About Us
The Valley of the Moon Children’s Home Foundation is a private, non-profit organization that is committed to providing supportive and educational services to positively impact the present and future lives of abused, abandoned and neglected children and youth. The Foundation supports children and youth that are presently experiencing foster care or have transitioned out of foster care and are current or former residents of Sonoma County.
Our Four Goals
Enrich
Enrich the lives of the children who are in shelter at the Center.
Support
Support former foster youth with education, housing, and employment opportunities.
Evaluate
Evaluate ways to improve and support the foster care system of Sonoma County.
Educate
Educate the public about child abuse prevention.
Board Members
Laura Colgate, President
Community Leader
Laura Colgate is a Sonoma County native, and has been involved with the Valley of the Moon Children's Home (now Center) since 1983. When she was hired at Hewlett Packard in 1983, management supported internal fundraising efforts for local causes. Laura became the fundraising "go to" person, while performing her regular responsibilities. This led her to the first tour of the "Old Moon" in December of 1983. She was struck as a young mother of a daughter, Christy that there were children who had been abandoned, abused, or neglected in Sonoma County. In that moment she became a benefactor and over the ensuing years was the main contact for whatever the children needed. Additionally Laura was the project manager, and Executive Director of the Family Justice Center Sonoma County, the Director of Senior Nutrition Services (Meals on Wheels), and has participated in many local efforts to provide for those less fortunate, including supporting Veterans. She lives on a ranch in Sonoma County with her husband Ty Visscher of Bennett Valley Jewelers, has a daughter Christy, and two grandchildren Kayden and Kinlee.
Kevin Destruel, Vice President
Mead Clark Lumber Company
Kevin Destruel is a third generation Sonoma County resident and is President/Owner of Mead Clark Lumber Company. Kevin has served on the Valley of the Moon Children’s Foundation for over fifteen years, he got involved with the Foundation to help give back to those most vulnerable and in need in our community.
Kevin earned a Bachelor of Science Degree from the University of California at Berkeley and went on to work for his family’s business for over 40 years. When not working Kevin can be found out on the golf course or hunting and fishing in the great outdoors.
David Dillwood, CPA, Treasurer
Dillwood, Burkel & Miller LLP
Dave Dillwood is the founder of Dillwood Burkel and Millar LLP, a 20 year old full service CPA firm in Santa Rosa. David is the partner in charge of taxation at the firm. Dave came to Sonoma County in 1990, and has been active in the community soon after. Dave is a Past President and Past Active Member of the Active 20-30 Club of Santa Rosa #50, Past President of the California Junior Miss Scholarship Foundation, Past President of the North Bay World Trade Association, Treasurer of the Windsor Youth Soccer League, and a board member of several other profit and nonprofit boards and advisory boards in Sonoma County. Dave has served as Treasurer for the Valley of the Moon Children’s Foundation since 1995. In his spare time Dave enjoys spending time with his grandson, cooking and gardening, while following his favorite sports teams, the Giants, the Warriors and the Raiders.
Linda Stevenson, Secretary
Community Leader
My first experiences with the importance and value of the Valley of the Moon Children’s Home (Center) was in volunteer work through Junior League of Napa/Sonoma. We sponsored monthly parties for the children, including Haunted House/Costume parties, crafts and special events. This gave me the opportunity to see the value and quality of the program and staff up-close. After continued work with At Risk Youth through related programs such as Blue Ribbon Campaign, Kinship Program and VOICES, I had the honor of joining the VOMCF Board in 2016. While my “day job” is using my Master’s from the U. of Texas at Austin in Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling and my 48 years of work in the field with all types of disabilities in both the civilian and veteran community, VOMCF allows me to work with dedicated members of our community to serve our most precious commodity, our children and youth.
Tanya Carvajal
MISSSEY Housing Program Manager
Tanya Carvajal is currently the program manager at a nonprofit which helps women and veterans experiencing homelessness in the Bay Area. She grew up in the foster care system and has a unique perspective on the many obstacles youth are experiencing in this county through a personal and professional lens. Over the last 5 years she has specifically focused on working with the youth homeless population. She is also certified to work with Human Trafficking victims and survivors. Ms. Carvajal is a founding member of VOICES Sonoma; a youth led drop-in resource center and a recipient of the AFP Youth in Philanthropy Award. Over the last 11 years Tanya’s unique life experience and professional accomplishments have helped youth from similar backgrounds overcome their past in the foster care/probation/mental health systems in order to become successful young adults.
Emily DeMeo, Esq.
Community Leader
Emily DeMeo is a fourth generation Sonoma County attorney practicing at the law firm of Geary, Shea, O'Donnell, Grattan & Mitchell, P.C. She focuses her practice in the areas of estate planning, trust administration, and probate, among other areas of law. A proud Santa Rosa Italian-American, Emily grew up in Sonoma County and attended St. Rose School and Analy High School. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Tennessee (Go Vols!), earned her law degree at The American University in Washington D.C., and was a student of the International Asian Studies program at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Faculty of Law. She serves on the Board of Directors for the Sonoma County Bar Association, is a member of the Richard Sangster - American Inn of Court, and has been a child care volunteer and tutor at the Valley of the Moon Children's Home since 2014. Emily can usually be found swimming, skiing, adopting (too many) animals, or cheering on her beloved San Francisco Giants.
Nick Honey
Community Leader
Nick Honey grew up in England and has lived in Sonoma County since 1996. He obtained a Master’s Degree in Social Work at San Francisco State University and worked with children and families for 42 years until he retired in 2022. For the last 15 of those years, he was the Division Director at the Family, Youth, and Children Division, leading the local child protection agency in Sonoma County as part of the Human Services Department. He worked closely with VOICES and the Valley of the Moon Children’s Foundation including helping establish the scholarship program for foster youth. He is constantly inspired by scholars, their passion for education, and their ability to overcome obstacles and challenges.
In his retirement, he now has more time to row on the Petaluma River, hike with his wife Rachel, and visit his adult children who live in Boston and Oxford, England.
Stephan Passalacqua, Esq.
Community Leader
Former District Attorney of Sonoma County and a public interest scholar, Stephan is also a community leader and practicing lawyer with local and statewide reach.
Stephan has extensive experience in matters of estate planning, business law, and real estate. In 2002, he was elected as the youngest District Attorney in California in Sonoma County where he served two terms. His key achievement was the creation of the Family Justice Center which provides comprehensive services to family violence victims.
He graduated from Santa Clara University with a Law Degree and also holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Spanish from the University of California at Davis. He has also studied at the Institute of Human Rights in France, and the Neighborhood School of Theatre in New York.
In 2011, he opened his law firm and focuses on estate planning, business law, and real estate.
Stephan volunteers for various organizations and enjoys coaching youth sports. He is on the Board of Directors for the Valley of the Moon Children’s Foundation and the Healdsburg Food Pantry. He has also raised funds for Veterans Resource Centers of America by participating in the local Dancing with the Stars competition, winning the grand champion award.
Laura Robertson
Community Leader
Laura Robertson has lived in Santa Rosa for 32 years. She has been a foster youth advocate for nearly 20 years, which started with her involvement with the Foster Children’s Give-a-Gift Program. The Give-a-Gift Program was a flagship program of the Sonoma County Medical Association Alliance. Laura was committed to understanding the young people the program serves and in doing so has developed a true passion to improve the lives of foster youth in Sonoma County.
She has served on the Sonoma County Coalition for Foster Youth chairing the Education Subcommittee and took the lead in developing an annual event called Ticket to Education, a college awareness day for high school age foster youth.
Laura also is a member of the Executive Advisory Counsel for Sonoma County Office of Education, Foster Youth Services Coordinating Program. She is a founding member of Impact 100 Redwood Circle, a Women’s Philanthropic Giving Circle.
The SCMAA Give-a-Gift Program program will become a contributing program of Valley of the Moon Children’s Foundation. Laura looks forward to joining the VMCF Board to continue to develop and grow the program.
Christy Colgate
Director of Programs
Christy is thrilled to join Valley of the Moon Children's Foundation as the Director of Programs. She brings a rich history and deep-rooted family legacy with the Children’s Home and in-depth valuable experience to her role. This coupled with a broad understanding of the needs of children and families makes Christy the perfect fit to fulfill the mission, vision, and stated goals of the Foundation. Outside of work, Christy cherishes spending time with her two children Kayden and Kinlee. As a mother she understands the importance of creating a better future for the next generation, and what it means to invest in the lives of our children, young people, and scholars. When she is not working or spending time with her family; she is training, competing, and riding barrel bacing horses in both local events and professional rodeos.
