Three Things: Evening with PYAC, upcoming challenge and Starker trees

The Philomath Youth Activities Club held its annual fund dinner Friday night to raise money for its programs, listen to perspectives and stories from a former NFL player and honor a longtime volunteer for contributions to the organization.

The event takes place each year at the CH2M Hill Alumni Center on the campus of Oregon State University.

Matt Lehman, who with his wife raised two children in Philomath that went through the local school system and PYAC, was honored as the recipient of this year’s Promise Builder Award, which dates back to 2009 when Kim Howard was the first to receive the honor. Lehman was the 13th person or organization to be recognized.

“A promise builder is a person or business that best exemplifies an unwavering desire to make a positive difference in the lives of the youth in our community,” PYAC Executive Director Eddie Van Vlack said.

After Howard and before Lehman, others honored through the years have included Paul Mortenson (2010), Gary White (2012), Tom Gerding (2013), Peter Finn (2014), Starker Forests (2015), Steven Kearsley (2016), Ken Elwer (2017), Jay Faxon (2018), Saff Evans (2019), Dena Smith (2022) and Dan Drivon (2023).

The featured speaker for the event was Tim Euhus, who played college football at Oregon State from 1999-2003 during a pretty successful run for the Beavers. A tight end who caught 98 passes and had nine touchdowns for OSU over his four years, Euhus went in the fourth round of the 2004 NFL draft to the Buffalo Bills.

Euhus played two seasons with the Bills and also spent time with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2006 and the Arizona Cardinals in 2007. 

Euhus had some great stories to share about his time with the Beavers and in the NFL but the message centered around the impact of youth athletics on himself and his family, which includes four children.

The presentation included a few moments when Euhus got emotional while talking about those who played a key role in his own life journey. It all added up to a powerful, stirring message about the importance of athletics and activities for youth.

“I encourage you to invest in the kids, partnering in the development of them because whether you’re a parent, grandparent, coach or a partner in the community as a whole, this is really what it’s all about,” Euhus said.

PYAC board member Lindsey Luksch served as the emcee for this year’s event.

One cool presentation toward the end was a video that PYAC put together that featured kids sharing why they are thankful for PYAC — programs like cooking and craft classes, making new friends and having a safe place to learn and grow.

2. Philomath Discovery Challenge

Longtime resident Marcia Gilson, a former local business owner and volunteer for various organizations, is teaming up with the city for a unique way to showcase and promote Philomath. It’s called the Philomath Discovery Challenge and the yearlong activity will kick off on New Year’s Day.

There’s more to come on exactly what the challenge will look like but in essence, different locations will be identified and participants will need to document visits by sending in photos via email or tagging social media posts. The challenge will run over the entire 2025 calendar year.

Those who turn in a completed tracking sheet by the deadline set up by organizers could be eligible for an invitation to a special event, win prizes and receive recognition by the City Council along with other shout-outs.

When the city is ready to release details, you will be able to find them here. So, more to come on this interesting idea.

3. Starker Forests donates trees

Newport staged its annual tree-lighting ceremony Friday evening with a Philomath tree serving as the centerpiece attraction.

Starker Forests donated a 25-foot noble fir for the event. The company, which owns more than 90,000 acres of forestland in Benton, Lane, Lincoln, Linn and Polk counties, donates Christmas trees to several communities and organizations during the holiday season.

In this immediate vicinity in recent days, Starker donated trees to Oregon State University’s College of Forestry to auction off Friday and Saturday during its Holiday Art and Craft Fair. Proceeds from that event benefits a pantry that stocks free food, toiletry items and household supplies for students in need.

Starker also donated the tree that was put up earlier this week in front of the Benton County Courthouse in Corvallis.

(Brad Fuqua is publisher/editor of the Philomath News. He can be reached at News@PhilomathNews.com).