RoundUp: Plunging in
Sebastopol Bloom festival, SW100 awards its first grants, girls' softball and more
Wow, it’s a bloomin’ festival!
Here are a few pics from the first two days of Sebastopol Bloom, a new music and wellness festival. The event continues today. Despite the clouds, there was a festive vibe downtown, Soft Medicine was bustling, and people seemed to be having a blast at the movement class at Ives Park. Perhaps because of the weather, the crowds were less than expected—traffic was light and parking was relatively easy. For a few days at least, Bloom has lowered the average age profile of the town by about 30-40 years. Single-day passes for Sunday are $99. Check out today’s schedule here.
Sebastopol West 100 gives $295,000 to eight local nonprofits
When the city of Sebastopol decided that it couldn’t afford to continue its longstanding tradition of giving community grants to local nonprofits, two Craigs—Craig Boblitt and Craig Litwin—decided to do something about it. This spring, they pulled together a board of directors for a new giving circle called the Sebastopol West 100. Their initial modest goal was to raise $200,000 to replace the city budget cuts.
They overshot that goal.
At a gathering yesterday morning at the Balletto Event Center, the Sebastopol West 100 (SW100) handed out giant cardboard checks, totaling $295,000, to eight nonprofits in west county. The winners were as follows:
$100,000 — Food For Thought
$50,000 — Sebastopol Area Senior Center
$50,000 — Sebastopol Community Cultural Center
$25,000 — Micah’s Hugs
$25,000 — Gravenstein Health Action Coalition’s Meet Your Neighbor Project
$15,000 — The School Garden Network Foundation
$15,000 — 10,000 Degrees
$15,000 — Slow Food Russian River
They also listed the runners up—West County Health Centers Inc., Social Good Fund, Inc., Northern California Public Media, Maker Education, LandPaths, Apis Arborea, Emergency Prep Help, and Sebastopol Grange—and urged people to remember them in their end-of-year giving.
As we explained in our first article on the Sebastopol West 100 back in March, “Annual membership is $1,300, which can be contributed in one payment or spread out monthly. Members will have a direct say in where funds are awarded. Each member will have a vote in the crucial decision-making process of awarding grants.”
SW100 received 77 applications, and its grant committee winnowed that down to 16. The membership then voted on which of those organizations would be the final winners. According to Craig Boblitt, the grants committee was almost unanimous in their choices, but the voting members split their votes pretty evenly. One contest was decided by a single vote. (Boblitt wouldn’t say which one.)
After giving away almost $300,000, the SW100 has still got a stash of cash and they’re building it up for next year’s awards. They are still accepting members at the $1,300-a-year level and beyond, so join now.
They’re also bringing in some big money. Craig Litwin announced that they’ve started what they’re calling the sponsorship circle. “We have four folks who signed up for $25,000 each for the next five years,” he said.
Sebastopol West 100 board member Becca Lipski said, “I feel like giving circles are the future of philanthropy.”
The Big Picture
David Starr of Santa Rosa took these wonderful photos of pelicans from Goat Rock Beach. “I like taking photographs of birds because they make me slow down and be patient,” he said. David can be reached at davidstarr1959@gmail.com.
This witty limerick about pelicans is often attributed to Ogden Nash, but it was written in 1910 by Dixon Lanier Merritt of Nashville who was the editor of the Tennessean newspaper.
A wonderful bird is the pelican, His bill will hold more than his belican, He can take in his beak Enough food for a week But I’m damned if I see how the helican!
Registration is now open for West County Softball
Sebastopol Times reader Lori Jay sent along this invitation:
Sign up through January 8th to join our thriving rec softball league in Sebastopol, serving players ages 4–14+ from all zip codes. The season runs March through May, with both recreational and competitive divisions available.
No experience necessary! Athletes will learn the game, build teamwork, make friends, and have a blast. We also offer community events, skills clinics, and more for registered players.
We’re also looking for volunteer coaches and have paid umpire opportunities available.
Join the fun and be part of something special — register today at www.westcountysoftball.com.
Sebastopol Police Logs, October 13-19
The following are crimes excerpted from Sebastopol Police Department daily crime log entries and listed at the time the alleged violation was reported.
MONDAY
10:34 a.m. Served a misdemeanor arrest warrant at Sebastopol Avenue. Suspect arrested.
2:28 p.m. Served a misdemeanor arrest warrant at North Main Street. Suspect arrested.
TUESDAY
2:21 p.m. Battery of a spouse or companion, child abuse without great bodily injury or death, and damaging a wireless communication device (misdemeanors) at Norlee Street. Suspect arrested.
THURSDAY
1:01 p.m. Disorderly conduct while under the influence of a drug and violation of pre-trial release (misdemeanors) at McKinley Street. Suspect arrested.
SUNDAY
7:52 p.m. Disorderly conduct involving alcohol (misdemeanor) at Healdsburg Avenue. Suspect arrested.
OTHER POLICE ACTION
The Sebastopol Police Department also recorded 154 events requiring police action during the period, such as lost animals, assisting citizens, parking violations, foot patrol, traffic hazards and reckless driving.
What is going on with Sebastopol Bloom? I continue to hear about the organizers lying — about their non-profit status, donations to location agencies such as the park and farmers market, and to attendees… And about their general lack of collaboration or communication with local organizations. Am I wrong here?
I absolutely love the idea of having a yoga festival in Sebastopol. Yet the reality I see and hear about feels more like Sebastopol’s very own Fyre Festival than anything else.