Chris was a man who was big, bold, and full of love. Breaking social norms everywhere he went, Chris could not pass up the chance to strike up a conversation and connect with people. He has been described by people that met him only once as “that friendly guy”, and he had an art for cultivating friendships with people near and far. He never held back sharing a big hug, genuine smile, or an invitation to visit his home. Chris lived with a sense of abundance and possibility that is rare in this world; and all of us who knew and loved him are so much the better for it.
Chris Casebeer was born on Sept. 16th, 1946 to parents, Julie and Arthur Casebeer, in Altadena, California. His childhood, with older brother Paul, was marked by summers spent in Laguna Beach visiting his grandparents, where his lifelong love of the beach and bodysurfing began. As a teen, Chris learned to play volleyball on the beach from local lifeguards. Chris attended Altadena Elementary School and Eliot Jr. High School before graduating from John Muir High School and starting his college career at UC Santa Barbara.
At UCSB, Chris was a member of the Sigma Pi fraternity and played on the indoor Gaucho volleyball team. He was a member of the 1969 National Collegiate Champion Team, where he forged a lifelong love of volleyball and many enduring friendships.
Chris’ love of the game continued into his adult life: for a time, he played competitively during the early days of beach volleyball. He continued to play for years at La Conchita and with the Nooners at East Beach. Chris loved to say that he got his college degree at UCSB, and his graduate degree at East Beach. He shared his love of volleyball with his first wife, Vicki Johnson.
Chris started his working life post-college with Lyon’s and then Bekin’s Moving Companies. He made a good impression on one of his customers, a prominent Santa Barbara Realtor, who encouraged him to change careers and join his firm. As a result, Chris obtained his real estate license in 1973 and quickly found his niche. In 1980, Chris opened his own firm, Casebeer & Company, with his first office on State St. above the Chase Restaurant. He later moved his office up the street to the Arlington Theater block, where his annual Solstice and Fiesta parties became the hottest invitation in town. He served as President of the Santa Barbara Association of Realtors in 1993, and was the co-founder of CASA magazine the same year. Throughout his 44 years in real estate, he made every client feel like royalty whether they were buying or selling a small home, or a Montecito estate. His clients became his friends, and his friends became his clients.
Starting in 1982, Chris' family life blossomed during his 15 year marriage to Hallie Anderson; raising his stepdaughter Celeste, and daughter Charlotte and son Jeremy in their San Roque home. Chris strove to imbue his kids with his love of the outdoors and sports; these years were punctuated by long weekend days spent at the beach, Chris coaching the kids’ sports teams, and annual camping and mule packing trips in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
Chris enjoyed all sports, and was an avid fan and supporter of the Gauchos men’s and women’s Volleyball and Basketball teams. Chris served as the President of the Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table, and always looked forward to the weekly luncheons at Harry’s Plaza Cafe where he got to connect with local youth athletes. He also served on the board of the Special Olympics of Santa Barbara, and the UCSB Athletic Director’s Advisory Committee.
Chris’ connection to civic duty extended beyond sports, and was emblematic of his wide ranging and eclectic interests. He also served on the Santa Barbara City College Adult Education Advisory Committee, co-founded Men Against Domestic Violence, served on the boards of Domestic Violence Solutions, Victoria Theater Community House, Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara, Rental Housing Mediation, and was a Commissioner for the Santa Barbara Dept. of Parks and Recreation.
In 1999, Chris traveled to Cuba, inspired by the movie Buena Vista Social Club. There he met his wife and amor, Teriana. Married in 2004 in Santa Barbara, they have shared a home and rich life for the past 16 years, along with Teriana’s daughter, Maripaula. Cuba became a second home for Chris and spending New Year’s in Havana became a tradition. He traveled the island and made friends everywhere he went from Pinar del Rio, to Santiago de Cuba. He adopted Tuti’s patio and made it his own with the plants he collected through his years of travel across the island. He planted an avocado tree right in the middle of the yard and filled it with ferns and orchids. This became one of his favorite places to spend time with family.
Making and keeping friends always came naturally for Chris; he effortlessly initiated friendships and then tended those relationships over time, much like the many gardens that he created and cared for over his life. His large, beloved, and diverse community of friends from around the world are the accumulation of connections from childhood to his final days.
After his diagnosis with pancreatic cancer in 2015, Chris’ strength and indomitable spirit helped him to seek out the best treatment possible, and he enjoyed two and half more years of travel, and treasured time with family. On Sept. 2, 2017, Chris passed away sitting on his front porch, waiting to meet friends for coffee, overlooking his beloved tropical garden in Santa Barbara.
Chris leaves behind his wife, Teriana Berriz; two children, Charlotte Bodnar and Jeremy Casebeer; stepdaughters, Celeste Hoffpauir and Maripaula Valdes-Berriz; grandchildren, Millie and Delilah Bodnar, Joaquim Casebeer-Salgado, and Aurora Rehor; and a vast community of friends, all of whom Chris considered family.