Month: September 2025

Mike Klan

UC SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – After being mentored by guards Ajay Mitchell(Oklahoma City Thunder) and Stephan Swenson, now it’s time for junior guard Jason Fontenet II to lead the way for the younger UCSB players.

“It’s my job now to lead these other guys, these freshman and let them know how we do stuff here,” said Fontenet.

No one in the current Gauchos program has played as many games or minutes for UCSB than the 6’6 guard.

He averaged 9.9 points and 6.0 rebounds per game last year.

“Whatever the team needs you know I want to be an all-around player, two-way player, a guard that can rebound and can push the ball, make plays for others so anything to win,” said Fontenet.

UCSB head coach Joe Pasternack has always been high on Fontenet since recruiting him out of Phoenix, Arizona and the guard has appreciated his time with UCSB and coach.

“I have been here three years and my relationship is great with him,” began Fontenet. “He holds me to a high standard, he doesn’t let anything go by, even the little things because that’s what makes great players and makes a great team.”

The Gauchos have been practicing for eight weeks this summer before a short break and then it’s right back at it when the new school year begins in a few weeks.

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Mike Klan

UC SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The Gauchos were a sweeping success at San Jose State as they won both matches last weekend against the Spartans to begin the college women’s volleyball season on the right note.

“We feel good but obviously a big test this weekend,” said head coach Matt Jones.

UCSB plays at the Trojan Invitational starting this Friday against #22 USC, #13 Creighton on Saturday and University of San Diego on Sunday.

The Gauchos went 14-16 last year and missed out on the postseason as they did not qualify for the Big West Championship.

UCSB won the Big West in 2023 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.

Leading the way for UCSB is Eva Travis who was the Big West Freshman of the year in 2024.

She registered double-digit kills in 25 of her 30 matches.

But this year’s team is deeper than a year ago and Travis will get plenty of help from players such as Layanna Green, Grace Wuischpard, Emma McDermott, Ema Petkovic and Kiersten Schmitt.

“We definitely played as a team(this past weekend) and it was really fun to see,” said Travis who averaged 5.57 kills per set against San Jose State.

The Gauchos home opener is Thursday, September 11 with the Thunderdome Classic featuring Kansas State, Vanderbilt and Northern Colorado.

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Tracy Lehr

SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif.-One805 fundraising doesn’t just help local first responders, it helps the their colleagues in the communities where they have offered mutual aid..

It is that spirit of that mutual aid that led to a check presentation to benefit The Counseling Team International (TCTI) that is helping Palisades and Eaton Fire first responders.

Nancy K. Bohl-Penrod, Ph.D. said the $62,000 dollars will go a long way.

“We will be able to help out the firefighters, the police officers that were impacted by the fires and I don’t think people realize it is not just about going there and not being able to save a house or a building, it is about the grief that they experience watching people suffer and the sadness that they share, “said Bohl-Penrod, “So, it pulls on their heart strings all the time.”

Bohl Penrod is an expert in the mental health of first responders and the founder of TCTI.

It takes time to recover.

“So, it is not about a structure, it is about what the people lost and how they feel about that because in their world they would like to prevent anyone from going through such pain, so this donation will help them out a lot, to be able to go and relax, have their own time to get some help and be able to process their experience,” said Dr. Bohl-Penrod.

Montecito Fire Chief David Neels who serves as elected President of the Chief Association of Santa Barbara County, said thanks to One805Live! there is still a well funded fund for the wellness of local firefighters and first responders.

“One of the unique things about this funding it that is allows us to go beyond our jurisdictional boundaries, far beyond Santa Barbara County, because a lot of our resources responded to both the Palisades and Eaton Fires,” said Neels.

Local crews can relate.

“We understand when our firefighters came home how impacted they were to see the tragedy that was among those folks that live down there, so allowing these funds to go beyond the borders of our jurisdiction, to help other first responders throughout the state, as well as their families, is a huge thing to be part of, so we are very supportive of One805 and their mission to help others in regards to mental wellness and also serving others,” said Neels.

One805 Chairman/CEO and Co-Founder Kirsten Cavendish Weston Smith has learned a lot about the mutual aid and how the fundraising events are making a difference.

“We had 25 strike teams down there and being able to share some of that money with our friends down south was something that is really special,” said Weston Smith.

She went and saw the devastation.

“I think we all have friends who were impacted down south and we went down to film in Altadena and it was shocking.”

First responders have a say in how the money is spent.

“Obviously mental health is something we have been part of here with first responders, with fire particularly and they are the ones who really wanted to support their fellow first responders down south and really strengthen their program,” said Weston Smith.

During the check presentation, fire chiefs from up and down the coast had a chance to touch base and try to keep cool on a hot day.

They also had a chance to meet City of Santa Barbara Fire Chief Chris Mailes’ new puppy named Betty.

More fundraising is coming up on Saturday, Sept. 20, at the next One805Live! event on Kevin Costner’s property.

“We have a few thousand people and basically, it is a significant time when we raise a lot of money, the chiefs decide where it is going to go afterwards with grants and mental wellness with all first responders is out goal,” said Westin Smith.

The musicians donated their talent this year include Alan Parsons, Trisha Yearwood, and Good Charlotte.

For more information visit https://One805.org

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Dave Alley

SANTA MARIA, Calif. – Organizers of “Serve Santa Maria” are looking for volunteers to take part in this weekend’s cleanup event.

On Saturday, Sept. 6, Serve Santa Maria will hold its 28th edition of the event with a number of projects slated to be completed.

“The day is fast approaching and we need volunteers come out,” said Serve Santa Maria founder and organizer Carl Nielsen. “If you come out and give away a few hours of your time, I almost can guarantee you’re going to walk away after a few hours and go, oh, that was really cool.”

Created in 2010, Serve Santa Maria is an event that brings community members together for a day to work on a number of repair and improvements programs around the Santa Maria area.

“It’s a wonderful way to reach out to your community and show your love and your compassion for others,” said longtime volunteer Nancy Diaz. “It’s just important to show our love and respect for Santa Maria. Every person in Santa Maria benefits because we’re all connected. We are all in this together.” 

Typically, the event draws between 200 to 400 volunteers, and for this Saturday, Nielsen indicated about 100 are still needed to make it work efficiently.

“We want to accomplish all of the projects that we have,” said Nielsen. “Volunteers are the key and I do call them heroes because without them, we’re nothing.”

For this Saturday’s event, there are 20 projects lined up including graffiti cleanup, litter removal, park and school improvement, painting, planting, adding landscape and spreading bark.

There’s also work scheduled at a few homes of older residents that includes fence repair, general maintenance, yard restoration and much more.

“This is definitely making an impact by helping Santa Maria look better,” said Diaz. “We are raring to go and are getting ready to just roll up our sleeves and get to work.”

Serve Santa Maria will take place on Saturday, Sept. 6.

Volunteers can either sign up online at servesantamaria.com or by showing up to the Abel Maldonado Youth Center on Sept. 6 between 8:30 a.m. and 9 a.m.

A gathering to begin the event will be held at that time and will offer volunteers complimentary breakfast items.

For more information about Serve Santa Maria, click here to visit the official website.

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