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

This Week – Crab Feed: A reminder that we will not have a Wednesday meeting this week. Instead, we hope that you will be joining us on Thursday, Apr. 2, for our annual Crab Feed. The festivities begin at 5:30 p.m., at the Forest Grove Senior & Community Center. We will enjoy an evening of friends, fellowship and good food, as well as a chance to recognize our latest Paul Harris Fellows and celebrate our giving to The Rotary Foundation. We hope to see you there!

Upcoming Meetings: Our next Wednesday meeting will take place on April 8 at Forest Grove United Church of Christ. This is our Bring A Friend Challenge meeting, so plan on bringing a guest that you think would be interested in joining our club! We will also hear from Bassam Tarazi from Edwards Jones, who will update us on our foundation’s new endowment account.

Our April 22 meeting will also be at the Forest Grove UCC. We will return to the Boxer Pause at Pacific for our April 29 meeting.

Bring A Guest Challenge: We’re kicking off our Bring a Guest Challenge! Join us on Wednesday, Apr. 8, and bring a friend to experience Rotary, to enjoy lunch on us, and meet fellow members. Guests will get a warm introduction to our club while we receive an update on our current endowment. One guest, one conversation, one invitation — let’s share the Rotary experience!

Steak Feed Is On May 29: Our annual Steak Feed is scheduled for Friday, May 29, 5 to 8 p.m., at the University Center at Pacific University. The Steak Feed is a fundraiser for our involvement in the Rotary Youth Exchange program and a great opportunity to show the local community what we do.

There are changes coming to this year’s event in an effort to draw more interest, including a new branding, an expanded menu and possible local entertainment. More information on the changes, along with ticket sales and work assignments, will be available soon.

Club members are invited to participate in the planning for the event. Please contact Geoff Faris or Jeff Duyck for details.

Club Scholarship Applications Due Soon: Applications for 2026 edition of the Rotary Club of Forest Grove’s Scholarship Program are due on Friday, Apr. 10. The program is open to graduating high school seniors who live in the Forest Grove, Banks and Gaston school attendance areas. The program is made possible with proceeds from our annual Concours d’Elegance car show.

Scholarships are awarded to help pay for the first year of college or vocational school. The scholarship may be used at any such school in the United States.

NOTE: With the Going Merry website being discontinued, the application process has changed. Full details are available on the Scholarship Page on the club website.

RYLA Applications Open: Do you know a young leader age 19 to 32 who could benefit from a weeklong inspiring leadership experience? Applications are now open for the 2026 District 5100 Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA), which takes place July 11-17 at the Menchua Retreat & Conference Center in Corbett. For seven powerful days, participants dive into immersive leadership training, relationship-building, and personal growth that has sparked countless Rotary journeys. It’s not just a program—it’s a launch pad.

To learn more about the impact of RYLA, read the recap of our Mar. 11 program presented by Mallory Hiefield, who attended RYLA last year. If someone is interested in applying, please contact Andrea Stewart.

Satellite Club Plant Sale – Pots Needed: Our Satellite Club is in the planning stages for a spring plant sale. They will be dividing up the bulbs that are currently in the Victory Garden at Tuality Plains High School and selling any excess bulbs to benefit the club. For the sale, we need a number of one-gallon flower pots. If you have some, please hold them aside. More details coming soon.

Vision To Action Workshop – May 9: Help us shape the future of the Rotary Club of Forest Grove. Club members are invited to a Vision To Action Workshop, facilitated by District 5100, on Saturday, May 9, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., in the Boxer Learning Center in Pacific University’s Stoller Center (athletic complex). The workshop is designed to help us think about how we want our club to progress and grow into the future, and help shape our club’s three-year action plan (something that Rotary International is now requiring for all clubs). All club members are invited to participate. More details coming soon.

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, Apr. 14. 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 undergo a background check with the district.

Concours d’Elegance News
Concours Committee Meetings: Club members are invited to take part in the weekly online meeting of the Concours Committee, which takes place each Friday at 9 a.m. (note the change in time and frequency of meetings). The Google Meets link to the online meeting is available for club members in our email newsletter, the Rototeller.

Concours Sponsorships: Sponsorship procurement for the Concours is well underway. If you have leads on potential sponsors, please direct those leads to Amy Tracewell, Janet Peters or Stephanie Magoulas. Learn more about sponsorships, including partnership levels and benefits, On The Concours Website.

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.

For More Information: If you have Concours-related questions or are interested in opportunities, please contact Concours Chair Bruce Cummings at 971-777-5697.

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.

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.

Family Resource Center: The Forest Grove School District’s Family Resource Center, located at Cornelius Elementary School, is in 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.

Volunteers are 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 Opportunities With TrackTown USA: Do you like track and field? Do you like being a part of a world-class sporting event? TrackTown USA is looking for volunteers to assist with several large-scale track and field meets to be held this year at Hayward Field in Eugene. Volunteer roles are open in several areas, including event operations, athlete services, partnerships, logistics, media operations and more. You can volunteer for one meet or all of them.

This year’s meet schedule includes:
• OSAA State Championships, May 28-30
• NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships, June 10-13
• USA Track & Field U20 Outdoor Championships, June 18-19
• Nike Outdoor Nationals, June 18-22
• The Prefontaine Classic, July 3-4
• World Athletics U20 Championships, Aug. 5-9

To learn more about volunteer opportunities, and to register to become a volunteer, visit the TrackTown USA Website.

Around District 5100
Spring Training In On April 11: There is still plenty of time to register for this year’s District 5100 Spring Training event will take place on Saturday, Apr. 11, at Forest Grove High School.

Spring Training consists of a number of classes to help Rotarians learn more about how Rotary and the district works, as well as specialized training for presidents-elect, secretaries, treasurers and Rotary Foundation chairs. The event will also have required trainings for clubs that plan to participate in District Matching Grants, Global Grants, Youth Exchange and for any club involved with any initiatives involving youth.

Registration check-in begins at 7:30 a.m., with coffee, pastries, fruit, and a gift basket raffle. The district business meeting begins at 8 a.m. The spring training welcome commences at 8:45 a.m. with classes starting at 9 a.m.

There is a $45 charge for Spring Training, which includes breakfast and lunch. The fee also helps cover the cost of renting the high school and other expenses. To register and explore class offerings, visit the Registration Page on DacDB.

End Of Year Celebration Is On June 3: In lieu of a district conference, District Governor Suzanne Holmberg plans to visit each region in the district for an evening to celebrate our clubs over this Rotary year. The End of Year Celebration for the Western Region (clubs in Beaverton, Forest Grove and Hillsboro) will take place the evening of Wednesday, June 3 at Rood Bridge Park in Hillsboro.

If you are interested in assisting with this event or would like more information, please contact Blake.

Club Calendar
Wed., Apr. 1: No Meeting

Thurs., Apr. 2: Crab Feed
Forest Grove Senior & Community Center

Fri., Apr. 3: Concours Meeting, 9 a.m.
Online

Wed., Apr. 8: Weekly Meeting, Noon
Forest Grove United Church of Christ, 2032 College Way
Program: Bassam Tarazi, Foundation Endowment Account

Thurs., Apr. 9: Executive Board Meeting, 7 a.m.
via Zoom

Fri., Apr. 10: Concours Meeting, 9 a.m.
Online

Sat., Apr. 11: District 5100 Spring Training, 8 a.m.
Forest Grove High School, 1401 Nichols Lane

Thurs., Apr. 16: Board Meeting, 5:30 p.m.
Zesti Food Carts, 2131 Yew St., Forest Grove

Thurs., Apr. 16: Social Meeting/Bring A Guest Challenge Social, 6:30 p.m.
Zesti Food Carts, 2131 Yew St., Forest Grove

Sat., May 9: Club Vision To Action Planning, 9 a.m.
Boxer Learning Center, Stoller Center, Pacific University Forest Grove Campus

Friday, May 29: Steak Feed, 5 p.m.
University Center, Pacific University Forest Grove Campus

Sunday, July 19: Concours d’Elegance
Pacific University Forest Grove Campus