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MEMO BLOG | |
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To fully serve the community, the Mid-county Memo offers this section to showcase upcoming special events, celebrations of milestones in our readers’ lives, those seemingly small accomplishments that often do not receive the recognition they deserve, and everyday events that should be shared with friends and neighbors.
Memo Pad submissions for the May issue are due by Wednesday, April 15. For best results, e-mail Darlene Vinson at editor@midcountymemo.com. Or mail submissions to 3510 N.E. 134th Ave, Portland, OR 97230. To leave a phone message, call 503-287-8904. The fax number is 503-249-7672.
Community garden beds available
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| Andrea Pena and her son, Tapiltzin, admire young vegetable plants in the SnowCap Community Charities community garden last spring. Lettuce nearly ready for harvest can be seen behind her. SnowCap currently has some beds available for personal use. |
| Courtesy SnowCap Community Charities |
The SnowCap community garden is located behind the Rockwood United Methodist Church, 17805 S.E. Stark St.
The garden is comprised of 29 raised planting beds and a greenhouse. Several gardeners already have started their vegetable crops. SnowCap provides gardeners with free seeds including tomatoes, lettuce, beans and peas, and cucumbers.
In addition to beds and seeds, SnowCap also offers a series of no-cost educational gardening workshops to help green-thumbers increase their harvest. Sessions will be limited to the first 25 persons reserving space by calling SnowCap at 503-674-8785, ext. 17. Topics include ways to create healthy soil, when and what to plant, efficient planting methods, selecting plant material, organic pest control and harvesting hints.
The workshops, which will be held from 1 to 2:30 p.m. on Saturdays, will be conducted by master gardener Diane Liefeld and assisted by gardening advisor Joy Davies, both longtime SnowCap supporters.
SnowCap gardeners are involved in planting, weeding, watering, cultivating, pruning and harvesting.
“There is a rich sense of accomplishment when you grow your own food,” explained Judy Alley, SnowCap executive director. “Gardening provides an opportunity for self-reliance, rewards hard work, provides a friendly family-type environment and produces fresh food,” she said.
Additional information is available at 503-674-8785, ext. 37 or kari@snowcap.org.
Reynolds singers perform in the Big Apple
The Reynolds High School Pro Cantorum Choir, under the direction of Karen Bohart, performed at Lincoln Center in New York last month. The performance included George Frideric Handel’s “Te Deum in D Major,” with soloist Debra Scroggins, mezzo-soprano, led by guest conductor Dwight Uphaus. Ensembles from Wilsonville High School, directed by Sue Schreiner, and Trinity Church and the Choir School of Hartford, directed by Bert Landman, joined the Reynolds group.
At 85 members, the Pro Cantorum Choir is the largest choir at Reynolds; its repertoire consists of pieces from all genres and they have performed at the state competition for the last five years.
National Honor Society member named Teen of the Month
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| Reynolds High senior Kristin Baldwin accepts the Gateway Elks Lodge Teenager of the Month award from Exalted Ruler Russ Muma. |
| Submitted Photo |
Baldwin plays the violin in the award-winning RHS orchestra. She is also a member of the varsity cheer squad that took first place at the 2008 National Cheerleading Association U.S. Championships at Knott’s Berry Farm in California. She was named most inspirational on both the cheerleading squad and the softball team; she has been named student of the month four times. She is a member of the PRIDE (Personal Responsibility, Integrity, Diversity and Effort) Committee as well as the school’s Link Crew.
In addition, Baldwin volunteers at Mt. Hood Legacy Hospital providing information, running samples, delivering food and discharging patients, and is an event chair for the American Cancer Society East County Relay for Life. On top of that, she assists with a helmet clinic that offers affordable, fitted helmets for bicycling, skateboarding and snowboarding. She also helps with an American Red Cross blood drive.
Baldwin has been accepted into Concordia University and plans to pursue a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing to eventually become a registered nurse specializing in neonatal care.
To learn more about Gateway Lodge’s Teenager of the Month program, please visit www.gatewayelks.com. Applications for Teenager of the Month can be downloaded there or may be obtained by calling the lodge office at 503-255-6535.
History buffs wanted
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| Russellville School on Southeast 102nd Avenue near Burnside Street was once a hub of activity in the David Douglas School District. A retirement community now occupies the site. This photo is one of many gathered for a history of the area. |
| COURTESY DAVID DOUGLAS HISTORICAL SOCIETY |
Retired DDHS teacher Joanna Klick is compiling a companion to that original history. She would like to hear from anyone who attended school in the district as well as residents and business owners. Send your story to Joanna Klick, 24475 S.E. Strawberry Drive, Damascus, OR 97089 or klick1140@comcast.net. Submissions are due by June 1.
Light a spark in a child
The David Douglas Mentoring Project, through the Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization, serves students in the David Douglas School district who need extra support. People say, “It takes a village ...” and they weren’t lying.
Volunteers spend one hour a week with a student doing art, homework, reading or building model airplanes. This time can make a difference in the life of a child, their family and your community.
To become a mentor, call 503-234-1541 or e-mail coreyg@mail.irco.org.
Partnership produces trees for Mid-county
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| Caitlin Lynch, right, Friends of Trees canvasser and assistant crew leader, gets another tree in the ground with the help of an IKEA Green Team planting volunteer. |
| COURTESY ROD SMITH |
Friends of Trees crew leaders guided volunteers as they planted 38 trees in the Mid-county neighborhoods and 48 trees at Hazelwood Hydropark, 1017 N.E. 117th Ave. The 48 trees planted at the HydroPark included 31 large natives and 17 fruit trees provided through a partnership between the Portland Water Bureau, Friends of Trees, Hands On Greater Portland, and the Portland Parks & Recreation Community Garden program. The fruit trees will enhance the new community garden at the Hydropark, which offers 25 plots to area residents.
IKEA Portland provided generous funding for the Feb. 28 planting as well as volunteer planters. “IKEA Portland is proud to support local organizations that benefit children and the environment, so Friends of Trees is a natural partner for us,” said IKEA spokesperson April Minister. “In these difficult economic times, we feel it is more important than ever to support great causes in our community.”
Friends of Trees brings people in the Portland-Vancouver area together to plant and care for city trees and urban natural areas. During the past 20 years, Friends of Trees has planted more than 375,000 trees and native plants in the Portland-Vancouver metro area. These tree plantings have increased Portland’s beneficial tree cover during recent decades when dozens of U.S. cities have lost an average of a quarter of their tree cover. To learn more, visit www.friendsoftrees.org.
Parks seek summer lifeguards
Spring is the time of year when students begin to think about summer employment. Working as a lifeguard or swim instructor at one of the city’s 13 outdoor and indoor public pools has always been one of the most popular summer jobs for college and high school students.
The Portland Parks & Recreation Aquatics Department is now offering certification classes for lifeguards and swim instructors for the 2009 summer season. Approximately 600 part-time personnel will be hired as summer lifeguards this year.
If you are interested in becoming a lifeguard or swim instructor, but need to obtain your certification or have questions, please contact Sheryl Juber at 503-823-5130. New staff applications are due by May 1.
Advocates sought to serve long-term care residents
Volunteer advocates and investigators are needed to serve as ombudsmen for residents of nursing homes, residential care facilities, assisted living facilities and adult foster care homes. The Office of the Long Term Care Ombudsman will train the volunteers on the aging process, communication skills, problem-solving skills, investigation and other ombudsman skills. The certification training will begin on Thursday, May 14 in Portland.
As certified ombudsmen, the volunteers work to improve the quality of residents’ lives by identifying and investigating complaints and concerns on behalf of the residents, then working with the facilities to make changes. The typical concerns ombudsmen address cover a broad range, often including resident care; residents’ rights such as privacy, respect and dignity; and quality of life concerns such as appropriate activities and meals.
“The volunteers make a tremendous difference in the lives of the residents,” says Kathy Walter, program administrator. “They are well prepared and effective.”
For information about the program or to learn how to get involved, contact Walter at 1-800-522-2602.
Volunteer at the falls
Multnomah Falls is the number one natural tourist attraction in Oregon. Each year, volunteers staff the visitor center, maintain planters and help with interpretive presentations. Friends of Multnomah Falls will offer a training session for folks interested in volunteering, which will take place on Saturday, April 4 from 9 a.m. to noon at Greater Gresham Baptist Church, 3748 N.E. Division St., in Gresham.
Flexible shifts are available. Contact Ron Goodwin at 503-761-4751 to learn more.
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