Love amid loss: The ‘Enchanted’ Napa story of Matthew and Kristen Beard
LightHouse Staff Note: The following is an excerpt from an article from the Napa Valley Register.
By Jennifer Huffman, Buss sines Editor, Napa Valley Register
Matthew and Kristen Beard have only been married since 2022 but have already faced many significant life challenges, including one of Napa’s worst natural disasters.
Matthew, 37, is the head chef at the Enchanted Hills Camp, located at 3410 Mount Veeder Road in the forested hills northwest of Napa. Kristen Beard, 34, is a social worker based in Napa County. The two live in the city of Napa.
Enchanted Hills chef Matthew Beard and his wife Kristen, a former Enchanted Hills counselor, pause while on a walk on the grounds of Enchanted Hills on Mount Veeder outside Napa on Friday, Feb. 7. The camp was built for blind and low-vision people of all ages. Matthew Beard is legally blind.
[Photo: Nick Otto]
Both have a connection to Enchanted Hills Camp that is deeply personal.
Enchanted Hills is the only camp serving blind and low-vision babies, youth, adults and their families in the western United States.
Rose Resnick, a blind musician, teacher and philanthropist, founded Enchanted Hills in 1950. The 311-acre property belongs to the nonprofit LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired.
Matthew is legally blind. “I have an eye condition called aniridia which is (the) lack of an iris, the colored part of your eye,” he explained.
He grew up in Sacramento and first connected with Enchanted Hills Camp as a camper, and later as a counselor.
Kristen’s mother had been a counselor at the camp in the 1980s, which inspired her daughter to work at Enchanted Hills as well. Kristen, who is from Santa Cruz, later served as head female counselor while Matthew was also on the staff.
