“We don’t have inflation because the people are living too well. We have inflation because the government is living too well.”
~Ronald Reagan
In Memoriam
- John Volpi – Native Petaluman and owner of Volpi’s Ristorante and Bar at 90 years of age.
- Maryann Parrish – Teacher at Mattie Washburn School in Windsor killed in car crash.
- Clive Davis – Lawyer responsible for launching or resurrecting careers of many stars.
- Giampaolo Pesce – Past owner of La Riviera Ristorante/Conceived Levi’s Gran Fondo with Levi Leipheimer.
- Alan Greenspan - 18 ½ years as Federal Reserve Chair. Age 100.
Take Tea and See. Make it Hefty, Hot and Hearty.
Tea has been around for a long time and for some people it is the only drink. Here are 10 places in Sonoma County where you can have a good cup of tea.
Tea & Trumpets. Sold online. Started by Mark Boden in 2014. Also available at farmers markets, cafes and specialty grocers in the county. Tea-and-trumpets.com
The Taste of Tea. Family-owned tea room at 109 North Street in Healdsburg. Premium loose-leaf teas from Japan, China and Taiwan.
Russian River Tea Company. Over 100 teas sold along with mugs, honey and infusers. Complimentary samples offered daily. 336 Center St. Healdsburg.
A’Roma Roasters Coffee & Tea. Live music on Saturday afternoons. Variety of tea offerings. 95 Fifth Street. Santa Rosa.
Tea Room Café. Interesting tea menu including Maddie Palmera and chai tea latte. Country inspired meals and seasonal sweets. 316 Western Avenue. Petaluma.
Petaluma Coffee & Tea Company. Selection of loose-leaf teas and coffee blends from all over the world. 212 Second Street. Petaluma.
Muir’s Tea Room. Both Scottish and English tea services as well as seasonal plant-based lunch menus and holiday tea events. Popular blends are Queens Rose Garden and Enchanted Forest. 330 S. Main Street. Sebastopol.
Patisserie Angelica. Choice of fine teas from Mariage Freres with an assortment of house-made finger sandwiches and pastries. Reservations required. 6821 Laguna Park Way. Sebastopol.
Two Trees Tea House. Menu focus is on single-origin black, red, white, green and oolong teas in a gaiwan in accordance with traditional Chinese brewing method. 3597 Bohemian Highway.Occidental.
Duncan Mills Tea Shop. Loose-leaf blends from traditional blends to Orange Cookie Chai and Ruby Lemon Mint. 25185 Main Street. Duncan Mills.
“The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.”
~Thomas Jefferson
Thank you for your Service.
Betsy Fischer has been the chair of Santa Rosa Junior College Culinary Arts Program for 26 years. She states that the job has been her whole life but it is a 50 to 60 hour a week job and she is tired. She does plan to come back at some point and teach a few classes. Fischer brought the concept of service and connection to her teaching and trained students that these concepts matter as much as knife skills. Fischer was a constant presence in the student-run dining room.
A Time for Good-byes.
As Santa Rosa City Schools closes campuses some long time schools are closing and students are saying a sad good bye. Steele Lane Elementary has been operating for 76 years. This is the last year. The elementary campus has been home to 450 students in transitional kindergarten through sixth grade. Steele Lane is among the last two of six Santa Rosa schools to close in the past two years.
Another school that closed this year is Hilliard Comstock Middle School which opened in 1972. Tens of thousands of students have attended Comstock. The students who would normally attend Comstock will attend Piner or Elsie Allen High School campus in September.
Sonoma County Courthouse
Sonoma County has a new seven story Courthouse. The Courthouse is located at 626 Administration Drive which is in the county complex. The courthouse was officially opened on May 29 and full operations will start this summer. The new courthouse replaces the current courthouse that was built 60 years ago and is in a very deteriorated state.
Elections, Elections!
Finalists for the supervisorial seats in the 2nd and 4th were selected in the June election. In the
2nd district Joanna Paun will face Sylvia Lemus. In the 4th district Tom Schwedhelm will face Melanie Bagby. Should be an interesting summer.
“Envy was once considered to be one of the seven deadly sins before it became one of the most admired virtues under its new name: Social Justice.”
~Thomas Sowell
Is the third time a charm?
For the third time in three years, Santa Rosa City Schools has hired a superintendent. Monica Thomas has worked for the Oakland Unified School District since 2005. She served as a school principal for eight years and also served in several administrative roles. Thomas has a doctorate from UC Berkeley and is fluent in Spanish. Thomas will officially start her new job on July 1st.
Money, Money, Money! Always a Problem
Santa Rosa City Schools has been working to dig out of a multimillion dollar deficit. This deficit has raised the real threat of insolvency and state takeover.
However, on May 27th, a majority of trustees voted to approve a $76,000 raise for Luz Cazares the top fiscal administrator in the district. Her yearlong interim contract is up at the end of June and she is set to leave the district in June. District leaders state that the payout is compensation for what district leaders said was a substantial amount of unanticipated additional work beyond the days called for in her contract. However, the payment was not received positively by many district employees. Many employees stated that they had put in many extra hours. The president of the Santa Rosa Teachers Association stated that teachers had been working at 110% this year facing new jobs next year with new students and new communities. Teachers have had to pack their entire classrooms and unpack the classrooms in the new location. All of this was done without a salary increase.
Another Good Deed! The Healthy Room Project
Santa Rosa Police officers have partnered with The Healthy Room Project to transform a cramped, two-bedroom apartment on Sonoma Avenue into a comfortable home for a family of six.
The Healthy Room Project is a Redondo Beach-based nonprofit organization that works with law enforcement agencies and community groups to redesign bedrooms and living spaces where children are living in unsafe or inadequate conditions.
The first Healthy Room Project in the North Bay focused on helping a 14 year old girl whose family had been sharing very crowded sleeping arrangements in a two bedroom apartment. The team redesigned a bedroom, painted, assembled furniture, set up new beds, desks and storage spaces for the family. The family in this situation was referred through local nonprofit and community partners.
Mark Kirunchyk founded the Healthy Room Project. He states that he has now completed projects with 34 police departments and helped hundreds of children across California.
Do you really need to cross that bridge?
Golden Gate Bridge Toll Go Up on July 1st. The toll rates will increase by 50 cents. FasTrak account rates will increase to $10.25; pay-as-you-go rates will increase to $10.50; toll invoice rates will increase to $11.25; carpool rates will increase to $8.25. Multi-axle vehicle toll rates will also increase. Most Golden Gate Transit bus and Golden Gate Ferry fares will also increase by up to 25 cents.
If you are a Sonoma County rider paying cash the bus trip to San Francisco will cost $15. Adult riders using a Clipper card will pay $12. Youth, senior, disabled and Medicare riders will pay $7.50 to San Francisco. More information is available at goldengate.org.
The Wonder of Quilts!
The skill and imagination required of quilt making is a wonderful thing. Recently, a very unusual quilt appeared at the Welfare League which is located in Santa Rosa’s Railroad Square. One recent donation was a large quilt, patterned with a repeating red star-like design on an off-white backing material. It was almost in pristine condition. When the quilt was turned over many names were on it. The calligraphy was not of this century and more than 200 names were penned in black ink on the back of the quilt. Next to one collection of names was the date 1888.
Volunteers with the League started researching where the quilt came from. Ultimatley, it was determined that the quilt was made in Hoboken, New Jersey in 1884. A spread sheet was developed listing all of the people’s names on the quilt which made it possible to keep track of who was identified and who was not.
The League does not have a way to determine how the quilt arrived at the League. The question is how did a quilt made in Hoboken land up in Santa Rosa. Who knows? The League has decided to give the quilt to the Hoboken Historical Museum which has been helping with the research into the quilt.
Old Timers Luncheon
The wine industry has been a major factor in the growth and economic life of Sonoma County. The Old Timers Luncheon was started in 1987 by Dante Bagnani and Robert Mondavi and was a social gathering for senior members of Sonoma County’s founding wine families. Some of the first distinguished guests were Julio Gallo, Ed Prati, Bob Gallo, Louis J. Foppiano, Myron Nightingale, Bob Meyer, John Cella, Armand Bussone, John Parducci, Al Huntsinger, Doug Davis, Joe Vercelli, Bob Rossi and Joe Ciatti.
At age 83, Ciatti is the only remaining original member and now serves as the luncheon’s chief organizer. The guest list has been expanded from 14 people to more than 100 and represents Sonoma, Napa, Lake counties including localities such as Lodi, Paso Robles and beyond. This May, nearly 70 guests gathered at Catelli’s Restaurant in Geyserville for the Old Timers Luncheon. Just a way to remember what the wine industry has done for Sonoma County.
Another Sonoma County Memory Gone!
After seven decades the Wagon Wheel Saloon, located on Mendocino Ave in Santa Rosa closed on June 7. Christine and Mark Mandoli became co-owners along with other persons who are deceased 35 years ago. This biker bar has been a mainstay in Santa Rosa and Sonoma County. The new owners are going in a different direction. Another Sonoma County institution gone.
Another piece of Sonoma County History for Sale.
In 1910 a home was built on a lot which is now surrounded by Jack London State Historic Park. The home was built for London’s half-sister Eliza Shepard who helped manage the Beauty Ranch and business operations. The property is part of the 1,400 acre ranch that London assembled before his death in 1916.
Brian Shepard who is London’s great-great nephew stated that the family has decided to list 1.2 acres of the roughly 130 acres they own. The hope is that the proceeds from the sale will help with the maintenance of their land where grapes are growing.
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