Thompson Honors Anita Oberholster as the Yolo County American Dream Award Recipient

Congressman Mike Thompson | Congressman Mike Thompson Official website

By Wine Country Times Report

Jul 15, 2023

On July 9, Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-04) recognized Dr. Anita Oberholster as the 2023 American Dream Award recipient for Yolo County. The American Dream Award is presented to California’s Fourth District residents who have come to the United States and made outstanding contributions to our communities.

“Dr. Oberholster is an example of the promise of the American Dream and importance that immigrants play on education in our country,” said Thompson. “UC Davis is one of the premier research universities in the world, and it is thanks to people like Dr. Oberholster that a UC Davis education is highly sought after. I am proud to honor Dr. Oberholster with the American Dream Award and I look forward to seeing how her research and contributions at UC Davis continue to benefit our region and the world.”

Dr. Oberholster was born in South Africa, where she received a bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry and Chemistry and an honors degree in Chemistry from Stellenbosch University. She then went to Australia to earn a Ph.D. in Wine Science from the University of Adelaide in South Australia in 2008. She moved to the United States in 2011 to work at University of California, Davis as a cooperative extension specialist, professor of extension. There she has become a vital member of our community through her research in finding solutions to problems plaguing the wine industry.

Dr. Oberholster has been a board member of the American Society of Viticulture and Enology for six years and is currently the 2nd vice-president of the society. Additionally, Dr. Oberholster has also worked as the secretary of the American Society for Enology and Viticulture Foundation (ASEV) which fundraises to give scholarships to viticulture and enology students. Furthermore, she is a member of the LLC Management Committee which works to organize the Unified Grape and Wine Symposium. She is currently the chair of the coordination and extension committee that is responsible for the Department of Viticulture and Enology Extension and Outreach activities. Previously, she was the chair of the Viticulture and Enology graduate group and worked as an advisor to incoming students.

Dr. Oberholster is the vice-chair of the Department of Viticulture and Enology and is doing important research to benefit the grape and wine communities. She focuses on the challenges the grape and wine communities are dealing with, including Grapevine Red Blotch Disease and the impact of smoke from wildfires on grape and wine quality. Dr. Oberholster prioritizes sustainability and works to help our wine community through methods such as improving the quality of winery wastewater recycling methods.

The American Dream Award honors immigrants who have excelled professionally, through entrepreneurship and innovation, in the arts and culture, or through community service.

The full list of recipients from California’s Fourth District includes: