Page 35 - Laguna Blanca Magazine Summer 2018

Celebrating the support of Girls Inc. after the

Montecito mudslides

The Montecito mudslides impacted the entire Laguna com- WHAT SURPRISED YOU MOST ABOUT THE EXPERIENCE?
munity in different ways. One of the hardest hit groups was our The greatest gift for me was seeing our students happy,
Lower School students and faculty, who lost access to the Lower engaged, and learning. The time on the playground, on the field,
School campus for most of the second half of the school year. in the gym, and on the stage was very special for our students,
But rather than give up, the Owls got working. Thanks to the too. It was also a gift to see how the faculty and staff stepped
suggestion of Lower School parent Tom Blabey, Laguna Lower up to take on a mountain of work. They adjusted teaching styles
Schoolers found a new temporary home at Girls Inc. of Greater and programs and reached out of their comfort zones so students
Santa Barbara, an organization that advocates for girls through could be as comfortable as possible to learn and grow.
its afterschool and summer programs. The Goleta Valley facility
provided a safe and nurturing location to ensure normalcy for our
youngest students during a traumatic time. “It did not take long to realize that our community,
We are so grateful for the support of Girls Inc. and their friendships, and relationships with others—
willingness to work around tough schedules and space issues and getting back into the normalcy of a school
to help our children and faculty keep learning. And we are also routine—were what we valued the most. Our
grateful to our faculty and parent communities who showed great partnership with Girls Inc. provided an amazing
amounts of flexibility, resilience, and commitment. place for us to land and focus on those two
priorities. We are so grateful.”
Below Head of Lower School Andy Surber reflects on the
experience at Girls Inc. – HEAD OF LOWER SCHOOL ANDY SURBER

HOW DID GIRLS INC. FIRST COME TO LAGUNA’S RESCUE?
At first, we had set up temporary schooling at the Hope WHAT WAS THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE OF BEING AWAY FROM
Ranch Campus, but after meeting with emergency preparedness THE MONTECITO CAMPUS?
personnel, it became clear that we needed a long-term plan. That depends on who you ask! So many issues we faced
Lower School parent and Girls Inc. employee Tom Blabey found allowed our faculty, staff, and families to show flexibility and
us the solution we needed in Girls Inc. resourcefulness, and to grow in different ways. The new commute
and unpredictable traffic in Montecito made for a challenging
HOW MUCH TIME DID YOU HAVE TO PREPARE THE SPACE FOR commute for many. Some families even had their students take
STUDENTS? the train to school in the early days after the debris flow. Seeing
Ten days! It was a very, very tight window, requiring great that commitment to school attendance, despite their difficulties,
teamwork and huge effort from everyone involved. We first kept me going.
visited the Girls Inc. campus on January 12 and started to move Overall, the biggest challenge for me was processing the
in on January 17. In that timeframe, we made many decisions immense damage and loss of life immediately after the mudslides
about how to work our schedule around the Girls Inc. schedule. took place. It did not take long to realize that our community,
We also made some big shopping trips because we had no school friendships, and relationships with others and getting back into
supplies to bring! the normalcy of a school routine were what we valued the most.
Our partnership with Girls Inc. provided an amazing place for us
LAGUNABLANCA.ORG
to land and focus on those two priorities.

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