A flood of good deeds rewarded with CommonBond Foundation award

Nora Flood, the director of Sonoma Charter School, has made a remarkable impact on the community in the four years she has been with the institution, extending the role of the school beyond its doors into the surrounding neighborhood of the Springs, and throughout the Sonoma Valley.
Her work in building programs that embrace diversity and celebrate the blending of cultures will be felt for years to come. In recognition of her efforts, Flood has been selected as the recipient of the 2007 CommonBond Foundation award, which is presented annually to an individual in the community who exemplifies the CommonBond mission of fostering cross-cultural respect and mutual appreciation among neighboring cultures in the Sonoma Valley.
“Nora has been a tremendous boon to the Charter School and to the community,” said Bill Hammett, President of CommonBond. “She has encouraged high expectations for the students, she’s brought the community and school closer together, and she’s made it ‘cool’ to be bilingual. It’d be hard to find a better match to the ideals of CommonBond, and it gives us great pleasure to honor her in this way.”
This is an incredible tribute, not just to me, but to all the parents and kids and our school staff,” said Flood. “Everybody here has done their part to reach out and create greater visibility for the school and make this place an anchor for positive programs and activities that are open to all residents.”
Flood points out that the diversity fostered by the Charter School is not just cultural but cuts across all socio-economic lines, as the student population comes from all areas of Sonoma Valley. “This mingling of cultures and economic backgrounds is so crucial for cultivating relationships among children that otherwise would not have the opportunity to interact with each other, and creating friendships that can last a lifetime,” she said.
David Pier, director of the Boys & Girls Club Valley of the Moon, has worked with Flood on community issues and projects that the educational and non-profit organizations have in common, “If one word comes to mind about Nora, it’s ‘committed,’” said Pier. “She has boundless enthusiasm and energy, and that shows up in the way she’s taken the mission of the Charter School – and her own personal involvement – beyond the walls of academia into the neighborhoods.”
June will be the end of Flood’s tenure at the school; she will be joining her husband, whose job took him to Denver in May. Flood gave her notice, but elected to stay through the school year to complete three major milestones for the school: the completion of the first barrier-free playground north of San Francisco; the final fundraising and construction of the school’s multipurpose building; and the renewal of the school’s charter. Today, all those tasks are finished, though Flood has a list of many more ideas she was hoping to get underway.
“These are such precarious times for our kids, there are so many influences that can pull them in the wrong direction. We have to be the examples they model themselves after – all of us. We need to show them what effective relationships look like, what it means to respect each other and the place we live,” said Flood.
Whoever succeeds her will inherit a tremendous amount of good will from parents, kids, colleagues and the community. “The first time I visited the school, it was before classes when the entire school meets outside for a ‘morning circle,’” said Pier. “It was a real reflection of what kind of person Nora is, she knew all the parents and all the kids by name. It was obvious she loved them and they loved her.”
The award will be presented at the Sunnys Community Awards gala, Friday, May 2 at the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn. For more information on the Sunnys, please call 707.933.0101, ext. 110.