Finding Gratitude Through Uncertainty

Vanessa RIvers on a forced goodbye turned silver lining to finding her way home

By Camille Quinn

Photography Vanessa Rivers

Last month, SBLS had the pleasure of hearing from travel connoisseur and former resident Vanessa Rivers on her perfect itinerary for your next Santa Barbara getaway. Recently Vanessa found herself and her daughter back in town for more than just a weekend surf escape, and renting a home in the quaint community of Summerland. With her daughter midway through her school year, this move was not on her radar for her near future but instead was the abrupt outcome of the Pacific Palisades fire. The wildfire engulfed her community and forced her family to relocate away from where they had called home for the past seven years. Despite the tragedy and chaos that her family has faced, Vanessa is determined to find a silver lining in it all, championing the mindset of joy and gratitude, even amongst the deepest of losses. 

Growing up along the Central Coast, Vanessa experienced the ultimate small-town childhood in Paso Robles, just north of Santa Barbara County. She looks back on it fondly and it ultimately led her to UCSB for college—desiring to branch out while remaining close to home. Her adventures later took her to London, where she started her family and career. However, she always felt her roots pulling her back to Santa Barbra, knowing one day she would find herself calling it home again.

In January of 2025, the Palisades wildfire erupted in the Los Angeles devastating the community and changing the lives of thousands in mere minutes. Vanessa's family was among those forced to evacuate, and within an instant, her life was uprooted. While most in this scenario would never consider themselves lucky, Vanessa dwells in the hope that everything happens for a reason, and for her, that reason is the ability to return to the community where she always felt at home. 

While Summerland and the surrounding Santa Barbara area have limited space to offer, Vanessa says she has been greeted with nothing but empathy and generosity since her return. She reveals that one of the most powerful reminders through this all is that in times of tragedy, the outpouring of support she has received reaffirms the overflow of compassion we have for one another. 

“People can set their differences aside and look at you as a human being and say, ‘This person needs help, or this community needs help—and what can I do to help?’  I think that's been such a blessing through all this to get to see, wow, there's so many good people in the world and people really do care and they show up for you when you need them,” Vanessa says. 

Displacing her daughter from school was a whirlwind consequence of the fires. However, Vanessa feels fortunate to be able to provide the same small-town elementary school experience she once had that she always wanted for her daughter. Reveling over getting to walk her to school each morning, she is grateful for the ability of her daughter to finish second grade in such a welcoming environment. 

She notes that Montecito School Union and the YMCA have particularly stood out for their efforts at assisting families such as her own during this time. Small business owners and influencers alike have reached out to express not only their condolences but also to offer aid, making it abundantly clear how much support surrounds her. She credits this kindness with making it all the more easy to not only find gratitude for what she has but also for those who have rallied around her. Vanessa shares that she is unsure of what her future holds or how long her family will remain in Santa Barbara. For now, she is taking it day by day, grateful she has found herself back to her roots and humbled by the warmth she has felt in the process. 

Vanessa's biggest message for those experiencing a similar sense of loss is: “You cannot control everything that happens to you, but you can control how you react to it.” She encourages others, and reminds herself, to focus on the fact that you not only can but will work through these tragedies. Continuing to find gratitude is challenging, but an essential step forward. “I am still here, I am still smiling,” Vanessa says.