You’d be hard-pressed to find a local nonprofit that brought its outsized quest to fruition more speedily than did the Gwendolyn Strong Foundation, which in its six short years of existence has already accomplished two major goals. Heartbroken but determined to make a difference when their young daughter was diagnosed with the rare neurological disease [...more...]
Geoff Green knows that Dan Pritzker and MacKenzie Scott are on to something. That is, Green believes that community colleges are the lifeblood of America’s higher education system, and it is high time they take [...more...]
Giving List Matching Challenges
Youth Development
When Diego first joined the United Boys & Girls Clubs of Santa Barbara County last year, severe separation anxiety made […more…]
Santa Barbara is hardly a winter wonderland where people gather on a frozen lake to frolic on ice skates during […more…]
In Santa Barbara County, vulnerable youth face an invisible crossroads every day. Some are on the verge of dropping out […more…]
Homelessness
In the late 1960s, a small group of volunteers in Santa Barbara launched what would become one of the county’s […more…]
Villa Majella is SB County’s only maternity home, providing safe shelter, 24/7 support, transportation, warm meals, and access to vital services. […more…]
What does street medicine look like in real life? It looks like compassionate care delivered directly to our unsheltered neighbors […more…]
Health & Wellness
Cottage Health is entering a new era of innovation while staying true to its mission of providing exceptional, compassionate care. […more…]
In a world where anxiety and stress affect children at unprecedented rates, one Santa Barbara organization is teaching our youngest […more…]
A dam was just 23 when he suffered a stroke that nearly took his life. He spent two weeks in […more…]
For the Environment
Heal the Ocean began back in August 1998 shortly after Hillary Hauser published an editorial in the Santa Barbara News-Press […more…]
The Association for Environmental & Outdoor Education (AEOE), in partnership with Ten Strands and the California Environmental Literacy Initiative (CAELI), […more…]
“My goal was always to change the world. You know, nothing too dramatic,” Dr. Sam Dover, co-founder and director of […more…]
For the Children
On a recent afternoon at the Santa Barbara Zoo, a third-grader sat motionless before her untouched burger, politely declining offers […more…]
In the first five years of life, a child’s brain will develop to 90% of its capacity, according to the […more…]
In the face of a devastating diagnosis that would break most spirits, 13-year-old Ava Decker chose to fight not just […more…]
For the Arts
The Santa Barbara Museum of Art has a long-standing tradition of uniting people of all ages through a diverse range […more…]
After a nationwide search, UCSB ended up turning to its own backyard to find the new Miller McCune Executive Director […more…]
In Santa Barbara Harbor at dawn, the masts of sailboats clang softly as a yellow school bus from Lompoc pulls […more…]
For the Animals
“My goal was always to change the world. You know, nothing too dramatic,” Dr. Sam Dover, co-founder and director of […more…]
Join Return to Freedom for the Opening Day of their 2026 program season, and a celebration of Spirit’s 31st birthday on May 9 at their Lompoc headquarters sanctuary! The […more…]
The Search Dog Foundation believes that they can help every dog that enters theiur program be successful in whatever type […more…]
Emergency Services
For nearly 80 years, Direct Relief has stood ready to meet the cascading challenges of global disasters, delivering life-saving medicines, […more…]
Wilma Melville founded the National Disaster Search Dog Foundation in 1996, a year after witnessing the dearth of rescue dogs […more…]
Santa Barbara County Search and Rescue (SBCSAR) was ready when an experienced paraglider had an issue with equipment and was […more…]
Education
The first five years of a child’s life lay the foundation for how they’ll do in school and beyond – […more…]
Olive Crest’s Hope Refuge Campus in Santa Barbara County provides a safe place for young survivors of sex trafficking to […more…]
The Central City East neighborhood of Downtown Los Angeles goes by another moniker – one familiar to the public and […more…]
Community Resilience
Direct Relief navigates the war zones in Ukraine to deliver cystic fibrosis medications, transports Mpox vaccines to clinics in the […more…]
A hiker in Santa Barbara’s wilderness hasn’t returned home, a biker crashes off the trail, a runner collapses from dehydration, or […more…]
State Street has long been the beating heart of Santa Barbara. Like many downtown corridors across America, it has faced […more…]
Advocacy
When disasters strike the Central Coast, not everyone has equal access to help. For those in the 805 community who […more…]
Join Hillside for a Disability Independence Day Festival at Hillside! This fun-filled and family-friendly event is a great way to […more…]
Earlier this fall, the Legal Aid Foundation of Santa Barbara County (LAFSBC) marked its 65th anniversary with an early evening […more…]