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Hysterically Historical #13

By Pete Jacobsen
Posted: 06/07/2025

   By the beginning of 2022, the worst of the pandemic seemed to be receding. Folks were still careful, but many folks were venturing out without a mask. Eastside Village was able to hold several village-wide events, including a Spring Picnic, an Online Auction Fundraiser, a Halloween Party, and an end of the year Holiday Party.

   There was also a wide range of "normal" activities, ranging from a variety of Coffee Hours (some in-person, some via Zoom), the French Club, Happy Hour (via Zoom), Hiking, a Movie Club (members watched the movie individually, and later discussed it over Zoom). The Men's Lunch with Adult Beverages, the World Cultures Study Group, and Knot Just Knitting met monthly through the year. Toward the end of 2022, a Card Player's group was started, and a Grief Workshop was offered.

   We also managed to have a couple of Plant Sales, a Rummage Sale, and an Ice Cream Social. Our Volunteer Drivers completed 842 rides covering almost 7000 miles. Other Volunteers provided household and outdoor maintenance, Technology help, and continued with Mask distribution and vaccination assistance. We don't have accurate year-to-year growth records, but we gained 45 Members in 2021, and 25 more by August of 2022. Our financial picture had improved such that we were considering how large a reserve we should hold rather than how we were going to pay our bills!

   2023 continued in the same vein, with a strong focus on community engagement, member services, and refining our strategic direction. We held Village-wide events including a Spring Fling Potluck Luncheon, our Annual Meeting, and a Holiday Party. Our regular smaller gatherings continued through 2023, with the addition of the DONE! Group and a class on using TriMet. Our morning coffee gatherings were again mostly in person. The Rain or Shine Committee and the Climate Crisis Crew were especially active. The Native Planters group was started, and quickly grew in size.

   By the end of 2023, our Village was at about 190 Members, with a lot of guessing as to when we would cross 200. We rented the conference room next to the office to provide regular meeting space for small groups. All in all, 2022 and 2023 were good years for Eastside Village. We were thriving!