Scholarships available for high school seniors
Supervisor Valerie Brown will be awarding two scholarships to deserving high school graduating seniors who live in the First District of Sonoma County – she encourages those students with an interest in government to apply.
As the president of the National Association of Counties, Brown is given the opportunity to award two presidential scholarships funded by the generous contributions of David Davenport and the CH2M Hill Corporation.
A selection committee will determine the two scholarship recipients. First choice will receive the Davenport Scholarship, which is a $2,500 award, renewable for four years. The second student selected will receive the CH2M Hill Corporation Scholarship, which is a $1,000 award, renewable for four years.
The deadline to apply is April 15, 2010, and interested students may obtain an application and further information from Sonoma Valley High School or on Brown’s First District Web page at supervisors.sonoma-county.org
Redwood writers
Redwood Writers announces its annual short story contest with a submission deadline of May 15. The cost is $10 per entry, $8 for California Writers Club members, for up to two short stories. Winners will be announced at the Redwood Writers’ general meeting on Aug. 8. Cash prizes will be awarded and the winning entry will be considered for publication in our annual “Vintage Voices” anthology. Submissions will be judged on clarity, originality, and cohesion. Entry guidelines are found on the Redwood Writers’ Web site: redwoodwriters.org/shortstorycontest2010.html
Chamber of Commerce business expo
The Sonoma Valley Chamber of Commerce will once again hold its annual business expo on March 18. Sonoma Valley’s largest yearly business event will feature local food and wine samplings as well as showcase the products and services of more than 50 local businesses. The expo will take place Thursday, March 18 at the Sonoma Veterans Memorial Building from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Local food and wine include: Barking Dog Roasters, Bartholomew Park Winery, Big 3, Ceja Vineyards, Charles Creek Winery, El Bringuito Market, Highway 12 Winery, Ludy’s Catering, Mary’s Pizza Shack, Santé Restaurant, Taqueria Sonoma, Ludy’s Catering, and Whole Foods Market.
A tasting pass for unlimited sips and samples is $10 per person benefiting the Sonoma Valley Chamber of Commerce’s Business Education Roundtable.
A must attend for business-to-business networking, gathering community information and community members to meet local business owners and community leaders. Local businesses sponsoring this event include the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa, Sonoma Valley Index-Tribune, Sonoma Valley Bank, Infineon Raceway, Wine Country Party, Exchange Bank, North Bay Insurance Brokers, Wells Fargo Bank and PG & E.
Latino mental health forum scheduled
The Sonoma County Department of Health Services’ Mental Health Division has awarded an $80,000 grant to a local program designed specifically to increase the social, cultural and emotional well-being of Sonoma Valley Latinos and their families. Nueva Vida (New Life), under the auspices of CommonBond, was created by Noris Binet, formerly of Nashville, Tennessee. Binet won the competitive grant based upon her previous community development work, while employed at La Luz Center.
The first public event of the program will be held at Flowery School for all Latino parents. It will be facilitated by Binet along with a mental health professional from Santa Rosa – licensed clinical social worker Marcia Gomez, with whom Binet has previously collaborated. The forum, presented in Spanish, will be held in Flowery’s gymnasium on Thursday evening, March 25, at 5 p.m. and is free of charge, with childcare provided.
The goal of the program is to educate and engage Sonoma Valley Latinos through various mediums with information to raise awareness in the areas of stress-reduction, depression, self-destructive behavioral patterns, low self esteem, and hopelessness related to the immigration process and not being able to speak English; and to provide Latinos with referral information of mental health resources as needed. The work will be collaborative, engaging other Latino serving agencies, local nonprofits and health-service locations as well as any individuals who may wish to volunteer.
Holding a degree in sociology from the University of Guadalajara, Binet utilized her professional experience in cultural communications and community engagement honed in Mexico, Nashville and her native Dominican Republic to design and implement a pilot program, which became the foundation upon which the grant request was developed.
Among other mediums Binet developed stress-reduction exercise classes, support groups for women and community forums to engage Latinos around the issues that best promote self-understanding and overall wellbeing. These avenues of outreach, along with weekly Spanish radio broadcasts, and other forms of outreach, will continue to be employed under the grant program which is now underway.
For more information about the program, please contact Binet at nbinet@aol.com.
