Each year, KIDS Network celebrates the contributions of young people in Santa Barbara County by honoring individuals or groups who have made a significant positive impact in our community . The spirit of the Youth Impact Awards is to recognize youth who are outstanding because they have taken initiative to address and/or overcome adversity and have made a difference in the lives of others. Nominees may be recognized for demonstrating leadership while facing adversity in their own lives; or...

Children and Family Resource Services is a young 501(3)(c) formed in partnership with Santa Barbara County Education Office. While the nonprofit is young, our multiple programs have been operating for many years, providing comprehensive programs to support the health and resilience of the children and families in Santa Barbara County. Our vision is Healthy and Resilient Children and Families. Our mission is to provide high quality, family-focused, strength-based services to build resilient...

By Nathalie Vera, KEYT, December 11, 2019 In Santa Barbara County, 80 percent of children in the foster care system are there because of the drug epidemic, including opioids. “When parents become addicted, the kids are the ones that are paying the price," said Kim Colby Davis, executive director at CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) of Santa Barbara County. “More and more frequently we're seeing heroine, and we're seeing the opioid addictions.” CASA volunteers help the courts decide on...

By Delaney Smith, Santa Barbara Independent, February 5, 2020 As part of Santa Barbara County’s overhaul of its criminal justice system, the Board of Supervisors accepted a nearly $6 million grant Tuesday to fund a treatment program for minor offenders suffering from drug addiction or mental illness in an effort to divert them from jail. “Basically what it means is we are taking the most vulnerable individuals who suffer from substance-abuse and mental-health issues — who often end up in our...

Bridges to Resilience is a conference for anyone who works with children, youth and families, has an interest in the science of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), and has the goal of building a resilient and resourceful Santa Barbara County. This conference provides an opportunity to build capacity for higher levels of collaboration by giving educators, early care providers, social workers, probation officers, law enforcement, health and mental health professionals, resource families,...

In an interview regarding how she and her organization are adjusting to a new work environment, continuing to serve their community, and remaining resilient amid all things COVID-19, Ann McCarty, Executive Director of the North County Rape Crisis Center (or, "the Center," as McCarty and her colleagues often refer to their organization), shared that the Center is finding itself busier than ever. McCarty reported that the influx of work that she and her employees are experiencing is nothing of...

Welcome to Resilient Santa Barbara County! Children & Family Resource Services is connecting and engaging many partners, and is actively educating and supporting our community in so many ways. Thank you for being champions in this movement!

Taundra Pitchford, the Child Care Planning Council Coordinator at the Santa Barbara County Education Office (SBCEO), shared with me in an interview that SBCEO, not unlike other organizations within the Resilient Santa Barbara County ACEs Connection Network, remains open and operational amid the ever-evolving Coronavirus turmoil we find ourselves navigating. Pitchford commented, when asked how her work has shifted since the outbreak of the virus, "While I was busy before, I have never worked...

September 10, 2020 Resilient Santa Barbara County is proud to support the efforts of the statewide ACEs Aware initiative, led by the California Department of Health Care Services and the Office of the California Surgeon General. This initiative seeks to change health outcomes and save lives by helping Medi-Cal providers understand the importance of screening for Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and responding to patients with trauma-informed care. ACEs Aware offers Medi-Cal providers...

Amid the evolving COVID-19 pandemic, Resilient Santa Barbara County (RSBC) network partners continue to collaborate on projects that promote resiliency in our community. LegacyWorks Santa Barbara, an RSBC community partner, has been working diligently to facilitate and manage a countywide public-private collaborative effort to launch a new and improved Santa Barbara Community Data Dashboard. Outside of being a community partner with the organization themselves, LegacyWorks has been working...

SANTA BARBARA – The Santa Barbara County Network of Care, a partnership of the Pediatric Resiliency Collaborative (PeRC) and Resilient Santa Barbara County, has awarded more than $800,000 in buffering services grants to 19 community organizations addressing toxic stress in children and youth. Children who experience toxic stress, or high levels of adversity, have been shown to experience disruptions in their health and development. Cottage Health, on behalf of PeRC and Resilient Santa...

The Bridges to Resilience conference is one of the most recognized conferences in California’s coastal tri-counties. Bridges to Resilience seeks to increase understanding of the widespread impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), and provide hopeful strategies to build resilience within our communities and across systems of care throughout the Central Coast.

We are grateful to be able to share this beautiful story of resilience, partnership, and the transformative strength of love. Please read on to learn about Angels Foster Care parents, Christine and Jacob, and the inspiring example they are setting for family preservation. Photo, from left to right: Angels Foster Care Parents, Christine and Jacob Tyler with their children; Angels child Sophia* with her father, Matthew* Credit: Kelsey Crews Photo Sophia’s* journey in life began with a...

Beautiful story. Thank you for supporting this extended family!

Thank you, Angels Foster Care, for focusing on possibilities and supporting first families and resource parents so that children who come into the world under difficult circumstances can receive the love and care they need to thrive!

As we approach the holidays, we want to share tips to get support in our community and to expand your mental health education with workshops and mental health first aid training. We have shared the YouthWell calendar filled with programs for parents, teachers, and teens as well as a community calendar of things happening around Santa Barbara County. This SUNDAY, Nov 3rd , is a wonderful opportunity for TEENS and FAMILIES to learn from many SB County organizations about meaningful ways to...