Jeff Roberts
“My son committed suicide 4 years ago. It was a very difficult time in my life. Without my faith, friends, and church, I would be a different person. He was my only child and I’m still dealing with it.”
“It’s a part of my life that is never going to change, but I do think we learn to adapt. I will never forget, but I will also not continue to get wrapped up in only the difficulty of it. I choose to remember the beauty, joy, and love that I had for him. I thank God every day for the opportunity to have been his father. I don’t share that story with many people, but I feel God has blessed me in so many different ways…”
This part of our conversation came at the end of my interview with Jeff. I would have never imagined that the man sitting before me, who emanated a sincere joy and warmth as we spoke, could have experienced one of the most challenging things a human being will ever have to endure. Jeff is kind, humble, has a great sense of humor, and shares his story from the heart.
Jeff Roberts is the Director of Engineering at Archer Hotel and is on his last leg of employment before retirement. “I’ve had the opportunity to learn everything about the hotel before it was built. It’s been incredible to learn from the ground up and fall in love with the ownership. It’s the best place I’ve ever worked, but ‘work’ is a means to an end. It’s important, but it’s not the end. For me, it’s about my spiritual and family life first, then work. I’m very fortunate that my whole career has revolved around my family life and what I value.” Jeff says.
Jeff, along with his two brothers, survived the Atlas Peak fire back in 2017. His faith is a driving force in his life, and he channels this passion through his work in children’s ministry. Jeff’s career has also moved through the world of wine and this week, you will see it unfold.
“I love winemaking. If it wasn’t such a gruel for 3 months, I’d probably still be doing it.” He says with a smile.
Jeff had a teacher that he remembers to this day. “She was the first person who taught me that it was OK to hug people. Every time she saw me throughout the years, she would give me a hug and say, ‘I remember you’. It made me feel good and I do that with my students. A hug is a real personal connection that is important.”
After Jeff met his wife, he started to become more involved in different ministries. Church used to be a 3 time a year occasion; but their marriage redirected his energies back to his roots. He became an elder for 5 years and has a real passion for his work in children’s ministry. “They re-inspire my passion for my faith, because as they learn about their faith, they can look at it from a fresh perspective and not be too caught up in the world. My role is someone they can turn to for questions, or affirmations about their faith. I share my perspective. It’s perfect for me.” Jeff said.
“I once knew a young man who was in 4th grade. He was a very smart and serious young man who was concerned about the world. He was always succinct in his questions and one day, he asked me about Jesus, and I gave him my answer.” He thought for a moment, turned to Jeff and said, “Hmmmm, ok…you know, I never thought of it that way.”
“Two years later, this young man came up to me and said that my answer reaffirmed his faith. He decided to get baptized because of that. For me, that was what my purpose was – to mentor that young man, who is in high school now. As churches grow, they die, because they don’t have the infrastructure to invest in their children. Affecting children’s lives is really important.”
Jeff was born in Virginia, but grew up in Fairfield, CA. As he neared adulthood, his older brother moved to Napa and started working at Robert Mondavi Winery in the Barrel Room. “He became interested in coopering and was flown to France by the winery to learn more about barrels. While there he spent time at the French company, Demptos Cooperage, to learn the barrel making process. When he returned, he began to set up their disassembled barrels shipped from France to the winery.”
It wasn’t long before Jeff began to follow suit. After high school and a year at the local J.C., his brother got him what he thought was a summer job at the winery; this eventually grew to something far greater.
“I learned craft winemaking as my brother’s relationship continued with Demptos for a couple of years. [My brother] eventually left the winery and started a business of his own with a couple of his friends. They worked on Demptos barrels and sold redwood Hot Tubs. They were the new chic thing at the time. He soon left his partners and started a new company, “Napa Valley Cooperage Company”.” Jeff eventually shifted his skills from winemaking to learning the art and craft of making barrels. He was offered a partnership in the company.
This was an incredible time for Jeff. He was on the road for many years, traveling up and down the state of CA, meeting with winemakers and visiting their properties. In time, Jeff wanted to ease the extensive amount of travel and prioritize staying close to home. He stepped down from his partnership at the cooperage and took a job at Meadowood Napa Valley. He worked there for 7 years. “This was my first experience working in hospitality.” Jeff continued his new path and worked for another 7 years Auberge du Soleil as their Chief Engineer. He enjoyed his work at both of these locations, but Jeff’s career really took off working as the Director of Engineering for 20 years at the Vintage Inn and Spa in Yountville.
“I had a wonderful general manager named, David Shipman. He taught me the culture of hospitality, why people go to go hotels, and most importantly why their experience is so important.”
It was late afternoon in October. Jeff and his brothers were conducting a business meeting at his brother’s house in Atlas Peak. “All of a sudden, the entire room went yellow. We all got up pretty quick and looked out the window. We noticed this large cloud of smoke coming our way.” Jeff and his brothers knew this was serious. They ran outside to see how bad it was.
“Everything around us was on fire.” Jeff said.
They had to act fast. “We gathered the animals, jumped in our car, and drove up the mountain to my brother’s father-in-law’s house. He had a large pool and the idea was that we could jump in it to protect ourselves. As we were driving up the hill, we saw the surrounding eucalyptus trees burning on the side of the road. Acorns from the trees were burning and popping around us.”
When they arrived, they immediately ran up to the balcony and looked out at the evolving damage. “My brother’s house got leveled. There was nothing left.” Jeff and his brothers quickly made their way to the pool. A few seconds before they jumped in, a large flame curled right over the top of the water. The fire was bearing down on them rapidly. They needed to regroup…and FAST.
“We decided to go back to the truck and figure out what to do. By the time I got to the truck, I looked back and noticed they were gone. I couldn’t find them anywhere. I thought they got trapped. I got in the car and started to honk. I cried, I prayed, I thought this was the end.” After a moment, one of Jeff’s brothers jumped in the front seat with him.
“I asked, ‘Where’s Craig?!’ And he said, ‘I don’t know!’.”
Out of nowhere, Craig jumped in the back of the truck. He somehow found a towel and put it over his head. “We backed out slowly. I couldn’t see anything at first. As we made our way through the smoke, our visibility got better. We looked out the windows and saw burning animals and trees wrapped in fire. The smoke started to clear even more as we made it to the main road. We stopped and stepped out to see if the fire had passed. Someone on a motorcycle came up to us and said that it was ok, everything had burned up past us.”
This was a defining moment in Jeff’s life, one that redirected his energies in a profound way. “I have a greater appreciation for the frailty of life. From that point on, I was going to make every single day count. It changed me. I appreciate what I have, through the good times and the bad.”
