Senate resolution aims to recognize former Union County clerk Robin Church
By Garrett Christensen on Tuesday, March 4th, 2025 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
UNION COUNTY – A Senate Concurrent Resolution (SCR) currently under review in the 2025 Oregon Legislative Session could bring new, and well earned, recognition to a long-time civil servant. SCR 12, aptly titled Recognizing and honoring Robin A. Church for her outstanding service to the people of the State of Oregon, does exactly what it describes.
For some context, Robin Church, born September 29, 1954, has a long and dedicated history of service with Union County. Serving with the Union County Sheriff’s Office from 1987 to 1991, she then joined the Union County Clerk’s Office. From 1991 to 2007, Church served as Chief Deputy and Deputy Clerk until she was appointed Union County Clerk in 2007 (officially elected in 2009), a role in which she served until retiring in 2023. She also served as president of the Oregon Association of County Clerks and was a strong advocate for mail-in voting throughout her career.
In 2024, Robin Church, alongside several other Oregon county clerks and county employees, received a National Association of Secretaries of State medallion in honor of her over 32 years of public service. Now, SCR 12 aims to make another formal recognition of her dedication to Union County and the State of Oregon. The full text of the resolution is below:
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Whereas Robin A. Church was born on September 29, 1954, in La Grande, Oregon; and
Whereas the seed of Robin A. Church’s future interest in public service was planted on November 7, 1972, when she voted in the first United States presidential election open to 18-year-olds; and
Whereas Robin A. Church began her service to the people of the State of Oregon when she joined the Union County Sheriff’s Office in 1987; and
Whereas in 1991, Robin A. Church left the Union County Sheriff’s Office and joined the Union County Clerk’s Office, where she served as Chief Deputy and Deputy Clerk; and
Whereas Robin A. Church was appointed Union County Clerk in 2007, filling the unexpired term of outgoing clerk Nellie Bogue-Hibbert; and
Whereas Robin A. Church was first elected Union County Clerk in 2009, and would ultimately hold the position for more than 16 years; and
Whereas Robin A. Church served as the president of the Oregon Association of County Clerks in 2019; and
Whereas Robin A. Church was an early advocate for mail-in voting and an instrumental force behind Union County’s transition to mail-in elections after Oregonians voted in 1998 to expand mail-in voting to primary and general elections; and
Whereas Robin A. Church helped count more than 750,000 ballots during her tenure as Union County Clerk; and
Whereas Robin A. Church retired as Union County Clerk in January 2023, leaving behind a legacy of efficiency and integrity; and
Whereas Robin A. Church was awarded the National Association of Secretaries of State Medallion Award in 2024 by Oregon Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade, acknowledging her unflappable dedication to democracy and further cementing her critical importance to the history of elections in Oregon; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the Legislative Assembly of the State of Oregon:
That we, the members of the Eighty-third Legislative Assembly, recognize and honor Robin A. Church for her outstanding service to the people of the State of Oregon.
The resolution has its third reading scheduled for today. During the second reading on February 27, the legislature recommended adopting the resolution. More information, including public testimonies, can be found on the resolution’s legislative information page here.
