8-K

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                                  UNITED STATES
                       SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
                             Washington, D.C. 20549

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                                    FORM 8-K

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                                 CURRENT REPORT

                     PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE
                         SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

         Date of report (Date of earliest event reported): June 16, 2005

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                            SonomaWest Holdings, Inc.
               (Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)

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           Delaware                     000-01912                94-1069729
 (State or other jurisdiction    (Commission File Number)       (IRS Employer
      of incorporation)                                      Identification No.)


                2064 Highway 116 North
                Sebastopol, California                            95472
       (Address of Principal Executive Offices)                 (Zip Code)

       Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (707) 824-2534

                                      Same
         (Former name or Former Address, if Changed Since Last Report.)

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Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to
simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the
following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):

|_|   Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17
      CFR 230.425)

|_|   Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR
      240.14a-12)

|_|   Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the
      Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

|_|   Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the
      Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))
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Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Principal Officers;

Election of Directors; Appointment of Principal Officers.

      On June 16, 2005, the board of directors (the "Board") of SonomaWest
Holdings, Inc. (the "Company") accepted the resignation of Roger S. Mertz as
Chairman of the Board of the Company. He will remain a director of the Company.
The Board appointed Walker R. Stapleton, currently a director, as President and
Chief Executive Officer of the Company. Mr. Stapleton, age 31, is currently a
consultant with Castle Keep Realty, a private real estate consulting firm, in
Denver, Colorado. From 2003-2004 he served as Director of Real Estate
Acquisitions for Lamar Companies, a private real estate investment firm. From
2001-2003 he was a founding principal of Convergence Capital Partners, a private
real estate opportunity fund, which made investments in Eastern Europe. From
1999-2001 he was an executive at an internet start-up company. Mr. Stapleton is
a graduate of Williams College. He has a Graduate Degree in Business Economics
from The London School of Economics and Political Science, and a Masters in
Business Administration from The Harvard Business School. A copy of the
Company's press release relating to the above matters is attached hereto as
Exhibit 99.1.

Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(c)   Exhibits

Exhibit Number          Description of Exhibit

99.1                    Press Release dated June 17, 2005

                                    SIGNATURE

      Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned hereunto duly authorized.



                                        SONOMAWEST HOLDINGS, INC.

                                         By:  /s/ Walker R. Stapleton
Date: June 17, 2005                           -----------------------
                                              Walker R. Stapleton
                                              Chief Executive Officer

EX-99.1

                          SonomaWest Holdings Announces
                       Appointment of Walker Stapleton as
                 Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer


Sebastopol, California, June 17, 2005. SonomaWest Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: SWHI)
today announced the appointment of Walker Stapleton, a director of the company,
as President and Chief Executive Officer. Roger S. Mertz has resigned as the
company's Chairman of the Board. He will remain a director of the company.

Mr. Stapleton is currently with Castle Keep Realty of Denver, a private real
estate consulting firm. Mr. Stapleton gained transactional experience relating
to public and private company financing during his employment at Hambrecht &
Quist as an Investment Banker in the group's technology banking division. Most
recently, Mr. Stapleton served as Director of Real Estate Acquisitions for Lamar
Companies, a private real estate investment firm. Mr. Stapleton was a founding
principal of Convergence Capital Partners, a private real estate opportunity
fund, which made investments in Eastern Europe. Mr. Stapleton is a graduate of
Williams College. He holds a Graduate Degree in Business Economics from The
London School of Economics and Political Science. Mr. Stapleton holds a Masters
in Business Administration from The Harvard Business School.