Melinda Fischer was in the spotlight as our first Rotarian of the Month, a new series of programs designed to get our club to know its fellow Rotarians better.

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

This Week: We look forward to seeing you at our weekly meeting this Wednesday, noon, at the Forest Grove United Church of Christ, 2032 College Way (across the street from Pacific University). This week, Alan Bazzaz of the Lake Oswego Rotary Club joins us to present on their club’s Global Grant project: Early Light: Saving Newborn Vision.

This week’s lunch, and all of our Wednesday meeting lunches in August, will be catered. If you wish to have the catered meal, please RSVP to Parri Van Dyke via email by no later than Sunday prior to the scheduled meeting. If you do not RSVP, you are welcome to attend the meeting, but please provide your own lunch.

Upcoming Meetings: Our Wednesday meetings in August will be held at the Forest Grove United of Christ. We will return to Pacific University on Wednesday, Sept. 2. Our monthly social is scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 19, at Zesti Carts, 2131 Yew St., Forest Grove.

Concours d’Elegance: We succeeded in putting on another Forest Grove Concours d’Elegance. A big thank you to our Rotarians and community volunteers who came together to make a great day for the car owners and our guests. A special thank you to the members of our steering committee, co-chaired this year by Bruce Cummings and Amanda Hartmann, along with our show producer, David Tauber, for their hard work to bring it all together.

Congratulations to all of our class and special award winners, and especially to this year’s Best In Show: a 1939 BMW 327/28 Cabriolet owned by Kim Pierce. 

Plates For Passports Steak Sales: The club still has leftover packs of steaks from our Plates to Passports event available for purchase. Each pack of two steaks is $30 each. If you are interested in purchasing a pack or a few, please contact Janet Peters.

Rotary Youth Exchange Host Families Needed: Our club continues to look for host families for our incoming 2026-27 exchange student, who will arrive in mid-August. This year, we are expecting to welcome a girl from South Korea.

Students stay with three families over the course of the year: from mid-August to early December, from early December to mid-March, and from mid-March to late June. Hosts must be able to provide a bed, a place to study, and a seat at your table. Hosting is a volunteer commitment, and your exchange student is a member of your family. Many host families develop close relationships with their students, and often stay in contact for life.

Single parents, child-free households, couples with kids of any ages, and LGBTQ+ families are all eligible and welcome. The only requirements are a bed and bedroom (a shared room with a child of the same gender is fine) and a study space.

Please contact Sarah Barbour, Youth Exchange Committee chair, at 503-597-9355 or ForestGroveRYE@gmail.com for an application form or to inquire about hosting.

Membership Committee: The club’s Membership Committee meets the second and fourth Tuesday, 4 p.m., in the conference room at the Forest Grove/Cornelius Chamber of Commerce. Its next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 11. For more information, or to get involved, please contact Evelyn Orr or Bruce Cummings.

Concours d’Elegance News
A Thank You From The Show Co-Chair: To all our amazing volunteers, thank you sincerely for the incredible work you put into our 2026 Concours d’Elegance. Your generosity, dedication, and willingness to give your time and energy made this event a success.

Every hour you volunteered, every task you took on, and every smile you shared made a real difference. It was inspiring to see everyone come together with a common purpose, working as one team to support our community and the people we serve.

Success like this does not happen by chance, it happens because of people like you who are willing to step up, work hard, and give back. I am grateful to be part of such an outstanding group of caring individuals.

Thank you for your commitment, your teamwork, and your servant hearts. I look forward to accomplishing even more together in the future.

With sincere appreciation,
Bruce Cummings

Service Opportunities
Share Your Volunteer Opportunity With The Club: Are you aware of service opportunities in our area that our members might be interested in? We can advertise those here! This space is not limited to club-sponsored activities but to any service opportunity in the community. To promote the service activity, please send a detailed description of the project, the date and time, contact information and a link to register to Rototeller editor Blake Timm, blakertimm@gmail.com.

Columbia County Rotary Needs Dealers For Casino Night Fundraiser On Aug. 8: The Columbia County Rotary Club is hosting Saddle Up & Double Down, a casino night fundraiser for the Sande School of Horsemanship, on Saturday, Aug. 8, and is in need of dealers for the evening. Dealers are needed for blackjack, roulette, craps and Texas hold ‘em. No casino experience is necessary. The night runs from 5 to 9 p.m., and you do not have to commit to working the entire evening. For more information or to sign up, visit the event’s SignUpGenius volunteer page, or contact Cassie Asumendi via email, cassief@lifemp.org.

Casino nights are the primary service outreach of the Columbia County Rotary Club, using the nights to raise funds for different nonprofits in Columbia County.

West Tuality Habitat For Humanity: West Tuality Habitat for Humanity is looking for volunteers to assist both with construction projects at its Countryman Estates build site on 23rd Avenue and at Habitat’s ReStore. The construction site is open most Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. The ReStore is looking for both single volunteers and pairs of volunteers Monday through Saturday.

If you are interested in volunteering for Habitat for Humanity, please visit their online Volunteer Application. You can also visit Habitat’s Website for more details on the opportunities available. If you are already registered as a volunteer with West Tuality Habitat for Humanity, visit their Volunteer Calendar to see what shifts are currently available.

Questions? Please email volunteer@westualityhabitat.org or call 503-359-8459.

Centro Cultural Volunteer Opportunities: Centro Cultural, located in Cornelius, is in need of volunteers for some ongoing projects.

Centro Mercado Volunteer: Centro Cultural’s Mercado is a free food pantry set up like a grocery store, providing the community a welcoming and dignified space to get free, fresh and local food. Volunteers are needed during the Mercado’s open hours, Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to noon and 2 to 4 p.m., and Fridays from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., to help staff and maintain the pantry. The Mercado is located at 1216 E. Baseline St., Cornelius. Visit SignUp Genius To Register & See Available Shifts.

Volunteers for Centro Cultural must sign-up for opportunities through SignUp Genius and must be pre-approved before the event. Walk-up volunteers are no longer allowed by the organization. Information on how to register can be found on those pages or by contacting Evelyn Orr, eorr@centrocultural.org.

Around District 5100
Rotarians Mobilize In August For Family-Friendly Events: With summer in full swing in northern Oregon and southwest Washington, local Rotary clubs are keeping fun in summer with activities designed to entertain the whole family.

A month of family-friendly activities begins on Thursday, Aug. 6, when the Rotary Club of Wilsonville wraps up its annual Summer Concert Series. The final act will feature the ABBA tribute group, Band After Midnight. The evening begins at 5:30 p.m., with the man act taking the stage at 6:30 p.m. Admission is free, but donations are being accepted for Rotary International’s End Polio Now program.

For the active person who likes a little adventure, Woodburn Rotary will hold its annual 5-kilometer mud run, Mud, Sweat & Blooms, on Saturday, Aug, 8, at the Wooden Show Tulip Farm. The challenging muddy and obstacle course provides for fun for all ages. Proceeds from the event, held in conjunction with the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival, benefit the Woodburn Rotary Foundation’s community outreaches.

The Columbia County Rotary Club will raise funds for the Sande School of Horsemanship with its latest casino night on Saturday, Aug. 8. Saddle Up & Double Down is an evening of casino games, including blackjack, craps and roulette, a barbecue dinner, a silent auction and fun for all ages. Proceeds from the evening benefit the Sande School’s EquiTerra Integrative Mental Health program.

In Yamhill County, the McMinnville Sunrise Rotary Club salutes members of the McMinnville Police Department with its annual “Serving Those Who Serve” project. Club members will serve lunch and dinner to officers on Tuesday, Aug. 4, and Thursday, Aug. 6, as a thank you for all that law enforcement does for the community.

Tues., Aug. 4 & Thurs., Aug. 6 | Noon & 6 p.m. | McMinnville Sunrise Rotary
Serving Those Who Serve – Police Recognition Days

The McMinnville Sunrise Rotary Club honors the officers of the McMinnville Police Department for their service to the community by serving lunch and dinner to officers with food prepared by Harvest Fresh Market & Deli. This annual event was created and supported by a generous donation by Dean Klaus, a lifetime member of the McMinnville Sunrise Rotary Club.

Thurs., Aug. 6 | 5:30 p.m. | Rotary Club of Wilsonville
Wilsonville Rotary Summer Concert Series

The Rotary Club of Wilsonville’s annual summer concert series in Town Center Park concludes with the ABBA tribute group, Band After Midnight, performing on Thurs., Aug. 6. The opening act plays at 5:30 p.m., with the headliner starting at 6:30 p.m. Admission is free but donations are accepted benefiting End Polio Now, Rotary International’s effort to eradicate polio. For more information, visit the concert series website.

Sat., Aug. 8 | 9 a.m. | Woodburn Rotary
Mud, Sweat & Blooms

Now in its 10th year, Woodburn Rotary’s Mud, Sweat & BBQ is now Mud, Sweat & Blooms, a 5-kilometer (3.1 mile) mud run coinciding with the annual festival at the Wooden Show Tulip Farm. Proceeds from the event support the charitable work of Woodburn Rotary and the Woodburn Rotary Foundation, which includes support for local families, the Boys and Girls Club, park projects, dental clinics for uninsured children, international medical programs, and more. Individual registrations are $60. Children 13 and under are $30. More information and registration is available at the Mud, Sweat & Blooms website.

Sat., Aug. 8 | 5 p.m. | Columbia County Rotary
Saddle Up & Double Down

Put on your best poker face (cowboy boots optional) and help make Saddle Up & Double Down a winning night. The fun casino western-themed night, conducted by the Columbia County Rotary Club, runs from 5-9 p.m. at the Sande School of Horsemanship in Warren. Admission includes a barbecue dinner, $100 in casino chips for adult tickets and grand prizes for the evening’s big winners. There will also be a kids’ zone and a silent auction. All proceeds benefit the Sande School of Horsemanship’s EquiTerra Integrative Mental Health program. Tickets are $45 for adults, $80 for couples, $30 for youth ages 13-17, $20 for youth ages 4-12, and $300 for a group of eight people. Register online at the school’s website.

Last Week’s Program – Rotarian of the Month, Melinda Fischer
At last week’s meeting, our club started a new series of programs that will take place on the fourth Wednesday of each month. The Rotarian of the Month will feature a different member of our club and will share a bit about themselves as the program. The program is designed to help us get to know our fellow Rotarians better.

The first featured Rotarian is Melinda Fischer, who has been a member of our club since 2017. Because the editor of the Rototeller was out of town, we unfortunately do not have a recap of Melinda’s presentation. All the more incentive for you to be at our meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 26, for our next Rotarian of the Month.

Club Calendar
Wed., Aug. 5: Weekly Meeting, Noon
Forest Grove United Church of Christ, 2032 College Way
Program: Alan Bazzaz, Lake Oswego Rotary Global Grant Project

Tues., Aug. 11: Membership Committee Meeting, 4 p.m.
Forest Grove/Cornelius Chamber of Commerce, 2417 Pacific Ave.

Wed., Aug. 12: Weekly Meeting, Noon
Forest Grove United Church of Christ, 2032 College Way
Program: Sharon Olmstead, Presentation of Club Budget

Thurs., Aug. 13: Executive Board Meeting, 7 a.m.
Online

Thurs., Aug. 19: Board Meeting, 5:30 p.m.
Zesti Food Carts, 2131 Yew St., Forest Grove

Thurs., Aug. 19: Monthly Social, 6:30 p.m.
Zesti Food Carts, 2131 Yew St., Forest Grove

Wed., Aug. 26: Weekly Meeting, Noon
Forest Grove United Church of Christ, 2032 College Way
Program: Rotarian of the Month