(Santa Rosa, CA) – Tim Tesconi, a respected Sonoma County agriculture leader who spent 43 years chronicling the story of North Bay agriculture, will be inducted into Sonoma County Farm Bureau’s Hall of Fame on July 15th.
Tesconi will be honored at Farm Bureau’s Love of the Land event alongside the Mauritson Family, Farm Bureau’s Farm Family of the Year, and the Hughes Dairy/Westview Jerseys recipient of the Luther Burbank Conservation Award.
A self-described “ag nerd”, Tesconi has been involved with agriculture his entire life. Over the last 10 years, he served as community relations coordinator and then executive director of Sonoma County Farm Bureau before retiring in the fall of 2015. Previous to heading the county’s largest agricultural organization, he worked for 33 years writing about North Bay agriculture for The Press Democrat.
Tesconi lives on a five-acre parcel of land on Westside Road with his wife Catherine Barnett. The couple purchased the property 33 years ago and married the following year; they have two children: Sam, 27, and Will, 24.
Now retired, much of Tesconi’s time has been spent fixing up the property. Even after his retirement, he is still heavily involved in the agriculture industry. He sits on multiple boards including the 4-H Foundation of Sonoma County, Sonoma County Farm Trails and the Santa Rosa Junior College Ag Trust. He is involved with planning the AgStravaganza which will honor the Balletto Family in the fall and is working with the Healdsburg Museum on cleaning up the historical Oak Mound Cemetery.
Love of the Land, honoring stewards of the land, will be held at Richard’s Grove and Saralee’s Vineyard in Windsor. The event begins at 4 p.m. with a reception of local wine, food and cheese. A dinner featuring Sonoma County products is at 7 p.m., followed by the presentation of awards and a live auction. The event is open to the public and anyone who wants to join in honoring stewards of Sonoma County agriculture.
The event is open to the public. Ticket prices begin at $65 for individuals and $700 for a reserved table of 8. Corporate sponsor tables are $1,250. To make reservations visit www.sonomafb.org/loveoftheland or call 707-544-5575.
