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Santa Barbara, April 25, 2025 – Angels Foster Care will host its 12th annual Al Fresco luncheon on Friday, April 25 from 11:00 am until 2:00 pm at the Ritz-Carlton Bacara. Held on the ocean lawn, the beautiful venue will serve as a backdrop for a powerful storytelling experience offering a glimpse into the lives of babies and toddlers placed with Angels Foster Care. Live music will be performed by Adelaide and Jane Smylie.
Angels Foster Care founder, Meichelle Arntz, and Montecito Bank & Trust President, Janet Garufis, will serve as co-emcees of the event. A current Angels Foster Care family will share a moving story of their fostering experience.
Approximately 200 guests are expected to attend. All proceeds from the luncheon will support Angels Foster Care children and families as well as Family & Friends Together (FFT) kinship families. According to board member Anna Jordan, Angels Foster Care and FFT kinship families “don’t just open their homes, they open their hearts to children who need to feel important, loved, and safe during a critical time of development.”
Event partners include the Randall Family, Schlinger Family Foundation, Michael Holland, Kayne Anderson Rudnick Wealth Advisors, Coast 2 Coast Collection, Jayne Ward Family, Montecito Bank & Trust, Dignity Health Central Coast, Franzen and Franzen, and Fidelity National Title Group Santa Barbara.
Meichelle Arntz and Lori Baur are the co-chairs of the Angels Fundraising committee. Lori Baur serves as president of the organization’s Board of Directors. The planning committee includes Lori Akers, Danielle Bolster, Kat Hill, Annie Kimball, Summer Knight-Wahlberg, Natalie Kunes, Sheri Mardiat, Erin Moy Vik, Holly Murphy, Christy Philip, Maria Valencia, Kirstyn Van Brundt, Penny Wolfe, and Brigitte Wright.
Since its inception in 2006, Angels Foster Care has placed 327 foster infants and toddlers in stable, loving homes and 162 of these children have been adopted into their Angels families. Additionally, since March 2023, Angels Foster Care has served 177 children in their Family & Friends Together kinship program. Angels Foster Care serves Santa Barbara County infants and toddlers from birth through age three, and their siblings up to age five, matching each foster child to a well-trained, loving foster family (aka resource family). Angels families offer children in foster care a safe, stable home until reunification with biological parents or adoption occurs. All proceeds from this event will support Angels Foster Care children and families and Family & Friends Together kinship families. For more information about Angels Foster Care please visit http://www.angelsfostercare.org or call 805-884-0012.
