Your Membership Is Our Privilege: That’s the new internal motto of the Napa Chamber of Commerce (NCC). We’re doing our best to make our members feel that way, and hope to provide another sense of how hard we’re trying, with the first “NCC Member Appreciation Party.” The event is free and exclusive to members and their RSVP-confirmed guests/family members.
The festivities will take place on Saturday, July 18, at Kennedy Park and is being co-sponsored by the city of Napa Parks and Recreation Department. Services Director John Coates and his staff have played an integral role in assisting us in putting together a program for our very diverse membership base, including outdoor games and activities for kids of all ages.
The event will include food (light bites), wine, beer and music (DJ), contributed by participating NCC members, as well as activities for adults. For those more athletically inclined members, there will be volleyball and softball available. For us armchair athletes, we will have pétanque, the French version of Italian bocce or American “lawn bowling.”
A small example of vendor commitments to date include Cole’s Chop House, Torc, ZuZu, Grace’s Table, Alexis Baking Company, Downtown Joe’s, Napkins, Tarla and Angele; all were excited and happy to participate when told it was a simple show of appreciation for Chamber members. My hope is that NCC members will reciprocate that appreciation by continuing to support these outstanding local businesses that are constantly providing their valuable resources to Napa Valley charities.
Another fun and unique twist to the event is that it will serve as a coming-out party for the newly formed Crusher Wine District, whose members will provide wines for the event. The CWD is Napa’s newest — and perhaps coolest — collective of wineries, our very own “urban winery experience” located in the South Napa Corporate Park. According to their website, “this cutting edge group is a collaboration of avant-garde wineries dedicated to stunning wines and honest hospitality. Our location says it all about us – authentic, stripped down & a little funky.”
You are also encouraged to “visit the Napa Valley you didn’t expect, but will ultimately always remember. “ Members include Trinitas, Spelletich, Humanitas, Mi Sueno, Charles Woodson Wines, J Moss, Y Rousseau, Avinodos, Edict, the Foundry and more soon to be announced. Who knew that such a stellar assembly of some of Napa’s finest wines was just a stone’s throw from downtown Napa? I consider it to be the perfect wine district for Napa locals and industry folks.
Visit CrusherWineDistrict.com to see the other members of the group and start getting excited about what I hope will become an annual staple event for the Chamber.
A gathering that enables members yet another opportunity to get to know each other outside the realm of everyday business. It’s very important as we continue to push our members to “stop exchanging business cards and start exchanging business.”
Thank you all for your continued support and I look forward to seeing you at the party.