David Eakle

Napa Valley Community Foundation Disaster Relief Fund

Napa, CA

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When wildfires ignite, most people—wisely—evacuate to safer ground. But when freak lightning strikes in August 2020 sparked the LNU Lighting Complex fire, including the Hennessey fire in Napa Valley, David literally dug in to help keep the flames from advancing. Along with other local bulldozer operators, he worked around the clock to clear brush and create fire barriers on challengingly steep terrain.

Parts of rural Napa are difficult to access and public services are often scarce. With lightning-fueled fires burning across the region, the state’s Cal Fire agency was spread thin in battling blazes. David, who runs his family’s Eakle Construction & Trucking business, realized that he could use the company’s heavy equipment to make a fire break—starting on St. Supéry’s Dollarhide Estate Ranch. With the winery’s blessing and help from Eakle Construction’s bulldozer drivers, the crew worked its way through neighboring properties to connect about 7 miles of fire line.

“It actually made an impact because the Gamble and Hennessey fires came to a head at that fire break,” David says. When state fire crews arrived about a week later, they used the fire line to set up a controlled burn. “They were able to put the fire out, so it was a pretty good accomplishment.”

As a result, many homes, wineries and properties, including the Dollarhide Estate Vineyard, were spared. “Growing up out here in a rural area, everybody looked out for each other in the community,” says David. “So we just started helping.”

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St. Supéry is particularly grateful to David and all of our neighbors who came out to help and were the inspiration for this exhibit. $5 from every bottle of St. Supéry 2020 Napa Valley Estate Sauvignon Blanc is donated to the Napa Valley Community Foundation in their honor and all our local heroes. Learn More Here