Napa Valley College Small Business Development Center is offering a series of lunch time classes in November and December designed for the serious entrepreneur to help successfully launch a business.

LeTip International, Inc., is a professional networking organization that invites the public to be their guest at its holiday social on Dec. 4, at Compadres on Lincoln Ave. in Napa.

The Direct to Consumer Symposium today announced that online registrations are being accepted for the wine industry’s premier summit on direct marketing and sales at www.coalitionforfreetrade.org.

As the holiday season begins, join Rev. Hal Milton for a workshop entitled “Compassionate Communication for You and Your Clients: How to Walk the Talk.”  This workshop will be from 9 a.m. to noon, Dec. 3 at Child Start, 439 Devlin Road, Napa.  It is co-sponsored by the Napa Valley Coalition of Nonprofit Agencies, the Napa Valley Community Foundation and the Peter A. and Vernice H. Gasser Foundation. 

Come tax time, some guests at Mark Diekroetger’s business find it hard to leave the reception room of his business. It’s not because they’re afraid of their taxes. It’s the crackling fireplace, comfy chairs and friendly dogs Soda and Harris. 

For just $1, the now dog-eared ticket offered the holder a chance to become the proud owner of a $7,800 “model home.” 

Working in Silicon Valley as a vice president and controller of a high tech company, Dawn Croft found financial success, but questioned the direction her career was going.

OK, that may be a bad choice of words, but the point is that Santa will be arriving for the parade next Saturday — drum roll, please — by helicopter.

Dear Len & Rosie, My mother was the executor of her parents’ estate, which consisted of little other than their personal possessions. Before she could get all of the items distributed, her parents photo albums were taken out of her parents’ home by her sister, and she has not been able to get them back to distribute the photos among the entire family. What would be the best legal action? We have been given a variety of advice including hiring a lawyer to write a letter demanding the return of the photos, reporting the theft to the police, and going through probate. What should we do? -- Laura

Napa’s California Pizza owners, Kathryn and Tom Kenney, have opened That Pizza Place at 1149 Main St. in St. Helena in the former Papa Murphy’s site near Sunshine Market.