May 1st Deadline for OLC Foundation Scholarship Application

April 2019 Issue <><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> Vol. 2 Issue 10

In this issue: Meet 2020 president, scholarship application deadline is May 1st and planning begins for the 82nd OLC.

Meet 2019 President GREG STRATTON

Greg Stratton brings his more than 37 year career in the forest products industry with him as he steps into the leadership position of the Oregon Logging Conference. The majority of that career has been spent in forestry and forest products related fields in southern Oregon. Since 2016 he has served as President of Southern Oregon Timber Management LLC in Klamath Falls.

During his career he has worked for small and large industrial landowners, small private woodland owners, private contractors, and with government agencies from northwestern Washington to Northern California.

He has been a forester, log buyer, and Chief Operations Officer. He has held positions in wild-land firefighting, timber harvesting, equipment operator, mill operations, reforestation, layout, contract administration, and acquisitions. In other words, he's pretty much done it all.

His volunteer work includes Board member of the Douglas and Coos Forest Protective Associations, the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife, 4-H leader, and volunteer firefighter.

Greg and wife Cathy have six children and five grandchildren. They operated a more than 1600 acre cow/calf ranch in southern Douglas County for 25 years, selling the ranch last year and moving to the mountains of Southern Oregon, south of Crater Lake.

Stratton graduated from Riddle High School, and attended Umpqua Community College where he studied forestry, criminal justice, and fire science.

Please join Greg and Cathy on February 20, 21, and 22, 2020 at the 82nd Annual Oregon Logging Conference in Eugene, OR.

Click on logo to download the 2019-2020 Scholarship Application

Final Reminder

Oregon Logging Conference Foundation

Scholarship Application

Deadline May 1st.

Knowing that college life is a constant flurry of activities both academic and social, the Oregon Logging Conference Foundation (OLC Foundation) sends a friendly reminder on the deadline to file applications for scholarships is May 1st, 2019.

Scholarship applications must be completed and returned to the OLC Foundation office in Eugene (mailing address is P.O. Box 10669, Eugene, OR 97440).

Scholarships are available to financially 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.

Previous year scholarship applicants are eligible to reapply, and must submit a new application.

Scholarship applications are reviewed by a committee of six to eight members of the OLC Foundation Board of Directors, and recipients for the 2019-2020 academic year will be selected at the OLC Foundation Spring meeting in June. Selected students will be notified by mail and the students will also be highlighted in the July edition of OLC NEWS.

Proceeds (which totaled more than $28,000) from the recent OLC Foundation auction held at the 81st Annual Oregon Logging Conference will be used to fund the scholarship program.

The OLC Foundation is a 501(c)3 charitable foundation which awards five to 10 scholarships annually, Monetary awards range from $750 to $3,000 and are sent directly to the recipient’s school for deposit into the student’s account to help cover the cost of tuition and books.

Click here to download the OLC Foundation scholarship applications.

PLANNING BEGINS FOR THE

82nd OREGON LOGGING CONFERENCE

It’s hard to believe that two months have zipped by since the successful 2019 OLC in February, and it’s never too early to start planning ahead, and that is just what we’re doing.

The officers, directors, and staff are putting together the details for the theme of the 82nd OLC, along with panel and seminar topics, another state-of-the-art equipment show, and other activities.

Reserve these dates on your 2020 calendar, and plan to join us February 20, 21, and 22 of next year at the Lane Events Center and Fairgrounds in Eugene, Oregon.

Here’s just a few reasons why you should attend the 82nd Annual Logging, Construction, Trucking, and Heavy Equipment Expo. The registration includes:

Wednesday pre-registration meet & greet at the Graduate Hotel (formerly 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 11th Annual Log Loader Competition.
Attend meetings and earn Pro Logger credits.
The largest equipment show in North America, with millions of dollars of equipment on display

Watch for more details as they develop in future issues of the OLC NEWS.

Drone photo of the 2019 equipment show

Gathering held in Oregon to Promote

Careers in Natural Resources

The 2019 Future Natural Resource Leaders of Oregon (FNRL) held it’s third annual state convention April 26 ^th and 27 ^th at the Hopkins Demonstration Forest in Oregon City, which was attended by more than 125 members from 12 chapters of FNRL.

This gathering is a vehicle for helping students meet Oregon’s diploma requirements and showcased essential skills and career-related learning and experiences. It is specifically designed for students who are aiming at being leaders in, and pursuing careers in forestry, outdoor recreation, fish and wildlife, ecology, environmental science or other natural resource areas.

On Friday, guest speaker Forest Chambers, a 19-year veteran with the Eugene Springfield Fire Department gave an inspiring talk on how he started in the forestry department at Philomath High School, worked his way through summer firefighting jobs with the Oregon Department of Forestry, then going to EMT school and landing with the Eureka Fire Department.

Chambers told the students his tips on what employers were and were not interested in, and also said a good idea for new employees was to have big eyes and big ears, and small mouths. Chambers also coordinated the career development event for first aid.

Another guest speaker was Jasmine Brown, a Connecticut native currently working on a Master’s Degree in Forestry at Oregon State University.

A series of natural resource related workshops were held presented by Oregon State University, Seneca Sawmill Co., Oregon Coast Aquarium, and Miller Timber. Other highlights were a gold panning activity, chainsaw carver, and wilderness backpacking information.

Technical events included compass and pacing, fire hose lay, first aid, ground log scaling, map reading, timber cruising, and tool and tree identification. Leadership events included demonstration speech, job interview, and written expression.

Skill events included arbor tree climb and spar pole climb, axe throw, crosscut bucking, post and beam, cable splicing, choker setting, chainsaw bucking, and log rolling.

New state officers were elected for the 2019-2020 year. They are President Grant Clemenhagen of Sabin, Vice President Becky Belcher of Sweet Home, Secretary Taylor Couture of Philomath, Treasurer Clara Blasser of Tillamook, Social Media Liam Powers of Tillamook, and Sentinel Sam Mitchell of Sweet Home.

The first-place team award was earned by Sweet Home, second place by Clatskanie, and third place was Philomath. Overall Jack was Zech Brown and overall Jill was Becky Belcher.

Future Natural Resource Leaders of Oregon (FNRL) makes a positive difference in the lives of members by developing their potential for Premier Leadership, Personal Growth, and Career Success through a Natural Resource Education.