Saturday, January 20, 6 p.m.
River Music Experience, 129 Main Street, Davenport IA
In its ninth-annual fundraiser for the venue's educational programming, the River Music Experience's January 20 Winter Wine Experience will treat patrons to live music by the Kellen Meyers Trio, a 50/50 raffle, a silent auction, hors d'oeuvres, and numerous wine samplings presented by Davenport's Dimitri Wine & Spirits and company owner Dimitri Papageorgiou.
Having learned about wine making from his father in his native Greece, Papageorgiou attended engineering college and spent two years in the Navy before his sister persuaded him to join her in the United States in 1970. Once here, he began working at her pizza restaurant in Centerville, Iowa – where he eventually met his wife Kathy – while also attending Truman State University, where he went on to earn degrees in accounting and business. After graduation, he and Kathy moved to the Quad Cities where Papageorgiou took a position as a comptroller for a local wine and spirits business, and in 1984, he started Dimitri Wine & Spirits – still thriving in the Quad Cities 34 years later.
Throughout his 25 years as the company's proprietor, Papageorgiou has supported local organizations through his love of wine by serving on boards, donating wine and beer for tastings, and participating in local fundraisers at all different levels. Organizations such as the Boy Scouts, CASI, the Festival of Trees, Habitat for Humanity, the Quad City Symphony Orchestra, the Rock Island Library, the Rock Island Park Board, Niabi Zoo, St. George Greek Orthodox Church, the Father Bader Scholarship Fund at St. Pius, the Parrot Head Club, the Multiple Sclerosis Society, WQPT, the Scott County Family Y, and many others have all benefited from Dimitri’s willingness to help meet the needs of Quad Cities residents.
Tickets to the Winter Wine Experience are $45-55 for individuals and $250 for a reserved table for four, and reservations can be made by calling (563)326-1333 or visiting RiverMusicExperience.org.
