Auction Napa Valley Proceeds: Enhancing Lives

Rianda House

Located in the heart of St. Helena, Rianda House a thriving senior activity center, offering a one-stop shop approach to connect the community’s senior population to the programs, services and resources needed to support independence and successful aging. With the population of adults ages 65 and older expected to rise by 50% in the next twenty years, the need for such a Center has never been greater.

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Last year Jim lost his wife of almost 50 years very suddenly. His grown children would visit occasionally and yet they were all a plane ride away. He stopped eating well, would not leave his house and was showing signs of severe depression. A concerned neighbor suggested that they make a visit to Rianda House to inquire about the daily delivered meals and weekly card games; Jim had always loved to play pinochle with his wife. During their visit, the Executive Director connected Jim with the grief support group offered at Rianda House by Napa Valley Hospice. As a result he has developed new coping skills, met others in his situation and was able to bring himself out of his shell. Today he visits the center 3 to 4 times a week as an active volunteer and program participant who especially enjoys the weekly congregate lunches, pinochle game and Sit & Be Fit exercise class….and who we always see with a smile on his face.

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Now that we've shared a few of the hundreds of Auction Napa Valley beneficiary "Success Stories" we invite you to be part of creating the success stories yet to come. Mark this down: Sunday, May 27th at Noon Pacific Time: the 2012 Auction Napa Valley E-Auction shoots off the blocks with 150 Ways to Kick Your Cellar up a notch, while supporting health care and youth development programs. www.napavintners.com/auction.

Role Models You Can Support

Napa Emergency Women's Services (NEWS)

The mission of Napa Emergency Women's Services (NEWS) is to provide a nurturing refuge to women and children escaping domestic violence and and/or sexual abuse and to be a catalyst for change through prevention, intervention, and advocacy.

We believe that those who have become victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse have the power to strengthen and heal. Every day we bring respect, understanding, and resources to survivors, because we see that with kindness and support, we can create peaceful homes and healthy communities. As the executive director of this organization, I feel very fortunate to be a witness to this transformation.

Tracy Lamb
Executive Director

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Every week when the children's group at NEWS meets, it has a topic for the day. The topic for this particular day was role models. Children were asked by the facilitator what their understanding of role models was and the facilitator then concluded the session with a collaborative definition of what a role model meant to the group.

After the discussion, children were asked to write a lettter to their role models. Some immediately expressed who they had in mind, while others needed some extra time and help to identify who that person could be. Still others struggled to find someone at all, which made the exercise difficult to observe.

It was very interesting see that each child was able to identify what a role model should be, but that when it came time to write the letter some group members struggled to find a person in their life that they could look up to. Unfortunately, some of the kids we serve lack exposure to positive people.

At the end of the session, with help, everyone was able to identify a role model and write a letter. Sitting around a table, each child had the opportunity to share his/her letter. Some of them wrote to their parents, others to their teachers, and one of them wrote a letter to the group facilitator and KEDS Shelter program manager and group facilitator.

This group facilitator was honored to see the impact that the program has had in the life of this child. This letter is just one example of many others that we have seen exemplifying how important this group is to to the lives of these children, as due to the difficulties they are experiencing, this group might just be the only space where they feel safe enough to just be kids.



Sister Ann Dental Clinic "Success Story"

Community Health Clinic Ole

Sister Ann Dental Clinic

Clinic Ole's Sister Ann Dental Clinic supports the provision of quality, affordable preventative and treatment dental services and dental education to Napa County's low-income, uninsured residents and children enrolled in governmental programs such as Medi-Cal and Healthy Families. 

I hear many stories about the lives we touch every day by providing affordable health care to our community. This is a story recently told me by a foster parent whose son had a mortal fear of the dentist.

Tanir Ami

Chief Executive Officer

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Diego came to live with us when he was eight years old. He had been in foster care for seven months after being removed from his mother for physical abuse by her boyfriend. Prior to that, as with so many situations like this, there had been some serious neglect and Diego's teeth were evidence of that. Because he had come to us from foster care, he was eligible for Medi-Cal, but we added him to our private insurance because we wanted him to have "the best" care available. We knew about Sister Ann Dental Clinic and Clinic Ole, but we didn't know anyone who had used their services so we took Diego to our own dentist and a private practice pediatrician. Diego needed multiple fillings, a couple of baby teeth had to be pulled, and his oral hygiene needed much improvement. We spent thousands of dollars out of pocket the first few months just to catch up and Diego HATED the dentist we were using, so taking him to the dentist became a huge battle. Somewhere along the line, Sister Ann Dental Clinic came up so we thought "What the heck? Let's give it a try."

The support staff and dentists are all great and worked so well with Diego that he even fell asleep once while in the chair being worked on. He told me it was like the dentist was a "Ninja" dentist and asked me to YELP Sister Ann Dental Clinic!

I will not say that he loves coming to the dentist--I don't know too many 13 year old boys who do--but he has a level of trust with the staff and dentists here that he did not find in the private practice. Everything went so well with his dentistry that we thought we would give Clinic Ole (medical) a try and it too was a great move. There is a much shorter appointment wait time than with his private practice pediatrician and he loves Dr. Lee, who has become his primary care physician.  

Auction Hoopla Begins!

Auction Napa Valley, the Napa Valley Vintners' annual community fundraiser is the most celebrated charity wine auction in the world, having given more than $100 million to health, youth and affordable housing non-profit programs.

So, that's the really big picture, which is made up of many individual stories of those whose lives have been touched by the generosity of all who contribute to Auction Napa Valley: everyone who bids on e-, live and barrel auctions, all of our guests, the volunteers without whom Auction would not be possible, and the seemingly endless generosity of spirit of the vintners of Napa Valley.

Starting on Monday, May 14, we'd like to share a few of these "success stories" from Auction Napa Valley beneficiaries with you as we head into the Hoopla that has at its heart Hope for so many people.

"What If": Here We Go to Auction 2012

An Auction Napa Valley 2012 Welcome Letter from the Chappellet Family

Thirty-two years ago our family, along with many others, worked hard to implement a

novel idea, “What if we could raise money to help our hospitals by auctioning some of

the great wines of the Napa Valley?” asked Robert Mondavi at a vintner luncheon. Many

rose up to the challenge.

Even the great visionary Robert Mondavi would have had a hard time imagining how

many lives would be affected by that “What if?” question. To date more than $100

million have been distributed to dozens of healthcare and youth development non-profit

programs. Not only have a great many members of our community benefited from the

proceeds generated from Auction Napa Valley, but participants from all over the world

have learned about the magnificent wines that come from this region and enjoyed the

hospitality and beauty of The Valley.

Working from the inside, we continually marvel at the generosity of our bidders and

strategic partners, as well as the enormous talent, time and energy of the vintners and

the hundreds of volunteers.

Our family grew up in the middle of a vineyard, giving us a deep appreciation and

understanding, not only of the changing seasons, but of the devoted people who daily

tend the vines. Although it has been 45 years since we first came to The Valley, we still

get excited every day to witness the growth of the vines.

Now we know the answer to Robert’s, “What if?” The answer is–when a community comes together in generosity and joy, we can harvest all the best life has to offer.

Rise up!

                                  

The Chappellet Family

HONORARY CHAIRS, AUCTION NAPA VALLEY 2012

NAPA VALLEY VINTNERS

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For more Auction Napa Valley 2012 inspiration, and to preview e-auction and live auction lots , visit http://www.auctionnapavalley.org/

ECVM Update

One new moth was found last week in a trap in a vineyard On Greenfield Rd, in Conn Valley east of St. Helena. All growers within 500 meters of the find were notified. This was an area that was not within 500 meters of finds in 2010 or 2011 so pheromones had not been placed in the vineyard. The grower has since put up pheromones for mating disruption. This brings the total number to 4 for the first flight of 2012 in Napa County. We are past the peak of the flight in most areas so we should not expect to see many more moths.


The majority of vineyards in the county are now at the ideal timing for the spray for the first generation. All growers who put up pheromones for mating disruption should still treat for the larvae of this generation. All other growers who did not put up pheromones but are in the treatment area should also treat. This includes the growers in the treatment area in Pope Valley, Chiles Valley, Howell Mountain, and Gordon Valley. Treatments should be applied in your next scheduled mildew spray in the next two weeks. For growers in late developing areas this spray should go on one week later in 1-2 weeks. For conventional growers, one application of Intrepid at 12-16 oz/a or Altacor at 4.5 oz/a should have enough residual to control this insect for this first generation. Organic growers should start now with applications of BT products at 1-2 lb./a or Entrust at 2.5 oz/a and cotinue for three applications. Olive trees in the treatment area should also be sprayed at this time with either Dipel or Altacor as they are a host during bloom. Please follow all label instructions when applying any of these products. And just a reminder to report all applications on your pesticide use reports including the Isomate-EGVM pheromones for mating disruption.

Thank you all again for your cooperation so far, as pheromones were distributed to nearly 99% of growers in the treatment area. Keep up your efforts with the spraying of the larvae for the first two generations and we will have a very good shot at getting rid of this pest.

Martin Mochizuki

Napa County EGVM Grower Liaison

707-975-2133

707-252-9218 fax

martinmoch@sbcglobal.net