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Condé Nast Traveler
12-05-2025
- Condé Nast Traveler
The Best Time to Visit Sonoma County, Whether You Love Wine or Not
Naturally, Northern California's temperate climate makes the entire calendar a good opportunity to visit Sonoma County. In the spring, everything is green from the winter rain and in bloom. During summer visits, beautiful dinners composed of lush in-season produce on terraces with balmy breezes and late sunsets are commonplace. And hotels have lower nightly rates in the winter, and winemakers—those who are around—will usually have more time to spend with you. 'While it can be chilly in the winter months, there's something lovely about curling up next to a fireplace with a glass of Pinot Noir,' Caskey says. 'And with no crowds, it will feel like you own the place.' When is the cheapest time to visit Sonoma County? The cheapest times to visit Sonoma County are the shoulder seasons, as well as the winter offseason. 'Early spring and the weeks after Thanksgiving are the most intimate times to visit,' says Gatto of Wine Country Concierge. 'Winemakers and winery owners have more time to spend with you indoors instead of the bustling summer and fall when their days are full.' For the most affordable stay, plan to take your trip to Sonoma County during the winter months, from January to March. 'This period typically has the best deals on flights, car rentals, and hotels,' Tillement says. 'The moderate climate still allows for pleasant outdoor activities, including coastal walks and redwood forest explorations.' If you travel to Sonoma County during the offseason, remember to check restaurant schedules: 'During this time, some places will prune their hours of operations,' Caskey says, because of declined foot traffic. 'However, people actually live in Sonoma town, near Santa Rosa—and Healdsburg—and many great spots are open year-round. When is peak season in Sonoma County? When it comes to wine destinations like Sonoma County, the best time to visit is usually harvest season, which means it's also peak season. This is when most oenophile travelers descend on the wineries to get up close and personal with the harvesting process. 'Harvest starts in August with whites and ends in October with reds,' Gatto says. 'Visitors can often see the crush process at wineries, which includes the sorting of grape clusters and the evolution of their juice into wine.' Given the popularity of visiting during the autumn harvest, it's important to secure your reservations well in advance—winery visits, restaurant tables, hotel rooms, and even private drivers and rental cars (always have a designated driver in your travel group!). Beyond the grape harvest time, summer is also a popular season in Sonoma County, with plenty to see, eat, and do. 'You get perfect weather for outdoor activities and a lively atmosphere with various festivals and events,' Tillement says. Summer is arguably an even better time to visit for travelers who do not drink: 'During pleasant evenings, wineries host outdoor events and amazing culinary experiences.' Even the bathtubs have striking views of Sonoma County at the Montage Healdsburg (pictured), one of the most luxurious stays in the area. Christian Horan Photography When visiting Sonoma County for the first time, where should I go? Sonoma County is massive, with a land area of about 1,500 square miles, and it has plenty of natural parks, coastlines, and charming towns to explore. And for wine fans: There are 19 officially designated American Viticultural Areas within the Sonoma County Terroir, from Carneros to Alexander Valley (one of Condé Nast Traveler's Best Places to Go in the US in 2025), which means countless wines to taste and discover.
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Nurse helps fulfill dying cancer patient's last wish
WILSON COUNTY, Tenn. (WKRN) — A nurse has been recognized after helping make a patient's final wish come true at her hospital bedside. The woman wasn't even his patient, but his actions helped her family to create a memory they won't soon forget. Aaron Caskey told News 2 he would always remember January 22, 2025. A patient's condition at Vanderbilt Wilson County Hospital was rapidly declining, but it was her last wish to see her daughter get married. However, with the official wedding planned for a later date, it was starting to look like that dream may not have come true. 📧 Have breaking news come to you: → 'They knew she was sick and I don't think they realized how sick she was, so they had planned their wedding in April,' Caskey said. The chaplain was away from the hospital that night. Caskey, a nurse of 17 years, was working that night. When he heard about what was going on, he decided to step in and help. 'I just told my boss, 'I'll just become ordained online, and I'll just do it,'' Caskey said. In under an hour, Caskey got ordained, but the healthcare team didn't stop there. But that's not all, the healthcare team went the extra mile to make the 'I do' at the patient's bedside special. 'We got cake and Welch's champagne from Publix. Emily, my medical assistant, she made rings out of pieces of ribbon for them,' Caskey said. 'The woman … woke up a little bit during the ceremony and she was able to see her daughter and give her daughter a hug.' That patient died two hours later, still holding the bouquet from the last-minute wedding that Caskey helped make possible. Because of his actions, Caskey was nominated for — and received — a Daisy Award. The Daisy Foundation grants the award to spotlight nurses who make a difference and submissions come from patients and hospital staff. Bonnie Barnes told News 2 that she co-founded the organization after her step-son, Patrick Barnes, died of an autoimmune disease 25 years ago. He received incredible nursing care throughout his treatment. ⏩ 'We know that it contributes to their healing,' Barnes said. 'It helps create some balance, this nurse did so much for me, at a time I needed them so badly and now I can give something back.' Caskey said it was a team effort to help make the patient's last wish come true. He thanked the palliative care team, including Maria, Emily and Sister Florence. Caskey also told News 2 that his act came from a personal understanding about the need for joy and compassion while healing. 'I had stage three colorectal cancer,' said Caskey, who is now 22 years in remission. 'I know when I was sick and I wasn't sure which way things would go — things that were important to me — it's the only thing that mattered. So I just feel glad that I could give her peace in that.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Miami Herald
28-03-2025
- Health
- Miami Herald
Two men acquitted in Miami of $65 million scheme involving genetic and COVID-19 tests
Last year, the Justice Department charged five men with running a pandemic-era racket that falsely billed Medicare and another federal program $65 million for genetic and COVID-19 testing that prosecutors said were not medically necessary. Prosecutors also accused them of paying kickbacks to doctors and recruiters who steered hundreds of thousands of patients' tests to a lab in Texas, Innovative Genomics, which collected $44 million from the taxpayer-funded Medicare system and a COVID-19 insurance program. Before trial in Miami federal court, three of the men pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit healthcare fraud and cooperated as government witnesses against the remaining two defendants. But after a month-long trial, a 12-person jury on Thursday acquitted Diego Sanudo Sanchez Chocron, 48, and Gregory Charles 'Milo' Caskey, 58, of the conspiracy charge and six related offenses. Both had an ownership interest in the Texas lab, along with the government's main witness, Enrique Perez-Paris, 48, who had recruited his childhood friend, Sanchez, into the business. Perez-Paris pleaded guilty along with Nadir Perez, 27, and Omar Palacios, 35, who ran pop-up tents in Miami for COVID-19 testing after the virus struck in March 2020. The jury's acquittals were unusual because the Justice Department rarely loses such cases in South Florida — recognized as the nation's healthcare fraud capital — particularly those involving defendants like the three defendants who pleaded guilty and testified against the co-conspirators at trial. But the outcome in the Miami case may have been foretold when more than halfway through the trial, U.S. District Judge Rodolfo Ruiz dismissed two conspiracy charges against Sanchez and Caskey regarding paying kickbacks and laundering tainted proceeds from the alleged healthcare fraud scheme. Sanchez's defense lawyers, Lauren Krasnoff and David Oscar Markus, argued that their client believed all of the COVID-19 tests were medically necessary, saying he relied on lawyers, doctors and billers of the Medicare claims. 'We are so happy for Diego, who had the courage to fight this case even after his friend turned against him and lied to try and save his own skin,' Krasnoff and Markus said in a statement on Friday. 'We are thankful to the judge and the jury for giving us a fair shake and the opportunity to prove Diego's innocence.' Caskey's defense attorneys, Andrew Feldman and Kyra Harkins, argued that Justice Department prosecutors failed to prove the genetic and COVID-19 tests were medically unnecessary and that the Texas lab's bills were fraudulent. 'Mr. Caskey and his family are ecstatic about the result of this trial and that he gets to return to his home in San Antonio,' Feldman said Friday. The Justice Department's case, investigated by the FBI and Health and Human Services-Office of Inspector General, was sparked by the insider information of another healthcare operator, Nikita Hermesman, who owned part of the Texas lab, Innovation Genomics. But Hermesman, a cooperating witness, was not charged with the five defendants in the Miami case. Instead, Hermesman pleaded guilty last year to a separate conspiracy of paying kickbacks to doctors who steered genetics tests to other Texas labs under his ownership. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
World Studies teacher brings history to life with interactive chariot racing
MORGANTOWN, (WBOY) — Phil Caskey's 9th grade World Studies class at Morgantown High School is currently in the middle of its Rome Studies unit, and is keeping things interesting by allowing students to face off against each other through chariot racing, on a large-scale board game. The purpose of the race is to teach students about Circus Maximus, a stadium in Ancient Rome that brought out thousands of fans to different chariot racing events. Caskey stated that some of the culture involved in Ancient Rome and Circus Maximus still ties into present-day society because of NASCAR races, which many of his students are a fan of also. 'If you go back to Ancient Rome with some of the gladiator games and the chariot races, it's kind of the first sporting event truly at that large-scale size,' Caskey said. 'If you go to a NASCAR race and you've got 100,000 fans at Talladega, or Daytona was just last week, Circus Maximus was 250-200,000 people that went to Roman chariot races to cheer on their winning team or their best charioteers.' 'Repack the Backpack' aims to help students finish school year strong Therefore, Caskey stated that his students plan to attempt the same thing in his classroom, by splitting up into different teams. He added that the team to cross the finish line first will move on and advance further in the competition. Several of Caskey's sophomore students helped him set this project up over the past month, with one student even helping print out 3D chariot pieces. Last week, the students took the time to paint these chariots in a 'cross-curricular learning' opportunity between art and history classes. According to 9th Grade Student Graham Young, the class was separated into two teams of Green or Blue. He stated that each person was assigned a number and then a number gets picked out of a bag. Once a particular number gets picked, the person associated with that number on both teams has to roll two six-sided dice, and then move the combined number of spaces on the board. Young added that there are other intricacies, such as cornering checks, 'which is when you're going around a corner and you just kind of like have to stop because you rolled low, and there's also collision checks and there's a bunch of other stuff.' Young told 12 News that it's a really big deal to him that their class is getting the chance to do chariot racing because he really enjoys playing Dungeons & Dragons with his friends. 'So like these miniature games where you get to paint your mini [figurines] and like interact with other people by just chance, I find it really fun.' According to Young, board games similar to this one are really interesting to him because you get to play out a character. He added that he's really into Roman history, and he finds games that focus on gladiatorial elements to be 'really cool' because of how intricate they can be. 'This has really helped me understand the unit by like being able to envision what it was like, rather than just reading it in a textbook,' Young added. 'Just a bunch of people came into the stadium and to watch just mass blood shed, just for the fun of it.' West Virginia school districts begin making up snow days in June Young also noted that from his observations, most of his classmates appeared to be getting engaged and involved with the game. 'They've all been pretty on top of things, which is not the case in some cases [because] history just might not interest you that much. But this, I feel like it genuinely, it brings history into a limelight that everyone can see through.' Caskey stated that gladiator combat and racing chariots is supposed to make world history fun, and he feels that his is an opportunity to do that. He places a lot of emphasis on hands-on learning, stating that he'll feel his students were successful as long as they're able to use their hands to roll dice and understand strategy in order to work as a team for the challenge. 'If we just did book work and we just did straight vocab and just straight PowerPoint learning, they might not remember it as much,' said Caskey. 'So I think if you differentiate the instruction and you make something happen that's not of the norm, they'll buy into it more.' On Wednesday, Feb. 26, the students will put their chariots against each other for the official race. Following the competition, one of the teams will be named the official champion. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
