Ten years of the Alliance, and a full room at Golden Era
Last Tuesday, August 18th, about a hundred members and supporters packed the bar and lounge at Golden Era in Nevada City to celebrate ten years of the Nevada County Cannabis Alliance. Having so much of our community in one room, laughing and catching up and raising a glass to a decade of work, was the best way we could have marked the occasion.
Back where it started
Golden Era is a very familiar venue for us. Ten years ago, the community gathered in this same room to celebrate the No on W victory, when voters rejected Measure W and its push to ban commercial cannabis in Nevada County. That win is the reason the Alliance exists at all, and coming back to the same spot a decade later to celebrate everything that grew out of it felt right.
A lot has happened between those two nights at Golden Era. Garden canopy expansion gave our farmers room to expand their operations and build something that can support a family. Microbusiness licenses opened the door to vertical integration, so a small operator can cultivate, manufacture, and sell under one license instead of handing each step off to a larger company. Our Get Legit educational program has brought credible speakers and practical training to members and the public, free and recorded so nobody misses out. And it all traces back to a community that decided, ten years ago, that craft cannabis had a place here.
The night itself
DJ Redlocks kept the music going all evening. We took a moment to thank Maggie Philipsborn, our Grant Project Manager, for nine years of dedication to the Alliance, and surprised her with a painting as a token of how much that work has meant.
We also paused to remember Wade Laughter, who passed last year, and whose dedication to the cannabis industry meant so much to so many of the people in the room.
And there was something to look forward to. Board Member, Elise Timoney, announced that a Nevada County Cannabis Cup is in the works, so keep an eye out for more on that.
Thank you
Our thanks start with Golden Era, who opened their bar and lounge and hosted us beautifully. Our sponsors made the night possible, and we are grateful to every one of them:
Most of all, thank you to our members and supporters. Ten years in, what stands out most is the people who keep showing up for each other, harvest after harvest, meeting after meeting, party after party. That is what has kept cannabis a stronghold in this county, and it is what we are counting on for the next ten years (and we suspect Golden Era will see us again before then).
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