A Message from
David Selberg
Dear Friends,

As we enter 2022, I have an overpowering sense of deja vu. At this time last year, we were at the height of a COVID surge, but there was hope on the horizon with the recent development of several vaccines. This year, the number of daily cases of the Omicron variant has skyrocketed past anything we've experienced to date. The silver lining now is that most of those who have been vaccinated have strong protection from getting seriously ill. With the sheer volume of new cases, however, hospitals across the country are stretched to their limits.  While we are all suffering from COVID fatigue, projections indicate that numbers may drop as quickly as they rose. Now, if we only had some assurance that another variant wasn't around the corner.

At Hospice of Santa Barbara, we have also had to adjust to the changing health crisis. Our team has actually become pretty good at managing these ebbs and flows and, of course, death and grief never take a day off, and so the work continues on. One exciting program that will be continuing in the new year is our free illuminate Speaker Series, which began as a way to address the feelings of anxiety, grief, and uncertainty that we are all experiencing because of COVID. Our first speaker will be Sharon Salzberg, back by popular demand, on Wednesday, February 16th at 6:00 PM PDT. Salzberg will explore the resilience of the human spirit as we look at, and practice, the tools that help deepen steadiness of mind and compassionate understanding. We hope you will all join us for this very special presentation! Additional information including how to register for this event is below.

So let me take this opportunity to wish you a new year of healing, patience, loving-kindness, and compassion. 


Be well,
David Selberg
The Missing
By Perie Longo
Perie Longo leads Hospice of Santa Barbara's (HSB) bereavement poetry/writing group. What attracted Perie to Hospice originally was the support she received from HSB in the aftermath of her husband's death. Perie is a marriage and family therapist, a registered poetry therapist, and was poet laureate of Santa Barbara (2007-09). Perie recites the poem she wrote for our 38th Annual Light Up A Life in the video below and is copied below.
The Missing
 
light lights light
                       ~Raymond Roseliep

When our loved ones let go their last breath,
it’s never the right time, pushes us to the edge
as if the lights have gone out, left us groping in the dark
looking, reaching for those missing, hopefully soon back.
 
Never the right time, death pushes us to the edge.
As if that’s not enough, the virus locked us inside
looking, reaching for those missing hopefully soon back.
Then out of nowhere our faces returned in frames of light!
 
Though the virus locked us, touch-starved, in place,
our eyes and voices connected to many we missed.
Strange as it is, we appeared again in frames of light,
the wide darkness allowing grief to speak. 
 
Our eyes and voices connected to many we missed,
I think of our ancestors who huddled around fires,
told stories that chased off the cold so grief could speak
under stars in the language of light lighting life.
 
Reminded of our ancestors who huddled around fires,
we too repeat the cycles, year upon year
under stars in the language of light lighting life
so that even the missing draw near.
 
We might see them in the flicker of a child’s smile
though we still push away the dark—
suddenly within our hearts, love creates a light
that endures long after our loved ones’ last breath.

Sharon Salzberg Returns
Wednesday, February 16, 2022
From 6:00-7:00 PM PDT
Sharon Salzberg will present
A Resilient Heart virtually on Wednesday, February 16, 2022 from 6:00-7:00 PM PDT.

In this presentation, Sharon Salzberg explores the resilience of the human spirit as we look at and practice the tools that help deepen steadiness of mind and compassionate understanding–allowing us to be with the constantly changing and shifting landscape of trying to make a difference in our world.
People who care for others play a vital role in our communities, and often it is caregivers (we are all caregivers to those around us) who support the front lines of our society: helping those who face challenges on a daily basis.

However, this support can come at a high cost. How can we best maintain compassion for ourselves while caring for others? How do we infuse our actions with the wisdom that we must do our best, while knowing that we're not in control of the unfolding of events, of the choices of others, of the rhythm of healing, or the pace of change?

This live and FREE event will consist of a talk, short meditation practice, and discussion.
Interpretación simultanea al español disponsible.
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSOR
Are you interested in becoming a sponsor for the illuminate Speaker Series? ​Sponsors help make it possible for us to bring in amazing speakers like Pico Iyer, Frank Ostaseski, and Roshi Joan Halifax to you free of charge. We're currently building our speakers roster for 2022 so please consider making a donation or becoming a sponsor to help make this possible. We couldn't host this series without you! Contact Christina Ferguson at cferguson@hospiceofsb.org or visit hospiceofsb.org/hsbseries.
Coffee With A Black Guy
Wednesday, January 26
7:00 PM PDT
Join this free and important community conversation on Wednesday, January 26th at 7:00 PM PDT via Zoom as Coffee With A Black Guy (CWABG) presents, Processing Loss: A conversation on mental health and the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 deaths on BIPOC communities.
CWABG founder James Joyce III will be joined in conversation by Michael Cruse, Bereavement Services Manager for Hospice of Santa Barbara who will offer a “Human” perspective and the role of “Culture” on the subject of bereavement and mourning. That coupled with the impacts of several highly visible cultural losses and the processing of loss throughout our history –think Strange Fruit, provides context for an engaging and enlightening conversation about processing loss and grief. 
Happy work anniversary to Tianna, Sharon, and David!
Thank you, Tianna, Sharon, and David, for all your contributions to Hospice of Santa Barbara! We are eternally grateful for the dedication and passion of our staff. To learn more about our wonderful staff, please visit our website.
Tianna Swede, ACSW
Patient Care Services Manager celebrates her
11-year anniversary.
Sharon Vineall, LCSW
Bereavement Counselor celebrates her
10-year anniversary.
David Selberg,
Chief Executive Officer celebrates his
7-year anniversary.
Are you an Amazon shopper? Did you know that when you shop using AmazonSmile, the company will donate 0.5 percent of your purchase to Hospice of Santa Barbara?
Over the last four years, AmazonSmile has donated nearly $900 to Hospice of Santa Barbara!

AmazonSmile is a simple and automatic way for you to support Hospice of Santa Barbara every time you shop – and it comes at zero cost to you. It's a donation made by Amazon in your honor. You just have to select Hospice of Santa Barbara at smile.Amazon.com and use smile.Amazon.com instead of Amazon.com whenever you shop!
Thank you for all that you do to support our work!
 
It is a remarkable privilege to witness the difference we make for those we serve on a daily basis. It is only through your generosity that we can accomplish all that we do and will in the future.
Phone: (805) 563-8820
Fax: (805) 563-8821