Meet the Team

Gwyn Lurie
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President, Montecito Union School Board
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Co-Chair, Santa Barbara Human Rights Watch
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Former Chair of Santa Barbara County Child Welfare Safety Net Task Force

Pat McElroy
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38 years of fire and emergency response in Santa Barbara County
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13 years experience on Type 1 National Incident Management Team
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30+ years of political action in Santa Barbara, statewide and nationally on public safety issues

Joe Cole
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40-year Montecito resident; Chair, Montecito Planning Commission; real estate and corporate law
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Publisher, Santa Barbara News-Press ; Publisher, Santa Barbara Independent, Inc.; Director, Jordano's, Inc. and other public and private companies
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President, Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara; Co-President, Montecito Educational Foundation; President, Knowlwood Tennis Club; Vice-President, Alice Tweed Tuohy Foundation, Santa Barbara Zoo

Mary Rose
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Manages full service PR, government relations and strategic communications firm
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Manages permitting and community ballot initiatives
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Appointed by Governor Brown to Board of 19th District Agricultural Association, which runs Earl Warren Showground, where she is Vice President

Les Firestein
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Lifelong builder and innovator with an emphasis environmental and alternative solutions
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Developed one of the first “living vegetative wall” which has been functioning perfectly and without interruption since it was first installed 20 years ago
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Currently building the first hydrogen powered house in Los Angeles

Bruce McRoy
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Served on Montecito Association on Transportation subcommittees and the Community Alternative uUrban Freeway Design Group.
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Owned and operated a civil engineering and transportation company for 47years
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Local large avocado grower with experience with water exploration and of watershed drainage

Alixe Mattingly
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Co-chaired $27 m capital campaign to build MOXI
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Worked at Santa Barbara Foundation
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Serves on Board of Directors of the Mosher Foundation
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Worked at Direct Relief, which epitomizes speedy disaster relief

Hillary Hauser
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Instrumental in establishing the private/public sector partnership of the Santa Barbara Firefighters Alliance whom to date has donated over a million dollars worth of leading edge technology equipment on city and county firetrucks.
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President, Rotary Club of Montecito 2017-2018; former Board member: Santa Barbara Estate Planning Council; Girls Inc,; National Charity League; Laguna Blanca Parents Auxiliary; Santa Barbara Firefighter’s Alliance; St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church; Eucalyptus Hill Homeowners Association; etc.
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During 1990 Painted Cave crashed thru locked wrought iron entry gate Fire In Mercedes 300 TD and drove thru flames on lengthy driveway to take children and animals to safety

Brett Matthews
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Entrepreneur, created public Private Partnerships, saving over $1B to Federal and State Government and generative over $600MM in cash profit sharing for government partners.
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Part of citizen team to work with county and USFS to open Santa Maria Airport for Air Tanker Fire support
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Former President of Montecito Union School Board

Hollye Jacobs
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Community advocate, writer, public speaker
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Author of best-selling book, “The Silver Lining: A Supportive and Insightful Guide to Breast Cancer”
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Palliative Care Nurse, Social Worker, Child Development Specialist

Elizabeth Fuller
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Community advocate, writer, public speaker
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Author of best-selling book, “The Silver Lining: A Supportive and Insightful Guide to Breast Cancer”
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Palliative Care Nurse, Social Worker, Child Development Specialist

Suzanne Elledge
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Community advocate, writer, public speaker
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Author of best-selling book, “The Silver Lining: A Supportive and Insightful Guide to Breast Cancer”
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Palliative Care Nurse, Social Worker, Child Development Specialist

Damon Taugher
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Community advocate, writer, public speaker
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Author of best-selling book, “The Silver Lining: A Supportive and Insightful Guide to Breast Cancer”
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Palliative Care Nurse, Social Worker, Child Development Specialist