By Justin Aufdermauer
Executive Director
Happy August everyone! Can you believe that next week the Tillamook County Fair will be upon us? And then shortly after that kids will be going back to school and we’ll start settling into a new fall routine at both work and home.
We’ve been enjoying summer quite a bit around here – and hope you are too. Between the major headway happening along the highway, the Tillamook Farmers Market, new food carts and businesses opening downtown, and of course fun, family-friendly events happening every few weeks – it’s been a full and busy summer.
We will of course be at the fair all week so be sure to come by and see us while you’re there. We will be debuting some brand new apparel for adults and youth, and I am confident they’ll be popular and go quickly – so don’t hesitate; come see us and pick out a new sweat shirt, t-shirt or long-sleeved shirt. We’ve really enjoyed this tradition of restocking our apparel in time for the fair and revealing our new designs to both visitors and residents – and seeing you guys rock them all year long is pretty cool too.
August is also the time we usually talk about the Tillamook Bay Run and start recruiting for participants and runners for that event. This year, the Tillamook Family YMCA has taken over management of the Bay Run and we’re excited to see them run with it.
Kaylan Sisco, the YMCA Executive Director, is on our Board and both Kaylan and the rest of the Board felt like it was a good fit to move the annual run to the YMCA, which is dedicated to helping community members stay healthy and active. The Chamber was honored to get that event started, which brings people from all over the Northwest region to our area and highlights the beauty of the Tillamook Coast, but we feel like it’s an appropriate time to hand over the reigns to an organization where fitness a nd wellness are at the core of the mission.
If you’d like more information about the Bay Run or to register (or volunteer), reach out to the YMCA or find the event on Facebook. It’s a fun and challenging 5k or 10k trail run/walk along both the beach and the narrow trails of Bayocean before ending along the Tillamook Bay-side of the spit.
There’s always a lot going on in August, including Moonlight Madness which will take over downtown Tillamook on Friday from 4 – 9 p.m. This event is sponsored and organized by the Tillamook Revitalization Association and several downtown merchants will have great sales and specials during those hours – as well as live music, swing dancing, a 1950s sock hop and a mini drive in movie. The Chamber Visitor Center will be open late, and it might be your last chance to snag one of “last year’s” hoodies or t-shirts.
Bring the whole family and spend yet another evening in downtown Tillamook with neighbors, friends, and family as we enjoy one more day of summer fun and celebration.