gas newsletter fall 2015 -...

GERMAN AMERICAN SOCIETY NEWSLETTER | Fall 2015 3

In This I ssue

WELCOME IN THIS ISSUE

Greetings. I hope you all had a chance to attend our Annual Picnic, Open House, Heritage Day

Celebration and Oktoberfest

which we hosted these past few months. The community enjoyed the festivities and we look forward to having more German cultural events for the many families in the Rose City Neighborhood and surrounding areas.

I would like to thank all of the volunteers who have helped the Society put on recent events this year. It takes a lot of time, dedication and effort to execute all of these activities. We are working with small budgets and so we rely heavily on volunteer support.

I would like to extend a tremendous thank you to the German Ladies Relief Society for their volunteerism at the previous four events. Without their

time and support we would not have had enough volunteers to put on such events. I would also like to thank the Liedertafel Harmonie for their wonderful performance during the Heritage Day Celebration. And also to all of the other members of the society who volunteered and helped with the Heritage Day and Oktoberfest events.

The community has shown great interest in the German American Society in recent months. This could be seen by the vast number of inquiries about membership during our Open House and Oktoberfest which were open to the public. This is wonderful news as we continue to move forward for the good of our mission.

Our next Membership Meeting is Wednesday October 28th, 2015 at 7:00 pm. I look forward to seeing you all at the meeting.

Sincerely, Wolfgang Werner,

President

President’s Message

GERMAN AMERICAN SOCIETY

NEWSLETTER

FALL 2015 OCT-NOV-DEC.

GERMAN LANGUAGE COURSES OF PORTLAND

Read about the latest information about our German Language Courses. This year we are holding a Deutsches

Sprachfest to promote learning German.

Page 2

AFFLIATED CLUB UPDATES

Learn about the upcoming events with our Sister Clubs: Frauenverein,

Liedertafel, G.R.O.W. & D.U.V. Catch up on their latest accomplishments

and future plans.

Page 3-4

NOTES FROM THE COMMITTEE CHAIRS

Read notes from Committee Chairs as they discuss their latest

accomplishments and future plans.

Page 5-6

SOCIETY EVENTS

View photos from our most recent Society events. Calendar of Upcoming Events mid-October through January.

Page 2, 7-9


We have so many exciting things to report from our Saturday Language Courses! Our enrollment is up to 65 students on Saturday mornings! With this increase, we have been approved to hire a seventh teacher! I am pleased to introduce Tod Grobey, a long-time German teacher in the Portland Public School System. He teaches during the week at Franklin High School and will be joining us on Saturdays to teach our younger heritage speakers! These students will be working towards the A2 Vergleichsarbeit. Frau Kilian will continue with our advanced heritage speaker's class, which is working towards the Deutsches Sprachdiplom 1 for next year. Frau Trummer will work with our A2 learners and Frau Duncan and Frau Bonfield will continue teaching our younger students. We are so glad to be back with our students! Our two adult classes taught by Frau Rose and Frau Prince are now full, too! 25 students between the two!! Thank you for the wonderful support of this important part of the GAS.

A special "Danke Schoen" goes out to Frau Mueller, who was an outstanding substitute for 3 weeks while Frau Bonfield was in Germany with her grandmother. Herr Grobey also helped us for 2 weeks already, while Frau Duncan was on bereavement leave with her family in Germany. I am so glad we can be a great support to each other, when things are not going so well!

On the 10th of October, we gathered with Saturday School teachers from around Portland for a morning of training on best practices in the language classroom. Lynn Ries of the Sophie Scholl Schule and I organized this friendly gathering of teachers in our hall.

I am also pleased to announce our first after-school program at ACCESS Academy, just down 57th from our building. Frau Kilian is teaching a group of brand new German learners at this PPS Options School. Eight students are learning German for the first time and are having a ball!

We are looking forward to our first big Fest of the new school year on November 6th. Our Laternenfest is an evening session of our program, for which students will have made bright lanterns. We walk the neighborhood and sing Martinslieder as we go. The membership is very welcome to come and join the fun from 7-8:30 p.m. Please bring a treat to share, if you attend.

Thank you again for all the gracious support of our classes and families! Our Education Committee has been so helpful! Karla Marzineck (Chair), Roger Haas, Sven Werner, Jamie Trummer and new committee members, Christine McGrew (parent) and long-time Society member, Jane Radtke, have been instrumental in shaping the exciting direction of our school!

Mit freundlichen Gruessen,

Katja Freeborn

Director of Language Courses

AAnnnnuuaall PPiiccnniicc AAuugguusstt 99tthh,, 22001155

The German American Society Annual Summer Picnic was held this year on Sunday August 9th,

2015. We had over 80 attendees this year! Thank you to the DUV for providing the

beverages, to the Liedertafel for providing the band, and to the German Ladies Relief Society

for the food. This was a wonderful event for members, their friends and family to come and

socialize. Thank you to all of our volunteers who helped set-up and clean-up for the picnic.


Thank you to Lifetime Member Karin Schmidt for being our parking

lot monitor for the Annual Picnic. Karin was also a big help in

volunteering for all of our recent events.

We would also like to thank all of our other volunteers and we

appreciate all of their service. Without volunteers we would not

be able to put on events for the membership and community!

Our new season has begun with our first Saturday session which was held on Sept. 5. Since we are all getting a little older the membership at that

first session agreed to start the Saturday sessions at 4:30 pm instead of 5pm. The membership also agreed to start the Friday practice sessions held every second and fourth Friday

of the month at 2pm rather than 2:30pm.

All card playing sessions will take place at the German American

Society. Anyone who would like to learn to play is welcome to

participate. Membership in the DUV or GAS is not required. For those

who would like to become members please contact Eike Richter (360-750-7968). Membership dues are $10 per

year.

I hope you all had a nice summer after the successful 4th of July party

at Kathy’s & Eike’s. The club members who made the trip to the

tournament in Vancouver BC had a good time and missed the top spot

only by a lost Grand.

The tournament in San Francisco (Richard Morlock) Sept 18-20 will be over when tis newsletter comes out.

We will report on that one later. For more information about the

tournaments visit: www.skatcanada.ca/Canada/.

In November we will have as usual 2 Saturday sessions, one on Nov. 14th

(date is subject to change) and the next on Nov. 21st. In December we will have the Christmas party on Dec. 5th with only one Friday practice session on Dec. 11. The New Year Saturday

session and election night will take place on Jan. 9. After that the regular

scheduling will be followed.

Hope you are able to attend and having fun playing cards.

Eike Richter,

DUV president

Deutscher Unterhaltungs Verein

(DUV)

Our summer break was much enjoyed at a choir picnic with family and friends, but now practices have

resumed since September and we are happy about that.

For the German American Society picnic in August we were able to

provide the Encore Brass Band for the entertainment. We sang at the Heritage

Dinner Event of the Society "Freude schoener Goetterfunken" in celebration of the 25 year Unification of Germany, and "Oktoberfest Medley", because it's

Oktoberfest time.

Practices for our annual Christmas Concert are now in full swing. If you like to sing, come and join us every

Friday night at 7:30 at the Deutsches Haus.

All our Fall and Winter event flyers are printed in this issue and we hope to see many of you joining us having a good

time.

E-mail: liedertafel [email protected] or call 503.244.5736 for any questions.

Irene Stelter President

On August 23rd GROW had its annual picnic from

11 am to 3 pm at Willamette Park at West Linn. We had 35 members

and guests in attendance.

For 25 October, we will have the GRHS Convention reports, along maybe with the South American flavor as to Michael Miller’s first

South American documentary as shown in Bismarck, ND in July. GRHS Convention Attendees may preside if they will be residing in

the Northwest.

On the 22 November, we will have our annual Christmas Program with Program Presenter Allen

White and Bill Glenn as the Belznickel. There will be a “goodie

sack” for each attendee. As GROW starts its 16 year in its

existence, we will have in January 2016, our Honorary German Consular, Robert Manicke

Roger Haas, GROW President

LIEDERTAFEL HARMONIE

VVoolluunntteeeerr RReeccooggnniittiioonn

2155 NE Division St. Gresham, OR 97030

503-465-9123 Located at the Gresham Golf Course.

Now serving brunch.


Dear Members and Friends,

After a great summer, our activities started with renewed vigor in September. Pretzels! Yes, pretzels!

We learned how to make pretzels from Society Member Sara Hehr. In two days she taught us how to make the tastiest pretzels ever. Many thanks to

Sara who is an outstanding cook and teacher! Partly at the German Haus and partly at her home, we

learned and were able to produce over 800 pretzels. At the Society Oktoberfest on October 2nd, sales of

the pretzels started out slow and we were just a little worried. Three hours later, when the pretzels were

SOLD OUT, we knew we had hit a home run!!!

From pretzels we go to Apple Strudel. The Society Event Chair asked the Ladies to make 1,000 servings

of apple strudel for both Oktoberfest events (the Friday night Gala and Saturday public event). We

were happy to do that. Nineteen wonderful volunteers gathered and had a fun and successful day. I want to add my personal thanks to all the

volunteers who helped in countless ways. You are so deeply appreciated!

The Frauen-Verein will hold its Annual Bazaar on November 12 beginning at noon. The menu includes Leberkȁse and a warm potato accompaniment. Cost

for members and guests is $10.00 a person at the door for this special event. The RAFFLE this year

will be a little creative—please bring your new items to donate. This is one of our best fundraisers for the

charitable work we do. Bring your family and friends to this event. We always have a lovely time

and it is a great opportunity to get new people interested and involved.

Our next event is our traditional Weihnachtsfeier (Christmas Party) on December 10. Again, all are

invited. This event takes place in the beautifully decorated Hall. Mark your calendar now.

A special note goes to our members who are struggling with health issues. We think of you often and wish you all the best possible recovery. It is our sincere wish to see each and every one of you at the upcoming events. A quick reminder that January

will be here soon. Dues for 2016 can be paid starting today.

Best wishes to everyone for the upcoming festive season,

RRuutthh WWeerrnneerr,, PPrreessiiddeenntt

FRAUENVEREIN German Ladies Relief Society

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MMeemmbbeerr SSaarraa HHeehhrr..


WOLFGANG WERNER PRESIDENT

HANS BOEHM VICE PRESIDENT Events/Entertainment, Chair HERMANN STEPBERGER TREASURER Finance, Chair NORMAN HAUGK ASST. TREASURER EIKE RICHTER SECRETARY Member Care, Chair HELLA BETTS DIRECTOR Building, Chair STEVE EASTERDAY DIRECTOR Oktoberfest, Chair KARLA MARZINECK DIRECTOR Education, Chair SVEN WERNER DIRECTOR DIETER GEBHARDT DIRECTOR Bylaws, Chair JEFF BETTS DIRECTOR Membership, Chair KURT RADTKE DIRECTOR BRAD FOUTS ALTERNATE DIRECTOR

BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2015

MISSION STATEMENT

“This Public Benefit Non-Profit Corporation is organized for charitable, educational, and scientific purposes, including the charitable, cultural, and educational aims and purposes intended by the pioneer

founders of the Society, to further the perpetuation of German ethnic, culture, heritage, arts, and language.”

Our three 20 foot outdoor lighting poles with LED fixtures have been installed

which have improved the safety of the lighting of the steps. We are also planning

to install extra lights for the back of the building.

We are having issues with the homeless in our downtown building. Also, the back of

Alameda is visited by the homeless; our option is to enclose both areas. We are

securing costs for these projects.

Our appreciation is extended to Al Maeding who spent HOURS on

refurbishing the arm rests on our dining chairs!

Hella Betts, Committee Chair

BBuuiillddiinngg MMeemmbbeerrsshhiipp We have had a lot of inquiries about

membership in the past month during our special public events. We have already

received multiple applications that we hope to have processed before the end of the year. Remember to ask your family, neighbors and friends to see if they would like to become a part of our non-profit organization. Please help me in welcoming our newest member:

Ernest Schnell And remember to pay your membership

dues for 2016 prior to the Annual Meeting in January in order to be qualified to vote in

the election of the new directors.

Dues: $50.00/Individual $90.00/Couple

Jeff Betts, Membership Chair

EEvveenntt && EEnntteerrttaaiinnmmeenntt

We have had an abundance of events in the past couple of months. We have seen a lot of support from the membership and the sister clubs and we thank them for their volunteerism and help. The picnic was an absolute success thanks to the

donations from the Liedertafel, DUV and German Ladies Relief Society. The Open

House was put together quickly as the Kid’s Oktoberfest event had to be

cancelled. We had some visitors from the community. The Heritage Day Celebration

was very enjoyable as we had about 70 members and guests attend. The

Liedertafel performed two songs and we appreciate their support. The Oktoberfest

this year was well received by the community. We appreciate all of the hard work that was put into the event and we

are already working on next year’s celebrations. We are hoping to put on a

GAS Weihnachtsmarkt this year on December 5th. We are in the beginning stages of planning. If you would like to

help please contact the General Manager.

Hans Boehm, Events/Entertainment Chair


IInn RReemmeemmbbrraannccee MMeemmbbeerr CCaarree

In loving memory of Kenneth Lamb, the husband of lifetime member Renate Lamb who passed away on August 25th unexpectedly. We send our deepest

condolences to Renate Lamb and her family at this time.

Sending well wishes to our fellow members who have received care in

recently:

Ingeborg Hailey Karin Poida Daniel Hehr Peter Johannsen Ruth Werner Katrinka Easterday Gisela Tunger Pat Gebhardt Werner Bublies

And to those members who have asked to remain anonymous while receiving care we hope you have a speedy recovery in

the days to come.

Eike Richter, Secretary

In loving memory of lifetime member Gordon Long. The Society could always count on Gordon to help volunteer whenever needed. He will be deeply

missed by all at the German American Society. We thank you Gordon for the many years of service, support and dedication to the Society. We send our

deepest condolences to Renate Long and her entire family at this time.

Place your Business Card Here!

Advertisements are currently $25 per business card per issue. The German American Society currently

has four newsletters printed quarterly. Send inquiries to [email protected].

Deadline for the next newsletter is January 4th, 2016!


OOppeenn HHoouussee SSeepptteemmbbeerr 1199tthh,, 22001155

HHeerriittaaggee DDaayy CCeelleebbrraattiioonn OOccttoobbeerr 22nndd,, 22001155


Visit www.nohos.com SE Clinton NE Fremont E McAndrews Portland Portland Medford

22nndd AAnnnnuuaall OOkkttoobbeerrffeesstt OOccttoobbeerr 33rrdd,, 22001155

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OCTOBER Wednesday, October 21

6:30pm GAS Board Meeting

Friday, October 23 2:00pm DUV Skat & Pinochle

7:30pm Liedertafel

Sunday, October 25 1:00pm AASO Event (D. Hall)

2:00pm GROW Mtg. (MK Hall)

Wednesday, October 28 7:00pm GAS Membership

Meeting

Friday, October 30 7:30pm Liedertafel

NOVEMBER

Friday, November 6 7:00pm Laternenfest 7:30pm Liedertafel

Saturday, November 7

1:00pm Teacher Conference

Thursday, November 12 12:00pm Ladies Society

Holiday Bazaar Fundraiser

Friday, November 13 2:00pm DUV Skat & Pinochle

5:30pm Stammtisch 7:30pm Liedertafel

Saturday, November 14

4:30pm DUV Skat & Pinochle (date is subject to change)

Wednesday, November 18


Friday, November 20 7:30pm Liedertafel- 10th

Annual Wine Fest

Saturday, November 21 4:30pm DUV Skat & Pinochle

Friday, November 27

2:00pm DUV Skat & Pinochle 7:30pm Liedertafel

DECEMBER Friday, December 4 7:30pm Liedertafel

Saturday, December 5 11:00am Nikolausfeier TBA Weihnachtsmarkt 4:00pm DUV Christmas

Party

Thursday, December 10 12:00pm Ladies Society

Christmas Party

Friday, December 11 2:00pm DUV Skat & Pinochle

5:30pm Stammtisch 7:30pm Liedertafel

Sunday, December 13

3:00pm Liedertafel Christmas Concert

Wednesday, December 16


Friday, December 18 7:30pm Liedertafel Christmas

Party

Thursday, December 31 8:00pm Liedertafel New

Year's Eve Dinner and Dance

JANUARY Friday, January 8, 2016

2:00pm DUV Skat & Pinochle 5:30pm Stammtisch 7:30pm Liedertafel

Thursday, January 14, 2016

12:00pm Ladies Society Meeting

Friday, January 15, 2016

7:30pm Liedertafel

Wednesday, January 20, 2016 6:30pm GAS Board Meeting

Friday, January 22, 2016

2:00pm DUV Skat & Pinochle 7:30pm Liedertafel

Wednesday, January 27, 2016 7:00pm Annual Membership

Meeting

CCaalleennddaarr ooff EEvveennttss aatt tthhee GGeerrmmaann AAmmeerriiccaann SSoocciieettyy

Remember to pay your dues for 2016!

Membership Dues: $50.00 Individual

$90.00 Couple Membership dues must be

paid prior to the Annual Meeting in January in order

to be eligible to vote.


German American Society 5626 NE Alameda Street Portland, Oregon 97213 Phone: (503) 775-1585 Email: [email protected]

General Manager: Karla Werner Website: www.germanamerican.org

HHoolliiddaayy BBaazzaaaarr HHoosstteedd bbyy

GGeerrmmaann LLaaddiieess RReelliieeff SSoocciieettyy

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If you would like to donate items to the Bazaar

please contact Ruth Werner @ 503-254-5786

GGeerrmmaann AAmmeerriiccaann SSoocciieettyy WWeeiihhnnaacchhttssmmaarrkktt DDeecceemmbbeerr 55tthh,, 22001155

WWee aarree ppllaannnniinngg oonn ppuuttttiinngg oonn aa ssmmaallll WWeeiihhnnaacchhttssmmaarrkktt aanndd wwee aarree iinn nneeeedd ooff vvoolluunntteeeerrss aanndd vveennddoorrss.. IIff yyoouu aarree iinntteerreessttiinngg iinn sseelllliinngg iitteemmss aatt tthhiiss mmaarrkkeett oorr iiff yyoouu kknnooww aa bbuussiinneessss wwhhoo wwoouulldd bbee iinntteerreesstteedd iinn hhaavviinngg aa ttaabbllee aatt tthhiiss eevveenntt pplleeaassee ccoonnttaacctt tthhee GGeenneerraall MMaannaaggeerr.. IIff yyoouu aarree iinntteerreesstteedd iinn hheellppiinngg ttoo ppllaann tthhiiss eevveenntt wwee wwoouulldd aapppprreecciiaattee yyoouurr tthhoouugghhttss.. OOuurr ggooaall iiss ttoo ppuutt oonn aann eevveenntt tthhaatt hheellppss pprroommoottee tthhee

GGeerrmmaann ccuullttuurree tthhaatt wwiillll iinntteerreesstt tthhee llooccaall ccoommmmuunniittyy jjuusstt aass oouurr OOkkttoobbeerrffeesstt cceelleebbrraattiioonn hhaass ddoonnee.. PPlleeaassee jjooiinn uuss iinn hheellppiinngg ttoo ppuutt oonn aannootthheerr ggrreeaatt eevveenntt iinn 22001155!!

gas newsletter fall 2015 -...

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