Planning Begins for the 80th Oregon Logging Conference

MAY 2017 Issue Vol.1 Issue 11

In this issue: We wish you and your family a safe Memorial Day weekend.

Planning begins for the 80th OLC 'double Ruby' Celebration! Photos of the 79th OLC and the OLC Foundation announces scholarship recipients soon.

Memorial Day is a federal holiday in the United States for remembering the people who died while serving in the country's armed forces.

The holiday, which is currently observed every year on the last Monday of May, originated as Decoration Day after the American Civil War in 1868, when the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of Union veterans founded in Decatur, Illinois, established it as a time for the nation to decorate the graves of the Union war dead with flowers.

By the 20th century, competing Union and Confederate holiday traditions, celebrated on different days, had merged, and Memorial Day eventually extended to honor all Americans who died while in the military service.

It marks the start of the unofficial summer vacation season, while Labor Day marks its end.

PLANS ROLLING AHEAD FOR 2018 OLC

The 80th Annual Oregon Logging Conference will be a celebration of historical proportions. From now through early next year we will be planning the many activities that take place every year, and looking at new ideas as well.

It’s not too early to mark your calendar for February 22, 23, and 24, 2018 and plan to be in Eugene to take part in this celebration.

Here’s just a few reasons why you should attend the 80th Annual Logging, Construction, Trucking, and Heavy Equipment Expo.

Wednesday pre-registration meet & greet at the Eugene Hilton
Thursday opening breakfast, meetings, and social networking at the well-known OLC Sawdust Bowl.
Friday breakfast, meeting, break-out seminar sessions, and social networking at the OLC Sawdust Bowl (takes place both Thursday and Friday)
An opportunity to sign up to compete in the 8th Annual Log Loader Competition.
The largest equipment show west of the Mississippi, with millions of dollars of equipment on display
Attend meetings and earn Pro Logger credits

Be sure and watch for the June edition of the Oregon Logging Conference newsletter, where you will learn what the theme will be for the 80th Annual OLC. You may have already noticed the customized logo for this historic gathering.

Also in next month’s newsletter we will let you know some of the topics for the seminars and panel discussions. These announcements will be made after decisions are made at the Oregon Logging Conference Board meeting, scheduled for early June.

We think it is important to celebrate our history and hope you will join us. Between now and then we are inviting our readers to send us any historic photographs, mementos, or memorabilia from previous years’ OLC events. We would like to include a few photos each month in the newsletter if possible.

You can send photos to: rikki@oregonloggingconference.com or mail to P.O. Box 10669, Eugene, OR 97440

Scholarship Recipients Announced Soon

Keep an eye on your email inbox for the June Oregon Logging Conference newsletter to learn the names of the 2017-2018 scholarship recipients. For the 2017-2018 college year, we received 26 applications and the scholarship committee is currently reviewing the submissions. Names will be announced next month, and then in the July newsletter, we’ll introduce you to the students and tell you a little more about each recipient…so stay tuned.

The scholarships will be awarded for the College year beginning in September of 2017. The Oregon Logging Conference Foundation has awarded over 300 scholarships, valued at over $750,000 since 1968.

Scholarships assist students who are studying forestry related subjects, such as forest engineering, forest management, forest operations/management, resource management, diesel mechanics/heavy equipment maintenance, and welding.

The OLC Foundation is a 501(c)3 charitable foundation which awards scholarships annually to help cover the cost of tuition and books.

Click here for details on the OLC Foundation scholarship program.

CELEBRATE LOGGING HISTORY

You have an opportunity to get up close and personal with pieces of Oregon logging history through a display at the Lane County Historical Museum, located on the Lane County Fairgrounds in Eugene.

This exhibit was open during the 79th Annual OLC in February of this year, but in case you did not have an opportunity to look at the historic photographs and other items from a bygone era of logging, you still have an opportunity to do so.

The Lost Towns: Revisiting Logging Communities exhibit will be on display through September of this year and public visiting hours are from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. More information is available by calling 541-682-4242.

For anyone interested in timber heritage, this is an experience not to be missed!