Anonymous
Photo by Fritz Olenberger / Old Spanish Days
Source: Old Spanish Days
Surrounded by members of the extended Fiesta Family and with the historic Santa Barbara Courthouse Sunken Garden as the backdrop, 2018 Old Spanish Days La Presidenta Denise Sanford unveiled this year’s Fiesta theme – Celebrate Traditions – words that will set the tone for this summer’s celebrations.
“When I thought about selecting a theme for Fiesta I knew that I had to select something that wasn’t only unique and meaningful to Fiesta but to me,” said La Presidenta Sanford. “I felt if I selected something that was also as meaningful to me it would be easier for me to talk about it and make it genuine and special without having it sound forced.
“Traditions have been a huge part of my life,” she added. My parents were very traditional in everything we did as a family. How we celebrated holidays, birthdays, milestones and each other. I had always kept those traditions going and incorporated in my life and my children’s lives.
The theme of Fiesta is a special moment for each Presidente as they select words that will be heard throughout the August Fiesta – one of the largest regional festivals in the country. Fiesta is also important economically to Santa Barbara, and the OSD board understands this important element especially this year with the local recent tragedies and economic effects felt community-wide.
“My hope for this year, and how it relates to my theme, is for our community to embrace our traditions, keep them close to our hearts in order to pass them down to the generations that follow us,” explained La Presidenta Sanford. “Keep alive what we are really doing for our community and Santa Barbara by celebrating who we are and where we came from. How and why Fiesta and its traditions were started!”
This year marks the 94th edition of Fiesta, and it runs from August 1-5, 2018.
“Traditions are what makes Fiesta what it is today,” La Presidenta Sanford added. “ Without traditions and how we honor and celebrate them we lose what it is we are trying to accomplish. Everyone has traditions in one form or another. Everyone celebrates their traditions. Everyone who comes out to celebrate Fiesta has a tradition.
“Generations of families celebrating their traditions of community involvement, having parties and gatherings is what makes Fiesta what it is today.”
Umm…isn’t Fiesta itself a tradition? I don’t think I quite understand the theme.
Years ago we lived near Sola & State. Our father used to decorate a couple dozen real eggs as cascarones. He would have us scatter these eggs within viewing distace of our place and we would watch the ensuing comedy! Looking back, it really was not a nice thing to do, but at the time…well, we still talk about it ehenever we get together.
Lack of understanding, especially of things that are obvious, is not a virtue.