Due to the almost overwhelming Covid-19 related needs of residents, our Supportive Housing Program saw requests for assistance increase by 217%.
Help was given to navigate the unemployment process, secure pandemic related benefits, access food programs, and disaster relief assistance. Social workers made hundreds of wellness phone calls to the vulnerable, providing a friendly voice during a time of isolation and escalating need. Keep residents connected with a gift to Supportive Housing.
Moorpark College, 7075 Campus Rd, 10-7 this location requires pre-registration at www.vccovid.com
Freedom Park, Camarillo, 515 Eubanks St., 10-7 this location requires pre-registration at www.vccovid.com
Oxnard College, 4000 S. Rose Ave, 10-7 this location requires pre-registration at www.vccovid.com
Ventura County Fairgrounds, Enter on Shoreline Drive 9-6 (walk up location) (*A private company is also offering testing at the fairgrounds for a fee. It’s not the same entrance as the County’s walk up. The County’s tests are free.)
Santa Paula E. Main and N. Ojai 10-7
Westminster Free Clinic, 1800 S “C” Street Oxnard, 10-4
There are 3,178 new cases of COVID-19 (Includes Fri, Sat, Sun)
11 additional deaths: 96 year old female, 82 year old female, 68 year old female, 54 year old female, 92 year old female, 82 year old female, 53 year old male, 89 year old male, 87 year old male, all with comorbidities, in addition to a 96 year old female, and a 81 year old female, with no co-morbidities. Our thoughts are with their loved ones during this time.
23,511 new tests performed
Current doubling time is 21.72 days.
Current hospitalizations: 372 and current ICU: 69.
Ventura Adult ICU Bed Availability 1.5%
Using active imaginations and active bodies, kids will dive into a world where anything is possible! Physical theatre blends comedy, improvisation, clowning, and acting into a one of a kind learning experience that engages students verbally, physically, visually, and intellectually. Ages 7-11 and 12-16
Light has long been an object of fascination for award-winning local artist Anette Power, informing both how and what she paints. There is, after all, light that can be seen and painted, and then there’s the joy and lightness of feeling that can only be conveyed through an artist’s choice of subject matter. In “Silver Linings: Journey of Light,” Power’s upcoming solo exhibition of 35 oil paintings at the Santa Paula Art Museum, the artist hopes that her art will inspire viewers to consider the bright spots in their own lives.
We wouldn’t put it past 2020 to give the central coast a snowstorm. Several Museum staff members have “Snow on the Beach” on their 2020 bingo cards. If you think that’s unlikely, you might be surprised to know that Ventura County’s coastal areas have seen snow several times in recent history.
The winter of 1948-1949 was a cold one and by January 8, 1949 the County suffered over $1 million in crop losses. There was a cold snap the first week of January that split the bark of citrus trees in Wheeler Canyon.
Every year, Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation (TBCF) provides guidance and companionship, as well financial and emotional support to families in the Tri-County areas who have a child facing pediatric cancer. This year, due to the pandemic, life has become tougher on these families who have a child who is immunocompromised.
Whether it be a single family household, or an entire family in need, TBCF has offered hope, comfort and stability during this time, when they need it more than ever. Families battling pediatric cancer have been dealing with isolation, fear, uncertainty and the loss of “normal” for so much longer than we’ve been fighting this pandemic and they’ve been doing it alone. This is why TBCF created Season of Hope, a campaign that aims to help give these families a joyful holiday season and support them with basic needs going into 2021.
I am an immigrant and I thank the Great Spirit that I am alive today. To be able to celebrate the holidays and 2020 years end, with my family, my loved ones, and friends. Even in this terribly painful, agonizing and deadly year of the COVID-19 pandemic, I am committed to the “good trouble” revolutionary struggle with faith, eternal gratitude and love cautiously navigating adelante into the coming New Year.
I am a 70 year old Chicano who has weathered and been humbled by the long twisted, unpredictable, sometimes euphoric, and at times wicked turn of my life’s trajectory. I am eternally grateful for both the velvet kisses and the many ass kicking that I have received in revolutionary service to my community! I do not want to die, just yet, I have a lot to contribute. But if the time comes for me to return to celestial star dust, I’m cool. While I have breath in my lungs and love in heart life here are some of the things that I am especially grateful for.
There are 751 new cases of COVID-19
There have been 8 additional deaths: 64 year old male, 65 year old male, 87 year old female, 89 year old female, 65 year old male, 84 year old female, 43 year old male all with comorbidities, and a 50 year old male with no comorbidities. Our thoughts are with their loved ones during this time.
8,148 new tests performed
Current doubling time is 28.9 days.
Current hospitalizations: 327 and current ICU: 67.
You are invited to submit proposals for our ongoing Artist Showcase in the storefront windows at Victoria Ave. and Moon Dr. in Ventura. Each of four storefront windows will be dedicated to a unified installation created by a single artist or created as a collaborative project by more than one artist.
2020 was a year of challenge, grief, longing, questioning, reflection and, hopefully, insight. To kick off the new year, we are looking for artwork that represents your experience of this time. Selected artists will conceive of each window as a diorama, a space in which an installation of accumulation, sculptural pieces, work in any medium uses the three-dimensional space dynamically.
Greetings from the Social Justice Fund for Ventura County (SJFVC). This update is the last of 2020, a very tough year for all with the pandemic and a toxic political atmosphere. Despite all this difficulty, I take heart that there are many people, young people, struggling for fairness and equity, and trying to bend the arc of history towards justice. SJFVC, thanks to our donors and supporters, has been able to support this effort. Here is the latest update:
Ventura County we need your help. Our hospitals are filling up with COVID-19 patients. The cases continue to rise. During other emergencies like recent fires you could see the smoke. You could see the devastation. This emergency is like a fire but the people impacted are often not seen. Please help us respond to the emergency by following the public health guidance. We must bring down the numbers.
It’s hard to know what to say at the close of a year like this one, so we thought we’d leave it to artists Jessie Arms Botke and Cornelis Botke and a new virtual exhibit of their famous handmade holiday cards.
We’ve said it before, but it’s very much worth repeating: all of us here at the Santa Paula Art Museum are so grateful to our community, members, donors, docents, teaching artists, board of directors, and fellow staff members for encouraging us to continue the work that we love and believe to be important. Thank you. We wish you a healthy and happy holiday season.
While it remains uncertain when California museums will be able to reopen to the public, the Santa Paula Art Museum already has a lot planned for 2021. Check out our upcoming virtual offerings below!
The holidays are here and for many it is hard to find joy after the year we’ve experienced. This is usually an exciting time to be making wonderful memories with our close friends and family but this year, whether you are grieving the loss of someone special or the loss of normal life due to COVID-19, we all can agree there is an empty space where our typical holiday traditions used to be.
Though grief is a normal part of life, it can be especially difficult to cope with loss during, what is supposed to be, one of the most joyous times of the year. We are all grieving in some way and Hospice of Santa Barbara (HSB) is offering support during this time to help us get through this, from grief counseling, to COVID-19 resources, to Speaker Series and holiday events via Zoom – HSB has created an online community to support those grieving this holiday season.
Dear Community Member,
You are invited to explore the new MVC Gallery Marketplace! The MVC Gallery Marketplace has been created to help regional artists sell their works. The Museum’s Fine Arts Committee and Cultural Team has selected notable artists working in many media, who represent some of the finest work in our county.
(We have partnered with the UPS Store at 35 W Main Street in Ventura for easy and secure shipping.)
When Latinos in this country think of indigenous music originating in Mexico, our thoughts and hearts turn wistfully to the Aztec dancers we see performing at our cultural festivals, political protests and religious celebrations. The music consists of unfiltered rhythms from the sacred beating heart of Aztec ritual that celebrated life and death as both sides of the same mystical coin. Copal incense wafts past us, reminding us of the frankincense and myrrh that is cast into the air along with our prayers at Catholic rites such as the exposition of the Eucharist and funerals.
Out of Nowhere, Disease, Death and Dread: At the start of the year no one knew what the Corona virus was, by the end of 2020 there is no one left in the world that does not know what COVID-19 virus is, and had not been devastated by its relentless and deadly onslaught. This day Monday, December 14, 2020 the United States death toll from the covid-19 virus topped 300,000 and worldwide the death count has moved pasted 1.62 million souls that have succumb to this deadly virus that has infected the entire world, with no let-up into the foreseeable future. It seems that everyone in this country, indeed throughout the world, in some painful way knows of someone close that has died or suffered horribly from complications brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ventura County,
There are 731 new cases of COVID-19.
There have been 3 additional deaths (93 year old male, 85 year old female and 68 year old female, all with comorbidities). Our thoughts are with the loved ones of those who have passed away.
Current doubling time is 37.5 days.
Current hospitalizations: 249 and current ICU: 55.
The Library’s Special Research Collections to become home to the American Radio Archives.
December is my favorite month of the year: lights twinkling on houses, a slight chill in the air, and the holiday cheer of neighbors and strangers wishing each other well. While this year’s holiday season looks much different, I’m touched by the generosity of our community and the dedication of our nonprofit partners who find a way to provide their vital services despite the restrictions.
Righetti High School’s ASTRA Club will wrap up its food drive at the end of this week, delivering donated items to families and veterans challenged by these unprecedented times.
The last day to drop off nonperishable items is between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. in the parking lot in front of the library this Friday. The food drive deliveries begin Friday and continue Monday.
Called a Reverse Advent Calendar Schoolwide Food Drive, students are encouraging each other to give something each day instead of getting something each day.
DO YOU KNOW OF A CHILD IN NEED OF CHRISTMAS PRESENTS?
If you know a family who needs help
providing Christmas presents to their children,
please invite them to one of these events.
Student leaders lit up Pioneer Valley High School for a “Holiday Lights” drive-through event on Saturday, December 12.
Adding joy to the season, the PV Student Council and helpers decorated an area of the campus with holiday lights, candy canes and cheer. Visitors joined in with more than 300 vehicles including some that were also decorated.
The event was designed to “give our community a place for the family to see holiday lights and celebrate the season with our PVHS family,’’ according to Panther Activity Director Lisa Walters.
The following COVID-19 testing locations are open today:
Oxnard College 4000 Rose Ave 10-7
Moorpark College 7075 Campus Rd 10-7
Santa Paula E Main/N Ojai 10-7
El Rio, Revive Community Church 2640 Alvarado St Oxnard 1-7
Community Park, 901 S Kimball Ventura 9-3:30
Looking out for the welfare of older adults is hard enough during a pandemic, to say nothing of the holiday season with its increased risk of loneliness and isolation.
According to research conducted by CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) Assistant Professor of Health Science Ronald Berkowsky, Ph.D., investigating the impacts of elder mistreatment should go beyond assessing physical safety and mental health. Berkowsky’s research suggests that elder advocates should consider how well older Americans are doing in terms of human potential issues such as self-worth, sense of purpose, autonomy, and positive relationships.
Animals are back at Gorongosa National Park after a civil war, but the savanna community doesn’t look quite how it used to.
Amazon takes on the World: The creation of Amazon, in 1994, by Jeff Bezos, is by any standard an incredible American entrepreneurial success story. …We, the 1,500 workforce and community, were excluded from the initial bargaining and negotiation process, we will not be excluded from future workforce deliberations and collective bargaining actions that will assure the protection, the health and safety of the workers, their family and the entire greater Oxnard area. “We are excited to join the (Oxnard) community” is the way Andre Almeida, Regional Director of Amazon Operations, put it. The community of Oxnard is also excited about the new business partnership, but we will also be vigilant and support our local workforce to make sure that Amazon in Oxnard gives as much to the community as it takes!
Pioneer Valley High School is pleased to announce that Anthony Morales will be taking over the Athletic Director duties beginning in the spring semester.
“I can’t tell you how excited I am to be at PVHS with such an outstanding academic reputation, to be at a school with such a phenomenal sports background,’’ Morales said.
Longtime coach, and current AD, Jeff Monteiro is retiring in December after a remarkable 39 year coaching career, and 34 years as a respected teacher in the Santa Maria Joint Union High School District. Coach Monteiro helped open Pioneer Valley HS in 2004 when he came over as the Social Science Department Chairman and Varsity Football Coach. He was integral in helping build a successful athletic program PV while coaching football, wrestling and track.
Local human services agency urges community support to open their hearts and homes to children and older youth in (foster)care, as additional census shows a growth in need during the pandemic. VENTURA — The holidays are a special time of…
Dear MVC supporter,
A gift to the Museum of Ventura County serves your community by helping us…
…Make history accessible. The Research Library has digitized and made available 2,500 photographs and responded to over 150 remote research inquiries.
…Provide virtual education lessons and field trips to students, teachers, and parents. These programs help kids with remote learning and are designed to meet the specific needs of low to moderate income students.
…Present important free livestream programs and online content that changes daily. These included the first installment of our Changemaker series with Dolores Huerta and Jorge Corralejo, interviews with renowned journalist Ivor Davis, and a Dia de los Muertos altar workshop with Dr. Roberto Vargas.
Classical music composers throughout history have taken cues from their own cultural roots. They wove the fabric of their ancient and folk heritages into their music to produce masterful works that resonate with listeners. The composers were influenced by music that stirred their spirits by dint of its power. These compositions are melded together by forces that we dare not try to understand. As we listen to them, we discern the echoes of something that accompanied our ancestors as they danced, prayed, or celebrated. Our DNA is imprinted onto the soul of these classic works.
Girls Inc. of Carpinteria member Laura Flores, 17, has been selected as one of 11 girls from Girls Inc. affiliates across the U.S. to serve on the 2020-2021 Girls Inc. National Teen Advocacy Council (TAC). Flores will be the second member from the Carpinteria affiliate to serve in this national leadership capacity.
The TAC is a leadership body made up of Girls Inc. high school students (ages 14-18) who advise and inform Girls Inc. National’s advocacy work, by learning about and sharing issues facing girls in their respective communities. TAC members support Girls Inc. advocacy efforts through writing blog posts, sharing messages on social media, and speaking publicly on behalf of the Girls Inc. network.
Good Afternoon, There are 254 new cases for today (29 (11.4%) of which have a lab collection from 12/3 or earlier) 1,891 additional people tested and 0. Current doubling time is 35.7. Current hospitalizations are 151 and current ICU is 42.
The State’s Stay Home Order is in effect. Learn more about the order by clicking here.
View this week’s update at the link below:
With the holidays in full swing–Chanukah starting today, December 10 and Christmas right around the corner, here are four experiences that will bring much-needed joy during the season at the Ventura Harbor Village.
The Ventura County Air Pollution Control Board approved $1.2 million in emission reduction grants for Ventura County businesses through the Community Air Protection (CAP) Incentive Program. This is the third year that the Ventura County Air Pollution Control District (VCAPCD) has participated in the CAP Incentive Program.
This year’s grants will help fund the replacement of two (2) diesel school buses with new, zero-emission, electric school buses and the corresponding installation of the necessary electric vehicle charging equipment for these buses. In addition, this year’s grants will help pay for new, lower-emission equipment to replace ten (10) older, higher-pollution diesel engines in agricultural equipment. The total investment in 2020 air quality projects, including the cost-share contributed by grant recipients, will be over $1.8 million. Since 2018, VCAPCD has awarded over $3.6 million in CAP incentives to help businesses operating in Ventura County replace older equipment with cleaner, low-emission equipment.
Shop our picks for the perfect holiday gift at GIFT STUDIO!
Located in Paseo Nuevo Shopping Center, GIFT STUDIO is MCASB’s holiday pop-up shop open from December 10, 2020 to January 3, 2021!
We invite the Santa Barbara community to shop local and support MCASB’s educational and exhibition programs. By purchasing original and limited edition artwork from local and internationally acclaimed artists you support the Museum and the Santa Barbara arts community.
Join us this Saturday, December 12th at 11:00 AM PST for a morning filled with fun and creativity! We will be demonstrating how to create stamps using a variety of household items. Once we’re done, you can use your stamps to adorn greeting cards, make your very own gift wrap, or create other works of art!
This event is free to all, and we encourage people of all ages and skill levels to attend. Children under the age of 12 should be accompanied or assisted by a parent or guardian to ensure all safety measures are taken when using tools being used to carve the stamp materials. After securing your spot for the event you will be sent a Zoom link and a list of supplies you will need. See you there!
The VCAC CARES Grant application will award funds to qualifying organizations determined through this application. The money awarded is allocated from a portion of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) funds initially given to the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) who granted a portion of the dollars to the California Arts Council (CAC) to be distributed by their State and Local Partners (SLPs) to arts groups serving populations disproportionately affected by COVID-19. This designation was determined by the NEA and CAC.
Good Evening, There are 308 new cases for today (7 (2.3%) of which have a lab collection from 12/1 or earlier) 1,936 additional people tested and 6 additional deaths (5 males and 1 female between the ages of 51-93, all but one with comorbidities). Current doubling time is 47.9. Current hospitalizations are 142 and current ICU is 40.
The State’s Stay Home Order is in effect. Learn more about the order by clicking here.
Please continue to wear a mask, social distance, wash hands frequently and avoid gatherings to help slow the spread of COVID-19.
A press conference will take place on 12/9/20 at 1pm. It will be streamed at www.venturacountyrecovers.org and Facebook @CountyofVentura.
A testing location update will be sent to update on any closures for tomorrow. Today, there were closures due to adverse weather.
During its first year, the coronavirus has ravaged Latino families and communities in California and other states far more seriously than it has non-Latino populations.
How much worse? For example, Latinos make up 39.3% of California’s population (15.5 million people), yet they constitute a far larger percentage (48.5%) of all COVID-19?related deaths in the state. In contrast, non-Hispanic whites make up 36.6% of California’s population (14.5 million people), but have accounted for only 30.4% of all the state’s COVID-19 deaths.
Gold Coast Transit District (GCTD) is excited to announce the fifth annual appearance of its popular “Elf on the GO” holiday bus. The 40-foot bus is now appearing throughout GCTD’s service area through January 3, 2021.
Each year the community awaits the debut of “Elf on the GO” to see what those little elves are up to. This year’s elves are larger than life and will bring joy to the communities of Ojai, Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Ventura and the County areas in between these cities. One mischievous elf even invites onlookers to take a “sELFie” from afar!
Black men in Washington D.C. tend to die 17 years sooner than white men according to a nationally-recognized study conducted by 2015 CSU Channel Islands (CSUCI) Sociology graduate Max Roberts, who is now pursuing a Ph.D. at Utah State University (USU).
Overall, the gap in life expectancy between Black and white Americans has been shrinking in the U.S., but Roberts pointed out that those statistics conceal ongoing disparities, with the most alarming results coming out of Washington D.C., where, in 2016, the longevity gap between Black and white men was more than 400% greater than the national gap, with white men living over 17 more years than Black men.
December 8, 2020 Top News No Refuge from the Heat Scientists find marine protected areas do little to mitigate the effects of climate change. Read More ? An Award of Distinction Suma Ikeuchi receives the Hsu Prize for best book…
The State’s Stay Home Order is in effect. Learn more about the order by clicking here.
Please continue to wear a mask, social distance, wash hands frequently and avoid gatherings to help slow the spread of COVID-19.
An update will be provided to the Board of Supervisors on 12/8/20. View the meeting beginning at 8:30 am by clicking here.
The timeline for Gold Coast Health Plan’s pharmacy program transition has been extended to April 1, 2021.
The new program by the state Department of Health Care Services (DHCS), known as Medi-Cal Rx, will carve-out all prescription benefits from managed care plans like GCHP. Upon implementation, all pharmacy claims will be submitted directly to the state via its pharmacy benefit manager, Magellan Medicaid Administration, Inc. DHCS announced the new implantation date last month, citing “the ongoing uncertainties caused by the COVID-19 public health emergency” for its decision to extend the timeline.
IN RESPONSE TO THE DECLARED STATE AND LOCAL EMERGENCIES DUE TO THE NOVEL CORONAVIRUS, AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR’S RECENT ORDER TO LIMIT INDOOR OPERATIONS AS A PRECAUTIONARY MEASURE TO HELP SLOW THE SPREAD OF COVID-19, THE HALL OF ADMINISTRATION IS CLOSED TO THE PUBLIC. TO FIND OUT HOW YOU MAY ELECTRONICALLY ATTEND THE BOARD MEETING AND PROVIDE PUBLIC COMMENT PLEASE REFER TO PAGE 2 OF THIS AGENDA
The State of California’s new regional Stay Home Order takes effect on Sunday, December 6 at 11:59 PM in Ventura County and in all counties in Southern California. Here’s what that means for Ventura County schools: Schools at all grade…
The State of California’s Stay Home Order will go into effect on Sunday, December 6 at midnight in Ventura County and in all Counties in Southern California, after the Southern California Region’s hospital ICU capacity dropped below 15%. The order closes many businesses and activities and urges people to stay at home whenever possible.
The California Department of Public Health reported on Friday evening that Southern California’s ICU capacity dropped to 13.1%, triggering the Stay Home Order.
