Meet Me In Beaverton

Meet Chief Stacy Jepson, Beaverton Police Department Stacy Jepson grew up in a blended family way back when that wasn’t a thing… or at least it didn’t have a name. If you’re a person of a certain age, think Brady Bunch… kind of. Stacy’s mom and dad each brought 3 kids into their marriage. Then they added two more, a boy, Todd, and a couple of years later, Stacy. The older six were all pretty much...

Meet Chris & Dean Hogan of Chick-fil-A Raleigh Hills When you know, you know. Right? That’s what Chris and Dean Hogan both said when asked about how they got together. Now, this wasn’t one of those connections that happened in early elementary school… kind of. And it could never have happened at all. The two did live near each other on the Oregon coast, but Dean is a couple of years older than...

Meet Pauline Lee, Program for Intellectual Empowerment  Pauline Lee, even before she came into the world, was putting others' needs ahead of her own. She’s the youngest of 4 kids, the last two being twins, of which she was the younger. But when her mom Nancy went into labor Pauline was the twin who was ready to enter the world first. Then… her sister Patricia began having problems and the doc...

Meet Andy Oldenburg, Marsh McLennan Agency His grandfather Don served in World War II, came home, launched a retail empire, and was ultimately named Man of the Century. His dad, John, was an attorney who ultimately rose to become a judge of the county courts. His mom, Dianne, found her space in education, helping people gain their GEDs, and then founded a nursing program and community college. No...

Alicia Bermes, President/CEO, Beaverton Area Chamber of Commerce. Cancer. There’s no way to really prepare yourself when the doctor lays that news on you. Whether it’s your own diagnosis, or that of a family member or friend, it’s a gut punch. Some folks whither when they get the diagnosis. Others stiffen their spine and lean into it. They say no – not here, not now. When I’ve had family and frien...

Meet Dick Nichols of the Beaverton Oregon History Association For Dick Nichols, growing up on his parents' farm made life pretty simple. During the school year, it was go to school, then chores. Some extra-curriculars like track – he never finished last, by the way, but mostly it was a list of to-dos for him and his two brothers. Then summer came, and it was a full day of work, which might in...

Meet Josh Johnson of Binary Brewing Josh Johnson’s grandfather, Adolf Leroy, made a simple decision. Instead of getting the milk and bread he went out for back in Nebraska, he hopped on a freight train that landed him in Oregon. If not for that fateful, “simple” decision, we might not have some of the best beer in the area. Like his grandfather, Josh followed his instincts and his need to always b...

Meet Donna Meeuwsen, Topography Team eXp OK, let’s just address the elephant in the room – the open grave. That’s right. That’s where Donna Meeuwsen’s story begins. It’s where her mom met her dad. No, not at a funeral. Barney Meeuwsen was digging a grave when his future wife Janice happened upon him. It’s where they buried their pasts and started a future together. Love was born that day – circle...

Meet Kelsey Scotch of Madden Industrial Craftsmen Kelsey Scotch’s grandfather, Ron Madden, came up in the business side of the trades, so he knew that to build anything that would last, you needed to have the right people on the job. When he launched Madded Industrial Craftsmen back in 1988 with his sons, his goal was to serve the building trades by providing the most qualified and experienced cra...

Meet Steven DaSilva of Timmco Insurance You know, some people just come out that way, right? I’d bet anything… well, almost anything, that when Steven DaSilva was born, he came into the world holding a golf club. The oldest of three boys born to Chuck & Christine DaSilva, he lead the way for his brothers, Joe and Mike, to pick up the sticks and follow in his Dad’s golf-shoe-steps. His Dad? Wel...

Meet Nadia Hasan, Beaverton City Councilor Her parents were immigrants. Her dad, Wasim, was born in India, and her mom, Shagufta, was a native of Pakistan. Wasim was a physicist and Shagufta was an MD. They came together through an arranged marriage and eventually found their way to Connecticut along with several other family members. The two started a family – three girls. This story is about the...

Meet Dianne Danowski-Smith of Publix Northwest and Answer2Cancer If you’ve ever been through or alongside someone in a fight with cancer, you know how brutal that battle is, and how much a support circle can make a difference. So many people face that fight alone and many of them may not have the resources – medical, financial, family – to help them navigate the journey.  Dianne Danowski-Smith , F...

Meet Ashley Hartmeier-Prigg, Beaverton City Council President At a young age, Ashley Hartmeier-Prigg learned the lessons of hard work. She and her siblings would help out their parents when it came to keeping up the building owned by her grandparents. That, and watching her parents, who came to parenthood early, working hard themselves to keep the lights on. The middle of three kids, Ashley was pr...

Meet Ron & Deborah Threadgill of Threadgill Memorial Services Threadgill Memorial Services 4815 SW Jamieson Road  |  Beaverton, OR 97005  |  ph. 503-526-3952 Nobody wants to think about dealing with a mortician. But when you need one, you want one with a human touch. Not someone that’s more like Lerch from the Addams Family, or a used car salesman. Ron & Deborah Threadgill bring an uncommo...

Meet John Dugger, Beaverton City Councilor John Dugger has always been a joiner, a leader, and an activist. As a kid he was all in on just about every club his high school offered, stepping into leadership roles on many of them. As an adult he activated in the community and the neighborhoods he lived in and decided to run for office. When that run fell short, his husband didn't let him off th...

Meet Rachelle Scheele of SCARS of Oregon Rachelle Scheele had an idyllic childhood in Southern Oregon. Then at the age of 16, her world was rocked and everything changed in a single phone call. A few years later she found herself in a relationship that led to domestic violence, which she lived through for years. Then she broke free from those chains and today is helping others do the same.  Links...

Meet Jana & Paul Decarli of decarli restaurant When Paul Decarli, a lifer in the restaurant industry, was searching for his next adventure in Hawaii, he never expected it to be back in Oregon. But when the Blazers were in the Western Conference Finals, he couldn't resist making one more visit to Portland to witness the Championship coming to the Rose City... but it never happened. Instead...

Meet Jenny Haruyama, Beaverton City Manager The idea of public service has surrounded Jenny her entire life. Her father was a Fire Chief, among other roles. Her mom was a teacher in the public school system – and if you don’t think that’s a public service role, you ain’t paying attention. And that commitment to service permeated her extended family, who’ve given more than 300 years of service to t...

Meet Amy Saberiyan of Ava Roasteria When Amy Saberiyan was raised by a family and community that valued, encouraged, and supported her in whatever dreams she might have. Thing was she was born and raised in Iran back in the 70s, and when the “cultural” revolution happened, those dreams would no longer be possible. Fortunately, she found her way out and landed in Oregon where she earned a degree in...

Meet Grayson Hogard of Grove Cookie Company Grayson Hogard realized when he was in high school that he needed something more to help him find the way forward. That was military school... his choice. He found a place in that environment which lead to his enlistment in the Army Reserves. He also realized when he met a girl named Marie on a blind date in Chicago, that he found the recipe for happines...

Meet Dave Chin of Business Coach of Oregon Dave Chin of Business Coach of Oregon grew up on his family's potato farm. Life on the farm was good, but Dave had other ideas. Today he's taking his experience as a farm boy, athlete and high-tech exec and putting it to work for the people he coaches...  Links Business Coach of Oregon Dave Chin featured on the podcast Beaver Tales Support the s...

Meet Stephen Smelley of Goldfinch Consulting and the Survivorscape Project. Stephen Smelley is a guy who lives in the light, and who is all about being resilient. If you didn’t take the time to hear his story and about the things he and his family have experienced, you’d never guess he went through them. And when you get into that story, you’ll also get a measure of the boy, and then the man, whic...

Meet David Anderson of Syndicate Wine Bar The son of a minister with deep local roots, you wouldn't expect becoming a wine connoisseur and merchant to be the path David Anderson would take. But he did. Along the way he used his background in art to launch a couple of tech businesses, then when a marriage ended, reconnected with an old friend who became his new wife, and waded deep into the un...

Meet Lynnette Scott of Bricks & Minifigs at Cedar Hills Crossing Who’d have thunk that when Lynnette Scott, owner of Bricks and Minifigs in Cedar Hills Crossing, was a kid sitting in Marie Osmond’s makeup chair, would have gone all in on the world of Lego. Links Bricks & Minifigs at Cedar Hills Crossing Oswego Grill Beaverton Who should we know about? Nominate someone to appear on Meet Me...

Meet Craig & Sharon Brubaker of Brubaker Photography and Brubaker Fine Art Photography Craig and Sharon Brubaker have had each other in focus pretty much their whole lives. Together they built a successful business in Brubaker Photography, experienced ups and downs, grew a family, attended an interesting auction, then grew the family again.  Links Brubaker Photography Brubaker Fine Art Photogr...