Big Changes at NWSOC This Year!

Vlad Gladkov Photo from the NWSOC Annual Meeting at Grito's Garage

At our May 17th Annual Meeting at Griot's Garage, the Northwest Saab Owners Club elected new leadership and set a new course for the future of the club.

We’re excited to announce that Cliff Johannsen has been elected as the new Club President, with Jon Kjaerulff stepping into the role of Vice President. Cliff brings years of experience and fresh momentum to the club, and he's already helping guide a more organized and inclusive structure for our community.

Introducing NWSOC Focus Groups

One of the biggest developments to come out of the meeting is the creation of focus groups—smaller communities within the club built around key interests in Saab ownership. These groups will help members connect more deeply around shared passions, technical knowledge, and event planning.

The tentative list of focus areas includes:

• Service & Maintenance

• Vintage & Restoration

• Competition & Motorsports

• Modern Performance & Tuning

• Social & Membership

Each focus group will eventually have a designated coordinator and a seat on the NWSOC Board of Directors. While the current board is fully staffed, we anticipate changes at our July board meeting to better align the board structure with these new groups.

Thank you to everyone who joined us for our Focus Groups Planning Meeting. It was a productive session filled with great ideas and a lot of energy about the future of the Northwest Saab Owners Club!

For those who couldn’t attend, we’ve attached the official meeting minutes to this message, and you can view the recording.

📺 Watch the meeting

Focus Groups Meeting Minutes.docx

Download DOCX • 19KB

Meeting Highlights:

• We reviewed and discussed the club’s new Focus Groups model, including the current tentative categories:

  • Service & Maintenance

  • Vintage & Restoration

  • Competition & Motorsports

  • Modern Performance & Tuning

  • Social & Membership

• We agreed that each focus group should ideally be led by a board member and that adjustments to the board structure may be needed as this evolves.

• We brainstormed event ideas including theme-based gatherings, rally formats, and value-added offerings like key mapping at events.

• We discussed "taking over" events like the IKEA Swedish Meatball event in Portland, Radwood, Eurobash, Old School Reunion, etc. akin to the strong showings at Carlisle.

• We emphasized improving communication and outreach, including better use of platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and X, including better communication with the PNW Saab Facebook group, and creating a "Where to get your Saab serviced" directory for the website.

Next Steps:

• We’ll be sending out a member survey soon to get your input on focus group participation, event planning, and communication preferences.

• Look for updates on the October Maryhill Hill Climb and Car Show event (traditionally called the 509'er within NWSOC) on the website and Facebook page - we want this to be a large regional event this year!!

• An Instagram link will be added to the top of the website soon.

• Jon K will be organizing a vintage-themed Saab event—stay tuned!

We’re excited to keep building a club that reflects the passion, knowledge, and diversity of the Saab community here in the Northwest. If you have thoughts or ideas, we’d love to hear from you—and we especially encourage you to engage with a focus group when the time comes.

We will see you at the July 13th Swedish Car Show in Issaquah!