A woman has just passed the checkout area and is walking out the door of a unique store in downtown Santa Barbara. The single mother has half a dozen bags full of goodies for her three children.
“I have food, toys, gifts for my children,” the woman said.
What's special about the store is that she didn't pay a single cent during her shopping trip. She visited the Unity Shoppe, a Santa Barbara-based nonprofit that helps financially struggling residents of Santa Barbara County.
People in need can go to the store and get food, clothes and toys for their children, and do so with dignity.
“The need is extremely high right now as Santa Barbara County is experiencing very high rents and costs of living,” said Angela Miller-Bevan, executive director of Unity Shoppe.
“Everything has doubled, and that means our numbers have doubled. In January 2022 we saw approximately 500 people come through our doors. And in January 2023 we saw over a thousand,” she said.
Many of those helped are single-parent homes where the parents work in the service jobs that keep the community running. When rents are high, it is difficult to make ends meet. Miller-Bevan talks about how Unity claims the dollars.
“$100 would yield 40 pounds of fresh produce. $500 would be a month’s worth of food for a family,” Miller-Bevan said.
Over its more than 100-year history, the Unity Shoppe, in its various forms, has helped hundreds of thousands of people. It has grown into an organization that also offers programs for seniors, children going back to school and those in need of work. It works with 400 nonprofits in the county to ensure help reaches those who need it.
This weekend, the nonprofit will be featured as part of a Tri-Counties holiday tradition. The Unity Telethon. Kenny Loggins and KEYT-TV founded the Unity Telethon in 1987.
“When I look at it in that spirit, I am especially grateful to be in Santa Barbara. This community has supported Unity from the beginning,” Loggins said. “We weren’t sure if it would continue, we weren’t sure if we could raise the money to keep it going… but here we are.”
The show features musicians from community groups and big names who live in the community such as Loggins, Michael McDonald and Brad Paisley.
Actor Rob Lowe is one of the celebrities helping out. “This isn't just a place where we live… I raised my kids here… I coached Little League here… we trick-or-treat here,” Lowe said. “This is our neighborhood. It’s one of those moments where everyone comes together.”
Actor Jeff Bridges said he learned to give back through his parents. “I'm attracted to it. Kenny Loggins is so responsible for the success of the Unity Shoppe, and Kenny and I have a long history and have been involved in various hunger projects.”
Television producer Jeff Martin of KEYT-TV said Unity is doing a great job. “They offer seven or eight different types of services throughout the year,” Martin said. “It’s about dignity and choice. The whole idea is to get you back on your feet.”
The telethon will be broadcast on KEYT, Channel 3 on December 8th from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Unity Shoppe officials say that given the record number of needy people coming to the Shoppe, they hope to raise more than half a million dollars during the broadcast. They expect to serve more than 7,000 people during the holiday season.
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