February 1st, Carolyn Stark will take over from Honore Comfort as Executive Director for the Sonoma County Vintners. Marking the beginning of a new era for Sonoma County Vintners, she will be introduced to the wine industry at the first-ever Sonoma County Wine & Tourism Marketing Meeting to be held on January 23, 2015, at the Hyatt Vineyard Creek in Santa Rosa.
Carolyn comes to the Sonoma County Vintners from Sonoma County BEST and has a long career of leading non-profit organizations and developing productive partnerships, but she’s new to the wine industry. The Wine Industry Advisor had an informal chat with her to learn more about who she is and what perspective she brings.
Would you tell us about your family and your roots?
I am originally from Chicago. I recall very clearly one day when I was 28; I was walking into the north wind to get the train station at 7 in the morning in Chicago, and I thought, this has got to change.
My whole family now lives in California, and I’ve been here since 1988. Both my parents are here in Santa Rosa, and my sister is in the East Bay. I live with my husband, Joe, who’s retired, and have two horses that I ride long distance endurance racing with when I have time. So this is home.
There was a short stint of 7 years in Austin, Texas, but I made my way back, because once you’ve lived in California, it is hard to live anywhere else.
What is the guiding principle of your professional career?
This goes back to a time when I was working at Stanford and loving the whole environment. Silicon Valley was growing quickly, and Stanford had an important role in that. My job as Director of Business Development was connecting the engineering faculty with industry, and I was very happy.
Then at a conference in Seattle, the Dean of the Engineering School from the University of Texas at Austin came to me and said, “I really want to talk to you about taking a job in Austin.”
I was very uninterested in leaving California, but he said, “Carolyn, you need to come talk to me, because if you have any chance in your life to make an impact, you really should grab it, and I offer you that opportunity.”
I thought about that, and that’s why I ultimately went to Austin and took the job. I’ve never forgotten that. I think making a difference is the real answer to your question, but I wanted to tell you the story about how I discovered that in my career; if you aren’t making a difference, then what are you doing?
How does your work with Sonoma County BEST relates to the Sonoma County Vintners?
At the heart Sonoma County BEST and Sonoma County Vintners both work not only to promote Sonoma County, but also to make the members successful. Sonoma County Vintners is about promoting Sonoma County wine around the world, but also making each vintner successful as a business.
That’s the common link to Sonoma County BEST; making each business even more successful, so that they hire more people here in Sonoma County, and they invest more of their expansion here.
The Vintners is also about creating a partnership of many, and there are many efforts in the AVA’s that we want to help be successful. It’s not just about vintners, we have partners in this business throughout Sonoma County, and I’m determined to work with everybody for the common cause.
What is one of the things you are looking forward to in working with Sonoma County Vintners?
I’m excited to learn more about this industry. I think the wine industry is an integral part of what Sonoma County is with its ag heritage and its expansion of wine and tourism.
In one of my interviews with the board, I distinctly remember a board member saying, “Carolyn, what is it about this job that’s going to stretch you? How can we help you in what you personally want to expand in this job?”
I told them, “I want to learn everything I can about this industry. I know how to work with partners and run organizations and take them to the next level, but I need to learn about this industry, and every one of you around this board is the expert. So I want you to help me learn the industry.”
Would you tell us about a formative experience you’ve had with wine?
Like many other people in the late 80s early 90s we were just learning about the magic of pairing food with wine. As a young wife and professional working at Stanford University I had a social group, and we decided to have a dinner club where you had to bring the wine that matched that particular course. That’s where I learned the magic of pairing food and wine; that wine is more than a cocktail, and that it brings a whole magic to the dining experience.
I’ll never forget the wine at the first dinner. I was so impressed by the couple that brought it. They had driven all the way to the vineyard and bought the wine from the winemaker and brought it back to my dinner. I just thought that was so cool. I still remember the taste of that Merlot.
During that time I made my way of course to Napa, but I quickly realized that Sonoma county has much more variety and things to offer, and I really began to enjoy the wine country in the early 90s.
Today, Sonoma County is so on the rise. We have this really great diversity of food and wine. And what is exciting about the Sonoma County Brand is that we have so many possibilities in raising the ceiling and extending and expanding awareness about what we are here in Sonoma County.
By Kim Johannsen
