Napa Valley College: Long-Time Napa Resident Evelyn Allen Leaves Estate To Napa Valley College Foundation

Press release from Napa Valley College:

2022-01-12

Teacher, law student, viticulturist and lifelong learner Evelyn Allen, who began taking classes at Napa Valley College (NVC) in 1944 and continued nearly until she passed away on May 8 at the age of 94, has left her estate to the Napa Valley College Foundation. The announcement was made by Napa Valley College Foundation Executive Director Jessica Thomason.

In a revocable trust prepared in 2018, Allen directed that the Foundation would receive her estate, including her 13-acre property, which includes her home, a rental home and eight acres of cabernet grapes, which are currently being sold to Caymus, and a separate rental property in Alta Heights. In the trust document, she specifically asked that her gift be used to support the College’s Agriculture and Adaptive Physical Education programs.

“We are greatly saddened by Evelyn’s passing,” said Thomason.  “She was well-known and loved as a student and has been actively supporting the College through making gifts to the foundation for several years. Evelyn referred to the College and its students as her family. 

“We are overwhelmed to hear that she left her estate to the College, which will be the largest gift ever received by the Napa Valley College Foundation.  We are honored to be able to steward this significant gift to fulfill Evelyn’s wishes, which will live on in the lives of students and the community for years to come.”

To further cement Evelyn’s legacy at NVC, the Foundation has also established the Evelyn Allen Women’s Leadership Fund, a group of key women leaders in the Valley who will provide a voice within the College to cultivate the next generation of women leaders.

Born in 1926 in College City near Colusa, CA, Evelyn grew up in a humble home, her contractor father and seamstress mother instilling in her a strong work ethic and a love of education. She is described by those who knew her as an exceptionally independent woman with an insatiable desire for knowledge and a fearless approach to life.

Never one to be idle, Allen decided to attend John F. Kennedy University in Orinda and obtained a law degree in four years. Although she never practiced law, she worked for a lawyer in San Francisco for a few years before coming back to Napa to take care of her father when her mother died in the 70s.

This press release was produced by Napa Valley College. The views expressed here are the author’s own.