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

Steak Sale – Last Week!: This is the last week to get your orders in for our latest round of steak sales! We are offering packs of two choice New York cut steaks from Columbia Empire Farms for $20 per pack. Buy some for your own freezer and sell them to friends as well. Proceeds from the sale will go to support our ongoing community outreach programs.

Orders are due to Janet Peters by Friday, Feb. 24. Steaks can be picked up on Friday, Mar. 3.

Crab Feed – Save The Date!: This year’s Crab Feed will be on Wednesday, Mar. 29. This annual event allows us to come together as a club, enjoy fellowship and honor those members who have become Paul Harris Fellows or have reached their next Paul Harris Fellow level. We will not have a noon meeting on Mar. 29.

The crab dinner, which will include hot soup, salad, bread, a half-pound of crab and beverages, will be $45. A vegetarian option will be available for $25. Crab will also be available for purchase by the pound at market price.

Use the links below to pre-order your tickets!
Regular Crab Feed Ticket, $45
Crab Feed To-Go Meal, $42
Crab Feed Vegetarian Meal Ticket, $25

For questions, or if you want to be involved on the planning committee, please contact Julia Kollar.

In addition, Parri Van Dyke is once again putting together a silent auction and a dessert dash with proceeds to benefit The Rotary Foundation. We are looking for specific items such as weekend getaways, wine and wine tastings, hosted dinner and themed gift baskets…or maybe you have an idea of something to donate! If you would like to donate, please contact Parri.

NOTE: Payments for both the silent auction and the dessert dash must be paid for on the evening of the event. We will not be billing members for purchases this year.

Rotary Scholarships – Applications Open: Applications are now open for the 2023 Rotary Club of Forest Grove Scholarship Program. The program provides one-time scholarships to graduating seniors that reside in the Forest Grove, Banks or Gaston school district attendance areas. The awards may be used towards tuition of any college or vocational school in the United States.

The Scholarship Program is made possible by proceeds from our annual Concours d’Elegance car show.

Applications are due by midnight on Apr. 6, 2023. For more details and a link to the application, Click Here. For questions, please contact Scholarship Committee chair Sharon Olmstead, sharon.olmstead8571@gmail.com.

In addition to our annual scholarship program, our club maintains an endowed scholarship program at Pacific University that provides tuition funding to students from the local area. On Feb. 8, our club presented a check to Pacific University for $14,865 as our annual donation to our scholarships to the university.

ShelterBox Appeal – Syria & Turkey Earthquake: Turkey and northwest Syria were struck by a 7.8-magnitude earthquake early on Mon., Feb. 6. Minutes later, a 6.7-magnitude earthquake followed by a third 7.5-magnitude earthquake ravaged the same region.

Thousands of people have lost their lives and thousands more have been injured and made homeless.

Powerful aftershocks have continued across the region. The devastation is immense, with thousands of buildings damaged or destroyed. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said the disaster was the worst the country had seen since 1939 when the Erzincan earthquake in eastern Turkey killed nearly 33,000 people.

The priority is search and rescue as first responders desperately try to save people trapped beneath the rubble. ShelterBox has been actively monitoring the situation and is deploying an assessment team to the region this week to determine what is needed and if we can support the humanitarian shelter needs.

This devasting earthquake will only make matters worse for the Syrian people, who have already faced years of displacement due to conflict and trauma. Without homes, freezing temperatures will put lives at risk. The emergency shelters, blankets and warm winter clothing ShelterBox provides could make the difference between life and death.

ShelterBox has been working in Syria since 2011, providing life-saving aid to hundreds of thousands of people displaced by the civil war. In addition to Syria, ShelterBox has responded to the impact of earthquakes in Turkey, most notably following the 2011 Van earthquake.

Our emergency team is working closely with partners to monitor the situation and understand what support is needed in the aftermath of today’s earthquakes.

Your donation makes the life-saving work of ShelterBox possible. Your gift today will help families made homeless by conflict or disaster– wherever the need is greatest. Donate At This Link.

Rotaract/Interact Liaisons Needed: We are in need of club liaisons that would like to be involved with both the Rotaract Club at Pacific University and with the Interact Club at Forest Grove High School. Both clubs are connected to our Rotary club and aim to provide service opportunities to students. If you are interested, or would like more information on what the role entails, please contact President Janet.

Concours Sponsorship Opportunities: The Concours d’Elegance Committee is well underway with procuring sponsorships for our 2023 show, which will take place on Sunday, July 16. There is plenty of sponsorship opportunities for both businesses and individuals for starting as low as $350. How important is sponsorships? Most of the profit that comes from Concours, which helps pay for our service outreach and funds our Scholarship Program, comes from sponsorships.

Click Here To Download The Sponsorship Flyer, which describes a number of the show’s sponsor opportunities. For more information or to help secure a sponsorship, please contact Tim Pearson at 503-998-8616 or timpearsonpc@gmail.com or Andrea Stewart at 503-357-1427 or astewart@pacificu.edu.

Youth Exchange Update: While we are looking forward to our continued involvement with the Rotary Youth Exchange program, the way our club will be involved during the 2023-24 Rotary year will be different.

We recently received word that the person that had been selected to be our outbound exchange student has withdrawn for personal reasons. Instead of not being able to participate in the program this year, our club is looking to be involved with the program through a program called “The Power Of One.”

“The Power Of One,” program, which is powered by Rotary Youth Exchange, helps to open to door to African students through one-way exchanges. In past years, District 5100 has been involved with this program through exchanges with clubs in The Dalles and Monmouth-Independence.

Be watching for more updates as we pursue being involved this year through this exciting program!

Concours Concert Event – Help Wanted: The Concours Committee has given the green light to go ahead with another concert event linked to the annual show. The concert is tentatively scheduled for Friday, July 14 with the Concours taking place on Sunday, July 16. If you are interested in helping plan and execute the concert event, please contact Court Carrier.

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 (over 100 videos to date) are archived on our club’s YouTube page. Visit https://bit.ly/fgrotaryprograms.

Service Opportunities For Club Members
Elks Backpack Program: The Elks Backpack Program, which provides food for youth in the Forest Grove School District experiencing food insecurity, is looking for 50 new or gently used backpacks for the program. If you have backpacks to donate, please bring those to a future meeting and we will get them to the appropriate people.

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 4-6 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.

Around District 5100
Rotary Direct Matching Points Available: District 5100 is offering three Jubitz Rotary Foundation (TRF) recognition point offers this year in conjunction with this year’s Spring Training Assembly.

The one-time offer provides for 250 TRF Recognition Points for joining Rotary Direct or for increasing giving through Rotary Direct or 500 TRF Recognition Points for joining the Paul Harris Society.

Rotarians can take advantage of this offer to complete their own Paul Harris Fellow or to recognize someone significant their life.

Here’s How It Works:

• Sign up for Rotary Direct, which required a minimum monthly contribution of $10 or more to the TRF Annual Fund – SHARE.

• Increase current Rotary Direct giving by increasing by a minimum of $100 per year to the Annual Fund – SHARE.

• Sign up for the Paul Harris Society (PHS) through Rotary Direct with a minimum monthly contribution of $85 or more to the Annual Fund – SHARE.

Spring Training registration will open on Mar. 1. Your completed Rotary Direct form must be submitted to the Foundation Table at Spring Training on Sat., Apr. 22 Click Here For The Rotary Direct Form.

This year, you do not have to attend Spring Training to turn in your Rotary Direct form. A member from your club can submit the form for you or you may also send it to the District 5100 Office, 6700 SW 105th Ave., Suite 313, Beaverton, OR 97008, or by email to office@district5100.org. Mailed applications must be received by Apr. 18, 2023.

Thank you to Rotarian Al Jubitz for his gracious support in allowing the use of his TRF points and thank you all donors who believe in Rotary’s work, both locally and globally.

District 5100 Newsletter: Click Here To View The Monthly District 5100 Newsletter

Around Rotary International
Rotary Establishes Targeted Funds To Aid Pakistan & Ukraine In January 2023 The Rotary Foundation Trustees established two temporary funds to assist Pakistan and Ukraine, two areas that are facing extreme need.

The Pakistan Flood Response Fund and the Ukraine Response Fund address the humanitarian crises caused by devastating flooding in Pakistan and the war in Ukraine. Donors can give directly to relief efforts led by Rotary members.

Contributions will be accepted until 31 December 2023. Districts can apply for grants from the funds until 30 June 2024 or until the funds have all been allocated. Any contributions that haven’t been spent by 30 June 2024 will be transferred to the general Disaster Response Fund, to be made available for disasters worldwide.

How To Contribute
You can give online, by check, or by transferring District Designated Funds:

• To contribute online, use my.rotary.org/donate.
• To give by check, make it payable to The Rotary Foundation or to an associate foundation and include a completed contribution form. In the DESIGNATION/PURPOSE section, choose Other and write the fund name (Pakistan Flood Response Fund or Ukraine Response Fund).
• To allocate District Designated Funds, district leaders can use the DDF contribution form.

How To Raise Money To Support These Funds
Anyone can start a fundraiser for the Pakistan Flood Response Fund or the Ukraine Response Fund on Raise for Rotary. Remember that:

• Raise for Rotary currently accepts Australian, Canadian, and U.S. dollars and is available only in English.
• Donations made through fundraisers for the Pakistan Flood Response Fund or the Ukraine Response Fund on Raise for Rotary will be credited and recognized as described below.
• Any fundraisers on a third-party platform such as Facebook or GoFundMe won’t offer these specific fund options and aren’t eligible for Foundation credit and recognition.

How Contributions Are Credited And Recognized
Gifts to the Pakistan Flood Response Fund and the Ukraine Response Fund:

• Count toward a donor’s total cumulative giving
• Factor into Paul Harris Fellow, Paul Harris Society, Major Donor, and Arch Klumph Society recognition
• Help the donor’s club achieve the 100% Foundation Giving Club banner
• Are not credited toward a club’s Annual Fund giving, toward per capita or SHARE calculations, or toward generating DDF

How To Apply For Disaster Response Grants
For grants to support Ukraine, the district governor and district Rotary Foundation chair will need to complete the Rotary Disaster Response Grant Application for Ukraine and send it to grants@rotary.org.

Also note that for disaster response grants related to Ukraine:

• District 2232 (Belarus and Ukraine) can have up to three open grants at a time of up to US$100,000 each.
• Districts that border Ukraine can have one open grant of up to US$100,000 at any time.
• Districts beyond Ukraine and its bordering districts that want to support refugees or others affected by the war can have one open US$25,000 grant.
• Districts can either use these grants in their own areas or work with clubs in Ukraine and the bordering countries to support relief efforts that will be implemented in those locations.

For grants to support Pakistan, the district governor and district Rotary Foundation chair will need to complete the Rotary Disaster Response Grant Application and send it to grants@rotary.org.

Also note that for disaster response grants related to Pakistan:

• Districts 3271 and 3272 (Pakistan) can have up to two open disaster response grants simultaneously of up to US$50,000 each.

Last Week’s Program: Julie Titus, Virginia Garcia Memorial Health Center

Click Here To Watch The Full Program

Julie Titus is a development associate for the Virginia Garcia Memorial Health Center and joined us to provide an overview of the organization’s mission and services it provides in the area.

Virginia Garcia’s mission is to provide high-quality comprehensive and culturally appropriate health care to the community in Washington and Yamhill counties with a special emphasis on migrant and seasonal farm workers and remove barriers to receiving health care.

The center is named for a six-year-old girl from a migrant family who died when a cut on her foot became septic after she was unable to get appropriate health care in the 1970s.

Today, Virginia Garcia serves over 52,000 patients in Washington and Yamhill counties, serving roughly 1 in every 14 residents in both counties. Virginia Garcia operates five primary care sites, with dental services at each primary care site, school-based health centers in Beaverton, Hillsboro, Willamina, Tigard and Forest Grove; a reproductive health clinic in Hillsboro and a COVID Care Clinic in Hillsboro, which opened last year in partnership with Washington County. Virginia Garcia also has a mobile clinic to go to where there is need.

Virginia Garcia’s are primarily low income, with approximately 98 percent coming from households earning less than 150% of the federal poverty level. Thirty percent of patents are uninsured and 55% are insured by the Oregon Health Plan or Medicaid. Nearly 43% of patients are 21 years of age or younger and 18% are migrant or seasonal farmworkers.

In addition to primary care, Virginia Garcia offers dental care, behavioral health, mental health, pharmacies, farmworker outreach, services for additions, services for reproductive and maternal health, vaccinations and more. Virginia Garcia’s pharmacies are able to provide the lowest prices available to its patients.

The clinic is a federally qualified health center that exists to ensure that high-quality affordable healthcare is available to under-served communities facing economic, social and cultural barrier that impede access to care. Funding comes from a number of sources including federal grants, insurance payments, corporate and private foundations and businesses. Virginia Garcia does not turn anyone away based on an inability to pay and treats regardless of immigration status.

Julie went over Virginia Garcia’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. To date, Virginia Garcia has provided over 92,000 doses of COVID vaccines. The clinic continues to provide patient support as well as ongoing testing, vaccinations and therapeutics.

Virginia Garcia is currently working on expanding its Newberg Wellness Center over the next two years. The facility will expand from 8,900-square feet to 21,000-square feet and double the capacity for primary care and triple the space for dental care. The clinic currently serves approximately 3,000 patients.

Club Calendar
Wed., Feb. 22: Weekly Meeting, Noon
Boxer Pause Room, University Center, Pacific University
Program: Howard Baker, Forest Grove Timber Beats BB Gun Team

Wed., Mar. 1: Weekly Meeting, Noon
Grove Room, Forest Grove School District Offices, 1728 Main St., Forest Grove
Program: TBA

Wed., Mar. 8: Weekly Meeting, Noon
Grove Room, Forest Grove School District Offices, 1728 Main St., Forest Grove
Program: TBA

Thurs., Mar. 9: Executive Board Meeting, 7 p.m.
Via Zoom

Fri., June 9: Steak Feed, 5-8 p.m.
Pacific University Campus

Sun., July 16: Concours d’Elegance
Pacific University Campus