun learning opportunities for the 185 children and families who participated. FITS is a collaborative effort of over 40 local organizations, working in a variety of ways to accomplish one goal: to have a long-term, positive impact on the lives of the children and families in our community by directly addressing Summer Learning Loss and the Achievement Gap.   

This year's FITS included a variety of fun, educational experiences, including hands-on lessons in Science, Technology, Engineering & Math (STEM), art, financial literacy, dance, and cooking. Students also participated in the silent reading improvement program, Reading Plus. Of those students who saw an improvement in their reading ability using the Reading Plus program, they saw an average gain of 2.1 grade levels! In addition, children took many educational field trips to local vicinities, such as the Ty Warner Sea Museum, the Santa Barbara pier, UCSB, SBCC, and public parks and libraries throughout Santa Barbara County.

Parents also got involved in the educational opportunities through Family Fun Nights and Parent Education courses, which covered topics like financial literacy and college preparedness for their children. Ultimately, FITS children will enter into the school year more prepared academically and socially than if they had not participated in FITS, and the community benefits from this as a whole.

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 Mentor Community Works Day 

Mentor Volunteers at Community Works Day

For a second year, Mentor Corporation partnered with  United Way of Santa Barbara County in Goleta to organize a Community Works Day of Service. The event, was held on two days: May 24 and June 7, brought together over 100 Mentor employee volunteers to donate their time and service at Santa Barbara County non-profits.

Projects were located at several local non-profit agencies, including Goleta Valley Beautiful, where Mentor employees provided 12 community service hours to complete a brick walkway allowing developmentally disabled Devereux residents to safely access the Greenhouse. Additional projects included building a float for the 2011 Summer Solstice Parade, sorting donations at the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County, picking up litter, cleaning graffiti at Ninos Park for Looking Good Santa Barbara, and gardening at Alpha Resource Center, among others. Overall, Mentor employees contributed an estimated total of over 350 community service hours spread out over eight different sites.

The event allowed Mentor employees a chance to give back to the community and for non-profits to receive much-needed assistance. "Our second Community Works Day was a tremendous success and we are proud to have the opportunity to volunteer our time to so many great organizations in our community," stated Christopher Allman, Director, Corporate Communications, Mentor Worldwide. "We are grateful to United Way of Santa Barbara County for all of its assistance in making this possible for us."

  Inogen Holds Toy Drive for Fun in the Sun  

Inogen Employees Distributing Toys

Inogen, a Goleta-based medical technology company dedicated to making life easier for oxygen therapy users, recently delivered dozens of brand new toys to the Devereux Elementary Fun in the Sun site!

Many of the company's staff participated in their first Fun in the Sun Lunch Bunch, spending their lunch hour playing with students on the playground and grass field at the Devereux site. After the visit, Inogen volunteers decided that they wanted to do more for the Fun in the Sun students. Inogen staff members brought in new toys and games, as well as donated funds which went towards the purchase of additional sports equipment. The donation included everything from a soccer ball to a monster bubble kit!

On July 21^st, two Inogen employees made a special trip to the Devereux site to personally deliver the fun stash. The Fun in the Sun kids were completely surprised and eager to choose a new toy to play with. Once all of the items were handed out, Fun in the Sun participants quickly began playing catch with the new football and were eager to open their brand new jump ropes. One of the biggest hits was the giant container of bubbles - the students had never seen bubbles that big!

For Inogen volunteers, the Lunch Bunch experience helped them to realize how a small donation of items and time mean so much to the Fun in the Sun students. From the excitement in the air immediately following the toy delivery, the new toys will brighten faces at the Devereux site for years to come!

26th Heritage Luncheon

Boehm Biography Group: Jeff, Steve & Eric Boehm

United Way of Santa Barbara County celebrates those forward-thinking individuals who have chosen to leave their legacy to this community as part of their estate plans. The 26^th Annual Heritage Club Appreciation Luncheon did just that, taking place at the Museum Café at the Santa Barbara Museum of Art on Wednesday, June 1, 2011. Twenty-seven Heritage Club members and their guests were treated to a very intimate luncheon and were later treated to a private, docent-guided tour of the museum. 

This event was generously underwritten by Boehm Biography Group, an organization founded by Heritage Club member Eric Boehm, his son Steven and his grandson Jeff, to help people preserve their heritage and create meaningful legacies.   

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