Stepping Out

Records were broken when CALM – Child Abuse Listening Mediation – welcomed 330 guests to its annual Stepping Stones lunch at the Coral Casino raising a hefty $230,000, $80,000 more than expected.

Speakers for the non-profit, which is just turning 50, were president and chief executive Alana Walczak and Dr. Andria Ruth, a graduate of Yale and Harvard Medical School, who is a pediatrician at the Goleta Neighborhood Clinic.

She is also the medical director for the Santa Barbara Resiliency Project, partnered with CALM, which focuses on screening and intervention for children exposed to adverse childhood experiences and the promotion of resilience for such children and their families. In two year’s time there will be ten clinics featuring the program.

The event also premiered a new video by local photographer Isaac Hernandez, whose work is often featured in this column, while the ubiquitous Geoff Green emceed.

Among the supporters were Merryl Brown, Laura Capps, Judy Egenolf, Lucy Firestone, Janet Garufis, Belle Hahn, Diana MacFarlane, Alice Van de Water, Barbara Ben-Horin, Das Williams, Monica Babich, Alixe Mattingly, Valerie Montgomery, Nancy McGrath, Susan Gulbransen, Nancy Ransohoff, Stephanie Sokolove, Adele Rosen, Michael and Nati Smith, and Maryan Schall.