Martin Christmas Card

It seems hard to believe that 2024 is drawing to a close, but it is. And like the year 2024, this tradition we created all those years ago is also coming to an end. So I hope this year’s video Christmas card finds you well and that any endings in your 2024 also included some wonderful new beginnings.

Bert is now an AVP at Providence and rising to all the career opportunities that new change is bringing him. He managed to take some great vacations, including taking his mom, Claudia, to New York City for a long weekend.

Kristina is still at the Clark College Foundation and loves being a professional thank you note writer. Unfortunately, both her parents died in 2024 (Dale Wagner, 11/12/1940-11/19/2024; Linda Wagner, 8/19/1945-3/1/2024) and so that has been a big change.

Isaac is wrapping up his honors thesis and will soon be joining the job seeking ranks.

Amelia was accepted into the biology/physiology major at University of Washington and is enjoying her 3rd year in Seattle. Her boyfriend, Rich, continues to make her smile and delicious curry.

Rowan graduated from high school and will finish an associates degree at Clark College in the next year. Part of the graduation celebration included taking a vacation to Scotland which was far more wonderful than anyone hoped it would be. Rowan’s girlfriend, August, joined the family on the trip and kept everyone laughing!

Yes, it was a year of many highs and lows. May the best of 2024 be the worst of 2025 for us all.

Seasons greetings to all! 2023 turned out to be quite a year – filled with both highs and lows but also filled with enough laughter and joy for the Martins. Our wish for you this holiday season was that you too had more happiness and light, and time with the people you cherish. 

Some highlights for us were:

• Bert has been busy with work, never ending cabin projects, and playing Dungeons and Dragons with Rowan and a group of friends; 
• Kristina finds joy in planning & organizing all things stewardship at the Clark College Foundation;
• Isaac is finishing up his honors mathematics degree at Portland State University;
• Amelia is thrilled to be studying biology/pre-med at University of Washington while cheering on the Huskies; and
• Rowan is completing their last year of high school via Running Start at Clark College. 

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year!

Greetings Friends! Overall, 2022 was a good year for the Martins and we hope it was for you as well. Some highlights for us were:

• Bert continues to love his job at Providence running the IS Mergers and Acquisitions team;
• Kristina is in her second year as the Director of Stewardship at Clark College Foundation and is enjoying having Clark back in session and all that entails;
• Isaac continues his mathematics studies at Portland State University;
• Amelia is a freshman at University of Washington in Seattle, majoring in biology/pre-med and is having a great time exploring Seattle with her new friends (go Huskies!); and
• Dahlia is a full-time Running Start student at Clark College and had a great experience in her theatrical debut in Clark’s fall play.

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year!

A Year of More Change

We, like the rest of you, had hoped that all things COVID-19 would be behind us. Instead, we come to the end of 2021 and hope that 2022 is better for the world than 2021 was. The one thing this virus has taught us though is that not much tops getting to hug a loved one for the first time in a long time.

2020 – A Short Review

Like everyone else, we come to the end of this year and find ourselves taking stock of what truly has been a year to remember. We’ve weathered some big changes and celebrated some small things. But mostly we’ve counted our blessings. Never before have we been reminded quite so much just how lucky we are to have our health, our happiness, and our loved ones.

2019 – another year of changes:

• Isaac is in his second year at Reed and has made some great friends and is enjoying statistics and sociology classes.
• Amelia is a sophomore at Columbia River and is bowling, volunteering for the Red Cross, performing in Mock Trial, and is knee deep in her second year of pre-IB .
• Elias is in his last year of middle school and is enjoying cross country and singing in the school choir.
• Bert started a new job as the Director of PMO for IS Growth and Affiliations at Providence.
• Kristina has resigned from the church and is looking for her next adventure.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of you from the Martins,

Bert, Kristina, Isaac, Amelia, and Elias

2018 has been a year of change for the Martin family:

• Bert started a new job as PMO Manager for KinderCare.
• Kristina’s job at the church changed; she is now the Director of Membership Experience.
• Amelia is in her first year of high school at Columbia River.  She is in the IB program and on the bowling team and Mock Trial.
• Elias is in the 7th grade and, with his sister off to High School, he “rules the school.”  He is following in his dad’s footsteps and singing in the school choir.
• And our biggest change has been Isaac heading off to Reed College.  It has been hard not having him around but, as you will see in this year’s video, we are adapting to his absence.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of you from the Martins,

Bert, Kristina, Isaac, Amelia, and Elias

Ten years ago Bert was home alone with the kids and was looking for something to keep them busy.  He set up the video camera on a tripod, put on some music, and had the kids dance around the family room.  Little did he know, it would become one of our family’s most cherished Christmas traditions.

We have done Twisted Sister, light sabers, animations, green screens, spinning cameras, and have handed out gifts to the homeless.  This year we created an ode to the video that started this all.  Hope you enjoy it as much as we enjoyed making it.

Continue reading →

Every year before we begin filming our annual Christmas video, we huddle around the screen and watch the previous years’ videos. It gives us a chance to giggle at ourselves, and for Bert and I, to marvel at how much our children change each year. This year was no different. Continue reading →

“Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before! What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas…perhaps…means a little bit more!”
― Dr. Seuss, How the Grinch Stole Christmas!

After last year’s video and its many, many hours of editing lightsabers we decided to do something a bit more “simple” this year – a single shot with no editing.  Merry Christmas and enjoy!

We have been in our house for a whole year now and love it.  It has been Continue reading →