Avila Beach Life • September 2020

LOCAL NEWS ... BEACH VIEWS • SEPTEMBER 2020

AVILABEACHLIFENEWS.COM

Resilience Shines

Photo Courtesy of Avila Beach's 'Friends of Avila Beach'

Through amidst The Pandemic

SEE PAGE 4

POINT SAN LUIS LIGHT STATION & ITS HISTORY OF FAMILIES SEE PAGE 5

AVILA VALLEY GRAPEVINE: WINE, BUSINESS & THE PANDEMIC SEE PAGE 7

PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 19 93446, CA

'FRIENDS OF THE PIER' SHED SOME LIGHT ON REPAIRS

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ALSO INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

2 | Avila Beach Life - September 2020

Through Print

making communities better

Hayley & Nicholas Mattson Co-Publishers

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Administrator

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CONTRIBUTORS Betty Hartig John Salisbury Kathy Mastako Mary Foppiano Rick Cohen Tom Swem Contact Us 805.466.2585

Visit our website! avilabeachlifenews.com avila beach life is published monthly. all rights reserved , material may not be reprinted without written consent from the publisher . avila beach life made every effort to maintain the accuracy of information presented in this publication , but assumes no responsibility for errors , changes or omissions . avila beach life is a product of 13 stars media .

s we welcome September and the fall season’s changing temperatures, we are reminded once again that life is dramatically different.

Our kiddos are back in school, but not really, distance learning is the new homeschooling of the 21st Century, and for the most part, that is what we have decided to do.

This way of living is new to us all, and learning to navigate our way through it comes with many challenges. No one will handle it perfectly, and that is the underlined beauty of it all, and if we can continue to see that, then we will make it through stronger than ever before.

September marks our year anniversary of adopting the Atascadero News and the Paso Robles Press, along with all the ancillary publications, including Avila Beach Life.

Being the stewards of the local news publications during the pandemic has been a challenge, humbling experience, and a true honor.

As with many other businesses, our company has weathered the storm.

We changed our direction, our business model, and with each turn, stayed true to our motto, “making communities better through print.”

Having that as our guiding light has helped us navigate some of the most challenging times during this pandemic. We could not have made it through without the deep love and respect we have for one another, our family, and our resilient business partners that continued to advertise even through the unknown.

Then there is our team. This talented group of professionals inspires us every day from our managing editor Brian Williams to our company administrator Cami Martin, to Mike Michaud, our layout editor, who lays out all 252 pages (respectfully) of our publications. Connor Allen, our Sports Editor, turned News Correspondent to Dana McGraw, our advertising consultant, and our ad designer Jen Rodman along with our freelance team of journalists.

Each of them are loyal, extremely hard-working, and dedicated to bringing our communities the very best.

As we continue to walk through these challenging times, please remember the support, love, and “in this together” that we all shared when we started this journey, because, at the end of the day, that is all that matters.

We hope you enjoy this month’s issue of Avila Beach Life.

Please stay safe, share love, and be a good human.

Happiest of Birthday's to our sweet boys Mirac now 8 and Max now 6

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Avila Beach Life - September 2020 | 3 FOUNDATION NEWS AND VIEWS

The Importance of Being Flexible

Rick Cohen Avila Beach Foundation

G

reetings, fellow Avilones. I begin this month’s column with a heavy heart. I imagine all of you are by now aware of the death of SLO County District 3 Supervisor Adam Hill. Though the news is about a month old, Adam’s passing leaves me sad on both a personal and professional level. Over the past eleven years, Supervisor Hill had been a consistent and generous supporter of numerous “Foundation” events, projects, and programs to benefit Avila Beach. The list is long and highlighted by monetary gifts to help bring public art to Avila for all to enjoy. The man I knew was a strong advocate for the homeless and those suffering from mental health issues. Politics can be ugly and divisive, casting opponents with opposing views as villains.

Some are in office vie for power, some for personal gain, and some for a platform to advance causes of special interest.

I believe Adam will be best remembered as a champion of the underserved and most needy members of society.

As we approach the end of the “dog days of summer,” I hope we can look back at this period in our lives and use what we have experienced and learned to a future advantage.

We at the “Foundation” have learned and non-profit, community or public agenembraced the importance of being flexible cies that provide core services to humans when it comes to our role of supporting or wildlife in the Avila Beach communilocal interests. At the July meeting of our ties. Our infrastructure and resources are Board of Trustees, our usual grant-making extremely limited, thus requests for assisprocedures were decided to alter for this tance will be addressed on a case by case year. Our normal application and selection basis as received. For agencies in need of process, which entails a comprehensive and assistance, it is highly recommended that competitive approach to ensure a level playthey also reach out to sources with greater ing field, will be set aside for this next round capacity, such as the Community Founof grant-making due to the uncertain status dation of San Luis Obispo County, or the of partner agencies and staff. In its place, all United Way of San Luis Obispo County. eligible agencies that received grants in 2020 For individuals who are having difficulty will automatically receive the same amount meeting their basic needs, numerous orgafor 2021 without having to go through a nizations throughout the central coast exist competitive process, if or when they are open to provide assistance. For comprehensive for business. information about the services available, Additionally, the amounts granted can dial the United Way 24-hour information be used for whatever purposes the recipiline: “211” or search online: 211 United ent agencies deem to be most vital to their Way of San Luis Obispo County. operations, instead of for a specific project As you can see, the “Foundation” stands or program. ready to assist our local non-profits to the At the same board meeting, we adopted the following policy statement in reaction to current economic challenges: The Avila Beach Community Foundation, in operation since 1998, exists to enhance life in the Avila Beach communities for all who reside in, work in, or visit our town. Since the year 2000, the “Foundation” has annually awarded grants to local non-prof it organizations that provide community enrichment programs/projects/services that align with the “Foundation’s” mission.

In times of unanticipated economic stress, such as now being experienced locally and globally, the “Foundation” will attempt, when possible, to extend assistance in situations that threaten the welfare of the

best of our ability during this critical time.

We likewise encourage our local neighbors to offer their support and generosity to help preserve an important link to the history and welfare of Avila Beach.

Speaking of generous neighbors, you may recall my plea last month for a donor “Angel” willing to cover the $250 insurance deductible needed toward replacement costs of the public art mural panel stolen from one of the Avila Lifeguard Towers last winter. Quickly coming to the rescue was a fellow Avilone family that wishes to remain anonymous.

We are most appreciative of their generosity and swift action. I also want to thank and recognize three folks – Cyndy Lakowske, Karen Blue, and Kim Jeffrey - who have volunteered to help with the upkeep of the Central Coast Aquarium art panels once plans are finalized by artist Colleen Gnos.

That’s it for now, fellow Avilones. See you at the beach.

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4 | Avila Beach Life - September 2020 FRIENDS OF THE PIER

LOCAL NEWS

Avila Pier Repairs Update

Friends of the Avila Beach Pier is actively working to get the community involved to "Support Avila Pier." All photos courtesy of Tom Swem

By TOM SWEM For Avila Beach Life

T The Marre family home, built in the late-1920s, sits on the north hill of Avila Beach and can be seen from the Bob Jones Trail. Photo by Victoria Morrow.

The House on the Hill

By BETTY HARTIG For Avila Beach Life

T

here is a magnificent Spanish Colonial Revival styled home high on the north hill of Avila Beach that can be seen from the Bob Jones Trail as you proceed up Blue Heron Drive. Gaze up as you approach the golf course, and you will see the lone bright white home, with a tall single palm tree standing on its nearby grounds, that is the Marre house.

On sunny clear days, the house seems to beam, as if it were an inland lighthouse guarding the town. The views from the top are vast; the bay and town are clearly visible. The house, which was designed as a duplex, is considered a masterpiece for its architecture and placement.

Most Avilones are familiar with the prominent Marre family history.

Construction on the Marre home started in the late 1920s. Perhaps, you may wonder why the hilltop was selected to build the house. It is believed that Louis Marre’s doctor suggested that he move away from his creekside residence to a higher elevation for health reasons and so the existing summit mansion was designed. In 1930 the home was occupied by the families of Gaspar and Louis Marre, who were the sons of Luigi and Angela Marre. Luigi Marre was the first Marre settler to the area and a large Avila landowner. It is said that way back then; wild horses roamed the Marre lands.

What a sight that must have been to see horses running freely. Now, cows graze the land. Although the house appears to be one building at a distance, it was purposefully designed to accommodate the two different Marre brothers’ family sizes. The east side, where Louis’ family lived, is 6150 square feet and the opposite side, where Gaspar’s lived is 4300 square feet.

Many Avila residents old and new, county visitors and tourists are curious about the house on the hill. Questions arise as to who lives there now and who owns the home. Some have inquisitively pondered about the house lights seen at night. Let us explore some of those questions.

The Marre family no longer owns the

home. Imogene Marre and her son Tom last occupied it. “Gene” as she was referred to died on December 25, 2008. Tom was the last Marre to live in the house. The house and surrounding properties are currently owned by a PG&E subsidiary, Eureka Energy Company. The Marre Ranch property, almost 9,000 acres, was sold at a public auction. The transfer of the property was recorded in the spring of 1995. It is said that the auction was the only means left to collect money owed to PG&E by the pioneer Marre family.

Over the last ten years, PG&E has been slowly working on stabilizing the house. Much repair work is needed for the nearly one-hundred-year-old home.

Throughout the decade, improvements and repairs have been made for the worst of the issues, many of which involved severe leaks. A caretaker has been living in the house, and PG&E installed a security system.

Occasionally PG&E has used the house for meetings, trainings, and small events. One can assume that the historical asset is being well kept by the repair and maintenance that has taken place. San Luis Obispo County has designated the Marre property as a historical “H” which is the highest category level.

Could the house become a local museum or cultural center? Only the future will tell, but in the meantime, we feel confident PG&E will continue to care for the historical house responsibly. The home remains a lure to draw eyes upward with curiosity and amazement. One can only imagine what life was like in the early Avila days. If walls could talk, we would most likely hear some fascinating stories.

work has not stopped, and neither has the work of the Friends of Avila Pier.

Our Non-Profit Corporation is actively open for enlisting Avila Beach and the general San Luis Obispo County community to help “Support Avila Pier” by funding our initial goal of $1,000,000. With your help, we will generate the funds that will allow the repairs and renovation of Avila Pier and therefore ensure the marine heritage and character of the local port for future generations.

In the near future, the local community will be receiving information on how we intend to meet our goal. We have found that just in the Avila Valley area, there is tremendous interest in helping in multiple ways, such as: • Direct requests for funds • The development of a “planned giving” program • Directing “required minimum distributions” from ira’s • And/or other tax sheltering concepts In closing, we need all of your support to get this accomplished. If you are interested in learning more about the FOAP or wish to DONATE or be a part of our efforts (we are looking for seasoned Capital Campaign fundraisers), please contact us by visiting our website avilapier.org or call and leave a message at (805)595-1005.

For information and larger donations, you can contact us at Friends of Avila Pier, PO Box 685, Avila Beach, CA 93424.

Also, if you or your organization would like a personal meeting with us to learn more about the pier and its history, let us know. We would be happy to meet with you.

Tom Swem is the current President of “Friends of Avila Pier (FOAP), Inc. and can be reached at (805)595-1005 or friendsofavilapier@gmail.com.

he 501c(3) Non-Profit Corporation “Friends of Avila Pier” (FOAP) had been very active in enlisting the community for their help to get Avila Pier fully open to the public through this past February, then COVID-19 hit us. As with most of the other Non-Profits in the county, we all went quiet (some more than others).

Well, I’m here to tell you that, almost six months later, we are alive and well, and living in beautiful Avila Beach and we will succeed with your help.

As you remember, we were formed because the Pier was closed to the public due to storm damage over time and brought to light when the whales visited Port San Luis. It was such a wonderful opportunity for everyone, including myself, to see the whales feeding so close to shore that the Pier was overwhelmed by the number of people on it.

It was later reported to the Port San Luis Harbor Commission that “as people went from side to side to follow the whales chasing the baitfish, the Pier literally swayed back and forth.”

To remind everyone, the FOAP is part of a “Public-Private” partnership, where the FOAP was developed to allow citizens to have “Tax Deductible” donations go to the repairs and renovations of the Pier and the Port is working as the municipality. As a person who is actively engaged in discussions with the Port, I am very pleased how the discussions have gone… we are both in total agreement “to get the pier repaired and open as soon as possible.”

During the past six months, both the FOAP and Port San Luis Harbor District have been continually working towards getting the pier reopened. The Harbor District is doing this through continued efforts with the consultants and engineers to design the work that will need to be done on the pier, as well as getting Grant Funding from the State and Federal Governments. We all cheered loudly a few months ago when it was announced that the Port received a $1.25M grant for the pier. When you see any of the Port Commissioners, thank them for all the hard work they are doing. To continue with fundraising, the FOAP’s job is to approach the community for donations.

Avila Beach Pier Pilons.

Both the Port San Luis Harbor District and FOAP still have a ways to go to meet the estimated total of $4.5M needed to do the work that’s been suggested so far. I have confidence that the Port will meet its goals, and, equally, I have confidence that the community will step up to get this completed by their “Tax Deductible Donations” to the FOAP. As you have seen, the pier has been totally closed again due to COVID-19 requirements for social distancing, but the engineering and design Clean underside of pier.

Even with receiveing a generous $1.25M grant, the estimated total to complete the pier is $4.5M.

Avila Beach Life - September 2020 | 5 POINT SAN LUIS LIGHT STATION

Children of the Light

Kathy Mastako For Avila Beach Life

D

uring the fifty or so years that civilian keepers operated the Point San Luis Light Station, there was scarcely a time when at least one young person did not call our lighthouse home. Five head Keepers served here: Henry Young, William Smith, George Watters, Fred Saunders, and Robert Moorefield. All but Saunders had families.

Twelve children spent part of their childhood in the Head Keeper’s dwelling our visitors love to tour.

More children lived in the old Victorian duplex, long since razed, the sons and daughters of assistant keepers. Lucy and Sonny Moorefield lived in the duplex until their father was promoted, and the family moved to the Head Keeper’s dwelling. Twenty-one other children lived in the duplex, too, at various times between 1890 and 1942.

For some, Point San Luis was their first home. Fannie, John, and Louise Nixon were born in the early 1900s while their father, John Nixon, Sr., was an assistant keeper here. Judy Moorefield was born in 1939, while her father was Head Keeper. For others, Point San Luis was the first place they likely remember as home. Like Walter Devereux, Angelica Engels (great-granddaughter of John Price, founder of Pismo Beach), Violet and Wheeler Greene, and Alton Scott (president of the California elementary school principals association by 1941), who all came as toddlers. Or, like Jens Wagner, retired Arroyo Grande pharmacist, who arrived at age six. His mother, the wife of assistant keeper Jens Wagner, Sr., threw a birthday party for young Jens at the lighthouse in 1940 to celebrate him turning eight.

Other children came to the lighthouse in their teens, like Eva Ballou, daughter of assistant keeper Steve Ballou, who was seventeen in 1890 when her father was appointed keeper.

(Ballou left the lighthouse in 1894 to become the County’s sheriff.) Eva was President of the San Luisita Parlor of Native Daughters and an accomplished amateur photographer.

Several of her images of the San Luis Obispo countryside were included in a 1900 souvenir

program showcasing the Central Coast, published to memorialize a large gathering here of the Grand Army of the Republic. The Smith kids—Elsie, Bessie, Edna, and Ralph— also came in their teens, children of our second head, Keeper William Smith.

Many lighthouse children attended the Port school, walking back and forth on a rough trail, not unlike the one hikers take to the lighthouse now. To attend junior high and high school, the young people would lodge in San Luis Obispo, then return to the lighthouse for school holidays and breaks. Mrs. Moorefield’s twin sister and parents lived in San Luis Obispo, so Sonny, Lucy, and their mother would board during school terms with Lucy’s aunt or grandparents.

Graduations from the Port school were big occasions, regularly reported on by the local newspapers. The students put on entertainment programs for their families and friends, and lighthouse children like Violet and Wheeler Greene, Mary and Jane Hilton, Dorothy Watters, Lucy, and Sonny Moorefield, and Delbert Johnson

Normal School teaching college in San Jose.

Edna taught in one of the Gilroy public schools, and Bessie taught in Cayucos and Avila until her untimely death in September 1916. (In a tragic coincidence, Edna Silva, the 15-year-old daughter of assistant keeper Antonio Silva, also died that September, from what was first thought to be typhoid, but later ruled poliomyelitis. It must have been an extraordinary time of grief at the lighthouse, with two keeper families both mourning the loss of a beloved daughter.)

Dorothy Watters, daughter of head Keeper George Watters, attended San Luis High through her junior year in 1930, waiting until the end of the school term to be reunited with her father at the Point Bonita Lighthouse, where he had transferred the year before.

Burton Gross, son of assistant keeper Elmer Gross, graduated from San Luis High in 1938.

Burton’s nickname was “Lighthouse,” and he wanted to become a lawyer, according to the school yearbook. Instead, after graduating from San Luis Obispo Junior College, he died at age

Angelica Engels and her mother, Lizzie Pepperman Engels. The photo was probably taken in Pismo Beach. Angelica's father, Irby Engels, was assistant keeper 1894-1899 and 1900-1903. Lizzie Pepperman’s grandfather was John Price, founder of Pismo Beach. participated in the many plays, skits, and songs their classes performed.

In 1940, Robin Wagner and his classmates presented the “Irish River Dance” at the Port school graduation exercises. Was it then that the theater bug bit? By 1957, Robin would be working in theater set design, first in California, then in New York, where he designed Tony award-winning sets for Broadway plays like Jesus Christ, Superstar, Kiss Me, Kate, and Dreamgirls.

In 1908, Bessie and Edna, daughters of Keeper William Smith, graduated from San Luis Obispo High School and then attended the State

24, killed in action during WWII. Lucy Moorefield graduated from San Luis High in 1939, Sonny Moorefield, in 1940. Lucy went on to graduate from San Luis Obispo Junior College in 1941, where she was active in the art club and received a special award for her work in the art department. Lucy was known for “using big words.” Her teachers commented that due to her semi-isolation part of the year, she was exceptionally well-read. Her classmates coveted her invitations to visit her at the lighthouse.

Want to visit the lighthouse, too, even while it’s closed? You can! Check out our website, pointsanluislighthouse.org/, or visit our Facebook page to learn how to sign up for a docentled virtual tour. Tours run every Wednesday at 2 pm, at least through the end of September.

Author’s note: A shorter version of this article appeared several years ago in the quarterly newsletter the lighthouse sends out to its members and volunteers.

Port schoolhouse, circa 1915, which served the lighthouse children and those living at Port San Luis.

Photos courtesy of Maria Dana Robasciotti

Dorothy Watters at the lighthouse in 1923, with her father, Head Keeper George Watters (left) and mother, Della Watters (right). The woman wearing the hat is only identified as “Mrs. Philbrick.” Photo courtesy of Duane Null, the Keeper’s great-grandson.

Portrait of Eva Ballou. Her father, Stephen Ballou, was one of the first keepers at the lighthouse, serving from 1890 until 1984, when he left the lighthouse to become the county’s sheriff.

Photo of Martha Scott. Martha Scott was age six when she and her threeyear-old brother, Alton Scott, lived at the Point San Luis Light Station. Her father, Albert J. Scott, was a 2nd assistant keeper in 1911. Photos courtesy of the Point Cabrillo Lighthouse Keepers from the Baumgartner Family Collection.

Plaque at Cuesta College honoring those who gave their lives fighting in World War II,including Burton Gross, son of assistant keeper Elmer Gross.

6 | Avila Beach Life - September 2020 A VIEW FROM THE BEACH

Being Happy With Who You Are

Mary Foppiano Avila Beach Civic Association

H

i All – “The only thing that will make you happy is being happy with who you are.” This is something that resonated with me as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to control so much of our lives. I continue to walk to Avila from my home each day and love meeting many of my neighbors along the Bob Jones Trail.

It is also fun to stop and visit with other dog owners as we share the funny things

our furry friends do. I am very fortunate to live and work in a community that I truly love. I have lived all over the country but have found that people on the Central Coast are friendlier and more caring of each other.

This being said, I am sad that Adam Hill felt that he had to take a permanent solution to temporary problems in his life. He was committed to those less fortunate who are poor, homeless, and in need of assistance. I know that you have all read many things about him good and bad, but I must say that he always supported the Community Center and was available when needed.

I hope that you will all have some good memories and keep his family and friends in your thoughts.

Thank you for your continued support – I would like to thank two organizations that have continued to support the Avila Beach Civic Association over the years. The Avila Beach Community Foundation has supported us for many years, beginning in 2010, the year before I began as the Execu-

tive Director of the ABCA. Each year, the ABCF has awarded grant funds for many different projects and programs of local area non-profit organizations. This year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic that has closed down the Community Center, the ABCF has acknowledged the struggles we have faced and allowed us to re-allocate the balance of our grant award to help us maintain the Center. Since we have been closed since mid-March with no projected opening date, these funds greatly help us “keep the lights on.”

The Pacific Gas & Electric Company has also supported the ABCA since 2011 for various projects and events. Through their Charitable Donation Program, we have been able to purchase AED equipment, computer software, garden maintenance, preventive swallow netting in eaves, bulletin boards, general repairs, and the steps from San Miguel Street past the Post Office to the parking lot, to name a few. PG&E has also been one of our sponsors of the Avila

Apple Festival.

Envision Avila – The County of San Luis Obispo hosted an Envision Avila virtual workshop on July 25. The virtual workshop provided Avila residents and community members an update on the Avila Community Plan, presented potential landuse changes based on prior community feedback, and allowed opportunities to comment on the future of land use, coastal resources, and tourism in Avila. If you haven’t already completed the survey, materials and surveys are available on the project website -at envisionavila.org. You can also contact Kimmie Nguyen directly at knguyen@co.slo.ca.us or (805)781-1392.

Get Involved - The Avila Beach Civic Association is always in need of people who want to become involved.

We have a variety of opportunities. If you have a few hours to spare and would like to work in our garden, on our website, in our office, or at our future events, please contact me.

COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT

The Keeper of the Light Station: Deb Foughty

By MARY FOPPIANO for Avila Beach Life

T

o those of us who are fortunate to live, visit, and/or work in Avila Beach, the Point San Luis Lighthouse is an important part of our history.

Flora and fauna abound, gray whale migration is exciting in the spring, and the wildflowers are gorgeous. Future generations will know the importance of lighthouses, how they functioned, and what it was like to live at one because of these actual historical buildings which have been restored and enable us to learn the history of San Luis Bay. In 2009, Deb Foughty purchased tickets for her folks to attend a fundraiser at the Point San Luis Lighthouse which put her name on their list of donors. A short time later, she received a postcard asking if there was anything she could do to volunteer.

She quickly answered and began training to

Deb Foughty is driven to continue the work needed to ensure future generaations know the importanceof lighthouses. Photo courtesy of Mary Foppiano

become a docent. Once she found out they needed a caterer to provide lunches for their group tours, she let them know she had been in the food and beverage industry and could easily put lunches together for them.

Today, Deb is the Executive Director and finds it most rewarding to recruit, train, and get to know their large group of volunteers. She enjoys them as docents, gift shop-

keepers, event workers, 4th-grade program teachers, etc. Perhaps one of the reasons she feels so close to her volunteers is because she started her association with the Lighthouse as a volunteer.

Deb was born and raised in Devils Lake, North Dakota, and grew up on a farm where they grew various grains and raised cattle, sheep, chickens, and a few pigs. They had horses that they trained and rode with their neighbors and 4-H club members. They were very self-sustainable because of her mother’s large garden and the canning and freezing of their vegetables.

After attending Moorhead State College in Minnesota and completing her education at the University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, Deb has a degree in Elementary Education and a minor in Music. Her two brothers and one sister reside in North Dakota with their families, and Deb’s two daughters and their families live on the Central Coast. Her folks live in Avila Beach,

and she has a dog Jude…who I might add has never been in my Doggie Parade, unfortunately.

Deb has always loved the water, in part, because of the summers she spent at the lake with her cousins, where her grandmother taught her to fish. Later her folks purchased a ski boat, then came the Hobie Cat, where they became really competitive in racing and formed an active Yacht Club.

She later learned to sail larger fixed keelboats and actually became the first woman Commodore in the state of North Dakota.

Deb’s future dreams and hopes are for the light station are to continue the work needed to make sure future generations will know the importance of lighthouses. She believes it is her job to keep our “Lady” of the Central Coast safe but also open to the public so that her history can continue to be shared. When people ask Deb what she does for a living, she can now tell them, “I am a Keeper of the Point San Luis Light Station!”

FURRY SPOTLIGHT

T

Pet of the Month: Rowdy

his month, I want to talk about a very special dog who has brought so much love and enjoyment to many, many people. In December 2012, Anne Gardner met her gentle giant, who was being fostered in North County after being found injured. He was only four months old but already weighed 36 lbs. His foster mom needed help since she was fostering boxers as well, so Anne volunteered to take care of him for two weeks…but within 5 minutes, she was in love with the sweetest boy ever and knew she had to be his permanent mom.

Rowdy (named after race car driver Kyle Busch) was a people pleaser and wanted lots of human attention. After graduating from multiple puppy classes, she and Jeff Strahl noticed he had a knack for going up to someone injured or sick and wanting just to sit and be there next to them. They started taking him to memory care facilities and nursing homes. He grew to 130 lbs and was so tall he would rest his head on a patient’s hospital bed and wait to be petted.

I got to know Rowdy when he was entered into the Avila Beach Civic Association’s Doggie

By MARY FOPPIANO

Parades, where he won “Best in Show” over and over again so that I started the “Rowdy Award” in his honor. Through the years, Rowdy was many characters, including Uncle Sam, Lifeguard, Firefighter, Sailor, Superman, Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph, Train Engineer, and even a Pumpkin.

Last month, Rowdy was diagnosed with bone cancer and had to have his right hind leg amputated in hopes of stopping the cancer from spreading and is now undergoing chemotherapy. Some days, Anne and Jeff are able to forget Rowdy is sick, but there are too many reminders…the morning and evening medication rituals; the vet appointments; special diet; the drained savings; loaded credit cards…but Rowdy is still their adventurous, loving, handsome boy. He still eats, kisses, and wags his nub. Anne said that she still thinks he loves being a dog, and she definitely loves being his mom. They try to make his life as normal as it once was by taking him to the beach and fulfilling a bucket list of fun activities he always enjoys. No matter how much they tell themselves not to think about it, they always know that Rowdy has cancer, which is shortening his life and will take him from all of us. Much love to Rowdy and Anne and Jeff.

NEXT MONTH’S ‘PET OF THE MONTH’

Please send me your pictures and a short paragraph about your pet to avilabeachcc@gmail.com.

Thanks, and introduce us to your furry friend next month!

Avila Beach Life - September 2020 | 7 AVILA VALLEY GRAPEVINE

Wine, Business and the Pandemic T John Salisbury Contributor

hings are not going well for those in the wine business. That much is a given. A lot of forces are aligned against the industry.

“American Vineyard” reports a large crop in 2018 still overshadows the 2019 crop, which fortunately was on the light side followed by this year’s crop, also looking light with spaced out small grape bunches. It is estimated that at least 200,000 tons of grapes were left on the vine last year in California alone.

The August record heat following the first heat wave earlier hasn’t helped the 2020 crop.

Even with the estimated 35,000 acres of winegrapes that have been removed, which helps, there could be grapes not picked this Fall on the Central Coast, which is starting now.

However, there has been an uptick in planted acres mostly in the San Joaquin Valley with

will continue making those visits to the tasting rooms potentially scarcer. Wine tourism will normalize hopefully at some point, but will there be as many wineries for it?

With all the new drinks available like the skyrocketing seltzer, craft beers, mixed specialty cocktails geared to the health-obsessed Millennials (70M, 1981 – ’96) and especially the Gen Zers (80M,1995 – ’09, i.generation) who supposedly, according to Kathleen Wilcox in a “Wine Searcher” article, drink less alcohol, have less sex and drugs, plus driving less which all sounds good but has the wine business a bit stressed.

The Baby Boomers (after war babies, 1946 – ’64), a third of the population, are still doing their share drinking 45% of alcohol, especially wine, but their grandkids like the other stuff more. It just isn’t a matter of introducing this bunch to wine like it has been done for a thousand years because past effective marketing techniques aren’t cutting it anymore. They, like all the following generations, want more - now!

So, winery’s are reacting by making wines available in cans, pouches, plastic bottles, softer tastes, and less alcohol to get these “woke” kids, a word I am already tired of – chalk it up to that I am now officially closer to 80 than 75, drinking some variation of wine hoping they will cross over and drink the good stuff in the bottle.

Enter, Piquette. Not to take over the business of wine, but an interesting niche idea that has been around for a while. Piquette is a wine produced from the grape pomace left over after the grapes are crushed and fermented. That yuck left in the bottom of the tank that the

Up to the age of forty, eating is beneficial. After forty, Drinking!

The Talmud, 200 B.C. winery contracts mostly for Cab, Chardonnay, and Pinot Noir. Also, some Sauvignon Blanc for a niche market.

Pile on the Pandemic with tasting rooms and restaurants shut down, having to rely on e-commerce and curbside pickups is not a pretty picture. Those tasting rooms with their main revenue coming from entertainment, hosting, weddings, parties, and other private events are being hit the hardest. It is expected post-pandemic, the trend of newly developed e-commerce use by wine consumers

winemaker or “winery rats” have to dig out.

Winemakers add water to the pomace and ferment it with leftover sugar into a lower-alcohol wine that is around 5 to 9 percent ABV (alcohol by volume). They are nicknaming this “winiest alternative” to hard seltzer dubbing it the “White Claw (a popular seltzer brand) for Wine Lovers.”

In an unofficial survey, I am now finding more White Claw cans than beer cans and those little one-shot bottles of booze on my Hwy 101 Adopt a Highway clean-ups out in front of the old Schoolhouse! Another activity that is closed down due to Pandemic, which I do not understand because it is a great solitary fresh air exercise I have enjoyed for the last 15 years.

Piquette was about all the vineyard workers, winemakers, and owners could afford to drink in the old days in France because so much of what they made went to support the monarchy and likely helped foster the French Revolution. Mass production of this wine would be tough because of the limited availability of the source, pomace, and needed other fruits and fillers. Most of the juices are already squeezed out of the grapes by the time it is reduced to pomace. Also, another problem that we faced when we experimented with pouches is they have little shelf life. It was about nine months when they started to turn.

Imagine your problem as a winery owner because of all the sugar added that could take off fermenting again, resulting in caps blowing off in the grocery aisle and eating an expensive brand killing recall. It will be a small experimental market until a Gallo or Constellation figure out what they can safely do with all the leftover pomace they are sitting on.

ELECTION 2020

Voter Registration Deadline

T

he 2020 Election is quickly approaching, so be sure you are registered to vote. To register or re-register online, it must be done fifteen days prior to an election. After that, you will need to complete the SameDay Voter Registration process and request your ballot in person at your county elections office or polling location.

For more information on voter registration and voting locations, contact your local county elections official or visit slocounty.ca.gov.

To register to vote online, visit registertovote.ca.gov/ or vote.gov/. Be sure you have your California driver license or

California identification card number, the last four digits of your social security number and your date of birth.

Your information will be provided to the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to retrieve a copy of your DMV signature.

If you do not have a California driver license or California identification card, you can still use this form to apply to register to vote. However, you will need to take additional steps to complete your voter registration.

This process is different if you are enrolled in a confidential address program such as “Safe at Home.” If sharing

your address could put you in life-threatening danger, you may be eligible to register to vote confidentially.

For more information, contact the Safe at Home program at (877) 322-5227 or visit sos.ca.gov/registries/safe-home/.

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