Greetings from Yamhill County. We wrap up 2020 feeling grateful for the bonds and friendships nurtured within our chapter throughout the year. Despite Zoom being a poor substitute for in person meetings, we still appreciate the ability to stay connected this year. We were sad to learn of the sudden passing of Stephani Lougher in November from a blood clot. Stephani was one of our chapter’s newer members and we will miss her kind bright presence. Please keep her family in your thoughts and prayers.
Our annual gift pack fundraiser was extremely successful this year. In what has been a tough year for everyone, we were humbled by the generosity of Yamhill County’s wonderful producers. 100% of the products featured in our 2020 gift packs were donated! Special thanks to McKee Family Farms for donating walnut meats, Meduri Farms for donating dried blueberries, Oregon Honey Farm for donating honey sticks, Durant Olive Mill for donating bottles of estate milled extra virgin olive oil, and Hazelnut Growers of Oregon for donating dry roasted hazelnuts. Additional thanks to WILCO for featuring our gift packs in their Newberg and McMinnville stores, as well as those of you that purchased gift packs. We sold out early this year! We are looking forward to spreading the generosity to our community through our grant and scholarship programs.
We awarded a $500 grant to the Perrydale FFA to fund the electrical installation for their greenhouse project. We are also sponsoring chapter member Maren Davis in her REAL Oregon participation with a $1,000 scholarship. Congratulations Maren! We are excited to have you participating in the program to represent Yamhill County and know you will do a great job sharing what you learn with your community.
Our chapter will continue regular meetings at 7:00 PM on the second Wednesday of the month, remotely or otherwise. Please check out our Facebook page for details in advance of each meeting until we resume regular in-person meetings at Citizen’s Bank in McMinnville.
We wish you all a happy and prosperous New Year.
Tara Jackson,
Yamhill County Chapter, President