Dakota Moffitt
“I had a boyfriend when I was 16 that was horrible to me. I think every girl goes through that. One day, I came home crying from an argument we had. I’ll never forget this. Right before I got to our living room, I just fell there and started crying. My older brother came over, held me, and let me cry. He said, ‘I get it, guys can be dumb.’ He began to admit his own flaws and told me that having a sister has taught him how to treat and respect women. It was a good moment and it definitely changed our relationship. My brothers have my back; one is older, and one is younger. There was a time where I wasn’t sure they cared, but when I really needed them, they were there…always…more than I ever could have expected.”
Dakota has been a Napa Valley resident for 4 years now. Born and raised in San Fernando Valley, Dakota, as you will read this week, has had a non-traditional inroad into the wine industry. She currently resides Sequoia Grove, coordinating their digital and social media marketing.
You will learn about how she faced loss early in life and witness how these experiences have significantly contributed to her depth, inner strength, and wisdom.
“I’m not afraid of death. This year, I’m embracing the idea that life is short, and I need to love myself. I’ve struggled to say no to things, and that has taken a toll on me. I need to embrace ‘me’, feed my soul, energize it, and get it happy again. I’m letting my roots grow here in Napa.”
“This tattoo, on my wrist, is my grandmother’s heartbeat. It was the last heartbeat reading they took while she still lived in her home here in Napa.”
It all started when Dakota moved to Northern California to pursue a dream, shortly after graduating from HSU in sports marketing and broadcasting. “Two months after working in the city, my grandma was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer that quickly metastasized to her liver and brain.” Dakota says. Because of the rocky relationship between her grandmother and her dad, Dakota didn’t visit her often when she was growing up. “I felt so guilty that I had missed so much time. I took care of my grandmother, on my mom’s side of the family, but hardly ever visited my grandma here in Napa.”
So…I decided to do something about it. It was time.”
Dakota moved to Napa and got a job closer to where her grandma lived. “I started taking my grandma to doctors’ appointments and spending time with her. Eventually she needed a fulltime caregiver, so I gave up my apartment, moved in fulltime, and began helping her with her mortgage. I went to work every day, came home, and took care of her. It was hard. I did this for about a year until her health went way south.
She had to go to hospice, where she ended up passing in her sleep about a month later. This happened right after the fires in November of 2017…”
“When I was 18, I had a boyfriend who died when he was 22. I knew he was going to die when I met him. He had Cystic Fibrosis. We dated for about 11 months…” Dakota recalls.
“Most of the 11 months we dated, I was visiting him at the LA Children’s Hospital. It was a lot to deal with. We couldn’t go to school dances together. He couldn’t bring me soup if I was sick and I could never visit him if he was sick. There were times when I wouldn’t hear from him for days. He would be really ill, on quarantine, and couldn’t have any visitors. I remember being SO scared and thinking that he might have died…
He was always very accepting of his own mortality and I think that allowed me to accept it. His attitude was always, ‘I’m sick, but I’m going to live a great life! I’m going to do what I can now.’
He had such an incredible outlook on life, even though he was dealing with such a difficult circumstance. He did a lot in his limited time here. He was acting and he produced music. He was such a great dude and a real source of inspiration in my life.”
“I feel as though I am at peace with death. Even at a young age, death never scared me.” Dakota says with a resounding inner confidence.
“I was raised Christian and went to private school my entire life. I used to be SO invested in church. My whole life was church and the Lord. Then, some crazy s#!* happened…
…and I left the church…
It was troubling. I disowned that religion and started experimenting with Buddhism and Hinduism. Now, I would consider myself more agnostic, but I sure do miss being in a community church…”
After a moment, Dakota says in a peaceful tone, “There is still a sense in me that believes we go back to nature after we die…but if nothing happens after death...I’m cool with that too, I think I’ve lived a good life…”
Dakota initially transitioned into the wine industry to help her grandma. Her first job in wine country was at Govino. She was there for just under a year and left in April of 2017. “After my grandma passed, I thought I would move back down south, but I always wanted to live in the Bay area. I love the energy of northern CA!” She says with a smile.
Dakota decided to listen to her instincts. She stayed in wine country. “My cousin got me a job with Boisset. The people were great, the energy was great, I learned a lot, but it just wasn’t my scene.”
“I eventually ended up taking a position Sequoia Grove.” Coincidentally, this was the first winery Dakota ever visited. “I’m a huge nature junkie and the Sequoia National Forest is one of my favorite places in the world. My dog is named Sierra too, but I was this close to naming her Sequoia!”
“The struggle I’m having now is connecting with wine, because I don’t have that natural passion as so many of my colleagues who moved to Napa do. But I think I’m getting it! I LOVE the people that I’m meeting here, I love the joy that this industry brings others, and I’m loving seeing my products and designs turn into something. This has helped me increase my passion! It’s very cool to be a part of this experience.”
