Fond Farewells
Cheers to a happy and healthy retirement!
Congratulations to all of our retirees on long and successful careers at UCSB! You’ve worked hard and now is the time to step back and appreciate how far you’ve come. Pictured below are this year’s retirees accompanied by a heartfelt note from their supervisor. We wish all of you the best in this new chapter of your life. May it bring you endless time to do the things you love!
Ken Ardry is very dedicated and hard-working, and a great team player who is always willing to help. He brought a can-do attitude to work every day and a tenacity for problem solving. Ken is a die-hard cyclist who road to work every day regardless of weather conditions. He is an avid hiker as well and focuses on a healthy lifestyle. Ken and his wife Laura enjoy yearly trips to Maui and love the Aloha lifestyle. He has been a Red Cross volunteer for many years and was deployed to major natural disasters such as Hurricanes Katrina, Ernesto, Gustov and Sandy. ~Caesar Martinez
Barry Colwell will retire having left a meaningful impact on the UCSB campus and the people that make up the community. Some of these achievements are highly visible buildings such as San Clemente, Sierra Madre, and San Joaquin Villages, while others are less visible but equally important such as campus infrastructure and the mentorship he has provided to many of us. Barry’s dedication to UCSB inspires me to make a positive impression on UCSB and the community with every interaction I have and every decision I make. ~Nestor Covarrubias
Gary Fix spent seven years working to stabilize and advance dozens of critical campus IT systems. He has a perseverance and communication style to make difficult changes possible. Gary entered the then FM IT unit as an Application Support/Developer and progressed quickly to take over all IT responsibilities for DFSS. Gary become deeply involved in the rollout of WebTMA over three years ago and offered great detail and perspective for the customer requirements in many areas of DFSS. His work will leave a lasting impression for years to come. ~Ben Price
The Portola Dining Commons Team will miss Janet Freniere’s willingness to help in any way she can. She approached her work with integrity and was committed to working as a team. When two Bakers called in sick recently, Janet took care of all of the day's baking by herself while limping on her bad knee. All of the items were fresh, light, attractive, in short, still up to her high standard of baking after all these years. She was always reliable, punctual, offering her best every day, and always had a smile on her face. ~Martin Schneider & Margarita Dalzell
Jill Hurd served the UCSB residential community as an undergraduate student, graduate student and for more than four decades as an administrator and student advocate. She brought life and vitality to students and emerging professionals, and always made sure that no one was left behind in a large organization and university where it's easy for this to happen. She brought her optimism, courage and respect for others to work every day. ~Willie Brown
Nestor Munoz was a dedicated hard-working employee who brought joy to many of our customers through the food he prepared. He was a team player with an abundance of pride in his work. He will be missed. ~Soteris Nicolaou
Frank Murray is a highly skilled tradesman who brought great knowledge and work ethic to our team. He was always willing to help out and was rarely idle. Frank is a dedicated family man and a proud Grandfather. We will miss his sense of humor and quick wit. Frank is a seasoned traveller and we wish him Bon Voyage! ~Caesar Martinez 
Arturo Ortiz was an excellent team player who enjoyed working at San Miguel as a Lead Laborer. He also enjoyed communicating with the students every day. He always encouraged his staff to strive for success. We will miss his energy that he brought to our team. ~Shelly Vargas
Ester Salazar was hired as part of the crew that was set to reopen DLG in 2004, and has been an integral part of the production team ever since. She was eventually promoted to Principal Cook in charge of dinner at the Taqueria, one of our busiest stations. We would like to take this opportunity to thank her for everything she has done for DLG, and remind her that she will forever be remembered as one of the most respected, and hardest working members of the Campus Dining family. Congratulations! ~Chris Harton
Lisa Slavid pushed for us to be inclusive, for us to always engage students, for us to have fun, for us to be creative, for us to be innovative, and ultimately for us to be great. I will always remember Lisa as a person who always navigated the world with style and grace. We will miss her. ~Willie Brown
Josie Vasquez is one of the first people I met in R&CL when I started working here as a new professional, freshly graduated from UCSB. Her warmth and friendliness helped me to find my bearings in those first days, and now 20+ years later those same characteristics are what make coming to work enjoyable each day. Josie created a welcoming atmosphere for all who entered the trailer, and was a dedicated worker who was always willing to lend a helping hand. Josie will be greatly missed, yet she is leaving a legacy of warmth and kindness in our department that will continue to make an ongoing difference for our students and staff. ~Danielle Reed
Robbie Yankow has dedicated 15 years of service to UC Santa Barbara and has done a fantastic job during her time here. Robbie is a smart, hard-working individual whose passion for food and knowledge inspires those around her. It has been a pleasure working alongside her not only as a colleague, but also as a friend. We wish her the best of luck in this new chapter in life. ~Cisco Celis