Candidate for
Councilmember; City of Santa Barbara

John J. Thyne III is 41 years old. Born in Boston, Massachusetts, he moved 17 times before coming to Santa Barbara in 1999. Thyne is the oldest of six children (three boys, three girls) with parents celebrating their 42nd anniversary this year. Thyne's father (John Jr.) worked on the loading docks of Sears Roebuck in the 1960's, was promoted to management with union endorsement, moved the family several times around the country and ultimately became a vice president of Pepsi Cola in the 1990's. John Jr. left PepsiCo to become president of Fleetwood homes then semi-retired a few years ago and now works with his son John III at Goodwin & Thyne Properties' Ventura Office. Thyne's mother (Catherine Marie "Salvucci" Thyne) was a stay-at-home mom who later went to college and earned a BA in Sociology of the Aged. Since then, "Cathy" has worked in senior assisted living facilities, most recently as Executive Director for an elderly community in New Jersey.

Thyne is Catholic, Irish/Italian, never married, and he earned a bachelor's degree in English/Biology from the University of Connecticut in 1991 where he founded SOAR (Students Organized Against Racism). In college, Thyne became a member of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity and was voted runner-up for Homecoming King. Thyne initially set out to be a Catholic priest but decided he wanted a family so he switched to pre-med. After working in a hospital for a few years, he chose not to become a doctor and moved to Plano, Texas to be with his family after college. While working two jobs he took pre-law classes at the local community college. In 1993 Thyne took the Law School Admission Test and scored in the top 4% of the nation. He immediately attended the University of Tulsa, College of Law (instant admission based on LSAT score), worked his way through law school as a waiter at Macaroni Grill and an associate at Sam's Club (Walmart), edited for the Tulsa Law Journal, and became Student Bar Association President and Outstanding Law Student of the Year in 1996.

After graduation he practiced as an attorney for a General Civil Litigation firm then became general counsel of a real estate brokerage in Tulsa before joining the US Bankruptcy Court + 10th Circuit in 1998 as a judicial law clerk. While serving on the Board of Directors for the Tulsa County Bar Association, Thyne created GAAP (Greater Access to Assistance for People) to help clients in need of legal services who did not qualify for Legal Aid but could not afford market rate attorneys. Thyne was a finalist for JC Penney's National Volunteer of the Year Golden Rule Award for his work organizing blood drives, teaching Tulsa's Youth Court (program where teens act as attorneys and judges for real juvenile cases involving nonviolent first offenders), for creating the Tulsa Chilifest, a fundraiser that is still operating more than 13 years later, and for his many volunteer activities. Thyne was recognized as Outstanding Jr. Alumnus by his law school and in 1999 he was named Outstanding Young Lawyer by the Tulsa County Bar Association.

Later that year Thyne moved to Santa Barbara to work for the Law Offices of Kathleen M. Stout from 1999 + 2003 representing injured workers in workers' compensation cases. During that time, Thyne taught Workers' Compensation at the Santa Barbara College of Law and became President of the California Applicants' Attorneys Association for the Central Coast. Thyne created and lead Santa Barbara Catholic Singles (SB CATS), a social and service organization. In 2004 Thyne opened his own Santa Barbara based law firm (general civil litigation, corporate law, entertainment law, bankruptcy) and contemporaneously launched "Goodwin & Thyne Properties" with close friend Kevin Goodwin (Old Spanish Days committee, computer software engineer working for HP before teaming up with Thyne). Thyne continues to teach at the Santa Barbara and Ventura Colleges of Law 2 nights per week (Civil Procedure, California Real Estate Law, Remedies, Workers' Compensation). He participated in Leadership Santa Barbara County in 2000 then served on the board and became president in 2002.

Since moving to Santa Barbara Thyne has been recognized as "40 Under 40" by the Pacific Coast Business Times in 2003, Best RealtorŪ by the Independent in 2008 + runner up in 2005, a "Bachelor of the Year" by Coastal Woman Magazine in 2006, and he has twice been named Professor of the Year by his students. Thyne has been a volunteer for several community organizations including Reading for Blind & Dyslexic and the Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation. Thyne created the first ever "Court Personnel Appreciation Party" for all workers at the Santa Barbara County Courthouse in 2007, he currently serves as President of the Santa Barbara County Bar Foundation and he is a Lector for Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church.