What if you could have the wedding of your dreams for 1/2 the cost? 

That’s EXACTLY what will happen to one lucky bride this December. Excellent Christmas present!

Not only will the lucky bride receive 1/2 off any wedding package at the Balch, we have many other fantastic vendors offering either 1/2 off or other special prizes from their services. There are photographers, florists, hair, makeup, rentals, gifts, planners, and much more! Even more vendors will be added at the end of this month!

Check out the Sweepstakes Page on the Balch site to find out how to enter, get more information, and click on the links to see the quality vendors that are participating!

Why should Pimp my Ride cars get all the pampering? Friend the Balch on Facebook to Primp your Bride instead!

Call today to schedule your tour at the Balch.

The Sunniest Wedding Location in the Gorge!
541-467-2277

Enjoy some of the Columbia River Gorge’s finest! Gorgeous weather, beautiful location, amazing food, music, and brews! What could be better? Bring a friend! This Saturday, July 17th at the Balch Hotel Spruce Baugher will be jamming with acoustic, folk rock, and roots music. You can relax on the patio and a great brew from Clock Tower Ales while listening to some fun music!

At 5:30 Jamie Snell, owner of the Lamb’s Table catering, begins to let you in on the magic. She has been creating marvelous Supper Club Menus every month at the Balch since April 2009. She has created quite a following! Her creativity continues to amaze our palate! She hand makes everything from sauces to salads, to magical dipping concoctions.

Here is her menu for Saturday!

July 17th  Supper Club
Lager, Leeks, and Ladybugs

Walla Walla onion and emmentaler cheese empanadas with fresh zucchini pickles. Emmentaler is baby Swiss; empanadas are buttery little turnovers.

Smoked chicken, Edelweiss sausage and shrimp paella, with grilled farm stand vegetables. Served with sourdough baguette and butter.
paella (pie-a-yah) is a spanish-style rice dish, with saffron rice, meats and vegetables.

Chocolate-hazelnut torte cakes with whipped cream and apricots.

Dinner served with Fresh Baguette, iced tea and coffee

Call for reservations! There are only eight open spots!
541-467-2277

“The Supper Club is always a treat and what a great way to showcase the beauty and amenities of Dufur, a special gem in North Central Oregon. Jeff and Samantha it is so fun to brag on you to others and they are never disappointed when the meet you and visit The Historic Balch Hotel. I have confidence in you guys and the culinary skills of Jamie and crew to impress and “wow” my friends. Thanks for all you do for the hidden treasure known as the Dufur Valley.” ~ Rob Carnahan

Our Daughter Is in Ethiopia, and We Are Bringing Her Home.

There are approximately five million orphans in Ethiopia today. Soon there will be one less. We are  bringing a new daughter home. Our story is one of paperwork, patience, and providence.

The adoption call came on a Sunday morning in August of 2008 as we stood singing with fellow believers at Vineyard Christian Fellowship in Hood River.

That’s when I first saw her. She was between 12-18 months old, in a white tank top. Her hair was in pigtails, tied with pink ribbons. I could see her from the waist up. I heard God say, ‘Bring them home,’ and instantly, I knew. I knew she was in Ethiopia; I knew she was our daughter; I knew we needed to go get her. I shared my vision with
Bob, and he readily agreed that this was God’s plan for our family.

Seventeen months have passed since that morning, and many forms, interviews, and a hefty dossier have brought the adoption near fruition; but the seeds of adoption were planted even before the our wedding day, over  twenty years ago.

I remember talking with Bob about having our own children– as well as adopting.  We currently have three boys; Brennan, age 14, Noah, age 8 and Joshua, age 6.

Monday, April 12th, we received the referral and photos of Magdalyn for the first time! She was 7 weeks old at that time. Our Ethiopian count date is May 26th when they review her case, our paperwork, and hopefully approve us for adoption! We are hopeful that we will be traveling to Ethiopia to meet our daughter and bring her home this June! In the meantime, we are praying for the Lord’s continued financial provision, the safety of the children at the orphanage, and the African families impacted by adoption.

By the time all fees have been paid, an Ethiopian adoption can cost between $25,000 and $30,000. To keep the community and supporters informed and provide them with a way to share our journey, we have a blog at BringingLoveHome.com with current information and opportunities for people to dialog, donate, or purchase ‘Just Love Coffee‘ fair-trade coffee varieties.

Samantha has helped us form a fantastic team of people and we are organizing an on-line auction! Stay tuned! It’s coming up the first of June.

Please visit our blog for updates, stories, details of the adoption process, as well as pictures of our family and our daughter (when available) at: http://bringinglovehome.blogspot.com .

Cheri Rogers

While looking for some fun, unique items to give to the Mt. Hood Cycling Classic riders in June (a FUN pit stop for amateur riders is here at the Balch), I found a site with some great personalized items for your wedding!

Jeff actually hand delivered our invitations to Bridal Veil post office so they’d have the Bridal Veil stamp on them. His idea! How about creating your own save the date stamp?

On this site, Zazzle, you can customize stamps, magnets, t-shirts, and much more! What a fun gift for your bridesmaids to go out for your shower in cute, customized T’s.

Happy Shopping!! There is so much out there to really personalize your wedding. It’s an event.  Make it be remembered!

May 8-9th

Husbands! Sons! Daughters! Sisters!
It’s time to treat your mother/wife/sister/girlfriend.

Overnight stay, two tickets to Maryhill Museum, four course dinner Saturday evening, a-la-carte chair massage/pampering foot soak or facial, and top it all off with a three course breakfast Sunday morning!!

Jamie’s Menu:
Grilled Portobello Mushroom Cap with Spinach and Goat Cheese
Freshly Smoked Salmon, Avocado, and Citrus Mache Salad
Chicken and Prosciutto Ravioli with Asparagus Beurre Blanc
Bittersweet Chocolate Cake with White Chocolate Mousse and Strawberry Coulis
Iced Tea and Coffee
$29 + Gratutity

She’ll feel like a queen and you’ll be beaming.

Call for reservations
541.467.2277

I can’t believe I did it. But I did. The experience was fantastic. The running, not my favorite…but you knew that anyway! I had to be on the bus at 4am…that’s 1am in “the hood”…and when I got there, the line was super long. I met some wonderful ladies from a Ft. Lauderdale running/walking club. They were kind enough to let me tag along and two of them were in the same group I started with. There were soooooooooooo many women…and quite a few men as well…and most everyone was dressed in some kind of princess garb. Fireworks went off at the beginning of each running/walking group. The ladies from Ft. Lauderdale walked, but were sure to give me hugs before I ran away .
The run itself was harder than I expected it to be and I was thankful for the training I’d done in some of the hillier places. There were Disney characters positioned throughout the course which made for many photo opps along the way I decided that I wanted to enjoy the experience instead of worry about finishing in a certain amount of time…which was good since I’m a sucker for a photograph . I am unbelievably thankful for the prayers and encouragement of all my dear friends and family. My back only bothered me once which is a complete testament to your prayers for God’s grace over me as I ran. I walked for a short time (less than .10 of a mile) somewhere between mile 10 and mile 11, because I was really tired. I was frustrated and I definitely felt like quitting. But in His mercy, Jesus came for me, as He always does and I was able to start running again. The last mile and a quarter felt like the longest mile and a quarter in my life, but I was definitely not willing to stop that close to the end.
So it’s over. After some 3 hours 11 minutes and 17 seconds, I crossed the finish line. I feel so blessed to have made it to this point…and I’ll be wearing my medal around for awhile . I ran the race and can’t wait to get home to hug all the people who were praying for me…and if you’re someone who prayed for me that I can’t hug right away, know that I love you and am hugging you in my heart! I’ll post an update from home with the final amount I’ll be giving to the Rogers’ for their adoption. I can tell you with certainty it’s up to 4 figures and that…makes me very very excited!

Sunday, March 7, 2010 I will be running in the Disney Princess Half-Marathon. The race itself is a benefit for the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society and while my entry-fees go toward that incredible organization, I had to find a deeper reason to run. I’m not really a runner, at least I wasn’t before this. For me to run a half-marathon meant finding a bigger purpose…something way outside of myself, because simply running to run would never have been enough motivation.

Let me tell you about my motivation…

Somewhere in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia there is an orphanage called Hannah’s Hope. Somewhere inside Hannah’s Hope is a precious little princess who is waiting to be brought home to live with the Rogers family.

Bob and Cheri Rogers, and their three boys are currently on a waiting list to be given a referral to adopt a little girl from Hannah’s Hope, run by All God’s Children International – an adoption agency out of Portland, OR. Bob is a high-school math teacher and Cheri home-schools their three boys. They are currently #7 on the waiting list and while they wait, they are trying to raise the $27,000 needed to pay for the adoption. This is the reason I am running!!

Training has gone pretty well…although I still don’t LOVE to run. I’ve wanted to quit several times, but every time I feel that way, I imagine a little face with big brown eyes, curly hair and pink bows. She keeps me going and I dare say, I like running a little bit more every time I do it!

Samantha’s husband Jeff put together a training schedule that has allowed me to gradually work up to longer distances, while training speed on my shorter runs. My lower back gets pretty stiff and knotted on any runs longer than 8 miles, but I’ve found ways to deal with that throughout the training process. I’ve also figured out how to stay fueled during the long runs. My secret? Cold gummy bears and salted cashews …and of course water and G2 Grape Gatorade!

At this point, the Rogers’ have been able to raise all but about $6,000. This money will be used for travel expenses to Ethiopia to get their daughter and bring her home. My goal is to raise $2,000 for the Rogers’ family. To date, I’ve raised $532 through the generosity of a few friends and family members. That leaves me $1468 short of my goal.

Jeff and Samantha are generously donating a percentage of overnight stay this Saturday, February 27th to my fundraising efforts!! It’s PERFECT timing because Jamie Snell is catering a rocking Supper Club! A great excuse to take your honey on a date night. Get away to the Balch for a good cause! www.BalchHotel.com

This Saturday night!! Call NOW for reservations! 541-467-2277.

And, thank you in advance, for supporting such a good cause.

~René

P.S. Samantha says that if you feel moved to donate and cannot stay this weekend you can send something to her c/o René at:
P.O. Box 5
Dufur, OR 97021

Since the Greater Dufur Area Chamber was reformed a couple of years ago, I jumped at the chance to be involved. I love the idea of a group of people with common interests brainstorming, serving, coming together, and getting things done. “Two heads are better than one” is a phrase I strongly believe in. It was off to a bit of a rocky start because I, Samantha, was at the helm! While I really appreciate the compliment by my fellow officers and those who nominated me, my inexperience slowed us down. I am used to being a one man band! Working and leading intelligent, business, and community minded adults is/was fun and a challenge. I’m still on the board and just as active but also learning from others with experience. Together experience, enthusiasm, and energy can accomplish a lot!

I love the ’smallness’ of the town. Dufur residents are extremely community minded. Support for sporting events is amazing! During games, I think most of the town shows up to cheer. It’s really great. An advantage of working with a small town and smaller groups of people is that you find people to be very passionate and outspoken about their home. I know, I know, don’t get too worked up about that statement! I’m not dis-ing bigger places, other people from other towns are passionate about their community too!! I suppose the difference here is that it’s still small enough to help form future vision. People are coming together and deciding the direction of growth – or non growth – that the town wants to embrace. People and businesses are revitilizing buildings and taking care of that history that makes Dufur so very special. I really am passionate about helping form this vision.

Well now, it seems I’ve gone off on a tangent! I need to write about our first Business After Hours event! This Thursday, February 25th at the Balch Hotel, we are very fortunate to have Lisa Williams with Media Forte Marketing presenting about the nebulous I N T E R N E T. She’s focusing on how to increase your presence on the net. Let me tell you from personal experience (www.BalchHotel.com) that’s she knows her stuff! I’ve been impressed with her knowledge, the groups and training that she’s involved with that keep her connected and up on the latest. I sure wouldn’t want that job!! I rather enjoy the idea of “mastery”. Hers is an ever changing beast and I’m glad she keeps up with it translating  it to a language that I can understand. She’s presenting from 6-7:00, then we’ll network and meet our fellow business men and women from 7-8:00 while enjoying some tantalizing treats from Imperial River in Maupin, Janet Stauffer (for judge!!), and the Balch. Join us!! You don’t have to be a member, but after Thursday night you just might want to be!

Thursday, February 25th
Balch Hotel, Dufur
6-8:00 p.m.

Welcome!!

So, we are starting a blog. . . how fun! I suppose this first blog, the introduction, should contain a bit of history. Jeff and I bought the Balch in 2006. Upon walking in the back door, I immediately fell in love with the building. We prayed that if it was the right place to be that the doors open. Boy did they open quickly! I fell in love with the history of the building, the location out here with rolling hillsides, sunshine, and small town atmosphere. It fit ALL of my criteria for a wedding location! We’ve found a diamond.