Women's Fund | January 2026 Stay Connected Newsletter

In the January issue:

Adapting to Change and Thriving – A Message from Board Chair Carolyn Jabs
Save these Important Dates!
Membership Corner: New Member Event
Legacy Society Gains Momentum
Announcing Our 2026 Board Members
PATH Grant Funds Returned to Women’s Fund
Women’s Fund Grantee Spreads Christmas Cheer

Adapting to Change and Thriving – A Message from Board Chair Carolyn Jabs

Dear Members and Friends –

As Chair of the Women’s Fund Board, I’m pleased to report that 2026 is off to a strong start thanks to your generosity. Our membership of more than 1,450 makes us the largest giving circle in membership in the U.S., and while final donation numbers are still being tabulated, we expect another healthy year for our grants pool! Thank you to renewing members and welcome to new members!

We know 2025 was no ordinary year. And we are especially grateful to our donors because we know you faced challenging choices as local nonprofits struggled to adjust to unusual—and, in some cases, extreme—financial challenges.

This year’s ballot will reflect those struggles with requests for larger grant amounts and more gap funding than in previous years. Our Research Committee deserves tremendous thanks for developing a ballot that responds in meaningful ways to changing circumstances.

Members will receive the Ballot Information Package on February 16, and can attend the Ballot Review Meeting on Zoom on March 5.

Another Change Ahead

Our Board has responded to Women’s Fund members’ requests by approving a pilot program for small grants that will begin this year. For several years, members have asked if our grantmaking could include smaller grants for small agencies with innovative ideas. Last year, the Board did intensive research into this idea, convening focus groups, surveying members, and examining practices of other collective giving circles. A task force incorporated what we learned into a proposal approved in December.

While the details of the pilot program are still under development, we know this much: in the spring of 2026, we will invite agencies with budgets of $350,000 or less to submit a simplified application for grants of $10,000 or $25,000. A small committee will review the applications and develop a ballot. All members who made donations in 2025 will be eligible to vote by email in November. Watch for more details in this newsletter, on the Women’s Fund website and in a press release which will go to local media in the spring.

Board Transitions

At the close of 2025, we bade farewell to board members Kathy Dunlap, Sarah de Tagyos, Nancy Harter, and Sabina White, who completed their terms. These women have played—and continue to play—pivotal roles in Women’s Fund, and the organization is stronger for their leadership. Joining the Board this year are Janis Salin, who will serve as Governance Chair, and Megan Stichter, who stepped into the role of Treasurer early last year. A complete roster of the 2026 board is available here.

Last year, I witnessed extraordinary levels of commitment from our Board, our Operations Management Team (OMT), our Group Captains, and our committees and other volunteers. Thanks to them—and you!—the Women’s Fund of Santa Barbara is thriving. I hope you share my pride in everything we did in 2025 and my optimism about what we will be able to accomplish in 2026!

Carolyn Jabs
Board Chair, Women’s Fund of Santa Barbara

Save These Important Dates!

Mark your calendars – the next few months are a busy time for the Women’s Fund! Here are important dates leading up to the selection and celebration of our new 2025-2026 grant recipients.

Monday, February 16 - Ballot Information Package is emailed.

The package includes everything you need to help prepare your vote:

A ballot worksheet to make it easy to compare projects,
Concise ballot descriptions with headings that help you zero in on key points,
An overview of the issues that helped shape this year’s ballot, and
Your opportunity to submit questions to Research by Feb. 27, in advance of the Ballot Review Meeting.

Friday, February 27 – Deadline to submit questions to the Research Committee.
Like last year, to keep the meeting on time, we will answer only pre-submitted questions; there will not be a live Q&A.

Thursday, March 5, 4:00 - 5:45 pm -- Ballot Review Meeting via Zoom.
Researchers will present each proposal and answer the questions you submitted by the deadline. The Zoom meeting will be recorded and available via a link provided to all members after the meeting.

March 6 - 28 – Window for voting.
Group Captains will schedule voting meetings with their groups to discuss the ballot and decide on how to cast their group votes. Individual Members can attend Ballot Discussion Groups.

Saturday, March 28 – Voting closes at 6:00 p.m.

Wednesday, May 13, 5:00 p.m. – the 2026 Celebration of Grants!
Join us at the Lobero Theatre to help celebrate our 2025-26 grantees who will join the 150+ local programs that have received almost $12.9 million in Women’s Fund grants since 2004.

As of early 2023, Santa Barbara County has the second-highest poverty rate and child poverty rate of all counties in California.

Membership Corner: New and Prospective Member Event

On Wednesday, January 28^th, please join the Women’s Fund for a New and Prospective Member Event at the Santa Barbara Public Library’s Faulkner Gallery. We will hear inspiring testimony from past grantees, followed by remarks from Board Chair Carolyn Jabs regarding the impact of Women’s Fund grants and the organization's 2026 goals.

New members, current members, and non-members are all welcome—please RSVP below if you plan on attending. Refreshments will be provided.

What to Expect

Check-in and refreshments
An overview of our VOTE process—how members help select the nonprofits we fund annually
Firsthand stories from past grantees sharing how Women’s Fund support transformed their work and added to their success
Remarks from Board Chair Carolyn Jabs on the powerful impact our collective giving has had on our community

Join us for an experience that promises to inform, inspire, and connect!

Details
Wednesday, January 28, 2026
5:30 – 7:00 pm
Faulkner Gallery, Santa Barbara Public Library
40 East Anapamu St.
Santa Barbara, CA

Register Now!
Members, please RSVP here. And register your guests here.

Not yet a member? You can use this link to RSVP.

Legacy Society Gains Momentum

The Legacy Society offers our visionary and compassionate members the opportunity to ensure the life-changing work of the Women’s Fund for generations to come through generous gifts to its endowment. Since its inception in April of 2023, the Legacy Society has grown to 44 members, all dedicated to the well-being of women, children, and families in south Santa Barbara County.

Through current giving, estate planning, or both, members guarantee a stable source of funding for the future. Donors are eligible to join the Legacy Society when they contribute any amount through their estate plan, or $10,000 or more in current donations (including gifts over time), or IRA distributions. You may already qualify as a member by your years of generous donations to our endowment.

If you are interested in learning more about the Legacy Society, plan to join our late February event (details to come). Over light refreshments, you’ll mingle and talk with our current members and learn about the positive impact of your contribution on the mission of the Women’s Fund. Please email us at Legacy@womensfundsb.org to get on our email notification list.

If you have already included the Women’s Fund in your estate plan, please contact us at Legacy@womensfundsb.org so we can recognize and thank you for your generosity.

Announcing Our 2026 Board Members

The Women’s Fund is excited to announce the election of its 2026 Officers and Board of Directors, who will lead the organization in its ongoing commitment to support local nonprofit agencies. The 15-member board will be chaired by Carolyn Jabs, with Lauren Trujillo serving as Vice Chair, Megan Stichter as Treasurer, and Kerry Parker as Corporate Secretary.

Joining as the newest board member is Janis Salin, who will serve alongside continuing board members Katya Armistead, Roberta Collier, Jamie Dufek, Yonie Harris, Kathy Hollis, Lynn Karlson, Margie Larkin, Linda Putnam, Suzi Schomer, and Laurie Tumbler.

To read more about our board members, visit: https://womensfundsb.org/committee.

PATH Grant Funds Returned to Women’s Fund

In a rare occurrence for the Women's Fund, a grantee has been unable to proceed with a funded project and, as a result, is returning the grant funds to the Women's Fund.

As you may remember, last spring, our members voted to fund the installation of divider panels between beds in PATH’s women’s dormitory, providing increased privacy and quiet for the women staying temporarily in the shelter. PATH – People Assisting the Homeless – has been operating Santa Barbara’s largest homeless shelter at 816 Cacique Street since 2015.

In August, PATH announced it would cease homeless service operations out of that facility because the shelter was operating at a deficit. In December, the City of Santa Barbara purchased the building and appointed an interim operator until the city can issue an RFP to select a permanent agency to manage the shelter.

Since PATH did not use the Women’s Fund grant for the panels, the organization returned the $110,000 grant to the Women’s Fund. The Women’s Fund carefully screens grant applicants and then maintains contact with grantees as their projects are completed. If a grant purpose cannot be fulfilled on time or as agreed upon, the Women’s Fund Board works with the grantee and reviews options (extensions for construction delays, for example). In this case, PATH and our Board agreed the funds should be returned to the Women’s Fund, which the Board is placing in the grants pool.

Women's Fund Grantee Spreads Christmas Cheer

The following message from Lori Goodman, Executive Director at LEAP, warmed our hearts at the Women's Fund and we are happy to share with our readers:

"Happy New Year! I feel like I spent so much of 2025 sharing the challenges we have been facing at LEAP. I’ve shared about our clients’ fear, the distress our staff experiences, and just the uncertainty of leading a nonprofit in this moment. Today, I wanted to share the sweetness and joy that sometimes comes with this job.

"A few days before Christmas, our Community Engagement Specialist, Laura Costilla, shared that we had a few families who were going through particularly hard times.

One single mom lost her job. One mother of three moved here recently and was feeling very isolated. One single father recently regained custody of his child. She asked if we could help these families. They just needed a little extra.

"So, I reached out to a couple of people I knew and the community stepped up. One friend raced to my office with $800 in cash! Another friend reached out to her vast network and together they purchased gifts and came through with gift cards.

"Our core work is early childhood education and family support. But, we make change because we nurture authentic, responsive, safe relationships, both with our clients and with our community.

"Laura's report on the outcome of the donations lifted me up. She thanked me for giving the team the opportunity to bless families this holiday season. In just a matter of days, everyone’s generosity turned community donations into moments of relief, joy, and dignity for families who truly needed it. Because of our work, these families had gifts under their trees and something even more meaningful: the feeling that they were not alone."

133 East De La Guerra Street, #15
Santa Barbara, CA 93101