If you didn’t make it to our last Rotary Club of Forest Grove meeting, here’s what you missed…

Welcome To Our Newest Member, Emily Duyck!: We are proud to welcome Emily Duyck as its newest member! Emily was inducted during our evening meeting on January 19. Emily was sponsored for membership in the club by Melinda Fischer.

Emily grew up in the Forest Grove countryside playing on her grandpa’s dairy farm, riding motorcycles in Gales Creek, and helping her family’s funeral business. Her love of the Beavers led her to study at Oregon State University where she graduated and joined the food manufacturing industry as a  research and development specialist. During her time in the industry, she created some really fun and tasty foods that you see today at grocery stores and coffee shops. She now works at her family’s business, Duyck and Vandehey Funeral Home, where she enjoys helping families in one of their most difficult times.

In her free time, Emily enjoys spending time with her husband Jeff and 9-month-old son Henry who she will gladly share pictures of. They often spend their weekends with family and participating in local community events.

Emily’s love for the Forest Grove community is what led her to Rotary. She would like to give back to her community that she cares so much for and to meet new friends along the way.

Cards For Jerry Hoerber’s Family: Paul Waterstreet is collecting cards to send to Jerry Hoerber’s family and will have those available for members to sign at Wednesday’s meeting. They can also be delivered to Paul at his home by the end of the day on Wednesday.

Remembering Jerry Hoerber: We continue to remember our friend and fellow Rotarian, Jerry Hoerber, who passed away on January 13. He will be interred at Willamette National Cemetery and a celebration of life will be held at a later date.

Gerald Frederic Hoerber was born December 18, 1933 in Chicago, Illinois, the son of the late Frederic Hoerber and Ethel (Kohl) Hoerber. He was raised and received his education in Chicago, having been a graduate of the Niles Township Community High School Class of 1951. After graduation, Jerry attended Colorado State College in Fort Collins, Colorado, where he received his Bachelor of Science in forest utilization in 1957. He went to the University of Washington where he received his Master’s degree in forestry in 1960. In 1970 he received his Master’s of business administration from Simon Fraser University.

Jerry was united in marriage to Margaret A. DePuydt in June 1959 in Seattle, Washington. They celebrated their 62nd wedding anniversary this past June. Following their marriage, they made their home in Lewiston, Idaho, Indianapolis, Indiana, and finally Tsawwassen, British Columbia. In 1986 they moved to Oregon, settling in the Forest Grove community, where they have resided since.

He had worked in research and development in the forest products industry, for Forest Fiber (later becoming Stimson Lumber Company) in Gaston, for 13 years, until he retired.

Jerry was an active member of the Forest Grove United Methodist Church, a key member and past president of the Rotary Club of Forest Grove. He organized and headed the quarterly road cleanup on Gales Creek Road and Thatcher Road for Rotary for 28 years. After the Rotary pick-ups were done, he would then go on to do more stretch of the road, by himself, and he continued to do all those cleanups until he was 85.

As a longtime member and past President of Valley Art, he would take on almost any job, stepping up wherever he saw a need. Jerry was also a tireless volunteer for the West Tuality chapter of Habitat for Humanity.

Jerry enjoyed running almost his entire life and ran almost daily in and around Forest Grove, continuing until he was 86. He volunteered for Valley Art, built houses for Habitat for Humanity, and spent years reading with kids for the S.M.A.R.T. reading program.

He was preceded in death by his parents Frederic and Ethel Hoerber; his sister, Rosemary Petersen and his son, Frederic Hoerber. He is survived by his wife, Margaret, his daughters, Lynn (John) and Anne (Terry) and his son, James.

The family suggests that remembrances may be contributions to the Forest Grove United Methodist Church, 1726 Cedar Street, Forest Grove, Oregon 97116 or to Valley Art Association, PO Box 333, Forest Grove, Oregon 97116 or to West Tuality Habitat for Humanity of Washington County, PO Box 806, Forest Grove, Oregon 97116, in his memory.

Evening Meetings Return To Thursdays: After listening to feedback from members, we will return to having weekly meetings at noon on every Wednesday of the month. Satellite Club meetings will return to the third Thursday of each month beginning in February. As always, meeting locations will be published in the Rototeller.

Road Cleanups Return: After a hiatus by Washington County due to the pandemic, our semi-annual road cleanup service project is set to start up again. Mark your calendars for Saturday, March 5, beginning at 8:30 a.m. at the Oregon Department of Forestry at 801 Gales Creek Road.

As part of the Washington County Adopt-A-Road program, our club conducts cleanups on Gales Creek Road between Thatcher Road and Forest Gale Drive and along Thatcher Road between Gales Creek Road and David Hill Road. Our club has been involved with the program for over 25 years. There is no better way for club members to honor Jerry Hoerber’s memory than by taking part in this project, which he started and served as chair of for over a quarter-century.

Rotary Foundation Fundraising Update: As of January 22, our club has raised $4,001 towards our goal of $8,500 for the Annual Fund of the Rotary Foundation. We have also raised $1,600 towards our goal of $3,000 for PolioPlus. We have a ways to go to meet our goals before the end of the Rotary year.

There are a number of ways to contribute to the Rotary Foundation that are easy.

• Automated giving through Rotary Direct, which deducts either monthly, quarterly or annually from your bank account or credit card.

• Donating online at rotary.org/donate.

• By writing a check to The Rotary Foundation and providing it to Bryce Baker, Lucas Welliver or Michael Yakos at a club meeting. They will direct the contribution to the Foundation.

• Mail your contribution directly to the Foundation:

The Rotary Foundation
14280 Collections Center Dr.
Chicago, IL 60693

• Some companies offer corporate matching grants that can double the impact of your contribution. See your employer to see if this type of program is offered.

• Start your own fundraiser with Raise for Rotary.

For more information on the foundation, how it works and how it directly affects our club, we encourage you to Watch This Presentation by our TRF chair, Michael Yakos, on the club’s YouTube page.

Program Chair Update: Thank you so much to Janet Peters for her excellent work as program chair for the club during 2021! You did an excellent job for us, especially in the transition from online meetings to in-person meeting and navigating hybrid presentations.

As Janet prepares for her presidential year, Amy Tracewell is stepping in for her term as program chair. If you have ideas for potential programs, please contact Amy.

Forest Grove Partnering With Lake Oswego On International Project: The Rotary Club of Forest Grove Board of Directors voted to partner with the Rotary Club of Lake Oswego on an international project. Called Project Flourish, the project is based with the MAIA Impact School in Guatemala, which strives to teach girls, and particularly girls of Mayan descent, to finding their empowered voice and to embrace what education can do for them.

Guatemala has the worst gender equity gap in the Americas. This initiative centers on the creation and implementation of an educational program to connect talent with opportunity for first-generation “Girl Pioneers” (young women born into situations of quadruple discrimination as rural, poor, female, and Indigenous) in Guatemala. The elements of this program center on the following:

• Formal internships to generate experience and informed decision-making
• Preparation for university entrance exams
• Training on soft skills for job interviews and workplace readiness/success
• Workplace English & IT training to increase employability

This project creates a powerful pilot that will serve 42 girls and their families (approximately 336 people). These girls and families represent over a dozen rural villages in Sololá. Once created, the project will continue in perpetuity to serve generations of young women who will break out of poverty.

The project is partially funded through a Rotary International Global Grant. We will have a program on this impactful project later this year.

Online Dues Payments: Our club is now equipped to process dues payments online! We can now process credit card or debit card payments for quarterly dues. Information on how to pay online will be included with quarterly billings that will be coming to your mailbox or email inbox.

With the transition to billing with Quickbooks, some members may not have received their quarterly invoice. If you did not, please contact treasurer Lucas Welliver.

FGHS Community Food Pantry: Our club’s support for the Forest Grove High School Food Pantry continues. Thanks to its partnership with the Oregon Food Bank, food donations are still welcome but are of less need at this time. Of need, however, are toiletries and hygiene products as well as household cleaning materials.

The Food Pantry is open on Mondays from 4-5:30 p.m. The pantry is now open in its new site in the building along Nichols Lane between the football field and the Basinski Center.

For information on the Food Pantry, please contact Brian Burke, bburke@fgsd.k12.or.us. If you wish to make a cash donation to the pantry, Click Here.

Additionally, Rotarian Gwen Hullinger has put together an Amazon wish list of items that can be purchased and donated. Click Here To View That List.

Past Programs: Did you miss a meeting or want to go back and check out a program again? Most of our programs since May 2020 are archived on our club’s YouTube page. Visit https://bit.ly/fgrotaryprograms.

Around District 5100
District Video Updates: The latest video updates from District 5100 leaders are available online. We encourage you to click on the links below and learn more about what is going on with our district’s committee.

Update From District Governor Nominee Renee Brouse
PolioPlus Committee Update
Rotary Essential Enrichment Learning (REEL) Update
ShelterBox Ambassador Update
Vocational Service Committee Update
Rotary Youth Exchange Committee Update

Save The Date: District 5100 Rotary One Conference: Mark your calendars for May 19-22 as District 5100 will present its first combined Spring Training Event and annual conference in Seaside. The combined conference will provide Rotary training opportunities, inspirational speakers and a celebration of what is hoped to be a great year in District 5100.

Around Rotary International
The 2022-23 Rotary Theme – Imagine Rotary: Rotary International President-elect Jennifer Jones wants members to imagine the possibilities in the change they can make to transform the world.

Jones, a member of the Rotary Club of Windsor-Roseland, Ontario, Canada, revealed the 2022-23 presidential theme, Imagine Rotary, as she urged people to dream big and harness their connections and the power of Rotary to turn those dreams into reality.

“Imagine, a world that deserves our best,” Jones told incoming district governors on 20 January, “where we get up each day knowing that we can make a difference.”

Jones, who will make history on 1 July by becoming Rotary’s first female president, gave a live online address to precede Rotary’s annual training event for district governors from around the world, the International Assembly. The assembly was rescheduled because of the COVID-19 pandemic and will now be held virtually February 7-14.

Jones told the incoming governors about a chance she took when a member asked for assistance in getting a young peace activist out of Afghanistan during the U.S. troop withdrawal last year. At first unsure how she could help, she relied on “that certain Rotary magic” and contacted a former Rotary Peace Fellow she had met a few years earlier. Less than 24 hours later, the activist was on an evacuation list, and soon she was on her way to Europe. Read More

Last Week’s Program: Evening Meeting
Last week was our monthly evening meeting, held this month at Ridgewalker Brewing. Attendees enjoyed a great time of fellowship as well as helping induct our newest member, Emily Duyck (see above).

Club Calendar
Wed., Jan. 26: Weekly Meeting, Noon
Boxer Pause Room, Pacific University
Program: Monique Hammond, Hearing Specialist

Wed., Feb. 2: Weekly Meeting, Noon
Boxer Pause Room, Pacific University
Program: To Be Announced

Thurs., Feb. 3: Executive Board Meeting, 7 p.m.
Via Zoom

Wed., Feb. 9: Weekly Meeting, Noon
Boxer Pause Room, Pacific University
Program: To Be Announced

Sat., Mar. 5: Road Cleanup, 8:30 a.m.
Oregon Department of Forestry, 801 Gales Creek Rd., Forest Grove