CAWG Scholarship Program the Big Winner in Tractor Raffle

[NEWS RELEASE]

Sacramento, Calif., April 22, 2009 –  “It’s great to be a winner,” which is just what both Brad Alderson of Acampo and Gary Merwin of Clarksburg must have thought when they learned they were each the winners of New Holland commercial mowers raffled by the California Wine Grape Growers Foundation (CWGGF) to support their scholarship fund.

This year the annual raffle raised almost $7,000, which will go directly to help fund college scholarships for the children of California vineyard employees.

While Merwin of Clarksburg will be riding his mower around, Alderson of Acampo has chosen to donate his mower to the St. Joachim’s Catholic Church in Lockeford.

For the past several years the CWGGF has raised money for their scholarship program through an annual raffle. This year there were two chances to win a New Holland Model# G4020 commercial mower with a 50” mower deck. One tractor was donated by Garton Tractor and one donated by New Holland.

“Thanks to the generosity of our donors and the people who have bought raffles tickets over the years, we have been able to help many young people go to college who otherwise may not have been able to afford that level of education,” said Ben Drake, chairman of the CWGGF. “This year this wouldn’t be possible without the efforts of our sponsors, Garton Tractor and New Holland and the California Association of Winegrape Growers’ (CAWG) board members,” he said.

CAWG initiated the scholarship program in 1998 as an expression of gratitude to vineyard employees and their families. The CWGGF was created in 1999 to perpetuate the program.  For several years now the Foundation has raffled off either a tractor or mower to raise funds for the CWGGF scholarship program. The CWGGF annually provides at least two $4,000 four-year scholarships and at least four $1,000 two-year scholarships to help children of vineyard employees achieve their educational goals.