Women have contributed to Sonoma culture since the beginning

MFK Fisher wrote about the joys of food. Photo Submitted.

Sonoma lost a leading example of how Sonoma women contribute to the Valley’s cultural life recently with the passing of our dear friend Charlotte Lamb. In the fields of visual art, literature, music, drama, education and the quality of life, the ladies of the valley have been in the forefront in bringing polish to this frontier community.
After a brilliant career in which she designed systems for Wells Fargo, Charles Schwab and others, the quietly effective Charlotte retired to Sonoma with her husband, James, in the early ‘90s. A self-effacing leader, she soon directed the rejuvenation of the Sonoma Community Center and then became the moving force in developing the concept of the Sonoma Valley Museum and seeing it through to success.  Still in her 50s when she first showed signs of illness, Charlotte was an anonymous donor to numerous charities.  Three House MultiMedia, parent company of the Sonoma Valley Sun named the Lambs individuals of the year at the first Sunnys.
Mary Frances Kennedy (MFK) Fisher, was an established author on the joys of food, cooking and life abroad including famed books such as “How To Cook a Wolf” and “Serve It Forth” as well as a stream of articles in many magazines. Internationally acclaimed as a literary stylist, in 1984 MFK was named a Sonoma “Treasure.”  She drew many celebrity visitors to her charming cottage in Glen Ellen.
Dynamic poet, lecturer and professor Carolyn Kizer put the capper on her career by winning the Pulitzer Prize for poetry in 1985 for her collection Yin.  Carolyn, who served as the first Literature Program Director of the National Endowment of the Arts, currently lives with her husband, architect John Woodbridge, in their classic Sonoma Victorian home.
A 44-year-resident of Kenwood, poetess and short story writer Winnie Fitzpatrick died last March.  A founder and long-time president of Poets of the Vineyard, she was winner of many poetry awards and encouraged several writers’ groups, including Pen Women and the Redwood Writers Club.
And, of course, there is prolific Sun writer Kathleen Thompson Hill, who has edited two volumes of Sonoma Valley poetry and chaired the Sonoma Cultural and Fine Arts Commission and the Community Services Commission.
Adele Harrison Middle School teacher Kathy Eschleman has established a district-wide annual writing competition in which students are encouraged to produce fiction, poetry, sports reporting and other genres, which has made writing a recognized success experience,  including an awards ceremony, for dozens of young students.
The artistic skill of Sonoma sculptress Marian Breckenridge was known internationally with her works acquired by collections throughout the world while she helped Jerry Casson and Henri Maysonave found the Sonoma Community Center.  Her fame was not neglected at home, for Marian was named Sonoma’s  first “Treasure” in 1983.  Painter Cedora Scheiblich was another Sonoman who has gained popular recognition far beyond the confines of the Valley.
Helene Minelli’s late husband Louie insisted that their house incorporate a sunlit studio to give her every opportunity to work at home as well as on scene in western landscapes.  Helene, named Treasure in 1989,  has achieved a reputation as one of the nation’s most skilled pastel artists, always willing to advise other artists. Pixie-ish Irma Wallem, who painted and wrote for fun with enthusiasm (“A Worm in Every Apple”) was picked as a Treasure in 1987. Irma would sell small paintings to artistically inclined young children for a dollar.  A current generation of female valley visual artists includes Judy Theo (Red Wolf Gallery) with her vivid splashy landscapes and Claudia Wagar, whose vineyard mural dominates the Mercato plaza and Landmark Winery’s tasting room.
Women have played an important role in the encouragement of music in the Valley, none more than Toni Kuhry-Haeuser, who founded Sonoma City Opera, and has produced local operas and other musical events both large and small.  She received recognition as Treasure in 1996.  Among others adding to the musicality of the Valley are singers Sheila Whitney, Juliet Scott and many others.
For  more than two decades, energetic Kate Kennedy has directed more dramatic productions and drawn more Sonomans to the stage than any other Valley resident.   Kate’s Shakespearean dramas, in which rank amateurs and children are transformed into accomplished actors, have become legendary. High on the town’s entertainment list is Diana Rhoten, who has entranced a generation of children in her magical role as “Witchy Poo.”
In the 150 years since the first schools opened in the Valley, women have played a major role in education as teachers, principals and superintendents.  In recent decades their importance on the school boards has increased. Travel bureau owner Sandy Snorey was elected a member of the board of the Sonoma Valley Unified School District board in the early 1970s, followed by FloBeth White. FloBeth also became the first female member of a Kiwanis Club (Sonoma Plaza) and the first Kiwanis president from the distaff side in northern California.  Dorene Musilli, Sandra Lowe and Helen Marsh followed in their footsteps on the school board.
Ever-active entrepreneur Suzanne Brangham created Ramekins Sonoma Valley Culinary School, which has attracted leading chefs who conduct popular classes and has made Sonoma Valley a center for the culinary arts.
No report about women in Sonoma education would be complete without the story of the Del Rosso sisters, Francine and Rosemary, better known as Francine Maffei and Rosemary Haver. Francine became the first lay principal of St. Francis Solano School and years later became founding principal of the independent Catholic Presentation School.  At the same time Rosemary served as principal of Dunbar and then Prestwood public schools. The sisters’ impact on the lives of thousands of young Sonomans is immeasurable.
This concludes the series of three Hill on History columns describing the feminine influence on the culture of Sonoma Valley. I suspect we have only scratched the surface, for the numbers of female artists, musicians, educators and organizers and supporters of Sonoma Valley cultural events constantly increases.

Gerald Hill is co-author with his wife, Kathleen Hill, of more than 25 books including Sonoma Valley – The Secret Wine Country, Napa Valley-Land of Golden Vines, and The People’s Law Dictionary.

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