North Bay Business Journal

PETALUMA — Two fresh-produce distributors in Marin and Sonoma counties have come together under one centralized roof in Petaluma, serendipitously providing a home for the People’s Harvest occupational training business Buckelew Programs has been trying to launch for two years.

At the end of life, peace of mind and emotional security are as important as financial security. At Willow Creek Wealth Management, we are using new “late life” tools to help our clients think through the complex issues of death and dying. These tools help clients take control and express their preferences before death or a debilitating serious illness prevents them from doing so.

The Meritage Resort and Spa in south Napa received a 2013 TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence award. …

California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance certified St. Francis Winery & Vineyards. …

Marin Theatre Company received a two-year $350,000 challenge grant from an anonymous Marin couple. …

ROHNERT PARK — Longtime San Francisco-based organizational consultant and established author Key Sprinkel Grace will be the keynote speaker for the Business Journal’s Nonprofit Boot Camp and Nonprofit Leadership Awards, co-presented by Pisenti & Brinker.

Nominations are open for the 2013 Nonprofit Leadership Awards honoring the top nonprofit leaders in the North Bay. Use this form to submit a nomination.

Awards will be presented at the Nonprofit Boot Camp on Oct. 30. Nominations close Friday, July 19.

ST. HELENA — Bloom may be still a few weeks away for local winegrape vines, but economic conditions for the industry’s key consumers appear to be in full bloom, given the record-fast sellout of tickets to the upcoming 33rd annual Auction Napa Valley fundraiser (auctionnapavalley.org) May 30–June 2 and brimming guest logs at area hotels, according to organizers.

Construction FARROW Commercial Construction has completed renovations for a homeowners association of a well-known shared ownership resort in Scottsdale, AZ. FARROW’s portfolio includes the award-winning Hilton Fort Wayne, Indiana, the Hilton Atlanta the Hyatt House Sorrento Mesa, Stonebridge, Marriott Palm Beach Gardens, and Holiday Inn Baltimore among others. Some of FARROW’s current and recent vacation [...]

PETALUMA — The nonprofit organization Committee on the Shelterless, better known as COTS, today announced a shift in leadership, with Mike Johnson, the agency’s chief operating officer, assuming the role of chief executive officer.

A Sonoma County-based nonprofit and several others with ties in the North Bay are among 48 organizations across the state to share in $37 million in outreach and education grants from Covered California, the state’s online health exchange developed under health care reform.

Petaluma-based Redwood Community Health Coalition received $830,000. Catholic Charities of California, which has a presence in Solano, Napa, Sonoma, Lake and Mendocino counties, received $859,000. California Rural Indian Health Board, which has a presence in Sonoma and Mendocino counties, was given $300,000. The California NAACP, which has locations in Sonoma and Solono counties, received $600,000 and the Asian Pacific American Legal Center in Solano County received $100,00.

April 1, 2013: To Celebrate Life Breast Cancer Foundation, a volunteer-based nonprofit organization whose goal is to ensure that no one faces breast cancer alone, held a reception at Servino’s Ristorante in Tiburon to announce the recipients of its 2013 grant awards.

NOVATO — The Marin Community Foundation today said it will distribute to local health clinics $2 million in new grants from the Sutter Health Access to Care Fund.

Building a better community is key to the Chamber of Commerce’s success in fostering the growth of local businesses.

One way we focus on our local community each year is by honoring the local heroes who make the Napa Valley an extraordinary place to call home.

For the seventh year, we invited the public to nominate individuals and nonprofit organizations demonstrating outstanding commitment, creativity and leadership to the valley. And their stories remind us why Napa Valley is such an incredible place to live and work.

NAPA COUNTY — Founded five years ago with a startup grant from the Peter A. and Vernice H. Gasser Foundation and support from other partners, Sustainable Napa County helps local nonprofits conserve energy and water. But this is just the beginning.

March 7, 2013: Becoming Independent held its Annual Meeting at its main campus in Santa Rosa. BI, based in Santa Rosa, is the largest nonprofit organization in the North Bay serving people with disabilities.

Site preparation for new academic center at College of Marin in Kentfield has begun. …

Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage Community Foundation, the philanthropic arm of one of the largest residential real estate services company in the Bay Area, raised $95,570 for Habitat for Humanity in Northern California. …

Sonoma County Agricultural Commissioner’s Office, in collaboration with the county Department of Health Services and the University of California Cooperative Extension, announced the launch of an online program to allow local gardeners to sell or donate their eligible produce. …

Petaluma-based Emma at Home (emmahome.com), retailer of modern home décor by Emma Gardner, has partnered with International Checkout to handle the retailer’s operational aspects of serving online customers outside the U.S. …

Matthew Taylor recently joined Sonoma Bank’s commercial banking office, located at 801 Fourth St. in Santa Rosa, as a commercial banker. …

The U.S. Green Building Council Redwood Empire chapter announced the election of nine new members to its board of directors. …

Armand Gilinsky, professor in the School of Business and Economics at Sonoma State University, was named as one of two recipients of the Bernie and Estelle Goldstein Award for Excellence in Scholarship. …

Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Sonoma County added James Conners and Kimberly Baldwin to its resource development team. …

W3 Partners, a San Rafael-based real estate investment operating company, named Peter Mette managing partner. …

WINDSOR — Kaiser Permanente on Thursday said it would give Alliance Medical Center a $60,000 grant to help the nonprofit health center’s expansion at its Windsor site.

SANTA ROSA — State-funded nonprofit First 5 Sonoma County granted $1.38 million to an early childhood and parent education “campus” at Santa Rosa’s Lawrence Cook Middle School, part of $5.13 million in one-time grants to support what educators and employers call the “cradle to career” approach to workforce development.

April Hines has been named chief financial officer at First Community Bank. …

The Santa Rosa-based bank also hired Jonathan Graves as its vice president and commercial loan officer. …

Bob Bourdet, vice president and electrical division manager for Novato-based W. Bradley Electric, Inc., received the educators award from the Association of General Contractors. …

Josef Brinckmann, vice president of sustainability for Sebastopol-based Traditional Medicinals, was recently recognized by the American Herbal Products Association with an Herbal Insight Award. …

A new board of directors has been named for the Laguna de Santa Rosa Foundation. …

SANTA ROSA — After more than six years of planning, the larger new home of Redwood Empire Food Bank is set to open Tuesday.