gmhTODAY 12 gmhToday Jan Feb 2017 | Page 105

Jim O ’ Briant In Concert
As we talked , I found out that Jim was conducting the Pacific Brass Band for a concert in conjunction with the Christopher High School Band . Judy and I went , and it was a great concert . This led to our discussion about doing a concert at the Elks and raising funds for high school scholarships , which you will hear about later in this story . It also got us talking about being in your 60s and living in Gilroy .
Our story begins with Kay being born in Modesto and growing up in Patterson , California , where her family had a dairy and farmed apricots . Jim was born in Missouri , but his family moved on to Iowa where he lived until he graduated from high school .
Kay and Jim first “ met ” online in 1990 when they were active participants in a “ Wine Bulletin Board .” When Jim ’ s work brought him to California in 1992 , he emailed Kay and suggested getting together for a glass of wine . They each showed up with two bottles , two wine glasses and a corkscrew . They ’ ve been together ever since .
They moved to Gilroy in the spring of 1993 , when Kay accepted a position as controller of a local winery . She went on to work for E & J Gallo in Modesto . When she worked for Gallo she remembers being in the same building with Charlie Rossi ( known to the public as “ Carlo Rossi ”). He came in to the office once in a while to answer his fan mail .
Kay indicated that she “ attended wine industry events and met some of the giants of the wine industry including Robert Mondavi , his brother Peter of Charles Krug , and members of the Sebastiani family .” As it turns out , Sam Sebastiani and I were in the same graduating class at Bellarmine College Preparatory in San Jose in 1958 .
In 2012 , Kay became a Kansas City Barbeque Society ( KCBS ) Certified Master Barbeque Judge . She told me that her first competition as a certified Judge was at the 2012 Morgan Hill “ No Bull ” BBQ Cook-off . Since then she has judged competitions in Washington , Nevada and throughout California . In October 2015 , Kay was a judge at the largest BBQ competition in the USA in Kansas City .” Last summer she even judged at the first Gilroy Garlic Festival BBQ competition .
Jim graduated from the University of Northern Iowa with a B . A . in Music Education . In Iowa , he taught public school music and in 1977 he joined a community band in Bettendorf Park , Iowa , where he played and directed from 1980 to 1988 . After coming to California , he joined the Watsonville Community Band and the Pacific Brass Band and the South Valley Symphony . Jim still plays tuba in the South Valley Symphony and is now the Music Director and staff arranger for the Pacific Brass Band . He conducted the band at its first appearance in the band shell at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco . Last summer , the Band played at a fundraiser for the South Valley Symphony at Guglielmo Winery in Morgan Hill and they ’ re booked for a return engagement in summer 2017 . On March 19th , 2017 , the Pacific Brass Band will be playing , under Jim ’ s direction , at the Gilroy Elks Lodge to raise funds for Elk ’ s scholarships . Jim says “ the afternoon concert will be presented in a relaxed setting with champagne , appetizers and desserts .”
Jim also organized his own band called “ The Zinfandel Stompers Vintage Jazz Band .” Jim and his bandmates Howard Miyata and Erik Siverson of Gilroy have been playing together for 10 years . You can see them on the second Tuesday of each month at 88 Keys Cafe and Piano Bar in Morgan Hill .
Jim is a 10-year member of the Gilroy Elks Lodge and is currently the President of the Lodge ’ s RV Club , the Garlic Roamers . Kay is a member of the Hollister Elks and a member of their RV club .
In the fall of 2013 , Jim succumbed to temptation and purchased a new Can-Am Roadster , a 3-wheel motorcycle , along with a small trailer to haul his tuba to music rehearsals . Kay enjoyed riding with Jim so much that she bought her own motorcycle . They enjoy riding many of the hilly and mountainous roads in and around Gilroy and Morgan Hill .
Jim and Kay said that life in their 60s in Gilroy has been good . “ It is far enough from the rat race of big cities and it ’ s relatively peaceful ,” they told me , “ and it ’ s close enough to the Bay Area and Monterey Bay . Just between Gilroy and Morgan Hill , there ’ s more than enough to see and do .” Life sounds pretttttty good for Kay and Jim .
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2017 gmhtoday . com
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