A blind date turned into a happy marriage of over 20 years for these two Bay Area natives who love adventure, wine, food and entertaining. In fact, Lisa Crossett loves her entertaining hobby so much that she named her two “4-legged babies” after Martha Stewart. Marty and Stewart are 8-year-old Havanese siblings.
Lisa met Charles Kreling in 1997 when two sisters set them up. One sister worked with Lisa, and the other worked with Charles. Their first date was at a Walnut Creek brewery named The Fault Line, which is now the location of Sauced. By the 3rd date they knew they were destined to be married.
The food and wine loving pair were married, appropriately, at the winery Murrieta’s Well in Livermore in 1998. After living in San Mateo, they moved to the Diablo Shadows neighborhood in 2001. At that time seven new homes had been built on the land that was the prior home of the Ginocchio family estate and orchards. “We have a great group of neighbors on our court,” says Lisa. “The majority are original homeowners, along with a couple of fantastic new additions. We have seen the kids go through grade school, high school and college, and now several have gotten married this past summer.”
Lisa and Charles love throwing dinner parties, making trips to Napa for wine tasting adventures or enjoying Shadowbrook Winery, which is just 4 minutes from home, just off Northgate Rd. Lisa adds, “I have an immense affinity for delicious food, great wine and entertaining. I published a food blog in 2009 called Authentic Suburban Gourmet and am currently working on a lifelong dream of writing a cookbook.”
Lisa graduated from Cal State University, Hayward (now Cal State East Bay) with a Bachelor’s in Business Administration and has had a long successful career in the staffing and recruiting industry. She is currently Head of Talent Acquisition for Mechanics Bank with headquarters in Walnut Creek. She is also currently President of the board for California Recruiters and also volunteers her time locally as a board member on the Community Arts Foundation, which provides scholarships and advocacy for arts education.
Charles first started his college career at the College of San Mateo, earing a certificate in Commercial Pilot Technology. He then went to UC Berkeley and received his B.S. in Business Administration. He held various careers in accounting, finance, and IT. He now works for Central Garden and Pet where he is the head of Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) compliance. But his main passion is flying. He takes Lisa and friends on day trips around California and has his own plane based at Concord’s Buchanan Field. Charles also volunteers his time. He is a volunteer deputy and pilot for the San Francisco Sherriff’s Dept. and was a past commander of the SF Sherriff’s Air Squadron. He also serves on Contra Costa County’s Merit Board overseeing the employment system for county employees and recently was appointed as a Walnut Creek Design Review Commissioner where he is currently Chair of the Commission.
With so many volunteer commitments and dinner parties to throw, it’s amazing they have time for travel. But one of their fondest memories allowed them to combine two of their passions: enjoying a gourmet four course meal and outstanding wines while flying at super sonic speed on one of the Concorde’s last flights to London.
This couple certainly lives by the motto: Enjoy every day and live life to the fullest. [Look for Lisa’s articles starting this month in Northgate Living magazine under the column Food, Wine and Entertaining!] Cheers!
Do you know a neighbor who has a story to share? Nominate your neighbor to be featured in one of our upcoming issues! Contact us at knavolio@bestversionmedia.com.
By Kara Navolio, Resident since 1991By 1991
Photos submitted by Lisa CrossettPhotos Crossett