Members of the Forest Grove High School orchestra and choir perform “The Halleujah Chorus” from Handel’s Messiah during our joint meeting with the Forest Grove Daybreak Club on Dec. 10. Photo by John Schrag.

If you did not make it to our last Rotary Club of Forest Grove meeting, here is what you missed…

December Social Meeting/Ugly Sweater Party: We hope that you will join us for our final official meeting of 2025, which will be our monthly social this Thursday, Dec. 18, 6:30 p.m., in the solarium at Zesti Food Carts, 2131 Yew St., Forest Grove. This will be an ugly sweater party, so wear your worst (or best) holiday sweater and join in the fun! We will also have some party games and raffles organized by our Satellite Club members. Bring a significant other and a friend and come enjoy the fun and fellowship!

December Break: Our club will not meet on either Wednesday, Dec. 24, or Wednesday, Dec. 31, as we take a holiday break. We will return to our regular schedule on Wednesday, Jan. 7, at Pacific University.

Troop 213/Pack 213 Christmas Tree Sales: Still in the market for a Christmas tree? Considering supporting our chartered Scouting American units, Troop 213 and Pack 213, at their Christmas tree stand in the Forest Grove Safeway parking lot, 2836 Pacific Ave. The scouts have Noble and Douglas Firs up to eight feet in height. They can also sell taller Nobles by request and deliver those to your home. If you are still in need of a wreath, they have a selection of sizes from 18 inches to 26 inches.

The lot is staffed on weekdays from 5 to 7 p.m., and weekends from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. You can also stop by during the week, select your tree, and drop your payment off at Maridon’s Café.

Earlier Weekly Meeting Start Time: Because we are packing so much information and discussion into our weekly meetings, please note that the formal weekly meeting will now be starting at 12:05 p.m., instead of the 12:15 p.m. that we are used to. So please show up earlier to enjoy fellowship with other club members prior to the meeting.

Announcements At Meetings: If you have an announcement that you would like to give at a meeting, please let President Andrea know in advance. This will assist her in planning out our full meetings better. Thank you!

Get Ready For Pickleball: Our second annual Rotary Pickleball Tournament is scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 10 at the Forest Grove National Guard Armory at 10 a.m. This will be open to beginners and past champions (like Lucas Welliver). Additionally, our club is sponsoring the weekly indoor pickleball gatherings for the second straight year. The evening weeknight games (5:30-8 p.m.,Monday-Thursday) began last week. Follow the Forest Grove Pickleball Facebook group to get all of the details. The armory is located at 2950 Taylor Way, Forest Grove.

Community Service Opportunities: If you want to find other ways to serve the community, be sure to be at the Jan. 7 meeting when our community service chair, Amanda Hartmann, will be sharing ideas for club service in 2026.

Volunteer Opportunity – Family Resource Center: The Forest Grove School District’s Family Resource Center, located at Cornelius Elementary School, is in constant need of volunteers to assist with sorting donations and preparing food boxes to go out to families in need in our community. The center is generally open and available for volunteers Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. If you want to volunteer or have questions about volunteering, please contact Melissa Timm.

New Information: Volunteers are now required to complete a volunteer application through the Forest Grove School District. Visit the District’s Website (Linked Here) To Complete The Application.

If you do volunteer (or have already volunteered) at the Family Resource Center, please report your hours to club secretary Claire Agner. We are working on tracking hours for reporting to Rotary International.

Volunteer Opportunity – Tuality Plains High School Mock Interviews: Steven Barnard is looking for volunteers to help conduct mock job interviews for the students of Tuality Plains High School (formerly known as CALC). The interviews will be held Friday, Jan. 9 and Tuesday, Jan. 13. The time commitment for both days is roughly 9:30 a.m. – 1:45 p.m. with a lunch break. Volunteers will be coached on how to conduct the interviews and what kind of feedback is wanted. For more information, please contact Steven.

Membership Committee: The club’s Membership Committee meets the second and fourth Tuesday at noon in the conference room at the Forest Grove/Cornelius Chamber of Commerce. Its next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 23. For more information, or to get involved, please contact Evelyn Orr or Bruce Cummings.

Youth Exchange Drivers For Weekly Meetings Needed: One of the requirements of the Youth Exchange program is that both inbound and outbound students attend our Rotary meetings. The Youth Exchange Committee is still in need of someone who can pick up Lara and our outbound student, Sophie, from Forest Grove High School weekly at 11:30 a.m., and return them to the school after. While a consistent driver for the semester would be ideal, the committee is open to having people sign up for one-month shifts at a time.

If you are interested in helping out, please contact our Youth Exchange Officer, Sarah Barbour. NOTE: To assist with the transport of Youth Exchange students, you must complete the District 5100 Youth Protection Training and undergone a background check with the district.

Have A Program Idea? Let Javin Know!: Our 2025 program calendar has been filled up, but our 2026 program chair, Javin Frelin, is looking for ideas for engaging programs for January and beyond. If you have an idea for a program, contact Javin. Thank you to our president-elect and outgoing program chair, Hector Mendez-Colberg, for his work on scheduling our programs in 2025!

Concours d’Elegance News
Concours Committee Meetings: Club members are invited to take part in the monthly online meeting of the Concours meeting, which takes place on the second Thursday of each month at 7 p.m. The next scheduled meeting will take place on Tuesday, Jan. 13. The link to the online meeting is available in the Rototeller newsletter sent to club members.

Concours Committee Updates
General Updates: Concours Chair Bruce Cummings reported at our Dec. 10 meeting that the Concours Committee has hired a graphic designer and was able to submit a great-looking ad for Sports Car Market, a national magazine, touting the 2026 show. The committee is also working on some “Day of Show” training materials for volunteers and working to create shorter shifts on event day so that volunteers have time to enjoy the show in addition to their work shift.

Merchandise At Willow & Ash: Are you interested in some Concours merchandise, like a poster, a coffee tumbler or a hat? Willow & Ash is offering some Concours merchandise available year-round! Current selections include Concours posters, hats, coffee tumblers and keychains. Items can be purchased online on the Concours website or purchased at Willow & Ash at 2036A Main Street, Forest Grove. Sorry, no shipping is currently available. Items purchased online will need to be picked up at Willow & Ash.

Judging Assistant Needed: Tom Raabe, who oversees the judging committee at the Concours, is looking for at least one person, ideally from the club, to learn the judging component of the show. You don’t need to be a “car person,” as people in this role will work with the judges who know the cars. The most important skills are good communication, curiosity and energy.

Concours Media Team: Our thanks to Rotarian Jordan Miller, along with Alex Johnston and Jeff Zurschmeide, who will be forming the Concours media committee for this year’s show. This committee will work with our advertisers and other parts of the Concours, coordinating the show’s earned and paid media and social media. Thank you to Jordan, Alex and Jeff for their service to the club and Concours.

For More Information: If you have Concours-related questions or are interested in opportunities, please contact Concours Chair Bruce Cummings.

Around District 5100
Forest Grove Club Members In District Leadership Roles: District 5100 needs many volunteers to support our clubs at the district level, and the Rotary Club of Forest Grove fills several roles. As we wind down 2025, we want to thank those members of our club who are serving the district at various levels of leadership.

Jeannine Murrell – Immediate Past District Governor, Nominating Committee (Chair), Rotary Foundation Committee
Blake Timm – Area Governor (Western Region), Public Image Committee (District Media Relations Coordinator)
Amy Tracewell – Learning & Development Committee (Co-Chair)
Lori Larson – District Youth Protection Officer
Tom Raabe – District Visioning Committee

Public Image Committee Update – Why Is Branding So Important?: For the last decade, Rotarians have heard about the new Rotary brand (unveiled in 2015), and how we need to be adopting it on digital platforms, roadside signage, print documents, apparel, and even out inside signage. But why?

Branding matters for four big reasons: emotional connection, clarity and purpose, competitive advantage, and long-term value. Think about some of the world’s largest brands, or your favorite, or even the brands you don’t care for and how they make you feel. That’s just one element, but it’s an important one. As an example, do you prefer Nike products because the company is based in Oregon? DO you believe that McDonald’s fries are the best? That is emotional connection to a brand.

District 5100’s Public Image Committee has a brand specialist, Nelson Holmberg (Rotary Club of Three Creeks), who has developed a program for club meetings that has been well-received and is happy to share why branding is important. Reach out to Nelson to schedule him to visit your club.

Last Week’s Program – FGHS Music Department
In what has become a tradition for Rotary in Forest Grove, we received a great musical performance from the Forest Grove High School choir and orchestra. The performance groups treated us to a number of songs from the season to get us in the holiday spirit.

If you want to hear more of this great music, the Forest Grove School District’s Holiday Concert takes place on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 6:30 p.m., at the Ellen Stevens Auditorium at Forest Grove High School.

This was also our joint meeting with the Forest Grove Daybreak Rotary Club, and we enjoyed a great afternoon of fellowship between our two clubs. After the performances, our club presented a $500 check to the FGHS Music Department and the Daybreak club presented a $1,000 check.

Club Calendar
Thurs., Dec. 18: Board Meeting, 5:30 p.m.
Zesti Food Carts, 2131 Yew St., Forest Grove

Thurs., Dec. 18: Monthly Club Social/Ugly Sweater Party, 6:30 p.m.
Zesti Food Carts, 2131 Yew St., Forest Grove

Wed., Dec. 24: No Meeting – Happy Holidays!

Wed., Dec. 31: No Meeting – Happy New Year!

Wed., Jan. 7: Weekly Meeting, Noon
Boxer Pause Room, University Center, Pacific University
Program: To Be Announced

Wed., Jan. 14: Weekly Meeting, Noon
Boxer Pause Room, University Center, Pacific University
Program: To Be Announced