The 1925 Santa Barbara Earthquake Centennial Interfaith Prayer Service, held on June 29, joined together Santa Barbara residents and a group of church leaders, City of Santa Barbara and State officials, as well as historian Neal Graffy and City of Santa Barbara Poet Laureate George Yatchisin to participate in the 1925 Santa Barbara Earthquake Centennial Interfaith Prayer Service on the steps of the Old Santa Barbara Mission. The service was held in remembrance of the 11 people who perished during the June 29, 1925, earthquake.
The Standing Together in Times of Crisis at The Old Santa Barbara Mission program brought together members of the EQ25 Alliance Members Steering Committee including Steve Hausz, Chair; Denis Doordan, Program Chair; Bonnie Carroll, Betsy Green, Joe deLise, John Margolis, Jonathan Smith, Keith Butler, Mary Lou Days, Neal Graffy, Pat Saley, Roman Baratiak, Rick Closson, and an army of committee volunteers.
Fr. Joe Schwab OFM, President, Old Mission Santa Barbara; Historian Neal Graffy; and Fr. Dan Lackie OFM, Pastor, St. Barbara Parish at Old Mission Santa Barbara welcomed guests and made introductions to area interfaith church leaders. Touching reflections and remembrances were shared by Ernestine Ygnacio-De Soto, Barbareno Chumash Elder; Rabbi Daniel Brenner, Associate Rabbi, Congregation B’nai B’rith; Thepo Tulku, Santa Barbara Summit for Tibet; Reverend Elizabeth A. Molitors, Rector, Trinity Episcopal Church; Robb Fuesler, Senior Pastor, First United Methodist Church; Wendy Sims Moten, representing Pastor Elbert Sherrod, African American Methodist Church; and Frank Leon, Unity Church.
Steve Hausz of the Santa Barbara Conservancy assisted in unveiling the dedication plaque. Graffy shared historic background and read the names, with information on the 11 people who perished in the 1925 quake. Santa Barbara City Council Member Kristen Sneddon presented a proclamation on behalf of Mayor Randy Rowse and the City of Santa Barbara, and Gunnar Langenhuizen, Field Representative for State Assembly Member Gregg Hart, presented a proclamation on behalf of the State of California. The 2025 Poet Laureate George Yatchisin read a beautiful poem, “June Ruins Rise,” and John Vale sang “You’ll Never Walk Alone.”
At exactly three o’clock, the Mission bells began to ring and were joined by other church bells in Santa Barbara, creating a very profound and heartwarming experience.
Dennis Doordan, EQ25 Program Chair and Historic Landmarks Commission member, said, “This was a truly genuine Santa Barbara event,” and he indicated the beauty of Old Santa Barbara Mission, surrounded by California’s natural beauty, was ideal for this special remembrance of our city’s history.
Some say it takes a village, but the City of Santa Barbara came together in a place of love during the EQ25 centennial commemoration weekend to not only remember the 1925 Santa Barbara Earthquake, but to honor those we lost as well as those who carried on to make our city the resilient community and architecturally acclaimed Spanish Colonial Revival city that it is today.
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