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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (April 3, 2009)
OREGON S GAY/LESBIAN/BI/TRANS NEWSMAGAZINE LETTERS Submit your Letters to the Editor and Transitions online at www justout.com. under the OUT 6 ABOUT menu. Time to reflect E ditor : Recently I had the opportunity to watch the film Milk and it gave me cause to reflect about our community today. Have we grown, have we achieved equality and have we gone in the right direction? I know that all of us ponder these same questions, but have any of us discovered the answers? I feel that there are many of the mem bers of my community that wish to have change, but they are not able to see past their addictions. We have become, once again, a community that is seen more in the night at the local club than in the daylight. I too, am guilty of my own griev ance. I have forgotten my direction and who I am. I am an educated gay man with every bit as much talent as the next man or woman. Have we forgotten that we are doctors, lawyers, teachers and participating mem bers in every community? I know that I have. I have forgotten that I am not defined To APRIL 3. 2009 the CORRECTION The March 20 article on “Team Or egon” incorrectly attributed Suzanne Foster’s work with the 2010 Gay Games. Foster provides graphic design services by my sexuality, but by the compassionate human being I am on the inside. My abil ity to care and give selflessly grants me the ability to remember the past, look to the future and remain optimistic. The past eight years have been tough for everyone in our community, but the time has come to revitalize, reorganize and continue to work for change.... The Bush years have taught us this: We can survive any tyrant and any force that works against us as long as we stay together. So, would Harvey Milk be proud of what we have done, would he see that we have made progress, or would he even recognize us? My head is full of questions and I am searching for answers, but I do know this: We are a strong and powerful community with many talented members that want to change. Come forward, let us know who you are and let’s get back what we have lost and reach for the things that we deserve. J effrey M. C arr Milwaukie on a volunteer basis but is not responsible for the event’s marketing campaign. Her company is not Foster Design Group, as noted in Matthew Free’s article; it is Fos termedia Studios. 5 TRANSITIONS »Valerie Jean Lawson. 1949-2009 The recovering, women’s and sexual minorities communities lost a tremendous friend and ally when Valerie Jean “Vai” Lawson died on February 28,2009, after a valiant two-and-a-half year battle with pancreatic and liver cancer. Lawson was born November 19, 1949, in Reno, Nevada. She grew up in nearby Sparks and graduated from Sparks High School. She continued her education at Treasure Valley Community College in On tario, Oregon, and, after moving to Portland, earned a bachelor’s degree at Portland State University. A woman of great vision, Lawson worked with a handful of other women in 1975 to found the Bradley-Angle House in Port land-one of the first facilities serving battered women on the West Coast. Early activists in the domestic violence movement descended on Portland, inspired by what Lawson and her friends had accomplished. They imple mented those ideas in their towns, from San Diego to Vancouver, B.C. Lawson got clean and sober in fall 1978 and dedicated the rest of her life to the recov ering community. Establishing another first in Portland, she worked with a small group of newly recovering GLBT addicts and alco holics, founding the Live and Let Live Club, where recovery-focused meetings and activities continue to provide hope for countless individuals. Lawson was in the early wave of sexual minorities to work in the field of recovery, earning her CADC II certificate in alcohol and drug counseling in 1984. She worked many years for the Alcohol Safety Action Program, where she was instrumental in forming Project Triangle, a special outreach to alcoholics and addicts from the sexual minorities communities. Af ter Cascadia absorbed ASAP, Lawson created outreach targeting methamphetamine addicts from the sexual minorities communities. Lawson’s work in alcohol and drug recovery spanned nearly 30 years, until her retirement in 2006 following her cancer diagnosis. The laws of Oregon to the contrary, and notwithstanding, Lawson married Jann Gil bert in a Commitment Ceremony on October 4, 1997. They made their home in Northeast Portland, sharing a love of rocks, gems and their dear pets. Lawson is survived by Gil bert and her sheltie, Rusty. In lieu of flow ers, donations may be made to: Live and Let Live Club, 1210 S.E. Seventh Ave., Portland, OR 97214; Bradley-Angle House, P.O. Box 14694, Portland, OR 97293-0694; Friendship Health Center, 3320 S..E. Holgate, Portland OR 97202. Arrangements by Omega Funeral & Cremation Services. Private Memorial. Pricing Experts2 Deborah Betron, CRB, GRI g S §d,-. I’ABA ('«-founder Deborahf" BridgetownRealty.com 503.239.B446 503.287.9370 BRI)DG ETOW N r REALTY 1 Scott Werner, GRI Scott W(" BridgetownRealty.com 971.322.9399 503.287.9370 www.ScottWernerRealtor.com Portland s Largest Gay Owned Real Estate Company Since 1979 Brazilian Waxing Salon Experience the difference! If you have been burned (ouch) before, try Ela e Carioca (She’s from Rio). Brazilian born & trained esthetician Ana Claudia has brought her waxing skills from Rio de Janeiro and opened a salon. Many of Ana’s clients have had painful waxing experiences else where, but now trust only a true Brazilian! 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