Mission turns out turkey feast
The Eugene Mission,
which is open all year,
offers special services
during the holidays
By Allyson Goldstein
Freelance Reporter
The holiday season is fast
approaching, and for many
Eugene residents this means
warm food and festive gather
ings. For others, it brings con
cerns about cold and hunger.
This Thanksgiving, hun
dreds of people who are un
able to provide a Thanksgiving
for themselves will sit down to
a traditional turkey dinner
with all the trimmings at the
Eugene Mission.
The Mission, which opened
in 1956, provides food, cloth
ing, shelter and a work therapy
program to people struggling fi
nancially. The Mission has a
Christian focus, and volunteers
conduct chapel services for resi
dents and guests each evening.
Lynn Antis, the assistant
director of the Mission, keeps
rough statistics on the number
of people who use the facility.
"We have three lodges
which offer over three hun
dred beds, and we provide
three meals a day, three hun
dred and sixty five days a year,"
Antis said.
Antis also described the
Mission's plans for Christ
mas, when volunteers plan to
continue the annual tradition
of spreading holiday cheer to
the residents.
"At Christmas, everyone gets
a gift package full of toiletry
items, candy and age-appro
priate toys for the children,"
Antis said.
While the mission offers spe
cial meals on Thanksgiving and
Christmas, its services extend far
beyond the holiday season. Res
idents at the Mission stay for
varying lengths of time depend
ing on their specific situations,
and most say the Mission pro
vides a good environment to get
back on their feet.
Michael Stolbeig, who is cur
rently between jobs, has been
staying at the Mission while he
looks for work. I le likes the safe
Christian atmosphere and plans
to eat Thanksgiving dinner there
this year.
"The Mission provides a
chapel, meals and a bed, and
expects nothing in return ex
cept for a little help with the
day-to-day work," he said.
Many Eugene residents, like
University sophomore Corinne
Cox, are unaware that the Mis
sion even exists and are astound
ed by the number of people
who use its services every day.
"Eve never heard of the Eu
gene Mission, but I think that
it's great that there's something
like this in the community, and
it's amazing that they are able to
help so many people on a daily
basis," said Cox, a cultural an
thropology major.
The Mission receives most
of its funding through private
Tim Kupsick Freelance Photographer
Patrons get a hot meal at the Eugene Mission on Tuesday.
donations, business donations
and its newspaper recycling
program.
The Mission has many
sources of community support,
but it can always use extra help
in the form of donations of
food, clothing and toiletries, es
pecially during the holiday sea
son. Donations can be brought
to the Eugene Mission, located
at 1542 W. First Ave. in Eugene.
Stolberg, like many others
who are grateful for the servic
es the Mission provides, said
he feels that it is a real asset to
the community.
"It's a good place for people
who have nowhere else to go, *
he said.
Allyson Goldstein is a freelance
reporter for the Emerald.
DREfiQN DflllY FMFRAIH
your independent student newspaper
Amigos’ helps -
victims of war,
students alike
The non-profit group
offers legal services
and therapy for
war crime victims
By Athanasios Fkiaras
Freelance Reporter
Many University students
celebrate Thanksgiving with
their families and come to ex
pect the love and security they
have known without ever
questioning it.
Others, however, no longer
have this luxury. Some people
have no living family mem
bers. They have difficulty
trusting people. They fear
anyone who displays the
slightest hint of authority.
Many have experienced tor
ture and rape. These are the
survivors of the numerous
military takeovers that took
place in the mid-1970s in
Central and South America.
"It's not very easy to forget.
It's something that scars you
for the rest of your life," said
Rogelio Salec of Guatemala.
Salec, 31, came to the Unit
ed States and moved to Eu
gene after running from the
government, which he says
killed his brother-in-law and
his cousin. He said that both
were blacklisted — watched
closely by the government —
but had done nothing and
were politically inactive.
"At one point, we had to
sleep under trees and bush
es,* he said, adding that he
spent much of his time in
such conditions until he
found refuge in the United
States.
Salec said that the transi
tion from a life of fear to a
brand new beginning was dif
ficult and confusing. Many
survivors like Salec feel alien
ated due to language and cul
tural barriers. The terrorist at
tacks on Sept. 11 also added
an unexpected dimension to
the transition many survivors
were going through. Not only
did these events take away
from the security refugees
thought they had in the Unit
ed States, but the attacks hap
pened on the date that Chile
fell under autocratic rule in
1973.
Salec's feelings of uncer
tainty and fear changed, how
ever, when a close friend in
troduced him to the
non-profit organization Ami
gos de los Sobrevivientes
(Friends of the Survivors).
German Nieto-Maquehue,
the executive director of Ami
gos, said that victims of war
crimes remain traumatized
long after conflicts cease and
possibly for life. Amigos de
los Sobrevivientes caters to
any needs these victims
might have. Established 10
years ago, the organization
offers therapy, legal advice, fi
Turn to AMIGOS, page 6C
017785
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