BY JORDAN KILLEBREW | March 3, 2022
Santa Barbara County is rich with a history of strong, brilliant leaders that identify as women, and the Santa Barbara Foundation wants to take a moment to highlight a select few that have contributed so much to our great community and the Foundation as well. We are grateful for their legacies and contributions!
Clara Hinton Gould
Clara Hinton Gould, originally from New York, moved to Santa Barbara in 1885 and married Frederick Saltonstall Gould, a physician, in 1897.
They developed a hilltop estate known for its gardens and spectacular views. When her husband passed in 1920, Clara continued her work as a devout arts patron. She also served on the Santa Barbara Foundation board from 1940 to 1948. When she passed away in 1948, she left the community her estate and trust, valued at $282,000. The income from Clara’s legacy, stewarded by the Santa Barbara Foundation, has benefited residents of Santa Barbara County. We honor our first female benefactress and her legacy with the Max & Clara Legacy Society, a planned giving opportunity to give back to our community, just as Clara did.
Pearl Chase
Pearl Chase was a strong supporter of the community and the Foundation. Her most remarkable life’s work was the effort to beautify Santa Barbara. Pearl worked on behalf of the independent Plans and Plantings Committee that helped develop and influence the city’s landscaping and zoning activities until the 1970s. The Foundation provided numerous grants in support. Pearl also helped start the first Old Mission Days celebration in December of 1941, right before America entered World War II. Pearl’s determined efforts produced the architectural and natural beauty that graces Santa Barbara today.
Lillian Child
Mrs. Lillian Child came to Santa Barbara in the early 1900s as the bride of Mr. John Beale, a retired tea and coffee merchant. The couple would host social galas that made their estate, Vegamar, very famous. John passed away in 1914, and Lillian married John H. Child in 1921, after which Vegamar became known as the Child Estate. Lillian gained national fame for allowing homeless men to live on her property; this self-policed community was first known as “Shacktown” and later as “Jungleville.” When Lillian passed away, 32 single men over 50 lived in the village, and her dying wish asked that the Foundation not alter their living arrangement. The Trustees of SBF at the time believed that in the spirit of Lillian’s wishes that the land should belong to the people. And on October 27, 1953, on the Foundation’s 25th anniversary, the deed of the Child Estate was presented to the city, and became Santa Barbara Zoological Estate in August 1963.
Katherine Harvey
Katherine Harvey, the granddaughter of Fred Harvey, founder of the Fred Harvey Company and its famous restaurants, adopted Santa Barbara as her home in the 1950’s. She was socially shy but a force in local affairs, and volunteered on the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History and the Santa Barbara Museum of Art Board of Trustees. Katherine was the first woman to serve on the Foundation’s Finance Committee and the second female Trustee to join the board in 1954. She left a substantial portion of her estate to the Foundation to be stewarded for the community when she passed. We honor her legacy today through the Katherine Harvey Fellows program, established in 1999 and now facilitated by Leading From Within, which cultivates future leaders for community organizations in Santa Barbara County.
Patricia C. Dow
Patricia C. Dow was heavily involved in the Santa Barbara County Community. She served in leadership positions in several community organizations, including the Junior League, American Red Cross, and Visiting Nurses Association. On top of that, Patricia was the second woman to serve on the Foundation Finance Committee and became the first female Board president in 1989-1991. She noted, “In 1987, the Santa Barbara Foundation ranked 28th in assets among community foundations nationwide. This rank was attained despite a proportionally small population, again pointing up the generosity of the people.”
Jean K. Schuyler
Jean K. Schuyler supported the arts and education, was a defender of the environment, and advocated for women’s issues. Jean had a close and long-term relationship with the Santa Barbara Foundation before she passed in 2019. Many of our area’s most recognizable community action success stories, such as the Center for Urban Agriculture, the Douglas Family Preserve, Ellwood Mesa, and the Sedgewick Reserve, were projects championed, supported, and sometimes led by Jean. In addition to her work and support for organizations such as the Land Trust for Santa Barbara County, Domestic Violence Solutions, Planned Parenthood, and the Maritime Museum, she served on numerous boards of trustees, including for United Way of Santa Barbara County. She also served as a Trustee of the Santa Barbara Foundation. Throughout the 1980s and 90s, she served on our Scholarship Committee, Student Aid Committee, Executive Committee, Nominating Committee, Appropriations Committee, Special Grants Committee, Special Ad Hoc Committee, Personnel Committee, and Civic Art Subcommittee.
Jackie M. Carrera
Jackie M. Carrera is the Santa Barbara Foundation’s first female President & CEO. Since becoming President & CEO in 2020, Jackie has worked tirelessly to connect and build community partnerships to provide COVID-19 relief while maintaining support for the region’s most vulnerable populations and working families. Some select community partnerships include the COVID-19 Joint Response Effort in Santa Barbara County, the Santa Barbara Better Together Fund, and the County of Santa Barbara’s Emergency Business Assistance Grants, which collectively have provided millions of dollars in support to the region. For 22 years, she was the President & CEO of the Parks & People Foundation in Maryland. The organization became a national leader in urban parks, ecosystem research and education, watershed restoration, job training, workforce development, and innovative programming for youth.
These are a few of amazing women in our history, to learn more about our awesome team please go to: SBFoundation.org/who-we-are/
Source: Santa Barbara Foundation: 75 Years of Philanthropy (2002)
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