HISTORY OF THE JACK L. DAVIES NAPA VALLEY AGRICULTURAL LAND PRESERVATION FUND
In 2003, recognizing their mutual commitment to preserving the agricultural lands and heritage that are fundamental to Napa County’s rural character, the Jack L. Davies Agricultural Land Preservation Fund, the Napa Valley Foundation, and the Napa Valley Agricultural Land Preservation Fund united to establish The Jack L. Davies Napa Valley Agricultural Land Preservation Fund (JLD Ag Fund). Guided by a volunteer board of directors, the JLD Ag Fund operates under the premise that only an educated electorate can protect the integrity of the land. It is dedicated to a mission of preserving, protecting and promoting agricultural land in Napa County.
While the Jack L. Davies Ag Fund was officially established in 2003, its roots reach back more than 40 years, through the groundwork of the three distinctive groups that eventually came together to form the organization.
First, the Napa Valley Foundation was founded in 1980 by concerned citizens to encourage awareness and understanding of agriculture as the best primary use of land in Napa County. NVF advocated for the concentration of urban uses within the county’s existing cities and urban areas through educational programs and public forums on local development issues.
Next, in 1982, grape growers Alex Phillips, Tom May, Louis Martini, Joseph Phelps, Russ Eichner and Ron Wicker banded together to create the Napa Valley Ag Land Preservation Fund. The Fund sought to galvanize the work of a small group of local residents committed to agricultural land preservation. For two decades the Napa Valley Ag Land Preservation Fund funded a wide range of educational and research projects, retaining both a land use expert and an attorney to evaluate the county’s General Plan in order to ensure agricultural land preservation; commissioning legal research to support Measure J, Napa County’s landmark growth management initiative; and sponsoring an educational water forum along with numerous other small endeavors designed to support the work of local schools, museums and organizations such as the Napa County Land Trust.
The Jack L. Davies Fund was first established in 1998 as a perpetual memorial to the Davies’ family patriarch. A dedicated open space advocate, Davies and his wife Jamie raised a family and a business, the historic Schramsberg Vineyard and Winery, on a fabled tract of land tucked into the eastern face of Diamond Mountain in Calistoga. Under the tutelage of nationally-recognized environmentalist Dorothy Erskine, Davies was a vocal advocate for the controversial passage of legislation that formed the Napa County Agricultural Preserve and a leading supporter of one of the region’s earliest conservation groups, Upper Napa Valley Associates. The Fund was created to continue his legacy of supporting agricultural conservation in the Napa Valley.
Although each organization operated successfully as an independent entity, the history of the Napa Valley clearly indicates that the agricultural community is best served by a spirit of camaraderie, and to this end the three organizations sought to maximize their efforts by joining resources under a single mantle. In 2003, recognizing a mutual commitment to preserving the agricultural lands and heritage that are fundamental to Napa County’s rural character, the Jack L. Davies Fund, the Napa Valley Foundation and the Napa Valley Agricultural Land Preservation Fund united to create The Jack L. Davies Ag Fund.
The Jack L. Davies Ag Fund seeks to support a perpetual, annual program of micro-grants focused on research, grants, scholarships, and educational outreach. The JLD Ag Fund is guided by a volunteer board of directors dedicated to a mission of preserving, protecting, and promoting agricultural land in Napa County.