FOREST GROVE, Oregon (Dec. 16, 2022) – The Rotary Club of Forest Grove continued a holiday tradition of making the season a little brighter for those in need in our community, but this year with a new approach.

The club conducted its annual Hope for the Holidays service project on Monday in conjunction with the Forest Grove High School Food Pantry.

In past years, Hope for the Holidays has provided families the opportunity for a holiday shopping spree at a local retailer, assisted by Rotarians. This year, the club changed the program’s focus to providing holiday food boxes along with other household items normally not provided by the FGHS Food Pantry.

The food distribution event served 100 families, more than doubling the impact of the project on the community.

“We are fortunate to belong to a group of Rotarian that cares deeply for our community,” said Rotary Club of Forest Grove president Janet Peters. “Giving of our time and treasure to help others is the best part of the holiday season!”

In addition to food shipments provided to the FGHS Food Pantry by the Oregon Food Bank, Rotarians purchased additional items to supplement the boxes. Jim’s Supermarket in Banks donated 330 pounds of apples to the effort while Columbia Empire Farms provided hams at cost. More food was purchased using donations from Rotarians and a District Matching Grant from Rotary District 5100.

Leftover donations from Rotarians to Hope for the Holidays will be used to provide cleaning and personal hygiene items to the Food Pantry. Those items are not usually available through the pantry’s distributions from the Oregon Food Bank.

Volunteers from Forest Grove High School were joined by the following Rotarians and friends: Rus & Janet Peters, Bryce Baker, Tim Orr, Jill Verboort, Greg Nemchick, Jim Cain, Dallas Roark, Willow & Mahayla Oelke, Tom Linkhart, Adrian Olmstead, Pete & Parri Van Dyke, Tim Pearson and Jonathan Skeele.

ABOUT THE ROTARY CLUB OF FOREST GROVE: Established in 1924, the Rotary Club of Forest Grove is one of the oldest and largest Rotary clubs in the Portland metropolitan area.  Serving the communities of Forest Grove, Banks, Cornelius and Gaston, the Rotary Club of Forest Grove is a dynamic group of civic-minded business and community leaders, linked by Rotary’s motto of “Service Above Self.” The Rotary Club of Forest Grove is dedicated to helping make our local communities a better place to live through the funding of local organizations, especially those focusing on youth, and through service in local projects. Membership in the Rotary Club of Forest Grove is open to anyone who wishes to make a difference in their community, and the world, through service. To learn more, visit FGRotary.org.