🌱 Highway Blaze + Fire Mapping Tech + Recent Healdsburg Obituaries

Hello, Healdsburg! It's your girl Simone, here with the lowdown on what's happening in town. In this sizzling weekend edition of the Daily, you'll learn about...

• A small fire that broke out near Healdsburg yesterday
• New tech that can predict wildfire behavior in our area
• Three well-known Healdsburgians who died recently
• All the weekend events you could ever ask for
• And more!

I also want to apologize off the bat for a confusing mistake I made in yesterday's newsletter. In reference to a rather scathing review that the San Francisco Chronicle just gave to Little Saint, the new food and event space on North Street created by the team behind the SingleThread restaurant, I called the new space SingleThread instead of Little Saint. In fact it was Little Saint that got the scathing review — not the "Michelin star-winning, World’s Best 50 Restaurants-placing," largely untouchable SingleThread. Sorry guys! (Healdsburg Patch & SF Chronicle; paywall)

Now, your weekend weather:

• Friday: Fog in the morning, turning to very hot sun. High: 97 Low: 56.
• Saturday: Mostly sunny and hot again. High: 96 Low: 55.
• Sunday: Mostly sunny but a little cooler. High: 86 Low: 58.
• Monday: Mostly sunny and heating back up. High: 97 Low: 56.

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Air over Healdsburg:

Here are the top 3 stories today in Healdsburg:

1. There was a small but scary grass fire along the 101 at the north end of Healdsburg yesterday afternoon, amid this crazy heat wave. It reportedly broke out just before 2 p.m. on the east side of highway, right near the split-off of the 128 toward Alexander Valley. According to the Watch Duty fire alert app, the fire reached about 1.5 acres in size "at a slow to medium rate of spread" before being contained by firefighters, with the help of a helicopter and dozer. The folks from Healdsburg Running Company uploaded a video of what it looked like from the freeway. (Watch Duty & CAL FIRE via Facebook & Healdsburg Running Company via Instagram)
2. On that note: The North Bay Business Journal has a cool story on the experimental data modeling behind Healdsburg's in-the-works "community wildfire protection plan." The plan is reportedly being drafted by city staffers with help from two companies: Wildfire Services Group and Sonoma Technology, a "Petaluma-based environmental science firm" currently developing computer models that "can predict fire behavior and even evacuation ease, with the aim of trying to stomp out the fire before it happens and get people out of harm’s way if one is ignited and takes off." More from the story: "The data ranges from the width of some remote roads for the sake of an evacuation to the extent a neighborhood harbors fuel-rich vegetation. It may also incorporate whether a community has a high senior population. But mainly, it spells out geographic topographic factors and weather conditions. It’s part of the efforts taking place in Healdsburg and western Marin where North Bay fire officials, firms and local governments are trying to use all the tools of the trade to avoid or reduce wildfire disasters." You can learn all about it here! (North Bay Business Journal; paywall)
3. We recently lost these three well-known Healdsburg residents: local business owner Lenny Siegel, adoption social worker Suzanne Boots Tinney and agriculture "pioneer" Gladys Gaudagni-Wright-Boyd. Lenny, who was only in his early 70s when he died, was "owner and operator of Lenny Siegel Photographic Illustration in Healdsburg since 1978" and "specialized in commercial photography which allowed him to explore shifting trends for over four decades," according to his obituary. "He worked with many notable architects, realtors, winemakers, artists and more, helping define the world's visual perception of Sonoma County." Suzanne, for her part, passed away in June at the age of 73, according to her obituary. Suzanne was known for her ability to "write incisive home studies that led to matching families with children" and "go deep while interviewing families, see them for who they were, advocate for them, and shepherd both child and family to finalized adoptions," her obit says. "Both at home with her four children and during her years as a social worker, creating a loving family was at the core of who she was, a calling she tended to with grace, dignity, and love." And Gladys died in June at age 95. From her obit: "She graduated Geyserville High School in 1946 and lived in Dry Creek Valley her entire life, where she was a pioneer woman in the prune and grape industries. Gladys was a mother, grandmother, great grandmother and great-great grandmother. She was an excellent cook, offering food to all visitors. She spent her summer and fall seasons canning foods she grew and making pies for family and neighbors." (Legacy.com & Legacy.com & Legacy.com)

Healdsburg pic of the day:

I love to feature pics from community members in the Healdsburg Daily. You can send yours to me here. Please just confirm in your email that you took the photo, and that Patch has permission to republish it! 📸

This weekend in Healdsburg:

Friday, August 19

• Summer Sidewalk Sale at Businesses off the Healdsburg Plaza (Aug. 19-21, All Day)
• Farm to Pantry Apple & Plum Glean at HomeFarm (9AM)
• Healdsburg Library Hosts Family Storytime at Giorgi Park (10:30AM)
• "Birds & Bubbles" Lunch in the Vineyard at Kokomo Wines (12-2PM)
• Adam Lieb Live at Selby Winery & Tasting Room on Center Street (3PM)
• 2022 Vineyard Dinner at Bacigalupi Vineyards on Westside Road (4:30PM)
• Friday Evening Wine & Song at Hudson Street Wineries, Featuring Live Music by American Lore (5-8PM)
• Crape Live at the Raven Theater for "Heaven in Hell" Album Release (8PM)
• Kayatta Patton & Friends Live at the Elephant in the Room (8-10PM)
• Hey Jude Live at Coyote Sonoma (8-11PM)

Saturday, August 20

• Healdsburg Running Company Early Morning Run at the Coast (8AM)
• Healdsburg Saturday Farmers Market (8:30AM-12PM)
• Corazón Healdsburg Hosts Día de Trabajo en el Jardín / Garden Work Day at the Healdsburg Community Center (10-11AM)
• Read to a Dog at the Healdsburg Library (11AM)
• Healdsburg Senior Center Trip to See "Oklahoma!" Musical (11AM-6:15PM)
• Outdoor Artist Talk at Hammerfriar Gallery: Kristen Throop, "The Sketchbooks" (1PM)
• Mustache Harbor Live on the Lawn at Orsi Family Vineyards (1-4PM)
• Thistle Moon Botanicals Fire Season Product Launch on Center Street (3-7PM)
• Opening Reception: "Beauty in the Beasts" Exhibit at the Healdsburg Center for the Arts (5-7PM)
• Meet and Greet with Healdsburg City Council Candidate Chris Herrod, Feat. Live Music by Steve Pile (5:30PM)
• Soda Rock Winery Dinner at Coyote Sonoma (6-8PM)
• Blue 7 Plays Jazz Classics at the Fireside Lounge at Hotel Healdsburg (6-9PM)
• Romero Lubambo & Chico Pinheiro Duo Live at THE 222 (7PM)
• Rock on a Roll Live at Coyote Sonoma (8-11PM)
• Ginny Mac Live With the Rowan Bros. at the Elephant in the Room (8-11PM)

Sunday, August 21

• Hands-On Harvest & Terroir Class at the Dry Creek General Store (9:30-11AM)
• Bourbon Street Brass Band Live at Young & Yonder Spirits (12-4PM)
• Celebration of Life for Leonard "Leo" Thrash at the Villa Chanticleer (1-5PM)
• One Year Anniversary Celebration at THE 222: Champagne & Hors D’Oeuvres Reception Followed by Live Brazilian Music (6:30PM)

Monday, August 22

• Corazón Healdsburg Hosts "Soñadores" Taller Para Padres / "Dreamers" Workshop for Parents of High School Graduates at the Healdsburg Community Center (6PM)
• Raven Theater Play: "Keely & Du" (7:30PM)

From my notebook:

• This week is the anniversary of the Walbridge fire in August 2020, which burned forest homes on Healdsburg's outskirts and prompted evacuations. Making these recent weather patterns extra freaky... but so far so good. (Press Democrat; paywall)
• The Northern Sonoma County Fire District, which was super involved in fighting the Walbridge fire, just got a "new remote helicopter dip source" up near the Geysers. Officials describe it as a "remote cistern... capable of holding 4000 gallons of water and will provide firefighting helicopters a water source in a remote part of Sonoma County." (Northern Sonoma County Fire District via Facebook)

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Events:

• 2022 Cotati Accordion Festival (August 20)
• Add your event

Now you're in the loop and ready to start this weekend off right! See you on the other side...

— Simone Wilson

About me: I was born and raised in Healdsburg, CA, where I was the editor of the Healdsburg High School Hound's Bark. I have since worked as a local journalist for publications in San Diego, Los Angeles, New York City and the Middle East. I'm currently a senior product manager for Patch.

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming Healdsburg Daily? Contact me at simone.wilson@patch.com