Author: KEYT

Dave Alley

SANTA MARIA, Calif. (KEYT) – An annual toy drive held each year by Good Samaritan Shelter to benefit children who are clients of the Santa Barbara County-based non-profit organization is now underway.

“We’re super excited,” said Kirsten Cahoon, Good Samaritan Shelter Homeless Services Director. “It’s our fourth annual toy drive. We’re collecting toys for all the kiddos that live within the programs of Good Sam. We have over 100 kids that we are having to provide Christmas for this year, so we are really excited about the community coming out and showing up and making sure that we can give these kids an amazing Christmas.”

The ongoing event concludes next Thursday, Dec. 18 with an all-day collection drive that will be held at Stowasser Buick GMC in Santa Maria from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.

“Stowasser has barrels,” said Cahoon. “They’re the collection point. You can go by and drop off any time. They’re an amazing partner that helps us with this every year, and really, their heart for the kids that live at Good Sam is just truly amazing.”

Good Samaritan is asking for unwrapped toys, clothes or other basic necessities for kids of all ages.

“We’re looking for any toys,” said Cahoon. “Gift cards as well. We have a lot of teenagers in the programs. Quite a few newborns, so baby toys, and gift cards are great for the teenagers. They love gift cards to fast food, to stores, to the movie theater. You can also drop off cash donations, and that’ll help us kind of fill the gap when we realize what toys are still needed for what age group.”

All donations that are received will remain in Santa Barbara County and will directly benefit kids staying within Good Samaritan Shelter locations.

“The only shelters we have that take kids are between Santa Maria and Lompoc,” said Cahoon. “We have shelters in Santa Maria in our family shelter. The same in Lompoc. We have our Lompoc Bridgehouse Shelter and two family shelters. And then we also have Project Preemie, where we have moms that are either pregnant or just had little ones and are trying to go through the recovery process. We want to make sure that we can give to all of those. These things are super important to us to make sure that the parents feel like normal parents so they have something to give.”

For more information about Good Samaritan Shelter, click here.

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John Palminteri

SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, Calif. (KEYT) – Santa Barbara County has fully launched its new Regional Fire Communications Center and expansion of the Emergency Operations Center.

The upgraded facility centralizes fire and EMS dispatch for seven local fire agencies. There are five dispatchers on duty with a supervisor for every shift.

They will handle all calls for the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, Carpinteria-Summerland Fire Protection District, Santa Barbara City Fire Department, Montecito Fire Protection District, Lompoc Fire Department, Guadalupe Fire Department, and Santa Maria Fire Department and the  American Medical Response (AMR). 

This also expands the Emergency Operations Center, to include a new Joint Information Center and Call Center, which is activated in large scale emergencies such as wildland fires and earthquakes. This puts the key players on the same property.    

The site will support 911 calls for service coming in and emergency responders on the move.

The key feature is the ability to see where all engines and AMR vehicles are located, even if they are not in their district for whatever reasons, and then dispatch that resource to the emergency.

Already it has been an active center since it gradually began opening in June.

There have been 32,000 calls and 64,000 dispatches for emergency equipment.

That includes assistance for bystander CPR and the delivery of two babies.

Retired County Fire Chief Mark Hartwig said “what we created here is historic. The biggest change in the way we do business but the least visible because   the community probably already expected that we did this.”       

Chair of the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors Laura Capps said, “and you can’t really think of a more fundamental way to keep us all safe than a 911 system that is coordinated and state of the art and that is what we are doing here today.”

President of the Fire Chiefs Association of Santa Barbara County and the Fire Chief for the Montecito Fire Department, David Neels said, the multi-year process to complete the project took an “Unwavering support from city council and the Board of Supervisors,” both political and financial. He called the building “state of the art.” He says, “when any resident regardless of the city, the district or the county area whatever  engine is closest,  whatever resource is closest , they are going to be on their way  it is coordinated. “

Hartwig said, “every single unit in this county fire rescue and EMS has a screen that shows where everyone is,  where the emergency is,  and what is needed at the emergency.”

Neels also said that “seconds matter” in an emergency and the public will be getting those seconds back with this new collaboration.

Office of Emergency Management (OEM) Director Kelly Hubbard says the new building is completely linked internally for all the services that come out of that location. OEM will activate its staff of department heads, resource coordinators, and partners such as utility companies in the event of an emergency.   

The center can also ramp up in large scale events. 

Training Supervisor Jackie Jenkins  said, “we literally get out  in under 30 seconds as soon as the address is confirmed we are sending resources. “

With multiple agencies on a call the coordination is vital.

 Jenkins said, “we’re talking to sheriff and police via the phone and we are talking to our resources via the radio and at the scene they are forming the unified command at the  incident command post”

All the key areas will have video monitors to follow camera shots, emergency scenes, local news reports, county real-time data such as river flows and other critical information.

(More details, photos and video will be added here later today.)

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Mike Klan

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) – The U.S. Women’s National Team will finish its January training camp with a match against Chile on Jan. 27 at Harder Stadium in Santa Barbara, Calif. (7 p.m. PT / 10 pm ET on TBS and HBO Max in English, Universo and Peacock in Spanish, and on the radio in English on Westwood One and in Spanish on Futbol de Primera).

The USA’s first training camp of the year will run from Jan. 17-27 at the Dignity Health Sports Park (DHSP) and the clash against Chile will cap a two-game set that will kick off the 2026 USWNT schedule.

As previously announced, the first match will take place on Jan. 24 at DHSP against Paraguay (2:30 p.m. PT / 5:30 p.m. ET on TNT, truTV and HBO Max in English, on Universo and Peacock in Spanish, on Westwood One radio in English and on Futbol de Primera radio in Spanish).

The match at the campus of UC Santa Barbara marks the first-ever international match for the USWNT on the Central Coast of California and just the second-ever match in the state of California being played north of Los Angeles and south of the San Francisco Bay Area.

Emma Says

“One of the goals of U.S. Soccer is to take our National Teams to new markets around the country, and I applaud that,” said U.S. head coach Emma Hayes. “Playing in a city for the first time is not a common occurrence at this point in our history so I know our players will enjoy being in beautiful Santa Barbara and our staff are really looking forward to January camp and these two matches against South American countries. This is the start of an important year for our team and as always, we’re focused on maximizing every minute we get with the players.”

Chancellor Dennis Assanis Says

“UC Santa Barbara is honored to host the United States Women’s National Soccer Team – one of the most successful teams in the world,” said Assanis. “We are proud to host an event that will highlight competitive excellence, energize and bring our community together, showcase beautiful UC Santa Barbara, and celebrate the next generation of athletes and leaders. We look forward to a memorable experience at Harder Stadium for the campus and the greater Santa Barbara communities.”

History with Chile

Chile is ranked 45th in the world and fifth in South America behind Brazil, Colombia, Argentina and Paraguay. The U.S. and Chile have met just three times, the first two in a pair of friendlies in 2018, which were also in California. The most recent meeting came during group play at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup, a hard-fought 3-0 win for the USA in Paris, France.

The USWNT-Santa Barbara Story

While the Jan. 27 game will be the USWNT’s first-ever international match in Santa Barbara, the U.S. women have some history in the city that has a link to the first of USA’s four FIFA Women’s World Cup titles. The USWNT first held a training camp at UCSB in the fall of 1991 prior to leaving for the 1991 FIFA Women’s World Cup in China PR and played two exhibition games at Harder Stadium, including an extremely rare match for the USWNT against a collegiate side. The U.S. defeated a UCSB Women’s Soccer Team that was ranked in the top five in the country by a 10-0 score on Oct. 19 before downing a team of Southern California Women’s All-Stars the next day. Just a few weeks later, the USA departed for China and the first FIFA Women’s World Cup, which it would win to earn the program’s first star above the crest.

Carin Jennings, now known as Carin Jennings-Gabarra, stands as one of the most storied athletes to emerge from UC Santa Barbara, forging a powerful connection between the Gauchos and the United States Women’s National Team. A standout at UCSB from 1983–1986, Jennings became the program’s first true national superstar, earning All-America honors and rewriting the school’s record book. She still stands as the programs career leader in goals (102), assists (62) and points (266).

Her excellence continued on the world stage, where she became a pivotal figure for the USWNT, helping lead the United States to its historic 1991 FIFA Women’s World Cup title and earning the tournament’s Golden Ball as its top player.

The USWNT also held training camps in Santa Barbara in March of 2019 prior to a series of April friendlies and in late June/early July of 2023, leading up to the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup. The USWNT trained at Harder Stadium in 2019 and at Westmont College in adjacent Montecito in 2023. The USMNT played an international match at Harder Stadium in 1993 during early preparations for the 1994 FIFA World Cup, drawing Romania, 1-1, in front of 9,127 fans.

The Arnhold Director of Athletics, Kelly Barsky Says

“Bringing the U.S. Women’s National Team to Harder Stadium means more than just hosting a match,” said Barsky. “It’s a celebration of connection, community and excellence. Sport has the ability to unite and coalesce around something bigger than ourselves. It doesn’t get any bigger and more special on a National and international stage than the USWNT. At UC Santa Barbara, we are deeply honored to host the exceptional national team athletes and coaches, continue our storied tradition of soccer excellence and celebrate our greater Santa Barbara community by bringing this special game to Harder Stadium, Soccer Heaven. Go Gauchos!”

ABOUT HARDER STADIUM

Harder Stadium, UC Santa Barbara’s iconic outdoor venue, has long been celebrated as “Soccer Heaven.” In addition to serving as the home of UCSB Men’s and Women’s Soccer, the stadium has welcomed some of the sport’s most prestigious events, including the NCAA College Cup in 2010 and 2018. Harder Stadium also hosted an international friendly between Wrexham AFC and AFC Bournemouth during its “2024 Wrex Coast Tour,” and in the coming years will become the home pitch for USL League One’s newest club, the Santa Barbara Sky.

Visit Santa Barbara Says

“Visit Santa Barbara was honored to support the scouting crew and source accommodations for the teams in partnership with UCSB,” said Kathy Janega-Dykes, president/CEO of Visit Santa Barbara, the area’s destination marketing organization. “Our hospitality community is grateful for the opportunity to host the teams and their fans, and appreciates the meaningful economic impact it will have on our region.”

TICKETS

The presale for these matches will begin on Wed., Dec. 10 at 10 a.m. PT and run to Friday, Dec. 12 at 8 a.m. PT.

Tickets for both matches will go on sale to the public on Friday, Dec. 12 at 10 a.m. PT.

Circle Insider members supporting the U.S. Soccer Development Fund can receive individual customer support and concierge services for their ticketing needs. Click here or contact circles@ussoccer.org for more information.

UC SANTA BARBARA EXCLUSIVE OFFERS

UC Santa Barbara, in coordination with U.S. Soccer, will make 500 discounted tickets available to UCSB students at a $20 face value beginning Thursday, Dec. 11 at 10 a.m. PT. Additionally, UCSB Faculty and Staff will have access to purchase tickets in a presale that will also begin on Thursday, Dec. 11 at 10 a.m. PT. More information will become available at that time.

EXCLUSIVE PRESALES FOR U.S. SOCCER INSIDERS

For the opportunity to buy tickets before the general public, fans should consider becoming U.S. Soccer Insiders. Membership is free for Standard Insiders. Learn more.

Sales Schedule Presale Date & Start Time

Circle Insiders Presale (Circle Insiders) Wednesday, Dec. 10 | 10 a.m. PT

VIP Insiders Presale (VIP Insiders) Wednesday, Dec. 10 | 1 p.m. PT

Premium Insiders Presale (Premium & Premium Family Insiders) Wednesday, Dec. 10 | 4 p.m. PT

Standard Insiders Presale (Standard Insiders) Thursday, Dec. 11 | 10 a.m. PT

Visa Presale (Visa cardholders only) Thursday, Dec. 11 | 1 p.m. PT

Public Sale Friday, Dec. 12 | 10 a.m. PT

VISA PRESALE As the official payment technology sponsor of U.S. Soccer, Visa is offering cardholders an opportunity to purchase tickets ahead of the public on-sale date. Visa cardholders can purchase tickets from Thursday, Dec. 11 at 1 p.m. PT to Friday, Dec. 12 at 8 a.m. PT through ussoccer.com. As the preferred card of U.S. Soccer, Visa will be the only payment method accepted during the Visa presale.

(Article courtesy of U.S. Soccer).

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Patricia Martellotti

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) – The Prime Time Band of Santa Barbara is already in the holiday spirit, holding an early rehearsal as they prepare for a festive downtown concert open to the entire community. Led by longtime director Dr. Paul Mori, the group is polishing a program that blends classic Christmas carols with modern holiday favorites.

The free Downtown Holiday Concert and Sing-Along takes place Friday, December 12, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. on the State Street steps of the Santa Barbara Museum of Art. The outdoor setting will turn State Street into a seasonal gathering spot for families, friends, and visitors.

Guest vocalist Amanda Elliott will perform alongside the band and lead the audience in a sing-along, encouraging full crowd participation. The Dos Pueblos High School Choir, directed by Courtney Anderson, will also join the performance, adding youthful energy to the evening.

Attendees are encouraged to invite family and friends, bring a chair, and enjoy a relaxed evening of live music. Song lyrics will be available through a QR code and printed handouts, with limited seating provided.

The Prime Time Band is a group of amateur musicians ranging in age from 40 to 90-plus, united by a mission to provide free concerts for the community and create an accessible entry point for mature adults to make music.

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Caleb Nguyen

MORRO BAY, Calif. (KEYT) – Officials from CAL FIRE SLO, state parks and the ACPD Morro Bay Fire Department are set for a prescribed burning of brush piles starting Tuesday.

Prescribed burns aim to reduce fuel loads and fire hazards, while also aiding native plants to grow in specific environments.

The burn begins as early as 7:00 a.m. Tuesday and end at 5:00 p.m. on Black Hill between Quintana Road, Quinn Court and South Bay Trail at Morro Bay State Park.

For more information on the prescribed burn, visit the following website.

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Patricia Martellotti

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) – Santa Barbara City College is making education more accessible by eliminating fees for many of its longtime classes.

The School of Extended Learning has transitioned several previously fee-based courses into a fully free non-credit program, opening the door to more community members.

Many of the classes now fall under the Wellness for Older Adults program, which is open to anyone 18 and older and focuses on health, creativity, and lifelong learning.

Students will continue learning from the same experienced instructors, but without the financial barrier.

Popular offerings such as art, music, fitness, and personal development courses are now available at no cost.

Community members can browse and enroll in the free classes through the SBCC School of Extended Learning schedule online.

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Jarrod Zinn

SANTA MARIA, Calif. (KEYT) – The City Of Santa Maria installed its latest exhibition in its Public Art Master Plan over the weekend.

On Sunday the city’s Recreation And Parks Department held a community workshop to paint the new mural at Taylor Community Park.

“It’s really kind of a nice way to come together as a community, especially in this neighborhood, and enjoy the space together,” says Chris Taylor, graphic designer for Recreation And Parks Santa Maria. “There’s black lines for the design so people could, you know, fill in their certain areas and not be completely left without any instruction.”

Using a technique known as poly-tab artistry, community members of all ages got to participate in painting the mural, and over 100 locals took part.

“We opened up the event to the whole community,” says Karen Ramos, community outreach and marketing coordinator for Recreation And Parks Santa Maria. “However, what we did have a lot were the own community members here in this neighborhood.”

The mural is part of Santa Maria’s Public Art Master Plan, which seeks to install works like this in various places throughout the city.

“We have our sights set in 2026 to beautify as much of our town as we can,” says Ramos. “And we’re open to unique projects, to colorful projects, and to projects that reflect the heart in our community.”

In the next few weeks, a digitally printed mural will be installed at the Santa Maria Transit Center.

Santa Maria Recreation And Parks is reviewing submissions.

“We’re super excited about that one,” says Ramos. “That one will be our second poly-tab mural in the city and hopefully more to come.”

Local artists are encouraged to look for future calls for artwork on social media and the city’s website.

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Dave Alley

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. (KEYT) – Cal Poly formally introduced Tim Skipper as its new head football coach Monday morning.

During a press conference held inside the Performing Arts Center, Skipper officially took over the reigns of a Mustangs program that is seeking a re-establish itself as a premiere team in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).

“We’re in paradise right now,” said Skipper. “The Central Coast is one of the most beautiful places in the whole country, so I’m just excited and ready to roll.”

Skipper arrives in San Luis Obispo with significant name recognition following his most recent position as interim head coach at UCLA.

Following the dismissal of DeShaun Foster in October, Skipper was named interim head coach and proceeded to win his first three games, including a stunning victory over then 7th ranked Penn State.

In the next two games after the Penn State win, Skipper led the Bruins to a pair of victories over Michigan State and Maryland before finishing with a record of 3-6 during his nine games as interim head coach.

His stint in Westwood followed another run as interim head coach at his alma mater at Fresno State.

In 2023, Skipper served as acting head coach for the Bulldogs in the team’s 37-10 victory over New Mexico State in the New Mexico Bowl.

Several months later, following the depature of then head coach Jeff Tedford, Skipper was named interim head coach and led the Bulldogs to a record of 6-7 and a bowl game appearance.

“I always will draw back from those days,” said Skipper. “When you take over a program in the middle of the season, that is tough and you have to get the mentality and your culture in days where it usually takes years. It’s a challenge, but I will use all those experiences that will not go to waste.”  

Now, he takes over a Cal Poly program that has struggled since earning its last winning record nearly 10 years ago in 2016,

Over the past nine seasons, the Mustangs have an overall record of 23-69 and a mark of 14-53 in the Big Sky Conference.

Skipper acknowledged there are inherent challenges that are unique to coaching at Cal Poly compared to other universities, but believes he has the ability to bring winning football back to the program.

“Right now, you hear about challenges, but I want to kind of live them, I want to see them. I want to feel them. Once you do that, then what are you going to do? Are you going to go have excuses and go hide? Or are you going to go attack it? I’m going to go attack it full speed ahead. We’re going to recruit our tails off, and we’re going to fight on that practice field, and then we’re going to go out there and go win games. I expect to win. There’s always going to be hurdles. There’s a reason why I’m here, so it’s my job to go fix it, keep the guys mentally correct and mindset and go win. That’s what we’re going to do. Problems are problems and you just have to solve them.” 

New Cal Poly athletic director Carter Henderson has only been on the job for a few weeks himself after he was hired in September to succeed longtime athletic director Don Oberhelman.

Making his first coaching hire, Henderson said he, along with others in the hiring process, identified 17 characteristics they were looking for with a new head coach, including four essential attributes, which included energy and passion, recruiting ability, someone who will establish a program culture and resourcefulness.

Henderson said Skipper not only possesses those four main characteristics, he actually has all 17 of them.

“I was sitting in my office late at night and I was kind of looking at our board and our characteristics, and it hit me that not only did we have a candidate who was best in class and the four preferred characteristics, this candidate actually checked all 17 of our other boxes, which I’ve never seen anything like it before,” said Henderson. “He has such an infectious energy and enthusiasm, which I think our players are really going to benefit from. He has a really unique portfolio of work. He’s been an assistant coach. He’s been a head coach. He’s had a great playing career, so he really checked all the boxes that we were looking for, and I can’t wait for our student-athletes to experience his day-to-day culture that he will develop here.”

While speaking at the podium, Skipper talked about the style of football he intends to bring to the program, he hearkened about his former coach and mentor Pat Hill, who coached at Fresno State for 15 years.

“It’s going to come back to the root of tough, hard nosed, aggressive, fundamental football play with fanatical effort for as long as it takes to win,” said Skipper. “That’s what we’re going to be. We are going to be tough, hard nosed. We’re going to play physical and aggressive. Until they take the pads off and we start pulling flags, this game is physical. It is physical. It is the root of football. Bottom line. And we are going to match that intensity. That’s where we’re going to start I believe the teams inside out, so starting with the offensive line and the defensive line and then the quarterback. You have to be sufficient there. You have to impose your will at all three those spots and we will do that. You will then branch out to where we get to the wideouts and the DBs (defensive backs) and things like that, where speed and athleticism comes into play, but the trenches, we will own the trenches. I’ll tell you that right now.”

However, with the soon-to-be opening of the John Madden Football Center, along with the hiring of Skipper, there is optimism Cal Poly may be able to return to both regional and national prominence within the FCS.

 Now, he takes over a . 

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Tracy Lehr

MAMMOTH LAKES, Calif. (KEYT) Skier and snowboarders are flocking to mammoth and enjoying the runs that are open thanks to storms in Sierra and man made snow.

Members of the Marine Corps Warfare Training Center from Bridgeport skied on Telemark skies and spent the week training at the Mammoth Mountain Inn.

Camera crews with Mammoth sponsor Hyundai shot a new Palisade SUV at McCoy’s and later at the top of the gondola.

That’s where advanced skiers and snowboarders go for steep runs and to enjoy the view.

Devon Stillwell is an Ikon pass holder who knows how to make the most of the conditions.

“It is fun it is a little crusty at the top the wind pushes some of the snow down to the bottom so it is a little fluffy down at the bottom so one you get past that initial descent fine.”

A sign at the peak marks its 11,053 foot elevation.

It is a great place to take pictures.

Youngsters on the Mammoth Mountain Ski and Snowboard Team and others practiced their moves in a new Unbound terrain area above the Broadway Express 6-passenger chair.

Instructors, who include a great granddaughter of Mammoth founder Dave McCoy, are teaching the next generation. 

Perry Rampant teaches in Mammoth during the winter in the U.S. and in Australia during the winters there. Rampart said he hasn’t seen summer in four years.

Rampant is teaches snowboarding.

“Yeah just come have a chat, whatever you want to learn we are happy to help out any abilities or age groups we can help you with whatever you want to learn keep you safe,” said Rampant.

Kids Ski Free week is the second week of December, but you don’t have to be a kid to enjoy seeing the Woolly the mascot.

Woolly shreds on skis or a snowboard and rings a cowbell during stops for photos.

A video crew shot a promo with Woolly midweek.

When the lifts close, visitors can head to The Village at Mammoth to see the tree.

Visitors and locals alike are hoping to see a white Christmas in just a few weeks.

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Tracy Lehr

MONTECITO, Calif. (KEYT) ShelterBox honored Kim Cantin with the 2025 Community Impact Award at the Montecito Club.

Cantin said she knows how important it is to give back and she loves what ShelterBox is going to help people impacted by disasters.

Cantin said she survived the Montecito mudslides of 2018 with the help of the community.

The disaster claimed 23 lives, including her husband and son.

He daughter was rescued after being discovered buried alive.

Cantin tells the story in the book “Where Yellow Flowers Bloom.”

ShelterBox supporter Kenny Loggins also took part in the annual benefit celebration by singing one of his hits that hits home during the holidays.

ShelterBox is marking its 25th year and is currently providing shelter and support for families facing winter after disasters. 

Gifts and contribution are welcome at https://shelterboxusa.org

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