The Medford Rotary Club is proud to again present the Rotary Relays, which will be held at North Medford High School’s Bowerman Field on Saturday, April 4, 2020. This year marks the 81st anniversary of the meet, which was started in 1939 by legendary University of Oregon track coach and Nike co-founder Bill Bowerman during the time he was track coach at Medford High School in the 1930’s and 1940’s.
The meet will also mark the awarding of the “Fitz Brewer Memorial Trophy” to recognize the winning school teams.
The meet will also mark the awarding of the “Fitz Brewer Memorial Trophy” to recognize the winning school teams. Brewer, who passed away in 2009, was a member of the Medford Rotary Club and epitomized Rotary’s motto of “Service above Self” through his enthusiasm, energy and big heart for community service. His daughter Susan shared that one of his favorite sayings was “The more you put into your community, the more you get out of it.” Bill Bowerman, who also served nine years as the head coach for Medford High School’s football team, was Brewer’s coach and also served as his mentor.
This relay event is one of the major community projects sponsored by the Club. More than 50 volunteers from the Medford Rotary Club will be needed to help run the meet. It boasts a rich tradition of track excellence spanning seven decades. Head coach, Pieter Voskes, of North Medford High School shared, “The Medford Rotary Relays is an opportunity to highlight high school track and field athletes on the highest level both from a team perspective and as individual athletes.”
