10 | SMOOTH JAZZ NEWS The food (I especially loved the tomato soup with grilled cheese sandwiches and the spicy goat cheese spread on baguette slices), beverages, service and overall ambiance beautifully complemented the music and wine country setting. Catching up with JazzTrax producer Art Good and Kelly Cole, host of “The Quiet Storm” radio show on San Diego’s Magic 92.5, mingling with old friends and chatting with Payne, James, Anderson, Thompson, Terri Paulo and others in such a festive environment was such a treat. When I asked Payne what motivates her generosity toward these clearly costly endeavors, one response stood out: “It may not be the best business practice, but I think I get more out of it personally than anyone else. I know that I am blessed to be a blessing to others, and God will always provide for my needs in the end; He knows my heart. I have been able to, hopefully, spread love and make some amazing lifelong friendships, knowing that we can always count on each other to be there for one another.” In a world where so many people report feeling lonely and disconnected, there is something profoundly meaningful about a community built around shared experiences, generosity and human connection. Yes, we gather for the music. But after all these years of publishing this magazine and traveling to concerts, festivals and cruises across the country and internationally, I’ve come to believe that what keeps us coming back is one another. *More about the “Mermaid Crew” in the October-NovemberDecember issue of Smooth Jazz News. As you can imagine, Payne and James have amassed such a large extended family within the smooth jazz community that narrowing the guest list down to just 100 people proved difficult. “Marilyn and I split the list, but we agreed that since the event was at my home on a weeknight we would focus mainly on guests who were in proximity to the area,” Payne said. “Although we did have a few guests that flew in from all over the country to be at the event, namely my ‘TexaCaliFlo’ crew (aka *‘Mermaid Crew’): Jeannette Estes from Lakeland, Florida; Patricia Flowers from Houston, Texas; Marilyn Washington from Orlando, Florida; and Juli Bloxham, from Rupon, California; we were missing the sixth member of the crew, Karen Bobo of Houston, Texas. But we will all be together again at Marcus Anderson’s Jazz AND Coffee Escape (MAJACE) in late July.” Having attended several concerts and other gatherings at James’ downtown San Diego high-rise condominium theater over the years, I wondered why they didn’t choose to have the event there, especially since so many of their friends live in San Diego. “Our condominium’s public areas are being remodeled, and Kathy has the ideal home for entertaining large groups in her beautifully landscaped outdoor area,” James said. And Payne’s daughter-in-law, Misty, an experienced event planner, offered to organize the gathering. “Misty has always been an amazing planner. She was the senior event planner at the Nike Corporation in Beaverton, Oregon, working at the Tiger Woods Center,” Payne explained. “She handled everything for me on this project, from setting the scene and schematic, renting the tables, linens, enlisting the servers, bartender, catering (Wine Country Catering) and personally creating the stunning ‘grazing table’ in my wine bistro area herself.” continued from page 9 Katherine Runkle Marcus Anderson serenading Terri Paulo Art Good chatting with Marcus Anderson the music and with JazzTrax host of “The Diego’s Magic and chatting Thompson, a her endeavors, may agreed that since that since the event focus mainly area,” guests at the Patricia Flowers, Juli Bloxham and Marilyn Washington Photos: Pat Benter
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