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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 October issue are due by Tuesday, Sept. 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.
Mentors needed to guide college-bound students
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| Parkrose High Senior Nathan Clement with PGE Engineer and ASPIRE adviser Yuli Wu. COURTESY MEG KILMER |
New minister answers call
The Rev. Don Frueh has been selected as the new permanent minister at Parkrose Community United Church of Christ, Northeast 105th Avenue and Wygant Street. The church was established in 1913.
Frueh is currently the associate pastor of First Congregational United Church of Christ in Salem, Ore. Frueh earned his Master's of Divinity Degree from Pacific School of Religion in San Francisco. He also attended the Northwest House of Theological Studies in Salem and holds a Master's of Arts in Musicology and a Master's of Philosophy in Musicology from the University of Kansas. He earned his undergraduate degree from San Francisco State University and is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ.
“Parkrose is thrilled to welcome Rev. Frueh. His gift of nurtur(ing), passion for creating community and commitment to helping us discern the work that God is calling us to do makes him the ideal person to lead our church family into the future,” Kirsten Wageman Hohnstein, chair of the congregation's pastoral search committee, said.
“I am excited about the opportunity to work with a congregation which has made a strong commitment to its future, to discovering new ways to be (a) church and do ministry in its neighborhood. I look forward to working with Parkrose Community United Church of Christ to discern the amazing ways God is calling us into ministry,” Frueh said.
During the last three years, with the Rev. Chuck Currie serving as interim minister, Parkrose Community United Church of Christ has been undergoing a period of intense planning and prayer about how the congregation can best do ministry and remain effective. The congregation in recent years has voted to become open and affirming and has decided to refocus ministries around programs and their mission, and to sell its current properties. The church plans to relocate once the buildings are sold and to seek an interim space in which to worship as the congregation works to find new space that allows for growth and innovative opportunities for ministry.
Currie's last Sunday will be Sept. 13. Frueh will assume the pulpit on Sunday, Sept. 20 at 10 a.m. The public is invited to attend the service and to join the church in celebration.
Frueh and his partner, Robert Barzler, live in Northeast Portland.
Host an exchange student in your home
International high school exchange students are coming to study in the Parkrose area during the 2009-10 school year. These students will integrate themselves into a Parkrose area family with the goal of experiencing American culture as an American high school student does. In turn they will provide insight into their own culture.
STS Foundation, a non profit student exchange organization, has helped facilitate these relationships for 20 years. Host families are being sought for two students. One from France, one from Germany.
Romain is a 17-year-old boy from Rueil-Malmaison, France. He enjoys tennis, soccer, basketball and wind surfing. He also loves playing the piano and sings in the Paris Opera for Young People. In the future, Romain would like to be an international journalist and is eager to learn more about American culture and customs.
Lorena is a 15-year-old girl from Burgthann, Germany who loves playing tennis. She also enjoys playing basketball and volleyball as well as watching many other sports. Her other hobbies include playing guitar, cooking and writing. They are both excellent students and will have their own spending money and health insurance.
The host family must provide a separate bed, family meals and a safe environment. If your family is interested in being a host family please call Lillian Clemente at 1-800-522-4678 or send an e-mail to lillian@stsfoundation.org. For more information visit www.stsfoundation.org
Hazelwood mom helps neighbors plant affordable trees
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| Vinette Kennedy-Scott has stepped up to lead the effort to add trees to parking strips and yards in her Hazelwood neighborhood. Teri Ruch, Friends of Trees |
“You hear so much about the loss of trees,” she said, emphasizing a conclusion drawn by east Portland residents and local officials in the East Portland Action Plan. “I think everybody should be involved. We all have a responsibility.”
Because Kennedy-Scott is organizing a planting through Friends of Trees, Hazelwood residents can order large trees this year for only $25, including delivery, hole-digging, planting assistance, mulch, stakes and follow-up maintenance visits in the summer.
“Friends of Trees makes having a tree affordable,” Kennedy-Scott said. Last year she bought a tree through Friends of Trees to plant in front of her rental property in the Brooklyn neighborhood. This year she looks forward to planting in her own yard and neighborhood.
If someone volunteers to organize a planting in the Argay, Centennial, Mill Park, Parkrose, Parkrose Heights, Russell or Wilkes neighborhoods, residents there can also order discounted trees from Friends of Trees this year.
How does Kennedy-Scott fit neighborhood coordinating and other volunteer work into her busy life? “I just do it,” she said, recalling how she earned her master's degree while raising a family and holding a job. “I have a list in my mind of what to do, and I process them one at a time.”
She also receives great support from Friends of Trees, she said.
If you're interested in learning more about coordinating a planting in your neighborhood, contact Greg Tudor at gregt@friendsoftrees.org or 503-282-8846, ext. 12.
Registration opens for Clackamas River cleanup
With the mission of turning restoration into recreation, the creators of the stewardship project known as Down the River Cleanup are now accepting online registrations for volunteers interested in improving a 14-mile stretch of the lower Clackamas River from Barton Park to the mouth at Clackamette Park.
A popular stewardship project within the river community since 2003, organizers from We Love Clean Rivers are seeking over 350 kayakers, rafters, drift boaters, canoers, anglers and swiftwater divers to join together at Barton Park, 19009 S.E. Barton Park Road in Boring, on Sunday, Sept. 13 for a full day of community stewardship to pull trash from the river, shoreline and banks.
“Anybody who spends time on local rivers knows how important this annual stewardship event has become, not only to those of us who occasionally enjoy the Clackamas for recreation, but also to preserve one of the last remaining wild salmon runs in the lower Columbia Basin,” said Kristin Dahl, We Love Clean Rivers president. Dahl also addresses the ever-present need for sustainable practices as her organization seeks to match last year's take: over three tons of garbage and trash hauled to shore by over 300 volunteers.
As evidenced in years past, cleanup activities are carefully orchestrated with interdependent roles for volunteers out on the river and those back on the shore. Once on shore, the trash is sorted into large on-site dumpsters that go to a transfer station where recyclables are prepared for processing. Unique finds are secured by a team of artists who will turn this river booty into artwork offered up at a silent auction held in October.
Volunteers can register at www.welovecleanrivers.org or 503-512-9527.
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