By David Bolling
In Greek mythology there were generally agreed to be nine muses, whose purviews covered poetry, history, mime, flute, light verse and dance, lyric choral poetry, tragedy, comedy and astronomy.
By mythical happenstance or cosmic prescience, those creative endeavors correspond nicely with the range of activities, services, classes and trainings offered year-round at the Sonoma Community Center, although astronomy is generally limited to stargazing in the Center’s Secret Garden.
With so many muse-worthy credentials it was only a matter of time before Community Center visionaries came up with a modern-day version of the muse myth by honoring a member of the community who makes a profound and creative impact on the Sonoma Valley community.
Enter Manuel Merjil, the Community Center’s 2025 Muse, who admits that despite a deep and rich record of volunteering, facilitating and participating in the creative events and activities of Sonoma Valley, his arrival here was somewhat reluctant. Manuel worked for a San Francisco law firm as a paralegal, but his longtime partner, Paul Curreri, wanted to move out of the city into the country.
“Paul kind of dragged me to Glen Ellen, because he wanted the country life. He was tired of the city. But I would come up, and then when the sun would set I would leave Glen Ellen. I was afraid, it was too quiet. I was used to the city noises.”
But then the magic of Sonoma Valley worked him over. It was 1986 and he quickly found reasons to like Glen Ellen.
“The market was great, the Jack London Saloon was great, and all of these connections started happening, really quick. Bob Rice had a restaurant in Glen Ellen and I saw how people rallied around him and his business when he had a health scare. And then the fire department – most of the firemen were volunteers, and I started to see that, while it’s in the country, and small, everybody is together, at various levels.”
Then Paul decided to retire and wanted to live fulltime in Glen Ellen, so Manuel decided to split his time in the City with Glen Ellen. Then Paul suggested Manuel should volunteer some time at the legal clinic then hosted by La Luz in Sonoma. In short order, Manuel was teaching citizenship classes at La Luz. That led to F.I.S.H., where he volunteered to translate for clients seeking rental assistance.
“And I was so amazed at how many people were helping other people, and everybody was interconnected, working together. And to me, all this was community. It was so much that I could not believe. I’m thinking, Wow, this is really happening here. Community. Everybody here is helping.”
That social net was revealed in sharpest relief in the 2017 firestorm that torched parts of Glen Ellen and leveled the home Paul and Manuel had lovingly curated with artifacts collected over their lifetimes.
Manuel and Paul were awakened by a neighbor when the fire had reached Dunbar School not far from their house.
“Everybody went to the Jack London saloon, with all their pets, and they were pouring drinks just so people could calm their nerves.”
When successive evacuations forced Paul and Manuel out of Glen Ellen, they took refuge at Ramekins, “where cots were set up in the event space and people were cooking, everybody rallied, everybody brought clothing, toothbrushes, I mean, it was incredible, I could not believe how the community rallied,” says Manuel. “So, when you need a community in Sonoma Valley, you are never alone, people are willing to help you. It is a great thing. It is simply amazing.”
The web of connections Manuel discovered, and keeps discovering, form a tapestry of giving into which is woven the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art, the annual Dia de los Muertos celebrations at the Community Center, La Luz, the Sonoma Valley Mentoring Alliance, Transcendence Theatre Company, Out in the Vineyard – the list goes on.
Manuel’s life represents “opportunity, unity, community,” says Community Center executive director Vanessa Rognlien, “He brings people together and breaks down barriers.”
Manuel Merjil will be celebrated as the 2025 Sonoma Community Center Muse on Saturday, August 16 with a gala dinner at the Center, from 5 to 9 p.m.. The dinner will be catered by the girl and the fig, with entertainment and a live auction. Tickets are available at www.sonomacommunitycenter.org/muse.
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