Category: Family

Cottage Health welcomes its first baby of 2026

by Community Contributor • January 5, 2026 • Comments Off

SANTA BARBARA — Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital welcomed its first baby of the new year.

New parents, Jessica and Laurence welcomed their first child, a baby girl named Isla, at 4:41 am on Thursday, January 1, 2026, at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital (SBCH).

Weighing 8 pounds and 16 ounces and measuring 20.5 inches, Baby Isla’s arrival marked an exciting start to the new year.

As the family begins this new chapter, a sentiment they shared felt especially fitting: “A beginning is the time for taking the most delicate care.” — Frank Herbert, Dune

Ventura Music Festival — When was the last time…?

by Community Contributor • January 5, 2026 • Comments Off

If you are a Ventura Music Festival family member, some of our 2025 concerts are surely on your list.

While tradition says, “celebrate your 30th wedding anniversary with pearls,” the Ventura Music Festival presented or cosponsored its most ambitious ever 30th season in 2025 — with a string of 30 treasured performances over eight months for audiences of every music taste in a dazzling array of music styles.

Friendship Center — You did this!

by Community Contributor • January 5, 2026 • Comments Off

Thank you from all of us at Friendship Center for an incredibly impactful 2025.

We look forward to celebrating 2026

(our 50th Anniversary Year!)

with you.

My Way Home (Doing business as Ventura County Community Development Corp.) — Thank you for an impactful 2025!

by Community Contributor • January 5, 2026 • Comments Off

As we come to the close of 2025, I want to begin by saying thank you for being part of our community.

We were able to accomplish a lot of great things in 2025, including:
Assisting 265+ families in achieving or preserving homeownership
Providing 1,130+ individuals with free homeownership and financial education
Providing 515+ families with access to free financial coaching
Financing $15M+ in first mortgages for low- and moderate- income families for the purchase of safe and affordable homes
Awarding or facilitating $1.4M+ in down payment and closing cost assistance for low- and moderate- income families

Casa De Vida Inc. — Looking ahead with gratitude

by Community Contributor • January 5, 2026 • Comments Off

As we near the end of another year, we want to take a moment to say thank you. Your generosity, prayers, and encouragement have meant more to us than we can fully express.

This year brought its share of challenges for Casa De Vida. There were moments of uncertainty that tested our faith and endurance. Yet through it all, God remained faithful, and our community continued to stand with us.

As we reach the end of this final quarter, we are grateful to share that things are beginning to improve. Support has increased, stability is returning, and we are entering the new year with renewed hope. Your belief in this mission has helped us make that progress.

805UNDOCUFund — Impacts of ICE Raids in the Past 4 Days

by Community Contributor • January 3, 2026 • Comments Off

In the past 4 days, nearly 3 out of every 4 kidnappings occurred in Santa Maria.This level of concentration cannot be explained away as “targeted enforcement.” It reflects systemic racial profiling, particularly against Latino and Indigenous migrant communities, including Mixtec and other Indigenous peoples.

This terror is not incidental — it is the intended outcome.

These actions undermine constitutional protections, violate due process, and impose collective punishment on entire communities. The psychological toll, trauma, chronic stress, fear, will last long after these raids end.

Community Alert: Escalating ICE raids across the Central Coast 805. UndocuFund issues urgent call for Community and Financial Support

by Community Contributor • January 3, 2026 • Comments Off

CENTRAL COAST — 805UndocuFund is urgently alerting the community to a devastating escalation in immigration enforcement activity across Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo Counties over the past several days. These actions are causing profound harm to immigrant families, workers, and entire communities, with lasting consequences for public health, safety, and the regional economy.

Over the weekend alone, 805UndocuFund’s 805 Rapid Response Network alongside autonomous community patrol and defense groups SBResiste, and Carpinteria Sin Fronteras, documented 58 ICE kidnappings across the Central Coast:

• Saturday, December 27, 2025:

35 total — 33 in Santa Maria and 2 in San Luis Obispo

• Sunday, December 28, 2025:

23 total — 13 in Lompoc, 8 in Santa Maria, and 2 in Santa Barbara

• Monday, December 29, 2025, ICE continues operations in Santa Maria and San Luis Obispo, terrorizing residents, destabilizing workplaces, and leaving families in crisis.

Copyright Notice

by Community Contributor • January 1, 2026 • Comments Off

Amigos805 does not accept any illustrations, photos or other images and written material that are in violation of copyright law. Individuals and organizations may be required to provide proof of such copyright authorization. Otherwise, please provide only website links to your upcoming events.