Street Smarts: Another honor for Westlake Village BioPartners co-founder
The Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association has named Beth Seidenberg of Westlake Village BioPartners as its 2022 Woman of the Year.
She will be feted live and virtually at the HBA’s annual conference in New York City on May 10.
Seidenberg “has medicine in her blood,” a statement from the association says, noting that as a researcher and venture capitalist she has done “groundbreaking work” on treating diseases from AIDS to arthritis and building 15 successful companies. She holds a B.S. in Biology and Anthropology from Barnard College and attended medical school at the University of Miami School. In 2018, she co-founded Westlake Village BioPartners, a venture capital firm that invests in biotech companies in Southern California.
SOUTH COAST CHAMBER HONORS
The Santa Barbara South Coast Chamber has named its 2022 award winners beginning, with Cox Communications as its Large Business of the Year. Among those also picking up hardware are Hilltop Flowers, Chris Chiarappa of the Santa Barbara Restaurnat Collective, the Better Together Fund and Dave Powers, CEO of Deckers Brands.
E. J. Harrison & Sons earns Milestone honors for celebrating its 90th anniversary and the hospitality award goes to Visit Santa Barbara. Special recognition goes to American Riviera Bank, Community West, Montecito Bank & Trust and Pacific Premier Bank for supporting area small businesses during the pandemic. Tom Patten of Ramada Santa Barbara picks up the chairman’s award. The luncheon is Feb. 25 at the Waterfront Hilton. For tickets and more information, visit sbscchamber.com.
ORTIZ-LEGG ENTERS SLO SUPE’S RACE
San Luis Obispo County Supervisor Dawn Ortiz-Legg is officially running for District 3 in 2022. She was appointed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2021 to fill the vacancy created by the death of Adam Hill. If elected, she will serve a four-year term. She’s been endorsed by a number of San Luis Obispo County leaders, including Andy Pease, Mark Simonin of IBEW and Erick Justesen of RRM Design.
NEW FACE AT RINCON STRATEGIES
Public affairs guru Chris Collier has hired Matt Guthrie as vice president of accounts at his Rincon Strategies consulting group. Before joining Rincon Strategies, Guthrie was senior administrative assistant to Ventura County Supervisor Kelly Long. Guthrie has worked on campaigns and advocacy for nearly two decades, a statement said. He will pursue new clients throughout the state.
LAST CALL FOR SCHOLARSHIPS IN SLO
The Community Foundation San Luis Obispo County has announced a last call for this year’s scholarships, with applications accepted online through Feb. 1 at 11:59 p.m. The 2022 scholarships total over $300,000 and span a range of academic interests. A separate grant program for nonprofits has a March deadline. Information is available via email to [email protected].
JOBS IN LIFE SCIENCE
The Ventura County-based BioScience Alliance, founded by attorney Brent Reinke, now at Stradling, has a new life sciences jobs page to help promote talent recruitment into the fast-growing sector. Check out biosciencealliance.org/life-science-jobs/.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GOLETA
Happy 20th birthday to the city of Goleta, which plans a celebration on March 5 at Rancho La Patera and Stow House. The event was originally scheduled for Feb. 5, 2022, but was postponed one month due to COVID-19 concerns. The city of Goleta and the Goleta Valley Historical Society are hosting.
REWARDING VOLUNTEERS AT HANCOCK
Meanwhile in Santa Maria, Allan Hancock College students will get the chance to earn $10,000 next fall in exchange for completing 450 hours of volunteer service with local nonprofits and government agencies. Hancock is one of 45 colleges and universities selected to participate in the new California College Corps, a service-based college opportunity program.
FREE TAX HELP WITH UNITED WAY
San Luis Obispo’s United Way is one of several United Way organizations offering free tax preparation help. The SLO United Way effort will be at the Los Osos, Arroyo Grande and San Luis Obispo Libraries on Sundays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. during tax season. Volunteers will greet tax payers, help them set up online accounts and navigate the MyFreeTaxes.org software.
LATEST FROM SANTA PAULA
John Marquez of the Santa Paula Chamber writes that major accomplishments for the chamber last year included starting a weekly farmer’s market, downtown improvements, the return of the Christmas parade and the return of filming. More information at santapaulachamber.com.
RESONANT IN THE WSJ
A photo of a vibrating filter for 5G phone service made by Goleta firm Resonant made it into the Wall Street Journal’s Saturday edition on Jan. 22. The article focused on the complexities involved in rolling out 5G on a global scale.
FINAL SCENES
SAVINGS BOOKED: CSU Channel Islands reports that its “OpenCI” effort to save students money on textbooks has netted more than $1.7 million.
HOSPICE ILLUMINATES: Hospice of Santa Barbara renews its Illuminate speaker series with Sharon Salzberg, who will present “A Resilient Heart” on Feb. 16 at 6 p.m. The event is free, but registration is required.
LIVELY PARKS: Lompoc City Council has voted to adopt an ordinance authorizing temporary cannabis events in designated city parks, along with voting to establish a permitting and fees for cannabis events.
MEET THE AUTHORS: Bryn Turnbull, Lucy Sanna, Howard Jay Smith and others showcase a free virtual book event on Feb. 16 at p.m. Check out adventuresbythebook.com/event/book-bingo-2-16-22/.
