Jewels by the Sea

Hospice of Santa Barbara hosted its 7th annual Jewels by the Sea lunch at the Coral Casino when more than 340 guests helped raise a record $165,000 for the nonprofit.

The sun suffused bash, co-chaired by Robin Himovitz, Melinda Goodman-Kemp, and Jill Kitnick, was emceed by KEYT-TV husband and wife anchors CJ Ward and Beth Farnsworth with keynote speaker District Attorney Joyce Dudley, who emotionally recounted the premature deaths of her father, Morty, and her husband, John, who died at 55.

She praised the help given by the organization, headed by David Selberg, as guests watched a video about Manuel Figueroa, who was diagnosed with lymphoma and survived.

“It was a frightening and confusing time,” he explained. “Life becomes very overwhelming. Hospice helped me survive.”

The Partnership Award went to Suzanne Grimmesey, who works for the Santa Barbara County Department of Behavioral Wellness, the Legal Award to the James S. Bower Foundation, and the Volunteer Award to the No One Dies Alone Program, a collaboration between Hospice and Visiting Nurse and Hospice Care.

Among the tony torrent of supporters were Geoff Green, Das Williams, Tom Sturgess, Perri Harcourt, Beverley Jackson, George Leis, Anne Towbes, police chief Lori Luhnow, Harry and Judi Weisbart, Charles Zimmer, Lois Capps, Alixe Mattingly, David Edelman, Charles Caldwell, Peter and Gerd Jordano, Marybeth Carty, sheriff Bill Brown, and Steve Ortiz.