EYC Fundraiser - Denver - May 2019

Dinner at Morin

After taking a year off from hosting an in-person fundraiser for Empowered Youth in Cambodia (last year we held a virtual fundraiser), we decided to host another in-person event in Denver, this time at Ali's friend's house in Washington Park (a beautiful home with a large backyard).  The event was a huge success with us raising over $90K (our goal was $70K)!  And we got to catch up with quite a few friends!

We arrived in Denver on Thursday evening and showed up at the property where we were staying (one of the Wolff properties with a guest suite) to find out that our key did not work.  So, we got a room for one night at the Courtyard Marriott nearby and were able to check-in to the guest suite on Friday afternoon.

During the day on Friday, Keith first had breakfast with Greg and then visited the property and worked from there while Shawna worked out of the hotel.  That evening, we met up with Jodi, Ali, Sarah, Shikes, and Pagna at Morin where we shared some yummy dishes and caught up on travel and summer plans.

Shawna and Erin

On Saturday, we grabbed our usual breakfast at Starbucks and then walked around Wash Park for a couple of laps.  We also walked around the neighborhood, passing by our old house.  We went to Ali's house to help with some of the set-up and then returned to the guest suite for a quick nap and to get ready for the evening.  We showed up at the event early to help with last minute prep (e.g. setting out the food) and then started to welcome guests around 5pm.  We hired a caterer who passed around some hot appetizers while we also set out some dishes for people to serve themselves.  After socializing for a while, Jodi, Keith, Drew, Pagna and Ali all gave short speeches - talking about the value of EYC.  People must have really enjoyed it b/c we had to finally nudge people out the door around 8pm.  We helped to clean up and then went over to Ali's to debrief and celebrate with one more glass of wine.

Paga Giving His Speech

On Sunday, we walked around the park again and then met up with Patrick and Donell (and their very cute baby) for breakfast.  We wanted to go to The Cookery on Gaylord but the wait was an hour so we instead went to Fooducopia, which is now a full cafe (when we lived there it was part cafe / part grocery store).   We then went over to Chris and Athena's house where we had a yummy lunch of cheese & crackers, paella and strawberry shortcake.  Having had way too much food (but a great time catching up with friends), we then went to the airport and flew home.

Santa Barbara CA - May 2019

Santa Barbara

For Memorial Day weekend, we decided to go to Santa Barbara for a Keith/Shawna weekend.  We had not been there before but it quickly became our favorite city in CA. The scenery is beautiful and there are great restaurants and wineries.

Hotel Milo

Accommodation:

G12 Apartments - This is one of the Wolff properties located in Los Angeles.  We stayed here one night in the guest suite for free (can't beat that!).  The room is a modern loft with a kitchen, bathroom and living room on the first floor with large windows overlooking the street and a bedroom on the second floor.

Marriott Oxnard - We stayed here one night so that Keith can visit a property nearby.  We were supposed to stay in the guest suite at the Wolff property but they had double booked it.  The hotel was typical for a Courtyard.

Hotel Milo - Boutique motel located on the street that faces the ocean - easy to walk to restaurants and wineries.  Rooms were cute and comfortable, appointed with antiques and beach decorations.  Breakfast was included which was continental with breads, pastries, yogurt and boiled eggs.

Hotel Milo

Activities:

We flew in on Wed evening into Burbank airport and stayed in downtown Los Angeles.  On Thursday, Keith visited the property next to the one we stayed in while Shawna worked out of the property we stayed in.  That evening, we drove to Thousand Oaks to have dinner with Danelle who we had just seen at reunion but had not had the chance to really catch up with her so it was nice to have some one and one time with her.  We had arrived early so we walked around and then had a couple of the drinks at the bar before she arrived.  After dinner, we drove to Oxnard where we stayed one night.

Dinner with Danelle at 101 North

On Friday, Keith worked out of a nearby property while Shawna worked out of the hotel.  That afternoon, we drove to Santa Barbara and checked into our hotel for the weekend.  After we cleaned up, we went to the wine tasting at the hotel which was literally a sip of wine!  They had some cheese and crackers which we had a few before we walked to a few wineries in town for tasting.  After our tastings, we had a yummy dinner and then returned to the hotel.

Our favorite tree in Santa Barbara

On Saturday, we slept in and then drove out to the wine valley near Los Olivos for a day of wine tasting.  The area was beautiful.  Unfortunately, it was cloudy and a bit chilly but we still managed to enjoy ourselves!  We went to five wineries (we are very efficient), sharing a tasting at each and then drove back to Santa Barbara to have a nap before dinner.

Wine Tasting at Presqu'ile Winery

On Sunday, we had bought tickets to take the ferry out to the Channel Islands to do some kayaking (part of a tour) and hiking.  Because it was cloudy and drizzling and we were lazy (the real reason), we bagged it and slept in.  We walked along the water for two hours, walking around the breakwater and down to 1000 Steps Beach and back.  We spend the afternoon wine tasting in town, followed by a nap and then dinner.

Walking along 1000 Steps Beach

On Monday, we walked along the water for an hour, this time down the Pier and north of the hotel.  It turned out to be a beautiful, sunny day so Shawna tried to take as many pictures as she could. After cleaning up at the hotel, we checked out and then drove to the Ronald Reagan Library which was between Santa Barbara and the airport.  We did the tour which we enjoyed - the highlight was seeing the interior of Air Force One! We then drove to the airport and flew home.

Ronald Reagan Library

Wineries:

Jamie Sloan - One of the wineries in downtown Santa Barbara.  Very cute place. We shared the reserve tasting. The pinots were very good.

Kunin - Small modern wine tasting room near the water in Santa Barbara (in the Funk Zone).  We shared a tasting of the white wines and liked the sauvignon blanc and the Pape Star Rhône Blend - we had a glass each of these.

Andrew Murray - Modern wine tasting room near Los Olivos with picnic tables outside. We liked the Enchante, grenache, Roasted Slope (Syrah) and bought 6 bottles of the Enchante (our only wine purchase of the trip).

Andrew Murray

Fess Parker - A more traditional winery near Los Olivos that was founded by the actor of the same name (he was in Daniel Boone). We liked the rose, the pinot noir, and the Big Easy.

Fess Parker

Zaca Mesa - A large wood tasting room with outdoor picnic tables near Los Olivos. We liked the chardonnay, rose, and the grenache.

Zaca Mesa

Foxen - Another winery between Los Olivos and Santa Maria.  They have two tasting rooms - a new modern one and the original shack.  We chose to go to the shack which was a small, rustic tasting room.  We liked the Volpino and Sangiovese.

Foxen Shack

Presqu’île - A modern winery with great views located near Santa Maria. We liked the 2014 chardonnay, rose and sauvignon blanc. After the tasting, we each had a glass of chardonnay and rose with a charcuterie plate and enjoyed the views.

Presqu'ile Winery

Pali Wine Co - Tasting room located in the Funk Zone.  We were not a fan of any of the wines.

Lafond Winery - Tasting room located in the Funk Zone. We liked the riesling and pinot noir.

The Valley Project - Tasting room located in the Funk Zone.  We liked the chardonnay and merlot.

Riverbench - Modern tasting room located in the Funk Zone. We liked the chardonnay, rose and pinot.

Riverbench

Santa Barbara Wine Collective - Large tasting room in the Funk Zone featuring multiple wineries in a warehouse building. We shared the mixed white tasting.

Santa Barbara Wine Collective

Restaurants:

101 North Eatery and Bar - Located in Thousand Oaks. We met Danelle here for dinner.  They had our two favorite beers - Einstok and Estrella so we had those for the evening and then shared a kale salad, meatballs and hangar steak.  Food was very good.

The Lark - Very cute restaurant located in the Funk Zone in Santa Barbara.  We had a yummy dinner here and shared several small plates: brussel sprouts, wedge salad, cauliflower and lamb ribs.

Opal Restaurant - Had dinner here in Santa Barbara.  We shared the butter lettuce, mushroom enchiladas with shrimp, and halibut. Food was very tasty.

The Nook and Lama Dog Tap Room - A restaurant and brewery located in a shipping container in the Funk Zone in Santa Barbara.  We had lunch here with a few beers and shared the fried cauliflower, sausage bites and halibut tostada.

Sama Sama - Had a tasty dinner here in Santa Barbara. We shared the crispy duck salad, noodles, ribs, and mango sticky rice.

Panera - We stopped here on Monday for lunch before going to the Ronald Reagan Library.