LAKEPORT, Calif. — Hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding made its way into the hands of Lake County’s nonprofits and schools on Wednesday thanks to the efforts of the Lake County Wine Alliance.
Wine Alliance board members hosted dozens of beneficiaries at a reception at the Soper Reese Theater in Lakeport on Wednesday evening in order to distribute donation checks from the proceeds of the September Wine Auction.
The funds distributed on Wednesday totaled $226,000, down from the record $300,000 handed out last year.
Wine Alliance Treasurer Rob Roumiguiere called the amount of generosity and support in the community “incredible.” That includes not just the donors and people who enjoy the auction, but the estimated 200 volunteers who work every year to produce the event.
In all, 41 beneficiaries received funds from the auction, which began in 2000.
The beneficiaries are all Lake County high schools’ fine art programs and the four high school FFA programs, Adventist Health Clear Lake Palliative Care Department, World Wide Healing Hands, Mother Wise, Lakeport Senior Center, Kelseyville Food Pantry, Catholic Charities, First Lutheran Church, Lake County Youth Symphony, Lake County Rural Arts Initiative, Clear Lake High School Culinary Program, Lower Lake High School Culinary Program, Lake County Arts Council, Woodland Community College Culinary Program, Clearlake Youth Center, Ely Stage Stop, Friends of the Lake County Library, Give Back Track, Konocti Fire Safe Council, Lake County Channel Cats, Lakeport Volunteer Firefighters Association, Northshore Fire Fund, Operation Tango Mike, Jack’s Lavender Farm, United Veterans Council of Lake County, Operation Santa, Sheriffs and You Foundation, Totes for Teens, Lake County Young Life, Lake County Sheriff’s Activity League, Hospice Services of Lake County, People Services and Lake Family Resource Center.
Work on the 2024 Wine Auction will begin in January. Roumiguiere said the event will return to The Mercantile in Kelseyville on Sept. 21, 2024.
