MONTECITO, Calif. — A fresh look is bringing renewed energy to a longtime community resource in Montecito.

At the Friendship Center, recent renovations are doing more than improving appearances — they’re helping seniors living with dementia feel more comfortable, engaged, and cared for.

“We give them love and care, but I want them to feel that from the chair they’re sitting in to what they see on the walls — that someone truly cared in designing this space,” said Executive Director Kathryn Westland. 

The updates include new flooring, furniture, lighting, painted walls, and renovated bathrooms. Inside, artwork now lines the walls — each piece reflecting the personality and spirit of the center’s members.

Board member Gerrie Shapiro says the center has always focused on dignity and connection.

“Inevitably somebody would ask if my father knew who I was,” Shapiro said. “But that’s not what’s important. What’s important is I know who he is.”

Beyond the interior upgrades, the center is also expanding how members interact with their environment. New rolling garden beds and an outdoor edible garden allow seniors to engage with plants, herbs, and vegetables in a hands-on way.

“It’s okay if they grab something and eat it,” Westland said. “It’s all part of the experience.”

The organization has also launched a door-to-door transportation service, helping seniors who may otherwise have difficulty attending programs stay active and connected.

Leaders say these improvements are designed not only for members, but also for their caregivers — easing stress while creating a welcoming, joyful environment.

“Even as memory changes, you never lose the ability to feel,” Westland said. “We want people to walk in and have that ‘whoa’ feeling — because they deserve that.”

The Friendship Center was recently named Nonprofit of the Year, a recognition leaders say reflects its impact despite being a smaller organization.

“Some people shy away from dementia because it’s scary,” Shapiro said. “But this place is joyful. When you come in, you will smile.”

The center continues to grow, with new programs and services currently in development. 

A new memory café in downtown Santa Barbara is also offering a free space for people with early memory loss and their families to connect and participate in activities.

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By Mauricio Torres, CNN

(CNN) — The governor of the Mexican state of Sinaloa said on Friday he will temporarily step down from his post, days after he was indicted in the US on drug trafficking charges,

Ruben Rocha Moya, the governor of Sinaloa since 2021, and nine current or former high-ranking Mexican officials were charged in a five-count indictment unsealed Wednesday with allegedly helping a faction of the cartel led by the Chapitos, the sons of Joaquin Guzman Loera — also known as El Chapo.

Prosecutors in New York allege Rocha Moya met with the Chapitos prior to his election and assured them that if elected, he would put officials friendly to their drug trafficking operations into power. Cartel members stole ballot boxes and kidnapped or intimidated opponents to drop out of the race to ensure his victory, according to the indictment.

In a video message released Friday evening, Rocha reiterated his rejection of the charges said that his request to step aside aims to “facilitate the actions of Mexican authorities” in the investigation.

Rocha’s announcement came hours after Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office reported it had found there was not enough evidence to provisionally detain him for extradition to the US.

The Office added that it will request evidence from the United States and review the case.

Rocha’s request for leave must still be approved by the state Congress.

“My conscience is clear, a lifetime of work backs my words,” he said in his message.

Rocha took office as governor of Sinaloa in 2021 after winning that year’s election as a candidate for Morena, the same party as Mexico’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum.

On Thursday, during her daily press conference, the president read a statement in which she said her government will not protect anyone who has committed a crime, but that it will be up to the Attorney General’s Office to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to proceed against Rocha or not.

Sheinbaum also rejected possible interventionist actions by the United States, which, since Donald Trump began his second presidential term, has insisted that Mexico is not acting firmly enough against organized crime.

In the indictment, US prosecutors allege the current and former Mexican officials aided the cartel in importing fentanyl, cocaine and other drugs from Mexico into the US; shielded the cartel leaders from investigation and prosecution; and allowed drug-related violence. In exchange, the indictment alleges, the defendants in total received millions of dollars.

After El Chapo’s arrest, the cartel splintered into two groups — the one led by the Chapitos and the other by Ismael Zambada Garcia, known as El Mayo.

US authorities previously charged the Chapitos. Two were extradited to the US and pleaded guilty. The other two brothers remain at large in Mexico. Zambada was also charged and brought to the US in 2024 to face charges. He also pleaded guilty.

Zambada previously accused Rocha of being involved in an alleged meeting that led to his capture. Rocha at the time denied any involvement.

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SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) -

Channel League: Dos Pueblos 10, Oxnard 5: The Chargers share the league title with San Marcos as both finish 10-4 in the Channel. Matti Di Maggio homered while Taylor Young and Marcus Carbajal each had 3 hits for DP. Spencer Holtz drove in 3 runs for the Chargers.

Citrus Coast: Carpinteria 7, Channel Islands 6: The Warriors won their 3rd straight one-run game. The CIF-SS playoff bound Warriors got a 2-run home run by senior Dallas Bartholic.

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SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) - Heart of a champion!

San Marcos trailed for most of the game but erupted for 6 runs in the top of the seventh inning to beat rival Santa Barbara 10-5 and earn a piece of the Channel League championship.

The Royals share the title with Dos Pueblos who won at Oxnard. Both teams are 10-4 in league but San Marcos swept DP so the Royals will be the top-seed from the Channel League in the upcoming CIF-SS playoffs.

Trailing 5-4 the Royals loaded the bases with no outs in the top of the seventh inning and tied the game on a bases loaded walk issued to Gunner Martinez.

Pat Foster drove in the go-ahead run on a fielder's choice to first but the Dons did not record an out on the play.

So with the bases still loaded and just one out, Levi Monson grounded to first base and the throw came home beating the runner but the umpire said that catcher's foot was not on the plate for the force and it was 7-5 Royals.

(Game of inches as the runner is called safe and soon afterwards the Royals break the game wide open in the seventh. Entenza Design).

Quinn Melton followed with a two-run single to right field and Mason Crang finished off the scoring with an RBI fielder's choice.

Miles Herbert closed out the Dons (11-14) and the Royals (16-11) celebrated another Channel League title, their fourth in the past six years.

The Dons Jetner Welch hit a first inning home run and Max Weddle added a 2-run triple in the fourth inning as Santa Barbara built up a 5-2 lead.

But the Royals chipped away scoring a run in the fifth on a hit batter with the bases loaded.

Melton ripped a single in the sixth inning and Pat Foster, who was running on the pitch, scored all the way from first base to bring the Royals within 5-4 and San Marcos finished off the comeback an inning later.

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Por Simone McCarthy, CNN

Un elegante SUV ofrece masajes mecánicos para los pies, una lujosa minivan cuenta con asientos giratorios para facilitar el acceso a la tercera fila, y una sorprendente cantidad de modelos ofrecen karaoke a bordo con altavoces profesionales.

Otros incorporan faros que proyectan películas en una pared, convirtiendo cualquier lugar en un autocine. Aquí, las funciones de conducción inteligente son omnipresentes, incluso en los modelos más asequibles.

Para muchos consumidores que observan desde fuera, las opciones que ofrece China —expuestas esta semana en Beijing en el mayor salón del automóvil del mundo— parecen un sueño. Pero para algunos fabricantes de automóviles y políticos de todo el mundo, representan una amenaza existencial.

Los fabricantes de automóviles chinos están produciendo sus modelos a gran escala y a un precio relativamente bajo.

Y hay otro factor importante: mientras que los precios del petróleo y el gas se disparan debido a la guerra con Irán, la gran mayoría de estos autos son eléctricos o híbridos.

El contraste con Estados Unidos nunca ha sido tan marcado: el año pasado, Washington redujo su apoyo a los vehículos eléctricos en favor de los que consumen mucha gasolina, y de hecho ha prohibido la entrada de automóviles chinos al mercado, alegando la necesidad de proteger la seguridad nacional y la industria local.

Ante la inminente llegada del presidente de EE.UU., Donald Trump, a China a mediados de mayo para mantener conversaciones con el líder Xi Jinping, los fabricantes de vehículos eléctricos del país también están explorando otra frontera, observando si la creciente demanda mundial de vehículos eléctricos les ayudará a abrirse paso en el mercado estadounidense.

En cualquier caso, el mensaje que se pretende transmitir con esta exhibición del tamaño de 70 campos de fútbol es claro: China avanza implacablemente con la tecnología que cree que le permitirá triunfar en el siglo XXI.

Los principales fabricantes de automóviles de China, y Beijing, están apostando fuerte a que el resto del mundo elegirá su visión de un futuro eléctrico, en lugar de uno que siga ligado a la gasolina.

El aumento del precio de la gasolina es “una llamada de atención para quienes nunca han probado un vehículo eléctrico”, declaró Stella Li, ejecutiva de BYD, a CNN durante la emisión del programa, donde habló sobre la ambiciosa estrategia de expansión del mayor fabricante mundial de vehículos eléctricos. “Cuando te pasas al coche eléctrico, nunca vuelves atrás y cambias a un vehículo de gasolina”.

Captar clientes en el extranjero es ahora imprescindible para las principales empresas chinas.

Por un amplio margen, el país posee el mayor mercado de vehículos eléctricos del mundo. Más de la mitad de los autos nuevos vendidos en China son eléctricos o híbridos.

En sus megaciudades y alrededores, el tráfico se va silenciando progresivamente, y el suave zumbido del motor eléctrico reemplaza el rugido del motor de combustión interna.

Pero sus titanes de la industria también están inmersos en una lucha encarnizada por la cuota de mercado, con brutales guerras de precios y una competencia feroz en un mercado nacional saturado que re