Tag: sonoma county people

Writer Dana Gioia served as chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts and was appointed California State Poet Laureate by Jerry Brown in 2015. (JOHN BURGESS / The Press Democrat)

California Poet Laureate Returns to Santa Rosa

Santa Rosan Dana Gioia is the new California Poet Laureate, appointed to the post by Gov. Jerry Brown in December 2015. During his two-year term, Gioia will spread the art of poetry and inspire a new generation of writers while visiting schools and libraries in many of the state’s rural counties. He picks up where […]

Sonoma Chef Getting Back to Cheese

Sheana Davis has been a fixture in the Sonoma Valley culinary community for more than 20 years. She cooked for and with legendary food writer M.F.K. Fisher, learned to make cheese from Ig Vella, founded The Epicurean Connection cheese shop and cafe, and introduced cheese education to Sonoma. Yet despite all her energy, Davis, a […]
Capt. Steve Baxman has been saving lives and fighting fires on the Russian River for the past 45 years. (JOHN BURGESS / The Press Democrat)

Monte Rio Fire Captain Steve Baxman Has Seen It All

Steve Baxman makes friends the hard way. “I still have people stop me on the street and thank me for something I’ve done,” he says. As a member of the Monte Rio volunteer fire department for the past 45 years, Baxman has rescued so many people he can’t remember them all. “But I’ll say, ‘Give me […]