Everywhere you looked around the patio at San Pedro Square Market on Sunday, you saw elected officials, nonprofit, business leaders and people enjoying jazz, beer and supporting Chris Wilder.
It was an inspiring celebration in honor of Wilder, former executive director of the Valley Medical Center Foundation, who stepped down following a massive stroke in March 2021. And if you know Wilder, you could have guessed that “Live With Chris Wilder” was also a fundraiser because he wouldn’t even let a stroke stop him from raising money for the VMC Foundation.
Beers flowed into pint-glasses custom made for the event, and crowd of a couple hundred people listened to the music of Legally Blue, the blues band with which Wilder had played bass guitar.
The list of high-powered speakers included developer John A. Sobrato, who, with fellow board member Joe Parisi, recruited Wilder to the VMC Foundation; San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo; Santa Clara County Public Health Officer Sarah Cody; Bloom Energy Vice President Carl Guardino; and U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren, who told the crowd that last week she entered details of Wilder’s career into the Congressional Record.
Then Kate Emmett-Wilder, Wilder’s wife, gave a compelling account of the stroke, his hospitalization and ongoing recovery and finished with a laugh. “The universe: You’re about to have a massive, life-changing stroke. Chris: Hold my Sante Adairius beer,” she said, referring to his favorite Capitola brew.
To cheers and applause, Wilder walked with a cane to the microphone to thank everyone for coming. “This is not the way I thought my retirement would go, but I’m grateful to have Mrs. Wilder by my side,” he said, describing the difficult process of relearning motor skills. “I only planned to learn to walk once in my life — when I was a baby — but life has a sense of humor, and there we are.”
Wilder said the experience reminded him of his early days at the VMC Foundation, when there was no staff and no plan. “Just like then, with help from those with expertise and the support of my friends and family, I’ve got this.”
And even if you’ve never met him, that’s inspiration we can all share in as we collectively recover from our own challenges after a difficult two years.
GROWTH MARKET FOR TREES: Our City Forest Executive Director Rhonda Berry couldn’t be more thrilled with how much work the organization has been doing the past couple of months to increase our urban tree canopy. More than 1,200 volunteers have gotten their hands dirty helping the nonprofit plant take care of more than 1,000 trees and shrubs and transplant nearly 1,000 bare root trees.
The group was definitely busy with Arbor Day celebrations this weekend, planting 27 saplings in Gilroy on Friday as part of a program partnering with Santa Clara County’s Office of Sustainability and Office of Education and planting 33 trees on Saturday on the streets surrounding Washington Elementary School in San Jose.
CALENDAR SHUFFLING: COVID-19 is still causing scheduling problems for performing arts groups trying to put on shows this spring. Palo Alto Players Managing Director Elizabeth Santana announced Tuesday that breakthrough COVID-19 cases in the company have forced them to cancel the rest of the in-person run of “Allegiance,” and ticketholders will be contacted soon about their options. Because of this, the show’s on-demand streaming run has been extended through May 22, matching the in-person version’s original end date, and you can purchase tickets for $20 at paplayers.org.
And because of COVID-related issues, South Bay Musical Theatre has pushed back its production of “On the Town,” which will now open May 20 instead of May 14, with the run going through June 4 at the Saratoga Civic Theatre. You can purchase tickets or check for updates at southbaymt.com.
Source: www.mercurynews.com